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 Veterinarians raise alarm over anti-itch drug sold without Rx

Dr. Vicky Smith was reviewing the medical history of her patient, a small dog brought in for lethargy, extreme thirst, a ravenous appetite and increased urination, when his owner revealed a surprising bit of information.

As Smith inquired about any medications the dog was taking, the owner said, "Oh, he's on cyclosporine," Smith recounted.

Cyclosporine is a powerful immunosuppressant used to prevent organ rejection in transplant patients, as well as to treat certain severe cases of rheumatoid arthritis or psoriasis in humans. Veterinary-specific forms of oral cyclosporine are approved for the treatment of dermatitis — inflamed, itchy skin — in dogs and cats. It is often used off-label for other immune-mediated conditions. Cyclosporine requires a prescription for sale in the United States, and Smith hadn't written one for this dog — nor, apparently, had any other veterinarian.

The client said she'd ordered it online and was unaware that a prescription should have been required. Her dog stopped itching, so she figured it worked as advertised.

Smith ran blood work on the dog and was alarmed by the results.

"His liver enzymes were through the roof," Smith said, worried about the possibility of liver damage. The owner, horrified, stopped using the product. The dog's condition improved right away.

Wondering how a company could sell cyclosporine without a prescription, Smith took her case to the message boards of the Veterinary Information Network, a community for the profession and parent of the VIN News Service. There, she saw her patient's case echoed in the experiences of other practitioners.

Two veterinarians located in disparate parts of the U.S. reported the same set of circumstances: A canine patient with a bigger appetite, increased thirst, more frequent urination — and a new anti-itch product in their routine.

Like Smith's patient, the other dogs had been given a product said to be cyclosporine that their owners purchased without a prescription. The source of the product in all cases was the same: a website called WagLabs.

VIN News emailed WagLabs and called the company's two phone numbers multiple times and did not receive a response. A search on whois.com, a free domain lookup tool, shows that the domain registrant is "Domains By Proxy, LLC." This is one of many similar services that allow for the actual registrant to be unlisted.

While it's impossible to know what is in the product without testing it — a process that costs thousands of dollars — Dr. McKinley Smith in Oregon wonders if the product contains cyclosporine at all. Her patient, a 5-year-old golden retriever, has chronic otitis externa and pruritis — inflammation of the ear canal, resulting in itchiness and pain. After being given the WagLabs product by his owner, Smith's patient stopped itching within 24 hours.

This was a "big alarm bell" for Smith. "Cyclosporine does not work within 24 hours," she said. In fact, it can take four to six weeks to see a response.

Even if it isn't the powerful drug it purports to be, practitioners are concerned that the product isn't benign, owing to the patients' signs of illness.

Products to alleviate allergies in pets are in high demand. Pet insurance company Trupanion reported in 2025 that it had seen a 7% increase in allergy-related claims since 2020. There are available veterinary drugs to treat skin allergies, including a medication called Apoquel that works differently from cyclosporine, but many online sellers tout alternative products as being less expensive or not requiring a prescription.

Faced with a plethora of online products of varied origin, the practice where Dr. McKinley Smith works put out a notice to their clients on Facebook and through email, encouraging them to stick with verified pharmacies.

"It's a new product, it feels like, every other day that someone's asking me about," Smith said. "But it's so good that they ask rather than try it themselves."

According to the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy, legitimate online pharmacies in the U.S. have these characteristics: They are licensed in their home state and in all the states in which they sell drugs. They require prescriptions from practitioners who have a legally established relationship with their patients or patient owners (clients) before dispensing prescription drugs. The drugs they sell are authorized by the federal Food and Drug Administration.

Escalating concerns

The WagLabs website advertises "clinically proven allergy relief for dogs" in the form of chewable tablets purported to contain cyclosporine, the same active ingredient as in Atopica, a veterinary drug made for dogs and cats. While both Atopica and generic cyclosporine require a prescription for sale, the product description on the WagLabs website states, "No prescription required."

Beneath the listing is a veterinary endorsement from a "Dr. Emily Carter, veterinary dermatologist."

"A few months ago, I started recommending WagLabs to all my clients. It contains the same active ingredient (cyclosporine) as Atopica but costs five times less than Apoquel or Atopica," Carter is quoted as saying.

VIN News determined that the photo of Carter is a stock image from the website Freepik. Meanwhile, veterinarians on the VIN message board were doing their own investigating and could not find a board-certified dermatologist by the name of Emily Carter.

Other practitioners escalated their concerns to the American College of Veterinary Dermatology. ACVD president, Dr. Andrew Rosenberg, looked into the website and the purported veterinarian and reached the same conclusion.

"Not only was that person not a veterinary dermatologist, we can't find that person's name as a veterinarian anywhere," Rosenberg said in an interview. He sent a notice to ACVD members on Jan. 21 and filed a complaint with the FDA. The agency has not yet responded to the college.

In Rosenberg's four years on the ACVD board, this is the first time the college has filed a complaint with the FDA. He hopes the website will be taken down as a result.

"I don't know what's in it. I don't know if there is medication in it. I don't know if there's not medication in it," he said. "There's a problem in each scenario."

While the FDA has not issued a public warning letter to WagLabs, VIN News became aware on Feb. 13 that the cyclosporine product was no longer available on its website. Clicks to the link now result in a 404 message, which means "page not found."

The phone number associated with the WagLabs Facebook page is the same as the one given for another pet-related web business. This company, Millionaire Mutt, sells dog bandanas. VIN News was unable to determine the company's location or leadership.

A post on the forum website Reddit indicates that Millionaire Mutt once sold an item listed as "Oclacitinib Chewable Tablet." Oclacitinib is the active ingredient in Apoquel. The product description on the Millionaire Mutt website specified that a prescription was not required to purchase the product. The listing has since been removed from the website, but a record of it is saved on the Internet Archive.

The oclacitinib product posting included an endorsement from a Dr. Emily Carter, the same name as the stock persona promoting WagLabs' cyclosporine tablets.

VIN News also noted that some images of pill bottles on the WagLabs website feature Millionaire Mutt branding, suggesting a possible connection between the two sites.

A link between seemingly different rogue websites is not unusual, according to the pharmacy boards association. A report from the organization states that most such operations belong to networks that operate thousands of internet domain names. "If one domain name is shut down, it causes minimal disruption because the network has thousands of backups," the report reads.

The vastness of the online pharmacy landscape isn't lost on Rosenberg of the ACVD; it's why he encourages awareness.

"As we get into this environment of more and more medications being ordered online, and you combine that with the rise in artificial intelligence, I just worry that we're going to be seeing more and more and more of these," he said. "I would just encourage [people], whether they are veterinarians, whether they are technicians, whether they are pet owners, to just really be aware of these and be vigilant. If you do see something, say something, because if the authorities aren't aware about it, they can't really do anything about it."

March 25 update: VIN News has learned that a pet owner in North Carolina this month submitted a WagLabs product labeled as a 50 mg cyclosporine tablet to a laboratory for testing. The results, provided to VIN News by the pet's veterinarian, show the lab detected only one major substance: dexamethasone. Dexamethasone is a potent corticosteroid used in human and veterinary medicine. In the U.S., it is approved as an anti-inflammatory agent for dogs and other species. A prescription is required for use. As of this update, the WagLabs website no longer shows any products for sale.

 

 

It has become abundantly clear to me that after almost 50 years of practicing veterinary medicine, with 40 of them at Community Animal Hospital, my time has come to retire.
I want to thank all the loyal, wonderful clients and their amazing pets for the trust you have placed in us. We understand how beloved your pets are to you and we take great pride in having been able to provide you with compassionate and exemplary veterinary care over all these years.

My dedicated staff will remain in place as is, and the transition is planned to be seamless. Very little will hopefully change.

Thank you all.

Warren M. Davis, DVM, Dip. ACVIM

Just a reminder - we're here for you! While we can't see any "well" visits, call if you need us for anything else.

UPDATE: In order to limit exposure to COVID-19 for both our staff and our clients, we are going to practice social distancing as much as possible while still being able to care for your pets. So that we can still see appointments, we are limiting the amount of clients in the building at one time. First, we request that if you are not feeling well, please have someone else bring your pet in. Second, we have to limit the amount of people in our waiting room so we ask if you let us know when you arrive and we will bring you into the hospital when it is your turn. The doctor will speak to you outside or in the waiting room and we will examine your pet in a room separately. Third, we will be offering a curbside service for medication or food pickup. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

As of now, the US Center for Disease Control & Prevention and The World Health Organization share that there is no evidence that companion animals can spread COVID-19. To date, there has not been any reports of animals becoming sick with the virus. 

Check out our upcoming event: Photos with Santa! For a $5 min. donation, have your pet's photo taken with Santa! All proceeds will be directly donated to the Parsippany Animal Shelter and Ramapo Bergen Animal Refuge. This event will take place on December 1st from 1-3 PM.

Safe Haven Rabbit Rescue is a great organization. Come out and support them at their event this Sunday (10/27/19). Our very own Dr. Adelsohn will be the guest speaker! Click on the link below for more information.

Here is a New York Times article from June 29, 2019 regarding brands of dog food that have grain-free varieties that may be linked to heart disease in dogs.

Feeding dogs a grain-free diet is showing a connection to dilated cardiomyopathy. Here is an article with more information. 

As you may have heard, Hill's has issued a voluntary recall of a number of their diets due to increased levels of Vitamin D. These diets include I/D, W/D, K/D, C/D, etc. Currently no illnesses have been reported. Here is a link to the full list of the diets and the corresponding lot numbers. 

https://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm630232.htm

 

Here is Tyler, he is a 13 1/2 year old greyhound.  Here he is posing on our front lawn.  He's a sweet boy with a heart of gold (his mom has a heart of gold too!)

Welcome Dr. Cohen!!

We are so happy to have Dr. Rachel Cohen at our practice for a few months.  Dr. Cohen recently graduated from Ross University.  She will soon be starting her internship at Red Bank Veternary Hospital, but we are lucky enough to have here here until then.  We know her well as she worked with us as a technician throughout her academic career and are so proud she has returned as a veterinarian!

Spencer and Jackson, patients since puppyhood, make it to the pinacle of the fashion world appearing in Vanity Fair magazine.

See more pictures on our facebook page....Community Animal Hospital of New Jersey

United Pet Group has recalled rawhide chews manufactured in Mexico, Colombia and Brazil.  The facilities use a compound mixture for cleaning the food processing equipment than has not been approved in the U.S. as a processing aid for rawhide chews for dogs. The chews have been reported as having an unpleasant odor and caused diarrhea and vomiting.  The treats are as follow:

Companion

Dentley's

Essential Everyday

Dentahex Oral Care Chews

Enzadent

Exer-Hides

Good Lovin'

Hill Country Fare

Petco

Priority Total Pet Care

For more information we have provided the website address.

Tanner is a handsome, ten year old, yellow lab.  We've been seeing him since he was an eight week old puppy.  He recently slimmed down with a different diet and more exercise.  We are so proud of him!

Due to the snow storm predicted for tomorrow we will be closed for the day.  We will be back in on Wednesday 3/15/17.

Stay safe, everyone!!

Its time for our annual Halloween Pet Costume Contest!
Send a picture of your pet in costume to: communityanimalhosp.com, go to Pet Resources, Pet Picture Gallery, Halloween Costume Contest 2016. Winner will be picked by random. Winner receives a $40.00 gift certificate towards veterinary services.

Here is last year's winner:

Darby

 

Dr Weshefsky's last day with us was 7/19/16.  We wish him the best of luck in his new home in North Carolina.  He has been a part of Community Animal Hospital for 24 years and we will miss greatly.

 

There are many foods that we enjoy this holiday season and throughout the year that can be harmful to our pets.  Here is a list of some of the foods and the reasons to avoid them.

Alcohol:  Can cause seizures, arrhythmias, coma and death.
Avocado: Can cause vomiting and diarrhea
Bones:  Can cause obstruction or laceration of the digestive system
Chocolate, coffee, tea:  Can cause vomiting and diarrhea and be toxic to heart and nervous systems.
Fat trimmings: Can cause pancreatitis.
Grapes, raisins and currants:  Can damage the kidneys.
Macadamia nuts:  Can affect the digestive and nervous systems and muscle.
Milk and dairy products:  Can cause diarrhea if given in large amounts.
Mushrooms:  May affect multiple systems, cause shock or even death.
Onions and garlic:  Can damage red blood cells and cause anemia.
Persimmons, peach and plum pits:  Can cause intestinal obstruction.
Rhubarb leaves:  Can affect the digestive, nervous and urinary systems.
Table scraps:  In large amounts can cause pancreatitis.
Yeast dough:  Can expand and produce gas causing pain and possibly bloat.
Xylitol:  Can cause low blood sugar, vomiting, weakness, collapse, and liver failure.  

We love to decorate for the holidays but be sure to keep them out of pets reach.  Here are some decorations to be careful of.

Tinsel:  Can cause intestinal obstruction.
Mistletoe and holly:  Can cause cardiovascular and kidney failure.
Wires:  Can cause lethal electrical shock
Batteries: If punctured the acid will cause burns.
Christmas tree water:  Stagnant water grows bacteria and causes intestinal upset.  It is also a good idea to anchor your tree so that if climbed or bumped into it will not fall!

Dr. Adelsohn has been published in the House Rabbit society's fall 2015 newsletter.  Her article is about head tilt in rabbits.  Head tilt is not a disease but a symptom of other medical problems.  It explains how to begin to look for the different causes and treatments.  Click on the "more information" tab below to see her article.

Darby the  lop rabbit, as the great pumpkin!!!!

Congratulations Darby!

Enter your pet in our annual Halloween Costume Contest! Post a photo of your pet in costume on our website, under pet resources, Halloween Costume Contest 2015 by 6:00 pm 10/31/15.  Remember your pets name and last name.  The winner will be randomly piked and announced 11/2/15.  Winner will receive a gift certificate worth $25.00 towards veterinary services.  Good luck!!

Don't miss out on these great deals from Merial on Frontline Plus and Heartgard Plus:

 

Buy 6 months Frontline Plus AND 12 months Heartgard Plus receive $50.00 rebate

OR

Buy 6 months Frontline Plus and receive 2 extra months free!

OR

Buy 3 months Frontline Plus and receive 1 extra month free!

OR

Buy 12 months Heargard and receive $12.00 rebate

 

The Robert abady Dog Food Co. has recalled "Abady Highest Quality Maintenance & Growth Formula for Cats" due to the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella.  This organism can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems.  For more information go to: http://www.fda.gov/animalVeterinary/safetyhealth/recallswithdrawals/default.htm

November is Adopt a Senior Pet Month. St. Huberts has many wonderful adult animals for adoption. Choose any of their amazing Red Collar Society Senior Pets and name your own adoption fee. All month long! All vaccinated, spayed/neutered, microchipped. Visit their website for more information: http://www.sthuberts.org/

Twenty Questions to help choose the right Pet Insurance Plan

Enter your pet in our Halloween Costume Contest!!  Post a photo of your pet in costume on our Pet Picture Gallery (under Pet Resources), Halloween Costume Contest 2013 by 8:00 pm, 10/31/13. Remember to include your pet's name and your last name.  The winner will be picked by random and announced 11/1/13.  Winner will receive a gift certificate worth $25.00 towards veterinary services and a food storage bin.  Good Luck!!!

NOTICE: We will be closed Saturday 9/28. We will be celebrating the wedding of Dr. Davis' daughter! The hospital will be open for any non-medical circumstances, and will re-open normal hours on 9-30.

We strongly recommend that any dogs adopted from southern shelters be heartworm tested six months after arriving in NJ, even if he/she has had a negative test from the original shelter.  Since there is such a high prevalence of heartworm disease in the south, many over crowded shelters that are unable to start heartworm preventative and the life cycle of the heartworm, it is possible that these dogs may become infected.   With a quick and easy blood test we can make sure your new dog is heartworm free.  If you have any questions please give us a call.

Virbac is recalling Iverheart Plus Flavored Chewables due to low potency levels of Ivermectin prior to the expiration date.  For the lot numbers and more information go to the link provided.

This is Brady, a 7 year old Bernese Mountain Dog Mix who was certified as a therapy dog at 3 years of age and has been going strong ever since.  He mostly visits nursing homes and libraries for reading programs but will visit other places when requested.  The organization is called Bright and Beautiful Therapy Dogs.   If you are interested in therapy dog programs visit their website  www.golden-dogs.org for more information.

Poison proof your home

Protect your pet by taking the following room-by-room precautions.

Living room

• Check out your plants—both inside and outside your home. Lilies (Lilium and Hemerocallis sp.) can be especially poisonous to cats,

so eliminate them from any bouquets.

• Keep home fragrance products out of reach. This includes open dishes of liquid potpourri and simmer pots.

• Don’t spray aerosols or any heavily fragranced products around caged birds or other caged pets.

• Keep ashtrays and nicotine replacement products out of reach.

Kitchen

• Know what foods are poisonous to pets. Watch out for sugar-free chewing gum with xylitol, raisins, grapes, macadamia nuts, onions, garlic,

unbaked yeast bread dough, fatty foods, and chocolate.

• Keep garbage cans behind closed doors. Trash and compost bins can contain many pet toxins, such as cigarette butts, coffee grounds, moldy

dairy products, and chicken bones.

• Keep alcoholic beverages out of reach.

Bathroom

• Keep medications safely locked up in secure cupboards—don’t leave them on countertops or tables or store them in plastic zippered baggies,

which are easily chewed through. This includes inhalers, dietary aides, and nutraceuticals.

• Never medicate your pets with human products without first contacting your veterinarian.

• Always check the container before giving medication to your pet to make sure it’s the correct medication, and store your own medications separately

from your pet’s. Pet Poison Helpline (800-213-6680) receives many calls from people who accidentally gave their own medication to a pet.

• Keep pets away from cleaning products. Shut them out of the room while spraying bathroom cleansers or other products.

• Close toilet lids to keep pets from drinking the water, especially if you use automatic chemical tank or bowl treatments.

Utility room

• Keep rodenticides far away from pets. Keep in mind that rodents can transfer the toxins to accessible locations. Certain rodenticide products do

not have treatment antidotes. Check products to learn their ingredients and possible toxicity to pets.

• Do not use insecticides around your pet without knowing their toxilogical profile. Read labels and use products only as recommended. Never

use dog flea and tick products on cats.

• Don’t leave batteries lying around. Dogs enjoy chewing on them, and they can cause serious harm if ingested.

• Keep glues out of reach—they can be tasty but some may cause serious harm. In fact, certain glues expand greatly in the stomach leading to

bowel obstructions. Keep pets out of the room when using glue on a home improvement project.

Garage

• Ethylene glycol (antifreeze) products are extremely toxic to pets. Choose propylene glycol products as a safer alternative, or keep pets far away

from any ethylene glycol product. If you spill any on a driveway, clean it up immediately or dilute it with several gallons of water.

• Keep all automotive products—like windshield cleaner fluid—away from pets, and immediately clean up any spills.

Outside

• Dogs like to eat certain fertilizers such as bone meal or blood meal. Keep bags tightly sealed and use products according to label instructions.

• Grub or snail killers—especially those that include metaldehyde—can be harmful to pets. Avoid them if possible.

• Yard insecticides that contain organophosphates or carbamates can be very dangerous if ingested in high concentrations.

• Keep pets off lawns until commercially sprayed herbicides are dry.

Raw food diets are being marketed and packaged for dogs and cats.  The doctors at Community Animal Hospital do not recommend raw food diets due to the exposure of possible pathogens, such as Samonella, E. coli, and Toxoplasma gondii.  We have had pets become sick after being fed raw food diets.  Visit these links for more information:

https://www.avma.org/About/Governance/Documents/2012S_Resolution5_raw_food.pdf

https://www.avma.org/KB/Resources/FAQs/Pages/Raw-Pet-Foods-and-the-AVMA-Policy-FAQ.aspx

 

 

 

 

Here are a few phone numbers for animal poison control helplines:

ASPCA Poison Control 1-888-426-4435

Pet Poison Helpline  1-800-213-6680

Poison Help 1-800-222-1222

Animal Poison Hotline 1-888-232-8870

Congratulations to our very own technician Ellen Leto, who will be attending Cornell University this fall!  Ellen has been accepted to multiple veterinary universities, but has since decided to attend Cornell to earn her veterinary degree!  Although we will miss her at Community Animal Hospital, we are all very excited for her and wish her the best! 

When you purchase Rimadyl at Community Animal Hospital you accumulate points that are transferred to a reloadable rewards card, which can be used towards any purchase at our hospital.**   Please visit the Pfizer website for more detailed information.

 

**This program is for patients who are on long term Rimadyl use.

"Diamond" dog food has expanded it's recall to include other diets due to salmonella contamination.

Kirkland brand (from Costco) is included in this recall.

Go to dogfoodadvisor.com  or  fdagov/safety/recalls/ucm303034.htm to see if a brand you may have is included in this recall.