Injection Procedures Pamphlet  (for Salmonids)
for using PHARMAQ injectable vaccines

Please read entire pamphlet before beginning to vaccinate.

Vaccination Considerations

It is important that only healthy, well-acclimated fish be vaccinated. If you suspect your fish are carriers of infectious diseases contact your veterinarian before vaccinating. In the US, you may also contact your fish health specialist. Vaccination of diseased fish or fish exposed to high levels of infectious pathogens immediately after vaccination may be detrimental. Vaccination of unhealthy fish may not result in maximum protection.

Do not vaccinate fish within 30 days of smoltification. It is possible to vaccinate either in the hatchery or at sea.

What Size Fish Can I Vaccinate?

Fish as small as 10 grams may be vaccinated, although a weight of 25 grams or larger is recommended. If there is a chance that the fish will be challenged in fresh water before smolting, it is recommended that the population be vaccinated as soon as the smallest fish is larger than 10 grams. Be aware, however, that fish at smaller sizes may be more susceptible to handling stress, growth delay and/or subsequent post-vaccination mortality than fish 25 grams in weight or larger.

Preparing to Vaccinate

Strict sanitation around the vaccination site is critical. Be sure the injection table and equipment are thoroughly disinfected. Replace the anesthetic bath on a regular basis, keeping the temperature between the tank water and the anesthetic bath as close as possible, and watching for mucus build-up in the anesthetic solution. Because of the potential for various anesthetics to alter the pH of the water, buffering agents should be considered to minimize physiological stress. Recovery time should be kept to a minimum, with about 3 minutes as a general guideline. An air stone should be used in both the anesthetic bath and recovery tank. Limit handling of the fish as much as possible to assure that stress and injury are minimized. Watch anesthetic bath for scale-loss as a sign of inadequate handling practices.

Do not crowd fish for extended periods of time. Avoid overcrowding of dip nets. More frequents dips of fewer fish, rather than fewer dips with a large amount fish, are recommended. Use knotless nets only. Keep the time that fish are out of water to an absolute minimum.

Vaccine Preparation

Open all cases of your order upon arrival to assure that the product was not damaged in shipment. The vaccine should be of uniform color and consistency. Mineral oil separation and settling are natural. Prior to use, simply shake the bag to remix the oil. If remixing does not occur, contact an PHARMAQ representative. A brown watery layer indicates the emulsion has been frozen or damaged.

Store the vaccine at 2-7°C (35-45°F), but do not allow it to freeze. Use the entire contents of the bag when first opened in order to avoid contamination.

To reduce viscosity and improve ease of administration, allow the vaccine to warm to room temperature immediately prior to use. Be sure to keep the operation area at temperatures close to or slightly above the ambient water temperature.

Follow the PHARMAQ "Vaccine Bag Instruction Sheet" to prepare the bag for vaccination. Connect the bag to the injection equipment following manufacturer's instructions. Hang bag with hose connections facing downward. In cold climates, the bag may be hung from the neck and held close to the body with tubing fed through the sleeve to maintain vaccine at a warmer temperature when injecting.

Measure the thickness of the fish's body wall in order to select the appropriate needle length, so that the needle just penetrates the body wall. It may be necessary to forfeit a couple of fish to ensure adequate penetration and vaccine delivery. Prime the injection apparatus until a continuous air-free vaccine stream flows from the needle. Adjust the injection volume to 0.2 ml.

Note: Gun-type injectors, needles, and needle-guards
are available from your PHARMAQ distributor.

Injecting the fish

Do not feed fish 48 hours prior to vaccinating at temperatures above 8oC (48oF). At temperatures below 8oC, take fish off feed for 48 to 72 hours. Emptying the fish's digestive tract reduces the effect of handling stress and minimizes the chance that the vaccine will be injected into the lower intestine. Do not vaccinate at temperatures below 1°C (34°F).

Each fish should be anesthetized. If a fish moves when it is being injected, unnecessary internal damage from the needle may occur. Likewise, the vaccinator may also run a higher risk of injecting him/herself.

Manual Injection:

Hold your hand like a trough, and remove a fish from the anesthesia such that the weight of the fish is evenly distributed in your hand. Do not squeeze the fish, but gently cradle it between your fingers and palm. With the fish belly up, head facing away from you, insert the needle just forward of the pelvic fins, about one fin length, along the ventral midline - only deep enough to penetrate the body wall - so that the vaccine remains in the peritoneal cavity. Be sure that the needle penetrates the body wall completely before the vaccine is injected and that the full 0.2 ml dose has been administered before the needle is withdrawn. Do not release the trigger until the point of the needle has been withdrawn from the fish. Remove fish scales from the needle on a regular basis. Because they vary, change needles when undue resistance is encountered.

Automated Injection:

Follow manufacturer's directions in setting up vaccination equipment.

 To avoid self-injection, wear protective gloves and equip vaccination syringes with a needle guard, or use automated injection equipment. Self-injection has been known to cause hypersensitivity, repository sterile abscesses, and/or an allergic reaction. In case of an accident, immediately consult the nearest physician or emergency hospital and provide them with a copy of the safety pamphlet enclosed in the product package.

Once each fish has been vaccinated, it should be returned to the rearing tank environment as quickly as possible. Observe recovering fish closely. If fish are not swimming within a few minutes in the recovery tank, stop vaccinating immediately and consult your veterinarian or fish health professional to assess the cause. It is normal for fish to lose their appetite for a brief period of time after vaccinating, depending on water temperature, severity of handling stress, alkalinity, and other environmental factors. Attention to detail during the vaccination process will minimize this effect.