MERRITT ISLAND, Fla. – Compounding pharmacies across Central Florida are fine-tuning their skills to cater to customers with four legs.
One of them -- The Pharmacy -- is located in Merritt Island, and their shop dog, Angel, is also one of their clients.
Owner Ross Clark told News 6 when Angel walked into his life, she walked in with a limp.
A broken leg earlier in her life didn't heal right, and he said she was in a lot of pain.
He also said she didn't like to take her medicine.
"She can find a capsule. If I hide them in cheese or deli meat, she will find a capsule and spit it out," he said. "So, I wanted to find a treat she enjoyed."
As a compound pharmacist, Clark can take chemical combinations that make up certain drugs and create new ways to administer them.
In Angel's case, he took her anti-inflammatory medicine and he made beef jerky bites out of it.
Now, he said, Angel thinks she's getting treats.
"It's not one size fits all," he said.
Take a medicine designed for cats with thyroid problems, for example.
"Normally, it comes in a pill," Clark said.
"It's tough to give a cat. You'll come away bloody and scratched, and they don't like anything shoved down their throats."
He said he puts the medicine into a cream that pet owners measure out using syringes.
"You take a small amount, and you take it to the cat and just rub their ear," he said.
"The cat just thinks he's getting his ear rubbed."
He said the medicine is absorbed into the animal's bloodstream.
But is it as effective?
News 6 investigated and found out it can be.
Studies conducted by the Textbook of Internal Veterinary Medicine showed absorbing medicine through the skin "has the potential to be effective, safe, and can certainly enhance compliance."
Clark said he can make it work for any size animal.
"If it's a 50-pound dog or a 10-pound dog, we can make whatever that particular animal needs."
If you would like to know if a compounded medication might work better for your pet, click here.
If you would like to search for a compounding pharmacist, click here and ask the pharmacist if they work with medicine for pets.