Antibiotics for cats and dogs
Your cats and dogs can get infections through an array of ways. Due to the places they go and roam, there are definitively more prone to getting sick. When your pooch or kittie gets sick, you want to give them the best medication. Take note of this short guide of antibiotics for cats and dogs.
The type of antibiotics for cats and dogs
When your pet gets sick, it could be caused by four different pathogenic agents: bacteria, virus, protozoan, and fungus. There are specific antibiotics for specific agents. For instance, a bacterial antibiotic will not be effective against a fungal infection.
As a matter of fact, wrongly medicating your pet can worsen his condition as you could be making other organisms resistant to a specific antibiotic.
How do antibiotics for cats and dogs work?
Antibiotics can help alleviate your dog’s sniffling or even a worse condition in your cat. Some antibiotics work by attacking the pathogen directly while others prevent it from growing. Once again, there is a specific antibiotic for a particular disease, so there is not really an ultimate antibiotic that cures everything.
This is the reason why it is very important that you do not prescribe an antibiotic to your dog, unless you are a vet yourself, of course. The veterinarian must first determine what is the cause of your pet’s condition in order to prescribe the correct antibiotic.
What About the side effects?
All medicines imply side effects with them so there is no way around this. Amoxicillin, a very common antibiotic prescribed by veterinarians has several side effects that include vomiting in dogs and cats, cat and dog diarrhoea, itchiness, lethargy, sleepiness, kidney and liver damage, and in severe cases, seizures and secondary infections.
Sounds like a lot? That is because it is. It is important that you mention to your vet if there is an underlying condition affecting your pet or if she is pregnant. There is a sector of those who know that the benefits of antibiotics are worth the risks, while others disagree. Talk to your veterinarian and do your own research to make the best decision for your pet.
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