– Can there be interruptions in medications? Pour then at least valerian, or something like that!
Photo: Oleg RUKAVITSYN
This year I, as a dog and cat owner, had to be pretty nervous. At first there were problems with vaccination.
So how are the problems…
It’s just that the most popular foreign vaccines were taken from clinics and disappeared, which doctors usually recommended even for elderly and weakened animals.
And under May imported remedies for ticks and fleas in tablets disappeared from the sale and working.
According to the original plan, only the cat was neutered. But also not without anxiety. After all, they were afraid that the drugs used in veterinary medicine for anesthesia would come from abroad intermittently and could end at any time.
A lover of rare dogs or cats on this beautiful background is now not gnawed by the thought: what will happen if the animal becomes seriously ill? Will there be something to deal with?
SUPPLIERS REMAIN, DRUGS MISSING
– Our area was luckier than others. None of the foreign manufacturers supplying us with veterinary medicines left Russia and refused to work with us, – says Tatyana Kolchanova, General Director of the Union of Pet Trading Companies. – But we must constantly look for new forms of delivery. There was a period in 2022 when the delivery time for medicines increased and there were shortages. For some, there is still a shortage. And the issue price since the spring of last year has grown almost three times.
As an example of recurring shortages, the expert cites Telazol and Zoletil. These are the same medications that veterinarians use during operations to anesthetize and immobilize their caudate patients. (So my cat got lucky with the operation!)
– The only substance for urinary incontinence in bitches has disappeared, the drug is produced by two manufacturers: French and Spanish. Nothing to replace. “Vetokinola” (a brand of antiseptic preparations for animals. – Ed.) has sharply decreased, – Polina Platonova, head of medicine at the LinaVet veterinary clinic, adds to the list of missing items. – Yes, there is such a thing in almost all of our pharmaceutical divisions. And as for vaccines, the situation is closer to bad. “Nobivak” has disappeared, “Vangard”, “Defender” practically do not reach, “Eurikan” is not enough.
WIN FROM THE RAGE
Vaccination is a special topic.
After all, even an absolutely healthy pet should be vaccinated every year against all kinds of ailments, especially dangerous for dogs and cats. And to be honest, I was a little discouraged when in fairly large and expensive metropolitan clinics this spring, from the above long list of vaccines, they could offer only two: Czech (“Well, we have imported”) and Russian. This is in Moscow. And in some regions, as dog lovers complain on social networks, even in the Russian complex (which is not only for rabies, but also for plague, enteritis, etc.) the Multican vaccine has disappeared.
– Disruptions in the domestic vaccine are caused by the lack of preparation of production for the volumes that have grown due to the lack of a number of imported vaccines, – explains Polina Platonova.
With foreign vaccines, the situation usually resembles a detective story. According to Rosselkhoznadzor statistics, in the first quarter of 2023, imports of vaccines for all types of animals into Russia increased by up to 26%. Yes, supplies of the previously very popular Nobivak vaccine have been reduced. But not zero at all. And another, also a popular vaccine, “Eurinac”, grew a little. But still can’t be found.
And it’s not just about vaccines. Since the beginning of 2023, the same Zoletil we are talking about has already been imported much more than during the same period in 2022 and 2021. But it is still not enough, – says Tatyana Kolchanova. – Where is all this? Unfortunately, some market participants (distributors, pharmaceutical companies) decided to accept the situation. And they create an artificial deficit to gain the maximum.
The same is said in veterinary clinics.
“One of the companies that sell veterinary medicines in Moscow is buying large quantities of disappearing vaccines and medicines and raising the price three times,” says Polina Platonova. – And the distributors, in turn, reserve these giant orders for themselves.
The Rosselkhoznadzor also says that the shortage of vaccines and some other medicines is artificial.
But the blame lies with “enterprises from hostile countries” who do not want to comply with the requirements of Russian legislation and allow Russian inspectors into their production sites. That is why they excite public opinion in every possible way and inflate enthusiasm around their products. This is what we are talking about. As of September 1, we will be able to sell veterinary products only after Rosselkhoznadzor verifies Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP). Several Western companies are asking for concessions (including the supplier of the defunct tick pills Nobivak and Bravecto, and other well-known manufacturers). For example, they have some difficulties with the reception of controllers from Russia in the current international situation…
Only numbers
Photo: Dmitry POLUKHIN
SUPPORTING QUESTIONS
Are Russian vaccines worse than imported ones?
With Russian vaccinations, as Tatyana Kolchanova explains, there may be difficulties when traveling with a pet abroad. And people still continue to travel to international exhibitions and competitions. If earlier the owner of a “sports” dog, having grafted it with “Nobivak”, he was sure that he could go to almost any country, now, alas. There are no special problems except with our brothers in the EAEU like Armenia and Kazakhstan.
Many pet owners are sure that domestic vaccines are less well tolerated than imported ones like Nobivak and Eurinak. Veterinarians confirm that this occurs, but mainly in the case of animals that are not entirely healthy.
– The difference between the preparations is in the degree of their purification. Some contain more impurities that can cause an allergic reaction, explains Evgenia Guseva, AlphaPet veterinarian. – But everything is very individual. One pet perfectly tolerates our drug, the other is better to choose an imported one.
This does not mean that home vaccines are less effective.
– Immunity is forming well, – told KP Ekaterina Chistova, the chief veterinarian of the Condor clinic. – Therefore, it is better to use the Russian vaccine than none at all. Plus, it’s cheaper.
WHERE DID THE TICKET TICKETS GO?
Not all remedies against ticks have disappeared, but some specific ones: the Dutch Bravecto tablets and the American Simparica. In fact, they were very popular. Judge for yourself: the Bravecto tablet has been working for three months. Once fed the dog – and almost all summer more or less calm. With drops at the withers and sprays, everything is much more complicated. They have a shorter period of action, there are restrictions on the ability to bathe and wash the animal …
“A similar home remedy for ticks and fleas has already appeared, also in tablets,” Tatyana Kolchanova clarifies. – It is called Okvet, the manufacturer is Agrovetzashchita. Valid for 42 days. But it is new, but little known: most pet owners treat these drugs with suspicion, they do not want to experiment. As for Bravecto and Sipariki, I repeatedly asked their manufacturers: they are members of our union: what happens to them? Explain the resulting exaggeration. Until now, deliveries have been made, as before, once in a given period. And of all there was enough, the distributors chose the product gradually, over several months. And this year they just brought it – dealers sweep everything right away.
