prescription meds online

Does anyone buy their prescription meds online?

I am now using a 100ml bottle of metacam every 4 weeks, it costs £43 from the vet but only around £23 online, so am thinking of asking them about a prescription instead.

The thing is they are so good to me, fitting me in appointments at short notice and trying to keep costs down that I am going to feel really guilty asking. But saving £20 a month is a lot of money.

What would you do?

I have the same problem...

My vet is a friend of mine and works in a small practice..... I would feel guilty buying meds online, but their prices at the moment are just ridiculous and soon I might just have to ask for a prescription :?

I feel really awkward to,I know they do try to keep the costs down for me but I have still spent thousands there every year for the past 10 years :?

My vet offered to do me perscriptions as it is cheaper.

Well I am considering asking for a script for some meds. Many of mine are on longterm medication and it is very expensive, even with discount

:?

Janex

At my work, we don't mind giving people written prescriptions, as we can understand exactly why! I'd do the same too if my pets needed medication.
However, just to warn you... as of 1st November, vets are allowed to start charging for written prescriptions again, so order plenty in before then if you can

thanks for the tip Tinky....


and to Jane, Hugo, and kayj....I think you give more than your fair share to vets so I wouldn't feel bad about asking for prescriptions!

I get prescriptions for my Metacam and my vet doesn't mind, they know it's a lot cheaper, they could always match the price for you!

snowy said:

I get prescriptions for my Metacam and my vet doesn't mind, they know it's a lot cheaper, they could always match the price for you!

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I doubt they could match the price of most drugs... We've looked online at prices for POM's, and find that they're cheaper to buy online than we what can get them from our wholesaler! It's crazy that online pharmacies can buy veterinary drugs cheap enough to sell at lower prices than veterinary wholesalers :shock:

I went to collect my bottle of Metacam from the vets this morning and asked about written prescriptions and they were absolutely fine about it. They even offered to swap the bottle i was about to buy for a prescription so I could buy online, but it didn't seem fair. So I bought the bottle today but next time I will ask for a prescription instead

snowy said:

I get prescriptions for my Metacam and my vet doesn't mind, they know it's a lot cheaper, they could always match the price for you!

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Yeh could you imagine, :lol::lol::lol:

I'm going on Friday so I will take a shoping list of what I need and get a script

Hugo's There said:

I am now using a 100ml bottle of metacam every 4 weeks, it costs £43 from the vet but only around £23 online, so am thinking of asking them about a prescription instead.

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how could you use that much? HOw many bun do you have that needs this kind of medication? I mean, you're kidding.

Also, when buy on line, do that web site need to check anything?

It's not that much,

I have 5 buns that are on between 0.4 and 0.6 ml 2 x a day which averages out around 1ml per bun a day. That means I use around 5 ml per day.

100ml divided by 5 ml only equals 20 days worth if my maths are correct

When you buy online you have to post them your vet prescription after you have placed your order, only then will they send your order

That's very high on dosage. Are you using the 1.5mg size (the one for dogs)

The normal dosage is = weight in KG x 0.1 / 1.5 ONCE per day

the extreme dosage (for short term (no more than 5 days in total) is = wt. in KG x 0.1/1.5

So for instance, a bun that weighs 2 KG, he would be using

2 kg x 0.1/1.5 = 0.13 ml per day

It's extremely rare that a bun needs metacam 2 times a day. Is your vet a rabbit savvy vet? Do a search in the Rabbit Care section, all these years when I use metacam, it's only once a day

if a bun is overdose, he will die, see this link:

http://metacamkills.com/

Happy Hopping said:

That's very high on dosage. Are you using the 1.5mg size (the one for dogs)

The normal dosage is = weight in KG x 0.1 / 1.5 ONCE per day

the extreme dosage (for short term (no more than 5 days in total) is = wt. in KG x 0.1/1.5

So for instance, a bun that weighs 2 KG, he would be using

2 kg x 0.1/1.5 = 0.13 ml per day

It's extremely rare that a bun needs metacam 2 times a day. Is your vet a rabbit savvy vet? Do a search in the Rabbit Care section, all these years when I use metacam, it's only once a day

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I'm not sure what you vet has told you, but that isn't really an incorrect dosage of metacam....well it's high but it also depends on weight of bun.
My rabbit savvy vet (and she specialises in buns) told me to work it out as weight x o.5/1.5. It sounds like you are working out the minimum dosage amount for a bunny. 0.13ml would not be enough for pain management in rabbits experiencing chronic pain. You can split the dosage into two amounts to give 2 x daily

wt. in KG x 0.5 / 1.5 is extremely high

My bun Goofball was on metacam for about 10 mth. due to pain from bone cancer

in almost 99% of the time, I use the above formula given by my vet

there were 5 days out of that 11 mth. that I have to use:

wt. in Kg x 0.2/1.5

and it's still once a day

if you use that extreme dosage, your bun must be on ranitidine daily then

In the link where it says metacamkill.com, one of the member here was using a very high dosage to her bun, w/i hours, the bun paralyze and passed away. She posted her story in that link as well

You only use just the amt. to offset the pain, if you use something higher, then when that dosage is not sufficient due to "build up" of the pain in the body, then you are force to use an even higher dosage

Anyhoo, the official source from "The 5 min. Vet. Consult--Ferret and Rabbit" by Dr. Barbara Oglesbee, written by her and review by 9 other top DVM (2006 Edition), on page 395, under common Dosage for Rabbits:

Meloxicam 0.2 to 0.5 mg/KG ONCE daily, PO

For e.g., for a 2 KG rabbit, using simple dimensional analysis:

At 0.2 mg:

0.2 mg / KG x 2 KG x 1 ml/1.5 mg = 0.26 ml per 24 hr.

At 0.5 mg:

0.5 mg / KG x 2 KG x 1 ml/1.5 mg = 0.67 ml per 24 hr.

In your part of the world, where Dr. Hancourt Brown is the No. 1, the dosage is even less, in her book, Textbook of Rabbit Medicine, on page 99,

Meloxicam 0.1 - 0.2 mg /KG PO

Also, in your part of the world, using BSAVA (British Small Animal Veterinary Association) Manual of Rabbit Medicine and Surgery, 2nd ed., (2006 Edition) page 145

Meloxicam 0.2 to 0.6 mg/KG S.C. or Orally q24h

At the extreme high end of 0.6 mg:

0.6 mg / KG x 2 KG x 1 ml/1.5 mg = 0.8 ml per 24 hr.

Yes I have a rabbit savvy vet and have done for the last 10 years.

Her doses are based on the new info given out the RWF conference which she attends every year.

Also 2 of the rabbits are giants

My vet has also worked alongside Frances Harcourt Brown so I trust she knows what she's doing..

I give my rabbits ranitidine regardless of how long they will be on metacam for.

I would only give the level of metacam I thought my bun needed for their pain to be managed...but that's a hard call to make because not all buns show the classic signs of being in pain i.e tooth grinding and anorexia. If you know you bun well enough then you know how high a dosage they need.

I'm aware of the metacam kills reports...but i'm not sure of how much scientific or physiological evidence there is to back up that theory. I know there were problems in cats where metcam is concerned but I am pretty sure that issue has been worked on now where Boehringer Ingelheim are concerned...I did discuss this with my vet not so long ago but can't remember the exact details.

Hugo's There said:

Yes I have a rabbit savvy vet and have done for the last 10 years.

Her doses are based on the new info given out the RWF conference which she attends every year.

Also 2 of the rabbits are giants

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The Nov. 2007 RWF conference did show that Metacam can be given in a higher doses. However, it doesn't mean that you need it.

When Goofball had bone cancer, supposedly, the dosage slowly gone up thru the 9 to 10 mth. time frame. However, as the temporary higher dosage that I apply no longer needed, I easily managed to reduce 0.02 ml every 2 days. So back in April 2008, I cut back from 0.66 ml (she's a 7.1 KG bun) to 0.41 ml.

Now in the end, turns out I successfully cured the bone cancer or make it dormant, but if it turns out she still needs it, I would encourage myself to try out reducing the dosage.

As we all know, there is long term side effect on metacam as well as ranitidine, so the lesser the better if they don't need it.

In the case of metcam kills rabbit, the most recent case was a member here at RU, whose vet ask her to orally given 1 ml every 12 hr., and her bun is about 2 - 3 kg, as soon as the 2nd x 1 ml is given, in less than 3 hr., the bun paralyzed and passed away

One quick question is, eventhough the RWA conference did say a higher dosage, why are you guys using it? Did the bun starts w/ the regular dosage in the past and it doesn't work?

The one thing I will just say is that if any of you have insurance for your buns and buy medication online many companies will not let you claim for them unless you buy from vet.

Also it will not be long until Practices can start charging for making written prescriptions so if u do have them- Get bulks.

xxxxx