Dog needs medication prescription from the vet every 6 weeks

My dog is a senior citizen and is on heart medication to manage a heart murmur.

I do order the medication online from an online vet pharmacy to save money, but I am paying too much in vet consulting fees.

Is there any way to get an extended script so that I don't have to go to the vet every 6 weeks? because it is becoming very expensive and time consuming.

I have called around a few vets but they refuse to make a longer script saying it is due to "regulation" or "policy".

We do not have doggy health insurance.

Comments

  • +1

    Sometimes vets will allow your pet to have a repeat prescription without a visit if they are satisfied that your pet is stable and doing well based on your feedback. This decision however is at their discretion only and does not apply to all cases.

    https://www.thevetpractice.com.au/pet-medications-online-preā€¦

  • Can you share how much your last vet bill cost?

  • We do not have doggy health insurance.

    Probably not an option anyway as a senior dog.

    The actual medication may not be fully proven yet and requires frequent vet checks. Maybe ask the vet for alternative medication that requires less check ups.

  • I went through the same issue with my dog, which was taking 3 different medications daily. My vet very grudgingly wrote a prescription which he renewed on request about every 3 months without seeing the dog (charged $20 each time). I then ordered the medication online for 1/2 to 1/3 of what the vet was charging.

  • +1

    Is there any way to get an extended script so that I don't have to go to the vet every 6 weeks?

    You'll unfortunately have to shop around. Some vets won't, they tend to be the business owners of smaller, independent clinics. But most will write a prescription that includes repeats. Other than drugs with potential for abuse, I don't have a problem doing this.

    I have called around a few vets but they refuse to make a longer script saying it is due to "regulation" or "policy".

    Legally, we can't prescribe if your pet hasn't been reassessed in more than 12 months. But anything shorter will be company policy.

  • +2

    We had a ferret that was 11 years old and needed several meds that cost over $1000 a month. Our vet gave us a script as a word document that we could get the same meds at a compounding pharmacy for around the $70 mark. We could just edit the date on the script, the pharmacist was totally cool with it. Be best friends with your vet and pharmacist. RIP Bless him little Theodore lived a great life until he was 13 a grand age for a ferret.

    • Umm you can't edit scripts. They need an original signature of the prescriber…

    • +2

      Vet could have been in a lot of trouble

      • +2

        And pharmacist…

        • +1

          And ferret..

          • @elgrande: Could have been an expensive one at that
            2 years at $1k per month
            .

  • I have a repeat prescription which I take to Chemist Warehouse

    • Not sure why someone negged you. With our old cat we did the same thing. As long as the drugs and quantities are the same as the human products it works out much cheaper (you will need to pay full price). .

      We needed eye drops refilled every 3 days. The vet was charging us $150. We paid $24 at the chemist.

      She also needed Valium eventually because she went blind and needed something to take the edge off. We went to a compounding chemist (due to the quantity of the drug and size of the pill needed) and got a month's supply for $70. This cost over $200 at the vet.

      For the prescription, if they wont write a repeating one, see if they can just charge you a writing fee and you pick up the prescription. It will be significantly less than an appointment.

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