It has come to my attention recently that people have been doing all sorts of things with medications and their pets.
Here are a few examples:
1. Using meds from another pet in the household
2. Having "leftover" antibiotics for the same patient for the same problem
3. Using medications from a friend's pet
4. Using medication here and there, a few days at a time or whenever "x" happens (red ear, diarrhea, etc you name it!)
Ok, there are NUMBER of problems with these situations.
First of all, you should NEVER have "left over" antibiotics unless one of two things has occurred
A. Your pet had a problem with them and you called your vet for a NEW or different medication to treat the problem
B. Your vet gave you a second round of them because he/she knows it's a recurrent problem and understands you KNOW how that when it recurs you are to give the entire second course as directed
B is not usually a problem - because those cases/clients are familiar to us and "get it." A however, is a HUGE problem. People stop giving medications for all sorts of reasons, never call us to discuss it and then return 2 weeks to 6 months later to tell us that "Gee, doc the problem never got better." AND sometimes they are upset about it!! Yes, really! We do answer phone calls and we don't even charge for that!
No antibiotic or anti fungal - be it topical or oral - should be used here and there. It's for a certain course or length of time to kill the bacteria or yeast in that location. Even if your pet seems to be doing better, by stopping early you are in essence breeding more resistant forms of bugs for the next go round.
All I can say is PLEASE follow the instructions and if there are any issues or concerns, PICK up the phone and call your veterinarian. YOUR vet. Your VETERINARIAN. Not your groomer, Aunt Susie, your neighbor, etc.
We do know a thing or two after 8 years of school and many years of in the field practice and most of us are more than happy to help and if we don't know, can find out for you!
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