Every clinic that has been open a year has a version of this list — usually a spreadsheet, a notebook, or something living in the head of the person who does the ordering. The problem is that informal lists don't tell you which items expire, which need a batch number recorded, or which are legally required to be tracked. This post gives you the working list, by category, for a typical small-animal clinic.
It won't name brands. It will tell you what category an item belongs to, whether it carries an expiry date, and whether you need a batch or lot number on record — either for your own dispensing safety or because the law requires it.
How to read this list
Three markers appear against items: Expiry (the product degrades and must be pulled before that date), Batch (you need the manufacturer's batch or lot number recorded against each purchase or dispensing event), and Cold chain (the item must stay refrigerated from receipt to use). An item can carry all three.
Items that need a batch number but no cold chain are still worth tracking by lot — a recall or adverse-event report is much easier to respond to when you know which batch you dispensed and to whom.
Vaccines — cold chain
- Core combination vaccines (distemper, parvovirus, hepatitis, parainfluenza for dogs; rhinotracheitis, calicivirus, panleukopenia for cats) — Expiry · Batch · Cold chain
- Rabies vaccine — Expiry · Batch · Cold chain
- Leptospirosis vaccine — Expiry · Batch · Cold chain
- Kennel cough (intranasal or injectable) — Expiry · Batch · Cold chain
- Feline leukaemia virus vaccine — Expiry · Batch · Cold chain
- Diluents supplied with lyophilised vaccines — Expiry · Cold chain (batch-match to the vial they accompany)
Vaccines are the category where cold-chain failure is most common and least visible. A vial that thawed and refroze looks identical to one that didn't. Recording the fridge temperature at opening and the time between removing a vial and administration is a process discipline, not a product feature — but it starts with knowing you have a cold-chain category at all.
Injectables
- Anaesthetic induction agents (propofol, alfaxalone, ketamine combinations) — Expiry · Batch
- Opioid analgesics (butorphanol, buprenorphine, tramadol injectable) — Expiry · Batch — Schedule H or H1 in India; a separate controlled-drugs register entry is required for H1 items
- NSAIDs for injection (meloxicam, carprofen) — Expiry · Batch
- Corticosteroids (dexamethasone, methylprednisolone) — Expiry · Batch
- Antibiotics for injection (amoxicillin-clavulanate, enrofloxacin, metronidazole IV) — Expiry · Batch
- Fluid therapy (normal saline, Ringer's lactate, dextrose solutions) — Expiry · Batch
- Atropine, adrenaline, furosemide (emergency tray) — Expiry · Batch — check these monthly; they expire and get forgotten
- Vitamin B-complex, iron dextran — Expiry · Batch
- Antiemetics injectable (maropitant, metoclopramide) — Expiry · Batch
The emergency tray deserves its own check cycle. These items sit undisturbed until the worst moment, which is exactly when an expired vial will surface. A monthly visual check — date on a calendar, not memory — is the minimum.
Oral and topical medicines
- Broad-spectrum oral antibiotics (amoxicillin, doxycycline, metronidazole tablets/suspension) — Expiry · Batch
- Oral NSAIDs and analgesics (meloxicam oral, carprofen chewables) — Expiry · Batch
- Anthelmintics (fenbendazole, pyrantel, praziquantel combinations) — Expiry · Batch
- Antifungals (itraconazole, fluconazole) — Expiry · Batch
- Ear preparations (antibiotic/antifungal/steroid combinations) — Expiry · Batch
- Ophthalmic drops (antibiotic, lubricant, steroid) — Expiry · Batch — once opened, most have a 28-day discard window separate from the printed expiry
- Topical ectoparasiticides (spot-on, spray) — Expiry · Batch
- Oral corticosteroids (prednisolone) — Expiry · Batch
Opened multidose oral liquids and ophthalmic bottles carry two expiry dates: the printed one on the packaging, and a shorter in-use period once the seal is broken. Both need to be tracked. A label on the bottle with the date opened is the simplest system.
Consumables
- Syringes and needles (various gauges) — Expiry (sterility guarantee date)
- IV catheters and extension sets — Expiry
- Blood collection tubes (plain, EDTA, fluoride-oxalate) — Expiry (vacuum degrades)
- Suture material (absorbable and non-absorbable, various gauges) — Expiry
- Sterile gloves — Expiry
- Examination gloves (non-sterile, nitrile) — no expiry in practice, but latex degrades; check for brittleness
- Gauze swabs, wound dressings, bandage material — Expiry for sterile items
- Urinary catheters — Expiry
- Endotracheal tubes — no chemical expiry, but inspect for cuff integrity before each use
- Anaesthetic breathing circuits and masks — no expiry, but clean and inspect regularly
Consumables are where clinics most often carry dead stock — items past their sterility date that look fine. The fix is first-expiry-first-out (FEFO) rotation every time you restock a shelf. For more on how FEFO works in a dispensary, see FEFO vs FIFO in a veterinary pharmacy.
Surgical and anaesthetic supplies
- Isoflurane or sevoflurane (inhalation anaesthetic) — Expiry · Batch — also a controlled substance in many jurisdictions
- Surgical drapes and gowns (sterile) — Expiry
- Sterile instrument pouches (after autoclave) — dated by sterilisation cycle, not a printed expiry; most protocols use a 30- or 60-day limit from the cycle date
- Skin staples — Expiry
- Bone pins, plates, screws if you do orthopaedics — Batch (implant traceability)
- Electrosurgery tips — no expiry; inspect for damage before use
Retail and preventive products
- Prescription diets (renal, gastrointestinal, urinary, weight management) — Expiry — these often have a 12-month shelf life from manufacture, shorter once opened
- Flea and tick preventives (oral and topical) — Expiry · Batch
- Heartworm preventives — Expiry · Batch
- Dental chews and additives — Expiry
- Shampoos, ear cleaners, skin supplements — Expiry for medicated products; cosmetic products typically have a PAO (period-after-opening) symbol rather than a hard date
- Pet supplements (joint support, probiotics) — Expiry
Retail items are the category most likely to sit on a shelf past their date without anyone noticing, because they don't feel like medicines. Assign one person to check the retail shelf on the same day each month — it takes ten minutes and prevents the embarrassment of selling an expired product.
What actually needs a batch number on record
In India, Schedule H and H1 drugs require a batch number in your dispensing register — this is a legal requirement, not optional. Vaccines also require batch recording both for your own recall response and because most state veterinary councils expect it. For everything else, batch recording is best practice: if a product is recalled or an adverse event is reported, you need to know which lot you dispensed and to which patients.
The practical minimum: record the batch number at the point of purchase (on your goods-received entry) and again at the point of dispensing for Schedule H/H1 items and vaccines. For other products, recording it at purchase is enough to support a recall response. For a deeper look at how batch tracking works in practice, batch and lot tracking in veterinary medicines covers the mechanics.
Turning this list into a working inventory
A list is only useful if it's live. The categories above give you the skeleton; the work is populating it with your actual stock, par levels, and reorder points. Whether you track this in a spreadsheet, a book, or a practice system, the structure is the same: item name, category, current quantity, reorder point, expiry of current batch, and batch number where required.
MyCliniCore tracks inventory by batch and expiry, applies FEFO rotation, and flags items approaching their reorder point — so the list you're maintaining manually can sit inside the same system as your appointments, prescriptions, and invoices. But the categories and disciplines above work regardless of what tool you use.
If you want to know where your current inventory process is most likely to be losing you money — through expired stock, missed charges on dispensed items, or ordering patterns that don't match your actual consumption — the free 60-second audit estimates leakage from industry benchmarks. It doesn't look at your clinic's own data, but it gives you a starting point for where to look.