Puppy & Kitten Vaccination Schedule, Explained Week by Week

Few things confuse new pet parents like the vaccine schedule: a wall of acronyms, three vet visits in eight weeks, and rules that change by state. Here’s the whole system, decoded.

Why so many rounds?

Puppies and kittens are born with temporary immunity from their mother’s milk — and that same maternal immunity can neutralize vaccines while it lasts. Since it fades at an unpredictable time between 6 and 16 weeks, vets vaccinate in a series every 3–4 weeks so no immunity gap goes uncovered. Skipping a round leaves exactly the kind of gap that parvo exploits.

Puppy schedule (core)

Age	Vaccines
6–8 weeks	DHPP #1 (distemper, hepatitis/adenovirus, parainfluenza, parvo)
10–12 weeks	DHPP #2 · non-core per lifestyle (bordetella, lepto, Lyme)
14–16 weeks	DHPP #3 · rabies (state law)
12–16 months	DHPP booster · rabies booster
Adult	DHPP every 1–3 years · rabies per state law (1- or 3-year)

Kitten schedule (core)

Age	Vaccines
6–8 weeks	FVRCP #1 (rhinotracheitis, calicivirus, panleukopenia)
10–12 weeks	FVRCP #2 · FeLV #1 (recommended for all kittens)
14–16 weeks	FVRCP #3 · FeLV #2 · rabies
12–16 months	FVRCP booster · rabies booster
Adult	FVRCP every 1–3 years · FeLV annually for outdoor cats

Core vs. non-core: what “lifestyle vaccine” means

Core vaccines (DHPP, FVRCP, rabies) are for every pet, period. Non-core vaccines depend on where you live and what your pet does:

• Bordetella — boarding, daycare, grooming, dog parks.
• Leptospirosis — wet climates, standing water, wildlife exposure; many vets in the South and Pacific Northwest now treat it as functionally core.
• Lyme — tick country: the Northeast, Upper Midwest, and spreading.
• Canine influenza — social urban dogs, boarding facilities.
• FeLV for adult cats — any outdoor access says yes.

Your state’s climate decides much of this list — that’s why our state guides (for example Florida and Texas) cover local parasite and disease pressure alongside the laws.

What the law actually requires

In nearly every U.S. state, rabies is the legally required vaccine, typically by 4 months of age, with boosters on a 1-year or 3-year cycle depending on the product used. Licensing is enforced locally, and proof of rabies vaccination is the universal prerequisite — California requires it for all dogs, and many counties there include cats.

Keep the schedule straight without a spreadsheet

Booster math is exactly the kind of thing software should remember for you. Our free vaccine tracker stores your pet’s doses privately in your browser and calculates the next due date for every shot — with a reminder badge when one is coming up or overdue.

One last tip: keep printed or photographed vaccine records. Boarding facilities, groomers, emergency shelters, and interstate travel all ask for them — always at the least convenient moment.