Doxycycline no longer available at your local veterinarian

My dog, Jazz, recently became ill. Between the limping of his rear right leg and soreness in his hind quarters, the change in his gait, lameness, lack of appetite and the inability to get comfortable lying down while next to me, I knew something was definitely wrong. It became abundantly clear when he began to walk with a hunched back.

The last time Jazz walked in a similar fashion was when he approached me in my bedroom while walking this way with his back end giving out last year. As he approached me, I could see something was very wrong. I began to walk toward him but he bared his teeth at me while wanting to be near me.  Jazz has never growled, shown his teeth or ever been aggressive toward me. It was at this time he was diagnosed with lyme disease. Jazz was given a steroid injection that time to help with the stiffness in his legs. That is something you don’t ever want to do. The injection caused his body to crash with the end result being a grand mal seizure. Never again! He’s never had a  seizure since then.

When I adopted Jazz, he had already been tested positive for lyme disease and has had numerous flare-ups over the years. He has a chronic case of lyme.

For those interested, here are other lyme symptoms that present themselves in your dog:

Acute lameness in the same leg or in other legs, known as shifting-leg lameness. Joints may be swollen and warm.

“Some dogs may also develop kidney problems. If left untreated, it may lead toglomerulonephritis, which causes inflammation and accompanying dysfunction of the kidney’s glomeruli (essentially, a blood filter). Eventually, total kidney failure sets in and the dog begins to exhibit such signs as vomiting, diarrhea, lack of appetite, weight loss, increased urination and thirst, fluid buildup in the abdomen and fluid buildup in the tissues, especially the legs and under the skin.”

As you can see, lyme can be a potentially serious and deadly disease. A health issue you do not want to take lightly! Please check the list below to see if your dog is exhibiting any of the signs of lyme. Do not waste time and get your dog to the vet.

Other symptoms associated with Lyme disease include: Stiff walk with an arched back, Sensitive to touch, difficulty breathing, fever, lack of appetite, and depression may accompany inflammation of the joints, superficial lymph nodes close to the site of the infecting tick bite may be swollen heart abnormalities are reported, but rare; they include complete heart block,  and nervous system complications (rare).

So, here we are again. The drug of choice to treat lyme disease in dogs is doxycycline. Last year, there was no issue of getting this drug to treat his lyme.

This time, it’s a completely different story as we found out. As I spoke with my veterinarian, I heard how doxycycline is no longer available to veterinarians. In fact, I learned it has become more difficult for people to get prescriptions of it, too.

I was told by my vet that it had to do with pharmaceutical companies. My vet is now giving amoxicillin to treat lyme disease. I wanted the doxycycline since Jazz responded so well to it last year. I also called a friend of mine, a veterinarian, and he suggested another drug to help with lyme because he, too, can no longer obtain doxycycline. So I started my research since I had differing opinions. Who or what was right for Jazz?

According to the Whole Dog Journal, vets are scrambling to supply treatments as Spring tick season has begun.

“According to the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) online index of drug shortages, the supply interruption for doxycycline was first noted in mid-January, and projected to be corrected by early March. As of mid-April, the listing showed only four extant manufacturers, of which two were supplying “limited” quantities and/or forms of the drug, and two were listing the drug as “available.” The reasons for the supply issues were listed, variously, as “manufacturing delays” and “increased demand.” As of April 10, FDA personnel had not returned multiple phone messages requesting an interview, and the FDA had released no further information about the causes and expected duration of the shortage.

While the shortage of this common antibiotic affects human medicine – where doxycycline is used to treat tick-borne diseases, acne, some sexually transmitted infections, and even anthrax – veterinarians are keenly aware of the pinch, as veterinary practices serve as pharmacies as well as physicians for their animal patients.”

So, what are guardians of our pets supposed to do when you’re in a quandary such as this? I was originally told by my vet’s office that if I found a place that has supplies of doxycycline, they would be more than happy to give me a script for it. I did find a place but now my vet said no!  I was completely perplexed and asked to speak to someone else at the animal hospital.

The next day, another vet said no problem and I was given a script for the doxycycline.

Just be aware from my understanding, there is now one pharmaceutical company in charge of this drug of choice and they have gouged the price of it.  For ten pills, it will cost you approximately $100 in the Berks County area. Some places it can cost as much as $3,000. It will depend where you buy it but expect to pay a lot more money for the drug that is most effective against lyme disease.

I refused the other medicine I was offered and wanted what has helped Jazz in the past. I took the prescription.

Jazz has improved immensely, once again. I did what was right for Jazz. You must make your own decision and it may not be the same as mine.

Keep checking your pets for ticks every time they are outside. Also, be aware of the symptoms that are listed above. Don’t forget, ask your vet, if you so choose, if you can call your local pharmacy to see if they have any doxycycline.

What this pharmaceutical company is doing to veterinarians/animal hospitals and to pets with lyme disease is so wrong. To deny a pet a drug that can literally save his/her life, is morally and ethically wrong.

The bottomline with the companies, restricting the supply of critical drugs, they get to increase the prices to whatever they want. Thus, they increase their profits.

It is profit over the lives of people and animals. How do the people who make these decisions sleep at night knowing someone may die without a certain drug? Doxycyline isn’t the only drug that is no longer available to the public. More than 140 drugs commonly prescribed by doctors have fallen into short supply in 2011.  Reason: PROFIT!

What makes this situations worse is the FDA hasn’t any power to convince manufacturers to make a particular drug. “So if a pharmaceutical company wants to inflate prices of the widely used medication, they simply have to restrict supply. Or they can halt production altogether, and there is nothing the FDA can do.”

Unbelievable. It doesn’t appear anyone can stop them.

Meanwhile, it is advised that we take every precaution to prevent our pets and ourselves from contracting lyme disease because the shortage is going to continue.