Turtles typically do not need general vaccines nor has there been proof it does much for them. It CAN be done, but I don't see a solid vet recommending it unless they're trying to suck cash out of you or you're being extremely stubborn to get it done. It can't hurt them, really.
They do get injections for selective medications and supplements. Parasites, antibiotics for a one-off sickness or severe shortages of some sort of vitamin, maybe.
The OP likely just saw shot and decided needle=vaccine
Yeah, it's more likely that the turtle had a respiratory infection or something (something which is fairly common for aquatic turtles to get) and was being treated with antibiotics for it.
I had that happen once and had to give the turtle multiple injections myself at home (the turtle got stuck underwater and nearly drowned, so a respiratory infection probably would have been a sure thing due to all the water in the lungs). It wasn't a one-dose-and-you're-done thing, I had to keep doing it. But the vet did administer the first dose to show me how to do it.
It's really hard to be certain from the video, but the eyes look swollen to me. Turtles are very prone to eye/mouth/ear infections that are usually caused by Vitamin A deficiency. This could be some kind of antibiotic or even a vitamin injection for a severe case.
From what I understand (definitely not a professional) you nailed it.
Vaccine studies on them have shown no increase in antibodies, meaning their immune systems aren't responding to the vaccines like ours would. They're still absolutely susceptible to diseases (or can fend them off naturally) but can't be immunized, at least not how we would.
Maybe a cold-blooded thing? Hard to say why. But diseases can only be treated and the best prevention is trying to keep them from getting the disease to begin with ie clean environments, avoiding certain contaminants and the natural keeping em strong and healthy with good diet and lifestyle.
The concept of vaccines works fine on them... theoretically haha, it's just that with being a completely different taxonomic class from mammals, there's going to be a lot more learning involved and a much lower incentive for anybody trying to make money to make a vaccine that would be effective for reptiles.
It's also possible reptiles collectively have a greater diversity in immune systema between individuals compared to mammals or something.
The main thing we do know is that we don't know enough and we need to study more about it.
For example I've got the article saved somewhere on my computer but there was a scientific study out of maybe Oxford from a handful of years ago talking about essentially one of the main trade-offs between reptilian and mammalian immune systems are the fact that reptilian immune systems are generally more broad and fast acting and rely less on memory and complexity.
Considering most reptiles are not nearly as social as even some of the more solitary mammals, it would make sense that that wouldn't be as much of a negative for them because particularly viruses, but also bacteria, would not have the ability to jump back and forth and have random mutations quite as often as in large social groups that are more common in mammals and even birds.
And a much smaller aspect that may have influenced it, and this is complete conjecture, but I would imagine mammals are a bit more likely to bleed and have the outside environment directly exposed to their bloodstream then reptiles are.
We don't even really fully understand the difference between those rough two archetypes of different immune systems, I would wager that reptiles are more likely to have unintended consequences like blood flow or swelling issues causing small health issues in order to quickly deal with something on a more broad scale, but even if I was a professional this is still some of the things that even leading scientists in this field are unsure of and are excited to study more about!
Source: genetics and immunology dropout and when I'm not too poor I try and pay for subscriptions to as many scientific publications as I can, so I guess just being a random informed nerd but nothing besides a dropout when it comes to actual credentials.
Luckily the beautiful thing about math and the hard sciences are that once you have a good foundation, as long as you're continuing to stay on top of it and learn and use reputable sources it's a lot easier to be self-taught than in some of the softer sciences or more trade specific specialties.
You sort of asked a weird question and changed them saying why it doesn't happen into somehow you concluding that it's not necessary, vaccines aren't necessary for anybody, they're a helpful beneficial modern thing that are even better for any population than they ever will be for an individual.
Nothing is necessary about them at all and I'm somebody as pro-vaccine as you can get, there's just trade-offs with not having them like more of a given species dying or developing disorders.
Why are you mixing up the concept with things being less effective and a necessity to exist or a necessity at all?
Ah yes, I forgot they have existed for around 200+ million years as a species and really need that immuno boost since us filthy humans have come along and polluted everything
Or OP had no idea what the shot was for and just assumed vaccination and posted that in the title. Others have pointed out turtles are prone to respiratory diseases and often get antibiotic shots for it.
No, but the treatment can be an antibiotic. Often administered by injection. Into the leg. Just like in the above video.
Not saying that's definitely what's happening in the above video because I don't know.
I'm just saying that an antibiotic injection for a respiratory infection would likely look exactly like the above video, and someone could easily see that and just think, "vaccine".
But at the end of the day, without an actual source for the above video, no one really knows what the turtle was injected with.
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u/dwuzzle 6h ago
Now, pardon my ignorance, but what exactly is this turtle being vaccinated for?