

Others, like the Atopica for Cats liquid that we often prescribe, last only a few months. Some last a very long time, up to several years. Sometimes, though rarely, changes can take place that cause the medication to be harmful to your pet.Įach individual drug has its own unique shelf life determined by the manufacturer. This helps our pet parents know how to best use the medications we prescribe.Įxpiration dates on veterinary drugs are important because, as time marches on, drugs lose efficacy and potency due to chemical changes that take place. When we dispense a medication for your pet, an expiration date is also printed on the prescription label. Typically, this date is clearly stamped or printed on the container provided by the manufacturer. Should you keep these things, and for how long?ĭon’t worry, Animal Skin and Allergy Clinic has the scoop on expiration dates on veterinary drugs, so that you can stay on task with your decluttering resolutions.Īll medications that we prescribe to our patients come with an expiration date.

You have half a tube of ointment from that one time Fluffy had an ear infection, a few pills rattling around from when she was so itchy last summer, and almost a full bottle of some type of pain pill from the time she sprained a paw. If your January purge includes decluttering your medicine cabinet, you might find yourself wondering how important those dates stamped on various pharmaceuticals really are.
