Pet Medication Online

babo9

Hi Guys,
Does anyone get their pet meds online?
My dog is quite old now and she's on a fair bit of medication(which is helping a lot:)), it's quite expensive, almost €200 a month...I've found all the same stuff online for half the price, viovet.co.uk is the cheapest I've found.

Does anyone get their's online? I know you need a prescription from your vet. Anyone have problems getting the prescription? I know in the uk it's the law you must provide one as a vet, not sure here or whether they charge for one etc.

I'm kinda nervous about saying to the vet, I guess I'm paranoid they might freak out I'm taking my business elsewhere but it's either that or no meds...suppose if they're in it for the animals they shouldn't mind but still...

lorebringer

www.medicanimal.com is a brilliant place to get medication online. They do require your vet to fill in a form but your vet is obliged to do so. Their prices are brilliant compared to vet practices and they deliver quickly.

Allgäuerin

i use this one http://www.petdrugsonline.co.uk. they great!

babo9

Thanks guys,
Do ye get charged by the vet for the prescription?

darklordsbane

I have the same problem as you guys
Vet says they are legally not allowed to give prescriptions to buy online, I don't believe them the Metacam I need for our dog for the rest of his life, is 1/3rd of the price from the UK even after allowing currency and delivery,
If this is true does anyone know a vet up north who I could go to I live in county Wicklow so the east coast of Northern Ireland would be grand
as always any help greatly appreciated
Regards
D

Millem

babo9 wrote: »

Hi Guys,
Does anyone get their pet meds online?
My dog is quite old now and she's on a fair bit of medication(which is helping a lot:)), it's quite expensive, almost €200 a month...I've found all the same stuff online for half the price, viovet.co.uk is the cheapest I've found.

Does anyone get their's online? I know you need a prescription from your vet. Anyone have problems getting the prescription? I know in the uk it's the law you must provide one as a vet, not sure here or whether they charge for one etc.

I'm kinda nervous about saying to the vet, I guess I'm paranoid they might freak out I'm taking my business elsewhere but it's either that or no meds...suppose if they're in it for the animals they shouldn't mind but still...

Explain it to your vet, I bet they will have no problem writing it for you. My dogs are insured, but their medicine is soooo expensive :eek: I order wormers & flea treatments all the time ( I have ordered from petmeds, violet, medicanimal, nutrecare) and tell my vet! I also get my dog food online and he said that it was a great price and good for me just make sure wherever you order from actually asks for a perscription and I would pay by PayPal! Oh and it might be cheaper to deliver using parcel motel.

maggiepip

darklordsbane wrote: »

I have the same problem as you guys
Vet says they are legally not allowed to give prescriptions to buy online, I don't believe them the Metacam I need for our dog for the rest of his life, is 1/3rd of the price from the UK even after allowing currency and delivery,
If this is true does anyone know a vet up north who I could go to I live in county Wicklow so the east coast of Northern Ireland would be grand
as always any help greatly appreciated
Regards
D

I dont think your vet is correct. Unless something has changed recently I was told a while back, by my vet, that they were legally obliged to issue perscriptions if requested. Where you then get the medication is up to you. So I would question your vet on that one.

mikehn

darklordsbane wrote: »

I have the same problem as you guys
Vet says they are legally not allowed to give prescriptions to buy online, I don't believe them the Metacam I need for our dog for the rest of his life, is 1/3rd of the price from the UK even after allowing currency and delivery,
If this is true does anyone know a vet up north who I could go to I live in county Wicklow so the east coast of Northern Ireland would be grand
as always any help greatly appreciated
Regards
D

http://results.chemistdirect.co.uk/search?w=metacam
Dont know how these prices compare but their service for over the counter "human" medication is very good

Pumpkinseeds

We've used VetUk and Viovet. Both are very good and you can fax a prescription to them, email it or download a form. We've found them much cheaper. Have a look at there sites.

maggiepip

maggiepip wrote: »

I dont think your vet is correct. Unless something has changed recently I was told a while back, by my vet, that they were legally obliged to issue perscriptions if requested. Where you then get the medication is up to you. So I would question your vet on that one.

Just to add, I think the issue actually might be that vets cant "knowingly" write a perscription if they know of your intention to purchase online, as in outside of Ireland. But if you simply request a perscription they must give it to you.

mistress_gi

By law if you ask your vet for a prescription they have to give it you. You can't be forced to buy meds from your vet.
I can't find a a link to the law but I used to live with a vet nurse who gave me this info.

odckdo

I think I read something recently saying that a vet can charge for a prescription used to get pet meds online?

Is that true, if so how much do they charge?

Aru

Vets are not allowed to prescribe for meds from the UK if their is an Irish licensed equivalent.They incidentally are also not allowed to prescribe human meds to pets if there is a licensed animal one regardless of the cost difference. They can only order drugs in from the UK themselves under special license,so they aren't trying to rip you off that way .

They can prescribe for the irish market however...so just ask for a prescription and don't elaborate.Its not actually strictly legal to import pet meds by post into Ireland from the uk though many sites do it. They hopefully will advise that you buy from a reputable source(lots of fake drugs on the net) and generally will ask to see the dog at certain intervals in order to continue giving out prescriptions.

Vets can only prescribe to animals under their care so pets should be at least once that year in order to be able to legally give you a prescription.(depending on the medical condition this may be more often as changes can be sudden and some drugs can have severe affects if dosage levels are monitored closely)

Vets are allowed to charge for prescriptions( you are asking for their professional signature and for them to give you the correct dosages timing of doses and recommend suitable drugs for your animal,prescriptions also leave them open to litigation if there are issues) but how much is charged vary's from practice to practice. 5 to 15 euro seems to be the norm.Most places will charge less from a prescription if a consult was done at the same time.

darklordsbane

mikehn wrote: »

http://results.chemistdirect.co.uk/search?w=metacam
Dont know how these prices compare but their service for over the counter "human" medication is very good

Thanks for all the replies
I can get the Metacam 180ml for £24.99 including delivery so about €30, it's €93 in my vets for the same amount, Chemistdireect is £42 plus delivery
so I think I will hassle my vet some more
thanks all I will post back with results

tk123

OP maybe try this vet - I've heard that his prices are lower than other vets possibly because he also has a clinic in Newry?
http://www.ancuveterinary.com/index.php/find-us His clinic in Dublin is 2 mins from exit 5 on the M50.

Rips

darklordsbane wrote: »

Thanks for all the replies
I can get the Metacam 180ml for £24.99 including delivery so about €30, it's €93 in my vets for the same amount, Chemistdireect is £42 plus delivery
so I think I will hassle my vet some more
thanks all I will post back with results

Don't forget there are lots of generic versions of meloxicam, you may be able to halve that price again.

Pumpkinseeds

darklordsbane wrote: »

Thanks for all the replies
I can get the Metacam 180ml for £24.99 including delivery so about €30, it's €93 in my vets for the same amount, Chemistdireect is £42 plus delivery
so I think I will hassle my vet some more
thanks all I will post back with results

With 4.99 postage is works out at the same price from Vet Uk as well. I saw the 100ml bottle on the shelf in my local pharmacy today for 63 euro, no prescription needed.

Millem

OP check out http:www.vet-medic.com I recently ordered wormers and spot on treatments, I used parcel motel and it worked out the cheapest.

darklordsbane

Thanks
vet-medic.com is the cheapest £16.99 for 180ml still need to get a prescription though

Millem

darklordsbane wrote: »

Thanks
vet-medic.com is the cheapest £16.99 for 180ml still need to get a prescription though

Just parcel motel as they have crazy crazy delivery to Ireland but free to uk I think. (I got free p and p). I paid by PayPal too do you need to put address on prescription? If so get vet to use your parcel motel address

Lizard_Moon

Millem wrote: »

Just parcel motel as they have crazy crazy delivery to Ireland but free to uk I think. (I got free p and p). I paid by PayPal too do you need to put address on prescription? If so get vet to use your parcel motel address

A prescription is a legal document. Deliberately writing anything on it that is untrue is fraud and could get the vet struck off, at the very least.

I am a vet and hate how some people routinely want us to lie in letters and certificates. If you want to commit fraud don't ask me and then I won't have to annoy you by refusing.

Millem

Lizard_Moon wrote: »

A prescription is a legal document. Deliberately writing anything on it that is untrue is fraud and could get the vet struck off, at the very least.

I am a vet and hate how some people routinely want us to lie in letters and certificates. If you want to commit fraud don't ask me and then I won't have to annoy you by refusing.

Don't worry lizard_moon I won't ask you....all my pets are insured I pay the overpriced price here when they are a fraction of the cost in the uk. If they were not insured it would be a different story. Thanks though for pointing out about address as the OP can cross that site off their list

tk123

Millem wrote: »

Don't worry lizard_moon I won't ask you....all my pets are insured I pay the overpriced price here when they are a fraction of the cost in the uk. If they were not insured it would be a different story. Thanks though for pointing out about address as the OP can cross that site off their list

+1 Also the PM address is paid for right? So it's "legally" a valid addresses to use. I get more post to work and PM than my house :pac:

Millem

tk123 wrote: »

+1 Also the PM address is paid for right? So it's "legally" a valid addresses to use. I get more post to work and PM than my house :pac:

I would of thought so as everyone gets there own PM ID. As lizard_moon is a vet I am sure they are not jumping for joy over the concept of people ordering meds online as I guess there is a healthy profit on meds.

Lizard_Moon

Millem wrote: »

I would of thought so as everyone gets there own PM ID. As lizard_moon is a vet I am sure they are not jumping for joy over the concept of people ordering meds online as I guess there is a healthy profit on meds.

Actually I don't mind where someone gets their drugs from, as long as their pet gets the treatment needed.
I was only pointing out that I am not happy compromising myself.

In my practice we don't charge for prescriptions for drugs we recommend for our clients.

Boscod

I'm looking to source medication for my dog on-line (due to price), however my vet is saying he cannot provide a prescription as it's illegal for him to do so.

Is this correct?, and if so is there any way around this.

Bluefrog

Question is though, why is there such a huge price disparity? If only for the sake of doing what they can to ensure as few animals as possible are denied meds on the basis of cost, I would see the vets having an ethical obligation which it seems until now they have been reluctant to embrace to push for fairer pricing despite how quick they are to warn us about the perils of buying online and as here, protecting their own position.

I'm starting to wonder if we need a pet owners advocacy group in Ireland to push for fairer treatment for our animals and ourselves.

tk123

Bluefrog wrote: »

Question is though, why is there such a huge price disparity? If only for the sake of doing what they can to ensure as few animals as possible are denied meds on the basis of cost, I would see the vets having an ethical obligation which it seems until now they have been reluctant to embrace to push for fairer pricing despite how quick they are to warn us about the perils of buying online and as here, protecting their own position.

I'm starting to wonder if we need a pet owners advocacy group in Ireland to push for fairer treatment for our animals and ourselves.

I think you'll find the same disparity in any medication though - not just medications for animals? Example - I bought 10 inhalers in Spain for the price of one here a few months ago

Rips

Boscod wrote: »

I'm looking to source medication for my dog on-line (due to price), however my vet is saying he cannot provide a prescription as it's illegal for him to do so.

Is this correct?, and if so is there any way around this.

Its difficult to believe your vet could say this to you, he's obliged to provide you with a prescription legally. He may charge for the service of providing a prescription though.

This is presuming, that your animal has by seen by this vet, and needs a prescription for something and its a licenced medication. (as some vets can prescribe unlicensed medication in certain circumstances which they would be under no obligation to provide a prescription for otherwise)

Of course if he hasn't seen your animal recently, then he's not obliged to do anything and indeed it would be illegal for him to provide you with a prescription.

Rips

Bluefrog wrote: »

Question is though, why is there such a huge price disparity? If only for the sake of doing what they can to ensure as few animals as possible are denied meds on the basis of cost, I would see the vets having an ethical obligation which it seems until now they have been reluctant to embrace to push for fairer pricing despite how quick they are to warn us about the perils of buying online and as here, protecting their own position.

I'm starting to wonder if we need a pet owners advocacy group in Ireland to push for fairer treatment for our animals and ourselves.

Surely people realise the difference in cost to a business, stocking products, as a shop or a pharmacy does and businesses who operate as an online only outlet, for one specific line of product?

Sure, vets have an obligation to stock a certain number of medications, products, brands, generics, just to offer treatment (and that they need for their own use as well) That comes under duty of care.

However, many vets are stocking far and above what they need to stock (such as, up to ten different classes, grades and brands of NSAIDs of varying price ranges, for arthritis) that all, essentially, do the same job. So they can offer choice to their customers. And often choice is also about the quality of treatment.

You can buy 'generic' forms of ACE inhibitors for a 1/3 of the cost of what Fortekor costs, but there is some difference in how the drug is metabolised, that can effect the length of life expectancy.

If you want the cheapest meds, and the cheapest service, go to a cut cost clinic or the blue cross.
Of course some clinics presenting themselves as high standard are only providing cut cost treatment, but that's for the consumer to sort out.

You can be a client, and require treatment under duty of care (and cheap meds) but don't forget that veterinary is a business and many clients of vet practices are also just custom.

If you walk into a veterinary clinic, as opposed to buying online, there are paid staff who can explain to you what your options are, price range, differences.

It can take a lot of time to advise and 'try out' different drug regimes to suit the clients needs and budget.

Its all very well, dispensing the cheapest generic form of a drug to everyone, as standard.... but if the tablet is an awkward size and has to be divided up into thirds by a elderly person with arthritic fingers.... they might be better if they can afford it, or they might prefer buying the slightly more expensive tablet that comes in convenient sizes.

I went to a new vet recently who without prompting, gave me the option of buying the tablets they had in stock (which were cheapest) or giving me a prescription for the pharmacy for the liquid form. The vet rang the pharmacy ahead of time to see if they had it in stock and how much it was, and gave me my options, and that's the service I pay for.

It was slightly more expensive to buy the liquid from pharmacy, but it will cause less stress to my cat to give him the liquid form. (stress aggravates his condition, which is why the vet thought ahead)

Not all pet owners want to cut costs, when it comes to vet care for my pets, money does not come into it.

If your vet isn't doing this, or providing a service like this (options) you need a new vet.


Generics aside, drugs have to be stored correctly, handled correctly, disposed of, used within their expiry etc, and counted out, packaged appropriately. There is paperwork involved too.

You order yourself online, you do the legwork. (filling in details, deciding how much you need for how long etc)

You ring a vet practice and ask for a repeat presc for fluffy, they do the legwork, and its checked by a real person. Ie; Fluffy has been on that dosage for 6 months, maybe its time for a re-evaluation. Fluffy has been doing well on that new drug, maybe we can try this slightly cheaper version now and see if we can reduce costs. Oops, that medicine contraindicates that medicine!

Gael23

We haven't found a huge saving when delivery costs are factored in. Our dog has been on anti inflammatories for the last 3 years and they are almost a euro a tablet so we have looked into it. He will be on them for the rest of his life too

tk123

ryanf1 wrote: »

We haven't found a huge saving when delivery costs are factored in.

Are you using parcel motel? You'll get free UK delivery from most of the UK pet sites with orders over £29 so it's free to parcel motel in northern Ireland then you just pay the €3.95 to have it delivered to the locker.

Bluefrog

Yes it certainly is up to the consumer to sort it out but its clear that not everyone has the time, knowledge or resources to do so which is exactly why I believe there is a need for their interests to be advocated for in a structured and informed way - just as there is already a group that advocates for human patient rights and interests. If costs are justifiable then this should present no threat to vets or drug companies but the fact is that right now there is zero transparency, zero oversight and zero accountability. Anyone who believes that any industry will act primarily in the interests of consumers when those consumers are under-informed, not organised into a cohesive voice, not to mention having their position weakened further labouring under the pressure of having a sick pet, is pretty naive.

I strongly reject the notion that if a pet owner queries pricing or seeks the best value that that implies they care any less for their pet - such implied inferences have been used pretty effectively up until now by those with a clear vested interest in maintaining the status quo to stifle even discussion never mind reform.

Nobody would argue that vets are entitled to charge for their expertise but that expertise (the cost of consults, continuing education, staffing expenses etc) is one thing, the cost of the meds they provide is another and should be separate for the sake of transparency. I assume both the websites and vets are sourcing these products from the same places and therefore it is hard to see a reason for such disparities in the cost of the drugs alone and a consumer would be pretty dumb not to question if the difference is due to vet markup and if so, how that markup is justified. We already cover the expertise costs with consult and prescription fees surely so why should those expenses be cited again to justify inflated drug pricing?

RainyDay

I just got 3 months supply of Fortekor tablets for our elderly cat from MedicAnimal.com using ParcelMotel. The cost will be just under €50, including the PM fee, whereas it was costing about €35 a month from our own vet. The vet didn't object when I asked for a 3 month prescription from him - well worth while.

MedicAnimal were a bit painful to deal with though. I emailed the prescription to them after placing the order, and when I heard nothin for a couple of days, I chased them up via their online chat. They first asked me for the prescription, and when I told them that this had been sent, they told me I had to ring the pharmacy. It seems a bit pointless having online chat if they don't deal with the full order cycle. When I rang the pharmacy, they didn't have the script, so I had to send it again, to a different email address.

SO well worth the saving, but would be better if MedicAnimal got their act together.

tk123

GAH! I got Bailey's prescription the other week - we'd been waiting in the vets for at least an hour at the end of a long day, the vet was examining him for ages and he was pain etc etc etc so my brain was fried. She asked me did they usually write a prescription or order it and I said order it without thinking - it's half the price online so I'd save €40...but just as well because it's out of stock on any site I checked! I'll have a site lined up for next time lol! :pac: I prefer vetuk to medicanimal btw

bazzer_1984

Anyone here know of any decent online places that you can purchase flea & wormer for dogs ?

DerTierarzt

babo9 wrote: »

Does anyone get their pet meds online?

lorebringer wrote: »

to get medication online. They do require your vet to fill in a form but your vet is obliged to do so.

mistress_gi wrote: »

By law if you ask your vet for a prescription they have to give it you.

Rips wrote: »

Its difficult to believe your vet could say this to you, he's obliged to provide you with a prescription legally.

RainyDay wrote: »

The vet didn't object when I asked for a 3 month prescription from him - well worth while.

A veterinarian may be asked to provide a prescription for animal under their care, they are not obliged to fill in a form from a retailer/wholesaler/merchant, more details here

darklordsbane wrote: »

Vet says they are legally not allowed to give prescriptions to buy online

Boscod wrote: »

I'm looking to source medication for my dog on-line (due to price), however my vet is saying he cannot provide a prescription as it's illegal for him to do so.

Is this correct?, and if so is there any way around this.

maggiepip wrote: »

I dont think your vet is correct.

Your veterinarian is correct, please read here the following:

national legislation does not permit their supply via the internet or by mail order.

Pumpkinseeds

bazzer_1984 wrote: »

Anyone here know of any decent online places that you can purchase flea & wormer for dogs ?

I use Vetuk.

DerTierarzt

Pumpkinseeds wrote: »

I use Vetuk.

National legislation does not permit the supply of veterinary medicines via the internet or by mail order.

tk123

DerTierarzt wrote: »

National legislation does not permit the supply of veterinary medicines via the internet or by mail order.

I'm sure the revenue have bigger fish to fry than a few bottles of metacam! :rolleyes:

DerTierarzt

tk123 wrote: »

I'm sure the revenue have bigger fish to fry than a few bottles of metacam! :rolleyes:

The rules are there to protect animals and ensure medicines used are as safe as possible, and do what they are intended to do. For instance misuse (even if done with the best of intentions) with meloxicam can result in ulcerative gastroenteritis or renal failure.

Forum-Specific Rules
- No discussing illegal or violent activities

DBB

DerTierarzt wrote: »

The rules are there to protect animals and ensure medicines used are as safe as possible, and do what they are intended to do. For instance misuse (even if done with the best of intentions) with meloxicam can result in ulcerative gastroenteritis or renal failure.

DerTierarzt,
You have quoted part of the forum charter at another poster here. Please be aware that this is back-seat moderating which is not allowed anywhere on boards.ie.
If you have a problem with a post, report it. Do not take on to deal with it yourself.
In this instance, many users have vets who are perfectly happy to supply the paperwork they need to buy various vet products online, and online shops who are open, transparent and happy to supply them.
If you have an issue with the legality of it, I'd suggest you take it up with the VCI, or the websites themselves, because your insistence on bringing it up here is coming perilously close to soapboxing.
Do not reply to this post on thread.
Thanks,
DBB

tk123

DerTierarzt wrote: »

The rules are there to protect animals and ensure medicines used are as safe as possible, and do what they are intended to do. For instance misuse (even if done with the best of intentions) with meloxicam can result in ulcerative gastroenteritis or renal failure.

The irony of you quoting the charter...

Somebody could just as easily misuse medicine they've gotten from their local vet? We're talking about somebody getting a prescription from their vet and buying the exact same medicine on-line by providing that prescription. Not somebody buying some knock off metacam from ebay.

Plenty of people have pets with long term illnesses and on-going conditions who's vet's give them extra to have in stock. Give posters the same credit their vet does.

EDIT - apologies DBB I posted before I saw your reply(!)

Pumpkinseeds

DerTierarzt wrote: »

National legislation does not permit the supply of veterinary medicines via the internet or by mail order.

I won't lose any sleep buying genuine medication from a reputable company at a lower price than I could get it from my vet.

Knine

Pumpkinseeds wrote: »

I won't lose any sleep buying genuine medication from a reputable company at a lower price than I could get it from my vet.

Or you could go to the chemist like I did yesterday. They had no problem providing it for me.

RainyDay

Knine wrote: »

Or you could go to the chemist like I did yesterday. They had no problem providing it for me.

What kind of price are you paying at your chemist?

Knine

RainyDay wrote: »

What kind of price are you paying at your chemist?

I paid 12.50 for Parazole. I'm not actually sure if it was cheaper then the vets or not as it was just a lot handier for me this week with kids off school.

RainyDay

Knine wrote: »

I paid 12.50 for Parazole. I'm not actually sure if it was cheaper then the vets or not as it was just a lot handier for me this week with kids off school.

Do most pharmacies keep vet supplies in stock? Or is this an urban/rural thing?