Into the Animal World
Introduction
Veterinary pharmacy is a relatively new field of pharmacy practice in Malaysia.
- A July 2020 news highlights that Vet Pharmacy is the first Malaysia's veterinary-exclusive pharmacy, where owners can find pet supplements, shampoos and seek basic medical guidance for their pets.
- I believe, more will come.
My View
To be honest, I felt I am incompetent when dealing with medicines in animals.
- Back in university years, I learned that paracetamol is contraindicated in cats as they lack the glucuronyl transferase enzymes, but it is well tolerated in dogs at recommended doses.
- Hence, at the back of my mind, there is always a concern if a drug is used for a particular indication in human, is it safe to use in animals? If safe, what dose should I give?
Nonetheless, it is a field that worth pharmacists' efforts to venture into in community pharmacy setting.
- Remember, many products in pharmacies are suitable for use in animals, though there are still many "vet only" medicines (NOT for human use), such as robenacoxib, carprofen and deracoxib.
Veterinary References
To be well prepared for the potential queries from customers (especially pet lovers), below is a list of useful veterinary references available in the market.
- Merck Manual Veterinary Manual, 2020
- Blackwell's Five-Minute Veterinary Consult: Canine and Feline, 2021
- BSAVA Small Animal Formulary Part A: Canine and Feline, 2020
- BSAVA Small Animal Formulary Part B: Exotic Pets, 2020
- Papich Handbook of Veterinary Drugs, 2021
- Pharmacotherapeutics for Veterinary Dispensing, 2019
- Plumb's Veterinary Drug Handbook, 2023
- Textbook of Veterinary Internal Medicine, 2017
- Veterinary Medicine: A Textbook of the Diseases of Cattle, Horses, Sheep, Pigs and Goats, 2016
Summary
At the end of day, if ever in any doubt, refer to veterinarian, especially issues that seem like they could become life-threatening or if they are just strange and out of your scope of knowledge.
yep, i've come across the a pt who are looking for anthelmintic for his cat... Albendazole is not recommended for cat..
ReplyDeleteThanks for the sharing. As a pharmacist, I find there is a need for us to step out of the comfort zone of human world. Hopefully, we are going to gain more confidence with more working experience.
Delete