One of the main causes of poisoning of small animals is exposure to drugs intended for human use. Poisoning may result from misuse by pet owners, off-label use of medicines or, more frequently, accidental ingestion of drugs that are improperly stored.
Dogs are most commonly affected. The major drugs involved include:
- analgesics (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs)
- antihistamines (H1-antihistamines)
- cardiovascular drugs (calcium channel blockers)
- central nervous system drugs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, baclofen, benzodiazepines and zolpidem)
- gastrointestinal drugs (loperamide)
- nutritional supplements (vitamin D and iron salts)
- respiratory drugs (β2-adrenergic receptor agonists).
Any human medicine can cause serious illness or even death to small animals, so owners should keep these medicines out of reach from their pets.
Via: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S109002331400450X
