Our furry family members sometimes go down for the count and need some medication to help pick them up. But what happens when they won’t take a pill? Or need specialised medication? Or have to take multiple medications? The answer for you and your pet might be compounded drugs!
Compounded medications are prescribed by your vet and essentially manipulated beyond the medications originally prescribed scope. This could mean combining more than one medication into a single capsule or syringe, turning a capsule into a liquid, adding flavour to a bad tasting drug to make it more palatable, and changing the dosage rate.
When would a dog require compounded medication?
There are a lot of reasons your pup might need a compounded medication over a traditional prescription! This is especially true if there are no approved human or veterinary products currently available or appropriate for treatment. Compounded drugs can make administration significantly easier. For example, if a dog needs a pill but simply will not take it, a compounding pharmacist can turn it into a liquid in a syringe, which could be easier to get the dog to take. In another situation, if your dog needs multiple medications but does not take drugs easily, it might be beneficial to have multiple drugs compounded into one form.
Due to the nature of the medication, this decision should only be made with your veterinarian who is familiar with your dog’s condition. Your veterinarian should understand the associated risks with compounded drugs and make the decision about whether or not it is better to go untreated. But more on those risks in a minute.