01/06/2026
We have put together a few frequently asked questions around medication and guidelines for your pet. We are here to help so if you have any other questions please let us know 😊
If I think my pet needs a medication, can I pop in to the practice to purchase some over the counter?
• Most medications sold in a vet practice are Prescription-Only Medications. This means the vet needs to have made a clinical assessment to justify prescribing the medication. Therefore, we will book you and your pet in for a consultation to assess and decide together what the best plan of action is.
What if the vet prescribed the medication for a lifelong condition? Do I need to book a consultation every time we need a refill?
• When prescribed, the vet will have noted in the records how long to continue to dispense the medication and at what intervals.
• All patients will need regular clinical re-assessment to keep prescribing - this can depend on how soon into treatment the patient is, how serious the condition, and risks of side effects.
• The longest time frame a vet can repeatedly dispense a long term medication before needing clinical re-assessment is 6 months. So, if we have not seen your pet in the last 6 months, we will need to see them before we are able to dispense any more medication.
What if my pet has had the medication before, and it worked well last time?
• It’s great to know what medications your pet responds well to (and what they do not), however as the medications are prescription-only, we still need to do a clinical assessment. This is part of our duty of care as veterinary professionals, and we are also following our governing body (Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons), who make these guidelines to support and protect the health of animals.
• An examination means that we can go through any alternative options or investigations, and make sure the plan to treat your pet is the right one.
What if I'm not sure if my pet does needs medication or not?
• Please do ring, pop in or email! We are always happy to hear what's going on and make suggestions if we think it's suitable. If you wanted to pop in just to say hello, and so the staff can give admiration to your pet, that is also welcomed!
What should I not do?
• All of our team work very hard to provide an empathetic and individualised service, whilst following safety guidance around medications. Any information given is not done without consideration, and so we expect the same consideration, trust and kindness from our well-loved clients.
