Veterinary teams are slowly getting over their concerns about using behavior drugs. The debate about animal anxiety continues but, “it should have been dead decades ago,” says Nicholas H. Dodman, BVMS, Dipl. ACVA, Dipl. ACVB. Client acceptance is stronger now as more humans use anti-anxiety and depression medications.
Source: Veterinary Practice News, November 8, 2016.
Dodman said drugs can be a game-changer for aggression, the No. 1 behavior problem in animals. ‘For some cases it can be managed with behavior modification alone,’ he said, ‘but I tell people I can get there faster with a greater degree of success if I use medication as well. Fears and phobias are very difficult to treat without medication because fears, once learned, are never really unlearned.’ Some conditions respond better to psychotropic drugs than to any other treatment.
INSIGHTS: Not all veterinarians routinely prescribe anti-anxiety drugs in behavioral disorder cases. The hesitancy might be due to a lack of comfort with the drugs and the conditions they treat, or because of concerns about side effects.
Sales representatives should consider discussing behavior drugs with veterinary teams and help them enroll in an educational event during upcoming veterinary trade events.