Will Falconer, DVM Moderator
Hi Stina,
The first thing to know is that no vet is empowered to enforce rabies rules, though many make it sound like they are. If it goes no further than the vet's office, you can simply refuse it.
But, (and the post should have directed you to this page), you need to be fully aware of the consequences of a biting incident, should one ever occur, in an unvaccinated dog. If animal control is less aware of the Compendium of Animal Rabies than they should be, they'll be pushing euthanasia, even though you have the option to quarantine and observe instead.
So, you'll want to understand that Suzi was very closely monitored, controlled, and was a sweet dispositioned dog who was never put into a situation where a bite might happen. That takes a lot of vigilance. Can everyone do that kind of vigilance? I doubt it.
Hence, my usual recommendation is one rabies vaccination, over the age of 4 months old, which will likely confer immunity and get you some papers to keep going forward. See that link above: significant difference between a "non-vaccinate" and an "out of date but vaccinated" dog.