Canada is in the midst of a pet medication storage. How can pharmacists help out?

Over the last few months, Canadian pet owners and vets have become frustrated at rising prices for medications for their furry companions. Pet prescriptions are mostly dispensed by vets, who control much of the supply chain for these medications. And while Canadian pharmacists are allowed to dispense any prescription medication approved by Health Canada, the companies that distribute pet prescriptions were not selling them to human pharmacists. In recent months, however, that’s changed: distributors and drug makers are now allowing pharmacies to order for them after pressure from the Competition Bureau. Now, pharmacists can buy and dispense these drugs, giving pet owners more choice.However, Canada is also facing a severe shortage of a number of antibiotics, sedatives, vaccines and other essential animal health products for animals—including livestock. Those shortages are diving up prices, so even for pet owners who could access these medications, the prices are climbing—and in some cases too high to manage. This is where pharmacists and compounding pharmacies can step in to help. Adam Silvertown is the owner of PACE Pharmacy in Toronto and VetMeds.ca, a new compounding pharmacy that dispenses medications for animals. There are lots of compounding opportunities for animals, Silvertown says. “Sometimes a drug may need to be made in a dosage that is more palatable or more suitable for an animal, or creating a compounded version of a tablet into a liquid that tastes like tuna or beef to make it more palatable.” For Silvertown, a pet owner himself, compounding medications for pets is something he hopes more pharmacies will take on. He hopes this will create more accessible and affordable options for pet owners.Silvertown became interested in pet medications after his dog was prescribed one that is also used for humans—for which he felt he was overcharged. Plus, he says, it’s not always convenient to go back to the vet for refills. And if your pet has a chronic condition, buying medications for them can get expensive fast. “When the Competition Bureau got involved, that’s what created this accessibility for pharmacies like me,” he says. But pharmacists wanting to get into the pet medication game should be cautious, even as this opportunity becomes more accessible. It’s important for any pharmacy owner, Silvertown says, to know that “the clinical knowledge that a pharmacist needs to dispense animal drugs is different from what we learned as pharmacists going through pharmacy school.” He adds that when he was going through his training, there was zero information about animals. Instead, he pursued training about pharmaceutical therapeutics for animals himself—and paid for him and his team to be trained and competent as well. He hopes this extra training will inspire confidence in veterinarians who send his pharmacy prescriptions as well. “Some veterinarians have expressed concern over the years that pharmacists don’t have that knowledge, and it’s true,” Silvertown says.“It’s not as easy as it sounds, getting that knowledge and training up, but there is an opportunity for sure: many people have dogs since COVID and there are statistics suggesting that pet ownership has increased over the last several years.” Ultimately for Silvertown, it's all about making things more convenient for pet owners— and as a bonus: helping alleviate pressure on vets. “We can save them money, we can make life more convenient and allow veterinarians themselves more time to focus on pet care rather than dispensing,” he says. “I hope that this can evolve into a collaborative relationship. We’re certainly not looking to compete with veterinarians, we’re looking out for the best interests of pet families and pets.”

Canada is in the midst of a pet medication storage. How can pharmacists help out?

Register for free access or login.

Related Topics