Prescription charges

[hightail]

Although vets can now charge for prescriptions again it is still worth checking the costs if you have an animal with a chronic condition. For some drugs the vet only needs to see the animal every 6 months and can write a prescription for a six month supply. The charge for the script should be fixed no matter how much of the drug is prescribed. If they are prepared to sell you three or six months supply from their own dispensary then they must provide you with the script if you ask.

 

Some vets are charging their consultation fee for the script, for others £12 seems to be an accepted norm. It is worth checking vets in your local area. For things like a thyroid condition or an ongoing need for steroids the difference in vet prices v online ordering can mean an owner being able to continue treatment.

 

An interesting 'side-effect' of an owner knowing what to ask is that a vet may even reduce their price. Vets are a business, they charge what the market will bear and are 'incentivised' (hate that word) by the drug companies. If losing the sale will make a difference they do discount. Don't be afraid to ask and barter. Your pet is your world - to the vet it's a business proposition so lose the emotion as you walk through the door. Deal with your vet as you would a car salesman and you won't go far wrong. I'm hard as nails with mine and I find they actually respect me for it.

[Jan4a]

Very true. And watch the prescription foods too - I've learnt that Hills CD (for cats urinary problems) is on prescription only at vets and everywhere else. However you can buy the Royal Canin version on internet without prescription which is cheaper. Also Royal Canin do a wet pouch food and a dry food for it if your cat won't eat biscuits.

 

Hills seem to be in league with vets on prescription foods - Royal Canin are always worth a check to see if they do an equivalent. I think its Pet-Supermarket.com that gives you the Royal Canin equivalent of Hills prescription foods, but try Zooplus as well. There might be others but haven't discovered them yet!

 

Hope I'm allowed to give names of websites ...........

[hightail]

Interesting isn't it that the 'prescription' diets being pushed by vets are for diseases that are certainly exacerbated if not caused by dried food in the first place. Both diabetes and FLUTD have been linked with these over-processed dried foods full of cheap filler.

 

When Royal Canin brought out their pouched wet food not long back they sent me loads of the stuff for free. I couldn't find any information about the meat content, there is no evidence of any meat protein and the price is horrendous.

 

Pets at Home do Natures Menu at a reasonable price - at least 70% meat with no additives. Works out at £4.48/kilo if you buy an outer of 4 x 12 pouches. That's cheaper than the supposed equivalent premium brands in a supermarket.

[Jan4a]

Interesting isn't it that the 'prescription' diets being pushed by vets are for diseases that are certainly exacerbated if not caused by dried food in the first place. Both diabetes and FLUTD have been linked with these over-processed dried foods full of cheap filler.

 

 

 

Yes it was FLUTD my cat had. He couldn't have dry food as he swallows it whole - he has no teeth. I asked for wet food which is when they gave me Royal Canin pouches, a search on the internet later and I knew I didn't need a prescription. It was surprising that Hills didn't do a CD pouch.

 

I'll try my FLUTD cat on Natures Menu but to be honest he's definately a Whiskas cat - I'm told that's why he lost all his teeth aged 6.

 

I think his FLUTD was caused by stress when other cats were coming into the cat flap, I locked that off years ago and he's been fine since so fingers crossed! But I do try and make sure he drinks a lot by putting water into his meat just to be on the safe side.

 

My 3 Norwegians eat Royal Canin and they love it. They've had Hills too which is more expensive but they definately prefer the Royal Canin. I've tried them on a couple of cheaper ones such as Wellbeloved but they do know the difference and won't eat it. I like them on dried for their teeth but they get 1 meal a day of either fish or pouch meat as well. I like a mixture just in case they ever have to be moved off dried food.

 

Jan

[hightail]

I like them on dried for their teeth

 

I happen to believe that's another fallacy Dried food causes plaque and decay just like any other. Cats fed on a diet of raw food including bones (such as chicken wings) have good teeth because that's how cats are meant to eat. Most of us need to resort to prepared foods for our pets at least some of the time so a product like Logic Oral Gel can be useful.

[Jan4a]

You may be right but if I give mine raw food they seem to think its a toy - they'll play with it and try to "kill" it but don't seem to realise its edible!

 

3 of them aren't even that keen on chicken, they'll eat fish though which is something and came in handy when my older tom cat needed to lose weight.

 

I've got a friend with a 2 year old she cat that is very overweight. How does that happen? Its not a housecat. She says it steals the other cats' food.

 

Mine always have dried food down (well, actually its on the wardrobe so the old cat can't get at it) and therefore don't feel they have to wolf it down because its always there. When I got the kitten (aged 4 months) she was really greedy and I believe that was because her feeding was restricted before I got her. Now she's been here 2 months she's not nearly so bad.

 

My 15 year old neutered tom has to be watched but I've always had cats and never had a fat one, and I've always fed the same way.

[hightail]

I've always had cats and never had a fat one

 

You have had one with FLUTD and one with lost teeth though. Just like humans, cats are all different and prone to different weaknesses which will be exacerbated by certain things.

 

I've bred cats for decades. I remember the dried foods coming in and all the great promises made by the manufacturers and repeated by vets. I still use them myself, including Hills and RC - in moderation as I do other prepared petfoods. I get them a darn sight cheaper than you do because I'm a breeder and I'm offered inducements to recommend them to my kitten buyers. I'm a realist and I know that most pet owners will not wish to feed their cat a natural diet so I have to raise my kittens to fit in with the homes they'll go to.

 

However, there is a huge difference between pet owners having a wide choice of how they feed their animals and being conned into expensive over-processed foods once their pets become ill. They are hit at a vulnerable time by a load of pseudo scientific claims when common sense is needed - but there's no profit in common sense.

[Jan4a]

All above true, I'm sure. I know a friend who breeds dogs get a big reduction on her dog food.

 

When I asked vet why cat had to have all teeth out (I'd been expecting a couple of bad ones) he just said cats are like people, some have stronger teeth than others.

 

What do you think about leukemia vacc for house cats? Mine have always been done since I've had them on the vets recommendation, although the breeder I got the Norwegians from didn't like it (said its stunts their growth) and said as its a contact disease it wasn't necessary for housecats.

 

I got made redundant and am managing with bits of temp work but don't have as much money as usual. Their vacs are due and I'm thinking of giving the leukemia booster a miss as it doubles the price and with 5 cats its a lot of money. Not sure what to do.

 

They cost a fortune with food, litter and insurance - insurance costs about £50 a month but don't want to let that go.

[hightail]

What do you think about leukemia vacc for house cats?

 

Firstly, it does make a huge difference to the cost of vaccinating and I don't do it. However, all my cats are tested and I can guarantee that my house is FeLV free. A snap test for FeLV/FIV will cost around £40 per cat which is far more expensive than the extra cost of including it in the booster.

 

It is a disease that can take a long time to show so unless you can be sure all your cats are FeLV free it is a bit of a risk but nowhere near the same as if they were allowed to roam and had contact with other cats.

 

If money is tight then it's far better to do the basic booster than nothing at all. You can't bring FeLV in on your clothes/shoes etc. and infect your cats. There is a higher risk of such a thing happening with feline enteritis or the cat flu viruses so do what you can afford to protect against the greatest risk.

[Jan4a]

I might pay to get the kitten tested then, she'd be the weak link. A friend bought her from a pet shop (not something I agree with) and I took her in when she got to 4 months because it was me or the cat sanctuary. She's due to be spayed soon so I might get that done at the same time (friend is paying for the spaying as a condition of my taking kitten - might stop her being so irresponsible again). Then I'll know whether Leuk booster is essential for rest or not.

 

Breeder did guarantee Norwegians didn't have it but I had them done just in case they ever got out which one of them has done once.

 

I would always get the basic booster done.

[hightail]

That kitten is the weak link and you have hit the nail on the head with the way to go about it

[jackieandwayne]

Well I can only tell you that years ago I went to a rescue centre and couldn;t decide which cat to take, so ended up with three sisters, all about 6 months old. Then they rang me to say they had two more little ones, could I help. Then I went back with some tins for them, and there was a poor black cat who wouldn;t get off me so he ended up coming home as well.

 

We all got on well, they got whiskas and water, go cat biscuits for a treat, occasionally milk, always tinned salmon and tuna, and basically anything they managed to steal! (The string of sausages, the cooked chicken stolen from next doors kitchen, the whole cows liver where ever they found that, and the slaughtered seagull they forced in through the catflap! all spring to mindhere!) Chopped raw liver and kidney caused a punch up, raw fish, not all of them liked it. Point is, there was no dried food, just boring old tinned, and each of those cats led a very long and healthy life. 19 was the oldest.

 

I guess its like us lot, its swings and roundabouts and what cards are dealt to begin with.

[colin219]

basc members can get 50 to 75% off the cost of drugs for there pets.

I know basc is for shooting, but if you have a pet with a cronic illness it may be worth joining.