My dog, Brandy, was put on amoxicillin by my veterinarian for a bladder infection. My daughter has been on amoxicillin in the past for an ear infection. Why is my veterinarian giving human medicine to my dog? Is this safe?

Many medications that are used for people are also used in animals. Dogs and cats get many diseases that are similar to those of people, as a result, many of the same medications can be used.

The medications that pets are given can range from antibiotics to arthritis medicines or even chemotherapy drugs. An important point to remember however, is that the dosages of these medications can be very different for animals compared to people. The dosages can even be vastly different for dogs versus cats. Some medications may require a much lower or much higher dose in animals compared to people. Some human medicines may be lethal to pets even though they are safe for people. (An example of this is that aspirin can be toxic to cats, thus never give aspirin to cats.)

There are also some medicines that are only allowed to be used in animals and not people. Your dog and your daughter were on the same mediciation because they both had bacterial infections that were responsive to the antibiotic amoxicillin. The medicine is neither an animal or human medicine, it is merely an antibacterial that the respective doctors thought was appropriate for the infections concerned.

Because pets are not people, NEVER give your animals prescriptions or over-the-counter human medicines without the consent of your veterinarian since it may be harmful or even lethal to your pets.

This information, prepared as a public service by the Rhode Island Veterinary Medical Association, answers problems Rhode Island veterinarians currently are seeing in their practices, as well as new developments in animal care.