Pharmacy linked to horse deaths

A pharmacy acknowledged Thursday that it had incorrectly mixed a vitamin compound given to 21 polo horses before they collapsed and died.

The horses belonging to the Lechuza Caracas polo team fell ill Sunday at the International Polo Club Palm Beach. Some died on the field, some in trailers and others in the hospital.

The botched vitamin compound was a substitute for Biodyl, a vitamin-mineral mixture that the Food and Drug Administration forbids in the U.S. The team has given Biodyl to horses for years to combat exhaustion, but it typically uses the manufactured version not available in this country.

The polo team said a Florida veterinarian had ordered the substitute, but it did not identify the veterinarian.

“Only the horses treated with the compound became sick and died within four hours of treatment,” the team said in a statement. “The horses that were not treated remain healthy and normal.”

Franck’s Pharmacy of Ocala, Fla., revealed that a lawyer it hired to investigate the case had concluded the supplement had been wrongly mixed.

“The strength of an ingredient in the medication was incorrect,” said Jennifer Beckett, chief operating officer for Franck’s Pharmacy. “We will cooperate fully with the authorities as they continue their investigation.”

Beckett would not say whether the incorrect amount was specified in the order from the veterinarian.

She offered condolences to the team: “We share their grief and sadness.”

Florida Department of Health records show the pharmacy has no disciplinary action against its license.

Biodyl, made in France by the Georgia-based animal pharmaceutical company Merial Ltd., is widely used abroad. Fernando Ruiz, president of the Argentine Equine Veterinarian Assn., told the Associated Press that the supplement was commonly given to horses there, and he was not aware of any deaths.

It was not clear how close Franck’s mixture came to the name-brand drug. Lechuza Caracas said it had ordered a mixture of vitamin B12, potassium, magnesium and selenium, a mineral that can be toxic in high doses.

FDA spokeswoman Siobhan DeLancey told the Associated Press that the agency’s interest was “heightened” by the news that the deaths could have been caused by a mistake at a pharmacy.

The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, the state Department of Health and the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office are investigating the deaths.

Early results of necropsies on the horses found internal bleeding but failed to determine what killed them. However, the University of Florida’s College of Veterinary Medicine has a suspicion.

“We believe the likely chemical responsible has been tentatively identified, but pending review by the state veterinarian and state law enforcement, we cannot comment any further at this time,” said Sarah Carey, a university spokeswoman.

Results could be announced today.

Although it’s illegal to market Biodyl in the U.S., what if someone mixes a similar compound? The FDA says that may be illegal too.

“It is my impression that that would be manufacturing a new animal drug,” DeLancey said.

But Loyd V. Allen Jr., a pharmacist and editor in chief of the International Journal of Pharmaceutical Compounding, said he thought it was legal to concoct the Biodyl substitute. “All of the ingredients in it . . . are components of drugs here in the United States that are legal or have been in use,” he said.

The polo horses were worth more than $2 million and could take 10 years to replace, experts said.

Many horse owners and businesses catering to the polo industry said they would reserve judgment until the investigations were complete.

Veterinarians said Franck’s Pharmacy was a leading distributor of medical compounds and had an excellent reputation worldwide.

“This isn’t some backyard kind of place,” said Florida veterinarian Ben Schachter, who has used Franck’s for more than two decades.

Marti Haught of the Tack Shack in Ocala, which sells saddles and other horse supplies, said customers were buzzing about what went wrong.

“I think a horrible mistake was made somewhere,” she said. “But how can you judge if you don’t know all the facts?”

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