The companies that make antibiotics for livestock are quite happy with bacteria becoming resistant to antibiotics, considering they can come up with a new 'medicine' and charge $4 a shot to use it, versus the $2 a shot the last one cost.
Draxxin is a great example of this. At the time it came out it was a miracle worker in the line of preventive disease control, but it also cost around $700 per bottle.
Products like Nuflor were MUCH cheaper, but not as effective.
There are a few others on the market that I can't remember the name of that were around $40 per bottle, but not as effective either.
Problem is, crowding 200 head of 900lb animals into a pen designed for 20 animals of the same size, and they are bound to get sick. So feedlot owners are forced to use the antibiotics, because treating afterwards isn't as cost effective.
The whole system is screwed, but I guess if you want a $.99 quarter pounder within 5 min of ordering, this is what it takes.
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