Farm Animals and Horses｜🔴 Supplementary Column A: Withdrawal Periods and the Safety of Animal Products | Evidence chain

FAQ

What exactly is a withdrawal period?

After a drug is used in an animal that yields products for human consumption, the drug and its metabolites need time to fall below a safe residue level. That waiting time between the last administration and the point at which the product may safely enter the food chain is the withdrawal period.

休薬期間とは結局のところ何ですか。 — 人が食べる産物を産する動物に薬を使ったあと、薬剤と代謝物が安全な残留水準以下まで排出されるには時間がかかります。最後の投薬から、産物が安全に食物連鎖に入れるようになるまでのこの待ち時間が休薬期間です。

What exactly is a withdrawal period? — After a drug is used in an animal that yields products for human consumption, the drug and its metabolites need time to fall below a safe residue level. That waiting time between the last administration and the point at which the product may safely enter the food chain is the withdrawal period.

My dog took this drug and was fine — can cattle, sheep and pigs have the same?

No. Dogs and cats do not yield milk or eggs for human consumption every day, and drugs for them have never been required to undergo a product residue safety assessment; metabolic rates and routes also differ enormously between species, and food-producing animals carry the extra question of whether the products are safe for the people who eat them.

うちの犬がこの薬を使っても平気でした。ウシやヒツジ、ブタにも同じように使えますか。 — 使えません。犬猫は人が食べる乳や卵を毎日産することがなく、投薬にあたって産物への残留の安全性評価を求められたことがありません。動物種によって代謝の速度と経路も大きく異なり、食用動物にはさらに「その動物の産物を食べる人が安全かどうか」というリスクが加わります。

My dog took this drug and was fine — can cattle, sheep and pigs have the same? — No. Dogs and cats do not yield milk or eggs for human consumption every day, and drugs for them have never been required to undergo a product residue safety assessment; metabolic rates and routes also differ enormously between species, and food-producing animals carry the extra question of whether the products are safe for the people who eat them.

Is there a universal day count for withdrawal periods that I can memorise?

No. A withdrawal period is determined by crossing four variables — type of drug, species, product type (meat, milk, eggs, honey) and route of administration — and only the prescribing veterinarian, working from the drug's authorisation and the usage approved by the local competent authority, can determine it.

休薬期間に、覚えておける共通の日数はありますか。 — ありません。休薬期間は薬剤の種類、動物種、産物の種類（肉・乳・卵・蜜）、投与経路という 4 つの要因の組み合わせで決まり、処方する獣医師が薬剤の承認内容と地域の担当機関が認めた用法に基づいてはじめて判定できます。

Is there a universal day count for withdrawal periods that I can memorise? — No. A withdrawal period is determined by crossing four variables — type of drug, species, product type (meat, milk, eggs, honey) and route of administration — and only the prescribing veterinarian, working from the drug's authorisation and the usage approved by the local competent authority, can determine it.