An injectable antibiotic used against swine respiratory disease has picked up a label expansion to cover its use in groups where cases of SRD have already been detected.
Draxxin, a tulathromycin antibiotic marketed in Canada by Pfizer Animal Health, is thus the “first and only” injectable antibiotic with a control claim for its use in pigs at risk of catching SRD from being in the same group as diagnosed SRD cases, the company said.
The drug’s new registration means it’s indicated for treatment of SRD associated with Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae, Pasteurella multocida and Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae and for the control of SRD caused by those same pathogens in groups of pigs where SRD has been diagnosed.
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Veterinarian Don McDermid, with Pfizer’s veterinary operations wing, said in a release Friday that the new claim provides Canadian vets with an approved option for use of Draxxin to control SRD in pigs where disease is expected.
“And controlling disease early, often before clinical symptoms appear, can be in the best interest of the animal, as early treatment leads to better responses.”
Draxxin, available only through veterinarians, is a single-shot therapy billed as having a “long duration of activity.” In swine, the product’s withdrawal period before slaughter is eight days.
