Pet Compounding Pharmacy: What Are Top 10 Things You Need to Know?

Have you recently come across Compounded Medication for Pets from a fellow pet-parent friend, acquaintance, or relative? If you’re genuinely curious about what benefits (to both you and your pet alike) these types of medications bring to the table, then you’ve come to the right place.

Consider this post as a complete orientation of what pet compounding is about and why its popularity has never stopped waning over the years – and is even increasing at an unprecedented rate.

1. Customization is the name of the game.

If you’re not already aware of it, compounding medications is the practice of mixing, altering and adjusting one or more drugs to come up with a more effective and convenient solution. On the whole, veterinary compounding is no different from its human counterpart.

Upon the advice of the veterinarian, a Pet Compounding Pharmacy will formulate a particular drug based on the exact dosage, form, and taste indicated in the prescription or request. Of course, the clear advantage of this is that the medication will in its best possible formulation for better results.

2. Many pet parents rely on compounded drugs to ease medicating their pets.

If you’ve been a pet parent for a long time now, you’re already well aware of how difficult it can be to medicate your furry or scaly friend. For this, pet owners tend to look for pharmacies that can add their pet’s favorite flavor to a particular medication. This way, it would seem like you’re giving him or her a treat rather than medicating.

This convenience extends to instances when drugs for more exotic pets and animals aren’t readily available. With a compounding pharmacy, you’ll always have the option to have medications that are difficult to acquire delivered right to your doorstep.

3.

Not all veterinary compounding pharmacies offer the same levels of customization.

There may be differences in the maximum safe dosage that they recommend for each drug, for example. Moreover, don’t expect all pharmacies to be able to produce multiple flavors that you can choose from. There are only a handful of pharmacies that are willing to spare no expense and effort in creating the exact flavor requested.

Don’t expect all pharmacies to offer a particular medication like amlodipine in topical cream form, for example. This is mostly due to regulations and the fact that

4. There are both common and rare veterinary drugs you can get from compounding pharmacies.

Doxycycline, amlodipine, and enrofloxacin are popular medications that you can choose to have customized with the help of a pet compounding pharmacy. However, you can also have more uncommon ones like diethylstilbestrol be supplied to you as well. Ultimately, these pharmacies only contribute to easing drug shortage challenges and ensuring uninterrupted medication for pets at large.

5. Some states have specific regulations for veterinary compounding.

For example, some states actually allow a veterinarian to exercise his or her right to compound, but there are others that restrict it. As for how these regulations are regulated, it mostly depends on the states themselves. If there are no specific regulations for it, veterinary compounding pharmacies tend to follow regulations for human compounding instead.

These facts underscore the lack of concrete nationwide laws pertaining to veterinary compounding in the US. This is why a specific pharmacy’s offerings may be different from one found in another state.

6. Safety may be an issue, but there are proactive steps taken by the pharmacy and other governing bodies that ensure it.

Many critics like to point out the fact that compounded medications aren’t regulated by the FDA. However, this only applies to the compounding process. The products being sold in compounded pharmacies are inspected, usually by the state board.

Also, many compounding pharmacies are all too willing to be transparent when it comes to revealing their entire drug formulation process and the ingredients they put in their products.

You can freely have any product lab-tested to ensure transparency and safety.

7. Veterinarians often have to follow strict guidelines and rules when dispensing and administering compounded medications.

As for what these rules are, they depend a lot on the country or state. At most, veterinarians are required to advise you regarding the fact the drug may not be 100% effective or its efficacy not clearly established. The same goes for the risks and potential side effects.

Some states may not allow them to sell to third parties. In Ontario, veterinarians aren’t allowed to dispense compounded products that promote growth or improve physical performance. The point is that these specific guidelines and rules may limit or open up your options.

8. Veterinary compounding services are rarely limited to cats and dogs.

There are many types of pets, farm animals, zoo animals, and aquaculture, after all. In most cases, a compounding pharmacy will be able to cater to the whole nine yards. Some may even be able to formulate drugs for less common pets However, do take note that there are certain compounding pharmacies out there that choose to focus on a particular animal instead. Don’t be surprised if you stumble upon a veterinary compounding pharmacy that specializes in cats, for example.

Lastly, pharmacists working in compounding services need specialized training and education based on the minimum credentials required by each pharmacy and the state they’re operating in.

9. You can buy and order most of your medications online.

At Bay Life, for example, you can quickly refill your prescriptions by filling out a request form that can be finished and sent completely through its website. You don’t have to go to the pharmacy personally since your requested drug will be delivered to your doorstep.

Compounding pharmacies also have their own online stores where you can quickly buy pre-made supplements and medications for your pet. Should there be shortages or emergency situations, these can be purchased and delivered right away as well, especially if the customer requests it.

10. Many veterinarians and pet parents actually use compounded medications for their economical perks as well.

A lot of experts attribute this to the fact that compounded drugs don’t have to undergo a lengthy FDA approval process. This means far lesser expenses for the manpower and tools required to ensure correct approval.

You also get to save a lot from the customization aspect as well. For instance, you can ask the pharmacy to refrain from adding unnecessary ingredients. This may not only balloon the cost but produce unwanted side effects on your beloved pet, too.

Bay Life Compounding Pharmacy: A Pet Medication Pharmacy is far from being a perfect solution for pet parents. However, its value lies in its ability to address the common major issues faced by owners with regards to

medicating their pets. Given its benefits, it’s a game-changer, to say the least. The field itself is rich in variability, and to think that it’s still evolving only leaves plenty of room for more progress.