meds

[terri9630]

I know whet to find the horse/cattle Penn but where do you get the cat/dog stuff? Is that a vet only med?

I assume so. I have only ever got it from the vet. Sorry, I sort of drifted off topic there; I wasn't focused on obtaining animal meds, just musing about the silliness of bubblegum for cats

Its the same with the hairball stuff. We had a long haired cat and she loved the coconut stuff. I'd have never guessed.

 

[Marianne]

DH's cousin is married to a vet, I asked him the same question - why the added cost??? He just shrugged his shoulders.

Add me to the group that if I had to, I'd use anything I could get.

 

[tortoise]

It totally baffles me why Amoxicillin for dogs and cats is so utterly exactly like that given to children - pink and bubblegum flavored. Now, maybe the dogs like it, but I can assure you that none of my cats have ever been happy about pink bubblegum But yup, its just the same as your pediatrician gives to your kids.

While it is compounded in the same flavor, you don't know the CONCENTRATION OF THE SOLUTION of the medication within the dose. Dosing is pretty specific business that you don't want to mistake! You must know the concentration of the solution, the correct dose for the species, the weight of the creature getting medication, to be able to calculate a correct dose of medication!

Some animal meds are exactly the same as human - except dramatically less expensive when purchased from a human pharmacy. My fiance (a vet) prescribed an antibiotic for a friend's dog. She saved over $200 by getting it at a human pharmacy.

Getting animal meds as a replacement for human meds is a bad idea at best and very illegal at worst.

 

[SillySoap]

I know a couple that take the fish penicilin. I don't know that there is anyway to compare if it is actually working because they are self medicating when taking it. It hasn't hurt them but how to tell???????

 

[pinkfox]

animal med and human meds ARE the same thing, but the stuff made for domestic pets Much lower dosage (at a higher cost) so it actually makes more sense to stock up on people meds than it would to buy pet meds.t

the antibiotics and stuff sold for fish (mostly tetramyacin) is definatly safe for human consumption and could be used in a pinch but youd need ALOT of it to get the same dosage as would normally be perscribed for an adults weight.

with my vets go ahead ive used human meds many a time, uncoated baby asprin for aching joints, pepto or kayopectate for upset tummies ect...

but stocking up on over the counter pet meds a a just in case is like paying 20 times more for 1/2 the dose of the same human medication.

 

[terri9630]

I'd like to have a supply of the human meds but Drs won't give you a prescription for "just in case".

 

[2dream]

Maybe I should introduce you to my Dr. She lets me have "keep around meds for just in case". Not a lot of them but she knows me and how I am. She knows I will self medicate in a heartbeat. Especially if I am sick on a weekend. So she figures its better to give me a couple of days extra meds than to lose me to whatever forever. LOL
I think my vet has figured me out too.

 

[terri9630]

Maybe I should introduce you to my Dr. She lets me have "keep around meds for just in case". Not a lot of them but she knows me and how I am. She knows I will self medicate in a heartbeat. Especially if I am sick on a weekend. So she figures its better to give me a couple of days extra meds than to lose me to whatever forever. LOL
I think my vet has figured me out too.

If I was closer.....
The media around here is making a big stink about Drs that write scripts for antibiotics and pain killers for every little think so now they don't want to prescribe anything.........

 

[Icu4dzs]

There are several points to be made here and they ALL bear consideration.
First, medication IS medication. Penicillin is penicillin. It won't kill you if if won't kill your animal but there are other issues involved. I believe it was Tortoise who said you must know the concentration and that is ABSOLUTELY IMPERATIVE.

While it is compounded in the same flavor, you don't know the CONCENTRATION OF THE SOLUTION of the medication within the dose. Dosing is pretty specific business that you don't want to mistake! You must know the concentration of the solution, the correct dose for the species, the weight of the creature getting medication, to be able to calculate a correct dose of medication!

It was also mentioned that it is illegal to "prescribe animal meds for humans" and a variety of other permutations of that statement.

Second, and more importantly some folks believe they actually "Know what they are doing" and "Know their body" and a variety of other "know ____" this or that. The truth is it takes years of study to know something, particularly what and how to prescribe a medication for a disease. Yes, any monkey can perform like a monkey. See/do!

The difference is that while a person may be able to stretch their luck by taking a "medicine" for their particular "illness", the one thing you are literally BETTING YOUR LIFE ON is that you are making the RIGHT DIAGNOSIS. Way too many folks are eager and willing to dispense their "medical knowledge" to others without the benefit of adequate study and preparation. (you will also notice that they carry NO malpractice insurance either in case you want to sue THEM for making a mistake.) That is fine for central Africa if you think what you are doing is ethical and moral (which may or MAY NOT be true). On the other hand, just because a doctor gave you a medication for an illness, it is not only un-wise but fool hardy to believe that you possess the same knowledge simply because you saw a cause/effect relationship between the medication and your own specific illness.

Way too many doctors write prescriptions for antibiotics simply because they fear the wrath of their "customers" for NOT giving them an antibiotic or whatever despite the fact that it is not only un-necessary, but eventually may end up causing some disaster down the road. If you have a viral illness, an antibiotic is a waste of money, an unnecessary expense and a fool-hardy exposure to a substance to which you might have a serious anaphylactic reaction and lose your life. Is that worth it? Telling your friends to take veterinary medications is unwise, not because the medication is in any way different than a human medication (although as mentioned before the dosing protocols may be different and that is based on the volume of distribution of the patient as well as the concentration of the medication AND o by the way THE HALF LIFE of the medication in the body)

Yes, the internet has turned many folks into "amateur doctors" who did NO STUDY and pay NO MALPRACTICE INSURANCE and really have no idea what they are doing and are sometimes lucky that their friends do not die because of trusting them but then who wants to take such an unnecessary risk just to be cheap? Yes, I am aware (very aware) that medical care has become outrageously expensive but rather than blame the doctor, blame the lawyers and the tort system and the millions of potential lottery winners who think that filing a law suit against a "RICH" doctor is the quick way to striking it rich. It isn't because the lawyers consume most of that money and you will never see it, EVEN IF YOUR SUIT IS VALID. O by the way, how many folks are able to fix their own computer or other electronic equipment? We have lots of "wannabe doctors" out there but not too many folks are able to tackle some of the more technical issues of our current society. What do they do? They throw that one away and go buy a new one. Can't do that with your kids or parents who get sick, can you?

So in summary, you are taking your chances by prescribing for yourself or your friends when you go to the feed store and buy medication. You'll probably do OK over 90 % of the time, but then there is the one time you have a problem and there will be no one to "blame" but yourself (and your children who are left behind who will be looking for someone to sue will be very angry at your loss).

Think about all of this, not just the "$cost" because there is definitely more to it than a few bucks. Yes, we have become very $ oriented in this country but then we bring it on ourselves in absolutely every realm of endeavor. How many of you have ever had to pay "Lawyer bills?" If so, you will know that they are exhorbitant, and you really get NOTHING for what you pay. When was the last time you sued a lawyer particularly because he didn't do what YOU wanted? (I didn't think so)

In the immortal words of a wise person "E Caveat Emptor"

Trim sends

//BT//

 

[tortoise]

Thank you Icu4dzs, this thread is unsettling to me.

Medications can be equally as dangerous as lifesaving. My medications could kill me. Taking them is dangerous, going off them or running out is potentially fatal. I can't take ibuprofen, benadryl, aspirin, so many other "benign" little things tha most people never think about.

Medication is nothing to play around with. Stock up on OTC meds however you like. But prescription medications: follow your doctor's orders. My insurance company doesn't not let me get medications ahead of time, but my prescriptions change so often I ends up with extra.

If SHTF, I have about 6 weeks before excrutiating and potentially deadly medication withdrawal. What would a stock of expired meds in the wrong doses do? Buy a couple more weeks? Or cause more damage?