Apistan Expiration

[Dave W]

Greetings . . .

I have an opened, foil pouch that contains 6 unused strips, can I use them in spring?

How do you know when they have expired?

If I use weak/expired strips, and do not get an effective "Kill", guess I might blame "resistance".

thanx,
Dave W

[Michael Bush]

I could be wrong but I do think there was an expiration date on the box when I had some.

An opened foil pouch that was folded over to seal it up and one that is open and exposed would be two different scenerios. My guess is if you folded the end of the enclosure and only had limited exposure to the air it should keep almost as well as when it's sealed. If not, I would assume it would not keep well at all.

[Dave W]

Greetings MrBEE,

My 10-strip package, purchased 5/29/03 (Kelley) does NOT have ANY date on the cardboard carton OR foil package. The instruction printed of back of carton, has a copyright date of 2002, so I know they are not older than '02. Both the carton & the foil pouch has a "Lot Code: 020613022" which I assume to mean they were mfg, June, 2002.

But, my question remains; When do they expire? And, how does an "opened package" effect their effectiveness?

thanx,
Dave W

[Michael Bush]

I have heard of people using Apistan that was quite a few years old and it was working better than more recently manufactured product. The speculation at the time was that the manufacturing techniques had changed since then. I have not heard much of that speculation lately.

As to the lot number, it is still speculation what that means, but your theory seems reasonable.

As far as how long it lasts after opening. With most products I've noticed little loss if the package is sealed and a lot if it is not.

All of this, of course, is only logical speculation based on previous experiences. I don't know of any solid numbers on the subject.

[Dave W]

MrBee,

Thanks for your reply, your closing contains 3 words NOT offered often here; "I dont know". As always, your honest answer is much appreciated.

Minutes ago, I called Wellmark International at 1-800-248-7763. Talked w/ Steve in Customer Service. He said, that Apistan has an UNOPENED shelf-life of 2 to 3 years, and should be destroyed after 5 years. He was unable to answer my question about an OPENED pouch.

Dave W

[This message has been edited by Dave W (edited September 09, 2003).]

[WineMan]

I remember at a meeting that the USDA lab folks had done experiments with the strips and that they lose something like 50% of the active ingregients within 5 minutes of direct exposure to sunlight. That still doesnt answer your question but I have always had partials left over and used them later. it seems fairly common among the canadians to only use the strips for a week or so and reuse them a few times sealed in ziplock bags.

[odfrank]

I recently used last years strips over SBB hives, that I had stored in a baggie at room temperature. One hived dropped several hundred mites. The others just a few. Now the question is, was hive # 1 more infected or were the strips in the other hives worn out ?

[denise_ky]

Personally, I think they should work fine--as long as they weren't exposed to sunlight. I had a freind use some expired local anesthesia (lidocaine)on himself for some minor surgery. The drug worked fine. Of course this was a different type of drug.
Clarification:the hospital where I work throws away expired meds. Great source for veterinarians if they don't mind the exp. date.

In surgery, we store antibiotic beads used for infections, in the refrigerator. Armed with that info, I store my Apistan in the freezer in a zip lock bag.
denise

[BULLSEYE BILL]

I don't think I would store poison with my foodstuffs...

Bill