Huge rise in tablets returned during amnesty

Organisers of a campaign to encourage pet owners to return unused veterinary medicines to practices have revealed a three-fold increase in the number of tablets surrendered.

Figures from the 2023 Antibiotic Amnesty show around 2,500 tablets were returned during the month-long initiative in November.

Around 300 other products, including suspensions and preparations containing antibiotics, plus 11 injections, were also recorded in the figures.

A total of 302 practices reported taking part – an increase of 70% on the previous year.

‘Much work to do’

The results of the programme were released yesterday (21 March) on the first day of the BSAVA Congress in Manchester.

Steve Howard, secretary general of the Responsible Use of Medicines Alliance companion animal and equine group (RUMA CA&E), which led the survey, said he was “delighted” by the progress.

He said: “We are fully aware of the pressures on the profession at the moment, so this increase has been great to see and we are very grateful to those that took part.

“But we know that there is still much work to do to get even more practices onboard in the future.

“My thanks go to everyone that took part last year and I hope we can encourage even more support for the 2024 campaign.”

The full amnesty report is available at https://rumacae.org.uk/reports/