Why Expiration Date Labels Matter in Veterinary Medication Safety

From diagnosing acute conditions to managing chronic diseases, veterinarians rely on medications to restore and maintain animal health. But ensuring those medications are effective, safe, and compliant with regulations requires an important element, expiration date labels. Beyond patient safety concerns, expired medications can result in significant financial waste. In fact, DVM360 reports that inventory losses due to expired medicines can represent 1.5% to 2% of total revenue, amounting to roughly $10,000 per full-time equivalent veterinarian in a practice.

In veterinary practices, where medications are often compounded, repackaged, or stored in varied environmental conditions, expiration date labels play an essential role in preventing medication errors, ensuring optimal outcomes and reducing costs. Whether it’s pre-printed label indicating the month of expiration or “Thawed” sticker on the Canine Parvovirus Monoclonal Antibody with a thawed and use by date, clear expiration labeling is a simple yet powerful tool to support medication safety.

Why Expiration Dates Matter in Veterinary Care

Expiration dates are essential to managing medications for any veterinary practice. When medications are past their prime, their use can jeopardize animal health and treatment outcomes.

Degradation of Ingredients

All medications have a shelf life. Over time, active ingredients degrade, reducing a drug’s potency and, in some cases, transforming it into harmful compounds. Administering an expired medication can mean the difference between successful treatment and prolonged illness, or worse.

Risk of Treatment Failure

Using expired medications, particularly for infections, chronic illnesses, or post-surgical care, can lead to treatment failure and extended recovery times. For example, antibiotics past their expiration may lose efficacy, allowing infections to worsen or promoting antimicrobial resistance.

Potential Toxicity

Some expired medications can degrade and produce toxic byproducts, posing a risk of adverse effects if ingested or administered to animals.

Impact on Animal Safety

Medication safety isn’t just about effectiveness, it’s about avoiding harm. Expired drugs can increase the risk of side effects or toxic reactions, particularly in species with heightened sensitivities.

Common Scenarios in Veterinary Clinics

Veterinary practices face a number of medication handling challenges. From on-site compounding to unit-dose repackaging and shared-use storage environments, these scenarios all increase the need for consistent expiration labeling to ensure safety and compliance. Below are common situations where expiration date labeling plays a vital role.

Compounded Medications

Although manufactured drugs are used for most therapies, compounded medications are essential for treating certain conditions, a process nearly every veterinarian relies on. When medications are customized in-house, their shelf life is often shortened. This makes accurate “Discard After” dating essential. Without it, staff may unknowingly administer a product past its usable window.

Repackaged or Partial Dispensing

Veterinarians often repackage medications to meet specific dosage requirements or the needs of a particular animal. While this supports personalized care and inventory efficiency, it also makes it easy to lose track of expiration dates. Including a clear “BUD” (beyond-use date) is critical when drugs are dispensed in smaller units or removed from original packaging.

Shared Storage Environments

In a veterinary clinic or hospital, medications aren’t always kept in totally separate locations. Instead, they may be stored:

• In the same room but in different areas. For example, on a shelf and in a mini fridge
• In a shared cabinet with multiple compartments for different drug types
• On mobile carts used during rounds
• In a central pharmacy area that dispenses for the entire practice

Veterinary practices often house a mix of refrigerated, room temperature, and special-storage medications. In busy clinics, containers can get moved, labels may fall off, or dates can fade which increases the risk of administering outdated products.

Types of Expiration Date Labels

Not all medications require the same labeling solution. Depending on how drugs are packaged, dispensed, or stored, different types of expiration labels offer distinct advantages. The right label format ensures clear communication, reduces the risk of human error, and supports consistent workflows. Here are the most commonly used types in veterinary practices.

Pre-Printed Expiration Labels

These are ideal for standardized workflows and high-volume dispensing. Clearly marked with“Expires On” or similar language, they reduce human error and save time.

Write-In “Discard After” Labels

Perfect for compounded medications, opened containers, or any product with a variable shelf life. Discard after labels allow your staff to customize expiration based on manufacturers guidance.

Color-Coded Labels

Colored dot labels provide a quick visual cue to distinguish medications nearing expiration or requiring special handling, simplifying inventory management and reducing confusion. For example, a color might stand for a different month and then writing in the year makes it easy to identify an expiring drug and take proper action.

USP <800> Compliance

For practices handling hazardous drugs, USP <800> requires clearly marked Beyond-Use Dates (BUDs) to be clearly marked. Write-in labels are essential for these scenarios, particularly for compounded chemotherapy agents or hormonal therapies.

Benefits of Using Expiration Date Labels

Although medication safety is the most important aspect of expiration date labels, they provide additional benefits:

Improved Compliance

Expiration labeling supports adherence to FDA, AVMA, and state veterinary board regulations.

Workflow Efficiency

Clearly marked labels reduce the time staff spend searching for expiration dates, especially during rounds or prescription fulfillment.

Inventory Management

Labels help staff rotate stock more efficiently, ensuring first-in, first-out use. This improves drug usage, reduces waste, and simplifies end-of-month or end-of-quarter inventory checks.

Consequences of Skipping Expiration Labeling

The most obvious risk of a missing expiration date label is the potential to administer an ineffective, or harmful, medication. But there are additional consequences worth considering.

Legal Liability

Improper or missing expiration labeling may lead to regulatory violations. Administering expired medications could result in citations, fines, or even legal action if harm occurs.

Increased Waste or Rework

Without labels, it increases the possibility that expired drugs may be accidentally used, leading to treatment failures and the need to re-treat.

Reduced Client Trust

Pet owners and animal caregivers expect safe, reliable treatment. A medication error tied to poor labeling can damage your practice’s reputation and weaken client relationships.

Best Practices for Veterinary Expiration Labeling

Expiration labeling should be simple, consistent, and fully integrated into your practice workflow. These best practices can help your team avoid errors and maintain compliance.

Application

Store expiration labels near dispensing, compounding, and storage areas to make proper labeling a seamless part of the workflow.

Format

Use clear terms like “Expiration” or “Exp.” If only a month and year are provided, assume the drug expires on the last day of that month. Standardize date formats across the clinic.

Inventory Checks

Implement regular reviews for checking medications that are near expiration or have already expired.

Disposition

Discard expired medications through approved methods, including return-to-distributor programs, hazardous waste services, or authorized take-back programs.

Training

Train Staff on expiration labeling standard operating procedures. Reinforce proper label application and checking protocols during onboarding and regular refreshers.

Why UAL is a Great Partner for Veterinary Practices

Accurate labeling isn’t just about organization, it’s about safety, compliance, and confidence in every dose administered. UALs selection of veterinary expiration date labels includes pre-printed options for streamlined use, customizable “Discard After” stickers for in-house prep, and color-coded solutions to reduce mix-ups.

With decades of experience supporting veterinary practices, we’re here to help you build safer workflows and protect every patient under your care. Contact us to learn more.