Veterinary Sedatives As Drug Adulterants
When you make eye contact with your pet dog or cat, you probably wonder what he is thinking. You imagine that your pet’s thoughts are simpler than yours. Your pet does not have to stress about money and can rely on you for a steady stream of food and cuddles. Even though your pet might not appreciate it, animals get to enjoy all kinds of drugs that are off limits for humans. Yes, some drugs that doctors prescribe to humans are the same as the drugs that vets prescribe to our four-legged friends, but the bar is lower for approving a drug when the patients have no opposable thumbs and therefore cannot sign the part of a medical malpractice lawsuit that says “plaintiff’s signature.” When humans find out how much fun a veterinary drug is, hilarity often ensues, followed by prosecution and sometimes death. Drug overdoses involving veterinary tranquilizers are on the rise in Florida. A veterinary drug that is currently wreaking havoc in other parts of the country may be more prevalent in Florida than we realize. If you are facing criminal charges for possession of a drug mixture that includes medetomidine, contact a Tampa drug crime lawyer.
Is Flysky Coming Soon to the Sunshine State, or Is It Already Here?
Veterinary tranquilizers are not so much fun that dealers advertise them on social media with emojis of dogs and cats; in fact, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) notorious drug emoji decoder makes no mention of veterinary drugs such as xylazine. When humans abuse veterinary drugs, it is because drug dealers use them as inexpensive adulterants in drug mixtures. Many vet drugs are not specifically listed as controlled substances, so it is easier for drug dealers to get them without attracting the attention of law enforcement than it is to, for example, buy fentanyl on the dark web.
In the past year, a veterinary tranquilizer called medetomidine has been implicated in several overdoses in at least five states. Medetomidine is often administered to domestic animals such as dogs, cats, and horses. The first published report about veterinary trials involving medetomidine was in 2007, and its first detection in the illegal drug supply in the United States was in 2022.
Most medetomidine overdose patients tested positive both for medetomidine and for synthetic opioids. In fact, a combination of synthetic opioid powder and medetomidine has become a new fad drug called flysky. In other cases, users thought that they were taking opioids, or even non-opioid drugs such as cocaine or methamphetamine, but they suffered respiratory depression due to the medetomidine. The biggest danger of medetomidine is that, whereas naloxone can reverse the effects of opioids even at high doses, it has no effect on non-opioid sedatives such as medetomidine.
Contact Tampa Criminal Defense Attorney Bryant Scriven
A criminal defense lawyer can help you if you are facing criminal charges for illegal possession or sale of veterinary drugs such as medetomidine. Contact Scriven Law in Tampa, Florida to schedule a consultation.
Source:
baynews9.com/fl/tampa/ap-top-news/2025/05/01/animal-sedative-medetomidine-is-showing-up-in-the-us-illegal-drug-supply-cdc-says
