Judicious antibiotic use in companion animals protects their long-term welfare by preserving antibiotic effectiveness while treating current infections appropriately.
Antibiotic stewardship in companion animal medicine is a welfare issue that operates across two time horizons. In the immediate term, appropriate antibiotic use treats bacterial infections that cause suffering, and inappropriate prescribing - wrong antibiotic, wrong duration - may result in treatment failure and prolonged illness. Over the longer term, stewardship preserves the antibiotics that will be needed to treat future infections in these and other animals. When resistance develops in bacterial populations affecting companion animals, serious infections become untreatable and animals suffer as a result. The connection between companion animal and human antibiotic resistance adds a public health dimension. Responsible veterinary prescribing, including culture testing before empirical treatment in complex cases, serves both individual animal welfare and the broader welfare of future patients.