Genuine online drugs/medication

[excuseme]

How can we be sure that the drugs/medication that we purchase from online pharmacies and companies are genuine products.
I have just been to my vet's today to collect a prescription for some Effipro spray.
A discussion started about how much cheaper we (a client) can buy medication for online, and a question asked, how do we know that what we are purchasing is a genuine product !
How do we know?

 

[JudyN]

I would guess that the larger online retailers are as keen to retain their reputation as a vet would be so hopefully, they will take as much care over where they source their products as a vet. How does the vet know their suppliers are reliable?

DS2 bought melatonin online - I wasn't overly happy (he was an adult), but it can be incredibly useful and you can't generally get it on prescription. He did do a lot of research first though.

 

[leashedForLife]

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it's very hard to know what meds are legit, & what are contaminated, past expiration & repackaged, just plain FAKE... using a well-reputed on-line source is step 1, but there's no warranty that they aren't themselves taken in.
Retailers can be fooled, too.

How to Buy Medicines Safely From an Online Pharmacy

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[Josie]

I thought you still had to get a prescription from your vet to purchase online?

 

[JudyN]

@Josie yes you do (if it's a prescription-only item) but the vets don't tell you where to buy them. And generally, the cost of the prescription plus the cost of the medicine online is less than the vet charges.

 

[Josie]

@Josie yes you do (if it's a prescription-only item) but the vets don't tell you where to buy them. And generally, the cost of the prescription plus the cost of the medicine online is less than the vet charges.

I always feel a bit bamboozled at the vets and before I know it Im paying my big vet bill. I don’t think I’d even get chance to say ‘sorry, could you just write out my prescription!’

 

[excuseme]

I would never ask for a prescription at the time of treatment/diagnosis.
The only prescription s that I ever ask for are for flea treatment.
Luckily we have never had a dog that has needed long term treatment for anything requiring POM drugs.

 

[JudyN]

I'm the same as @excuseme - I've only asked for prescriptions for Seresto flea & tick collars. If they are dud, it's highly unlikely they'll do any harm - I'll just notice that J is still getting ticks. If you're getting drugs for a disorder, it's vital that they are effective so it would make sense to get them from the most reputable supplier, which is likely to be your vet.

 

[excuseme]

Ours are wearing the Seresto collars my husband has found a couple of small ticks, but they have almost fallen off, probably dying from the effects of the collars.
Our 2 puppies nave no Seresto collars and no spot-ons, they were last treated when they were about 8 weeks with "Effipro", (still all clear at the moment).

 

[Mad Murphy]

I buy from a vet practice that has an online shop.. They can supply some things cheaper because they dont have the cost of actual visits and because they buy in bulk and sell all across the country.