Message Number: SG9209 | New FHL Archives Search
From: sukiec@optonline.net
Date: 2004-06-18 19:59:37 UTC
Subject: some medication tips
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
Message-ID: <2555291.1087588777837.JavaMail.root@thallium.smartgroups.com>

if someone is having a compounding pharmacy make up certain categories of meds (including chemotherapy agents) and knows that the ferret tolerates that specific drug very well did you know that you can save greatly on cost by having a large amount made at once if the med itself doesn't prevent that being done? Some meds have certain dangers for humans and the equipment used to compound them are not allowed to be reused for other preparations, so there is an equipment charge added on each time they are made, therefore, for those few drugs (but NOT others) making a large amoung of the drug at once can save a nice chunk of cash.

If yo think that you are dealing with such a drug ask the compounding pharmacist if your guess is right so that you can adjust the preparation size accordingly.

So, for some meds (like Diazoxide at first buy small for trials, but for other meds buy large to cut equipment costs, for most size doesn't matter.

Also, some meds are cheapest at your vet (especially ones that are mostly animal use preps) whereas some meds commonly used by humans but not as commonly used by animals can be cheaper at your local pharmacy.

(It doesn't make any sense to save by reducing care or quality of care, but there are other ways to save...)

There are a lot of medication tips in the Archives
http://fhl.sonic-weasel.org
including which pills you can't just cut, storage info, ways to give meds, which meds aren't what they seem (like 24 hour Lupron incorrectly sold as being a depot) or over the counter meds from stores which weren't what they were advertised as being or have been dangerous.