Is it compulsory for drug company checks for phenyl barbitone. And should I pay for them to be done.?

The local vet insists on 3 month checks for liver function as my dog takes phenyl barbitone (epiphen), to keep her epilepsy under control. I can pay for this, but added to this is the drug company check for levels of the drug in the bloodstream. This is to aid thier research. In that case I think they should pay me. I'm only on a pension and bills of over 拢100 every 3 months are crippling me.

If the drug company wants testing for their information, they should at least pay for the tests. I doubt you could get them to pay you, but try. You've got nothing to lose. Send them a cute photo of you and your dog along with a letter explaining your situation.

You should do what is in the pest interests of your dog

it is not the manufacturer it is based on the vet-
i do not check that often... not saying it is wrong but i would look for another vet that does not do it that often- it is an important test but once the dog has been on phenobarb for an extended period of time ever 6 months to every year is appropriate
AJ

I have heard of phenobarbitol being used for epilepsy in dogs but not phenyl barbitone. Is it a new drug? I don't even think we have that drug in the US. If you can't afford the blood test by the company then I would ask to be switched to phenobarbitol. I know here in the US it is a very inexpensive drug and works wonderfully. You may have to do tests every couple of months at first to regulate the drug properly but after it's regulated then you only need to have the phenobarbital level tested once a year. However, this is in the US, I don't know how vets in the UK have their protocols.

I understand your concern, However if it weren't for the drug companies research we would have more problems than we could count.

I don't agree with the prices they charge (to high) but your pet may help someone Else's survive one day in the future. So in a way you are getting paid, Just by the satisfaction of helping the pet population to come.

Thanks to you and good luck to your pet.

You should pay for the liver checks. However if the other is for research only then you shouldn't be paying for the testing at all. In fact they should be compensating you for travel expenses to and from the vet for that as well.

well, one part of having a dog is to make sure you can financially take care of them! and yes it is necessary to have the bloodwork/chem work done every 3 months (typically it is 6 months, but depends on how severe the case is) the bloodwork is to check her liver and kidneys, make aure the values are in the correct number range! and no, they should not be doing that for you, you are the one who adopted this dog and by that, you said that you were financially ready to take care of this dog! If you can't afford it, typically vet clinics have some kind of pay plan, talk to your vet about your situation and see if he can work with you on this

we use phenobarbitol here in the U.S. for epilepsy and i had never heard of phenylbarbitone either, but looked it up on the web and it is used for the same thing!