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What Does DIN Mean on a Veterinary Product? Health Canada's Definition

Health Canada's definition of a Drug Identification Number (DIN), what the Drug Product Database statuses mean, and the veterinary products we list with their DIN cited.

Short answer: Health Canada defines it this way: "A Drug Identification Number (DIN) is a computer-generated eight-digit number assigned by Health Canada to a drug product upon market authorization under subsection C.01.014.2(1) of the Food and Drug Regulations." It is printed on the label, and you can look any DIN up in Health Canada's Drug Product Database.

What a DIN tells you

Health Canada's Drug Product Database terminology page says:

  • "It uniquely identifies each drug sold in a dosage form in Canada and is located on the package label of prescription and non-prescription drugs that have been evaluated and authorized for sale in Canada."
  • "A DIN uniquely identifies the following product characteristics: Product Name; Manufacturer Name; Active Ingredient(s); Strength(s) of Active Ingredient(s); Pharmaceutical Form; and Route(s) of Administration."
  • On the class of a product: "The class identifies whether the drug is for human use, veterinary use, or used as a radiopharmaceutical or a disinfectant."

What the status means

Every DIN in the database carries a status. Two you will see often:

  • "Marketed: refers to an active DIN for a product that is currently being sold in Canada."
  • "Dormant: refers to an active DIN for a product that was previously marketed in Canada but for which there have been no sales for a period of at least 12 consecutive months."

The database also lists each product's schedule (for example, prescription or non-prescription), its route of administration and, for veterinary drugs, the species it is for.

How to look up a DIN

  1. Find the eight-digit DIN on the label.
  2. Open Health Canada's Drug Product Database online query (health-products.canada.ca/dpd-bdpp) and search by DIN.
  3. Check that the product name, company, form, route and species match the bottle or tub in your hand, and read the status and schedule.

On our own product pages for DIN products we cite the DIN and link the product's Drug Product Database record, so you can check the same details before you buy. Use any drug only as its label directs, and talk to your veterinarian about your animals' needs.

Veterinary products we list with their DIN cited

Source: Health Canada, "Drug product database: Terminology" (canada.ca), viewed October 2026; each product's Drug Product Database record as cited on its page.