Buying Prescription Items

Any of our products marked with a red icon is a prescription-only product. We can only dispatch these products once we have received a valid vet’s prescription. Prescription products may still be added to your basket and purchased but will not be dispatched until we have reviewed your prescription. This can take up to 2 days. 

Veterinary prescriptions must be written per UK regulations and signed and dated by a veterinary surgeon registered in the UK. We can only send prescription medication to the country where the prescription was issued.

A prescription is a legal document containing written instructions from your vet outlining what medication is needed, the amount to be supplied, the dosage, whether it is eligible for repeats or not, details about the intended animal, the veterinary surgeon who has prescribed it, and confirmation that the animal is under their care. 

Visit your vet for a consultation to receive a prescription. If prescription medication is required, your vet is legally obliged to write you a prescription on request. Your vet is allowed to charge a reasonable fee for writing a prescription which may vary depending on your vet. 

Place your order for your pet’s medication. Please ensure you purchase the correct medication as stated on your prescription and only the amount stated. We can only dispatch what has been prescribed by your vet. 

Before your order can be processed, our team needs to check your prescription to ensure the right medication is being dispensed and in the correct dosage and amount. 

Send us your prescription in one of the following ways: 

You will be prompted to upload a photograph of your prescription at the checkout. This is the quickest and easiest way to send your prescription, and these orders receive priority during the fulfilment process. 

Make sure the picture of your prescription is clear, easy to read, and contains all the necessary pages and information. 

This method is slower as we need to wait for the prescription to arrive via post and then check the prescription manually. This process is only required for specific medications. You must write your order number on your prescription (Post-Its or paperclips can easily get separated) and then post it to our business address: 

Pet Drugs Online
Unit 7B, Burnett Business Park
Gypsy Lane
Keynsham
Bristol
BS31 2ED

Once your prescription has been received, our team will check it to verify authenticity and ensure you are receiving the right medications for your pet before we dispatch your order. You will receive a confirmation email once your order has been dispatched. 

It is a criminal offence to alter a prescription, and we take a zero-tolerance approach to any forged or altered prescriptions. If we receive any prescriptions that are invalid, forged, or altered, we have no choice but to deactivate the user's account and report the offence to the Veterinary Medicines Directorate and charge a reporting fee of £50. 

For a small number of our prescription products (known as Scheduled or Controlled medications), we are required by law to obtain the original physical copy of your vet's prescription. You will be informed if this applies to your order either at checkout or over the phone. In this instance, you’ll need to send the original prescription written by your vet with your order number written on it (Post-Its or paperclips can easily get separated) to us at:

Pet Drugs Online
Unit 7B, Burnett Business Park
Gypsy Lane
Keynsham
Bristol
BS31 2ED

There are time limits on these prescriptions, so make sure you send it as soon as possible after placing your order, or we won’t be able to fulfil it. For peace of mind, send your prescription to us via a signed method so you can check that it arrived.

In some instances, your vet may prescribe a non-veterinary medicine for your pet (they will use the word “cascade”). You can still purchase these from us, but only by telephone order. Call our Customer Service team on 01761 250 850, and they will walk you through the process, including how to get your prescription to us for these particular products.

Some pets require long-term or even lifetime medication. In these cases, vets will typically write an ongoing or repeat prescription, which can be used more than once. The number of times a repeat prescription can be used will be written on your prescription. 

We are happy to accept repeat prescriptions for your pet’s medication, and these can be added to your account to prevent you from returning to your vet’s surgery and paying for another prescription. Two limits apply to repeat prescriptions: 

1. The total amount prescribed—You can only buy the maximum amount of medicine shown on the prescription. 
2. Time—Prescriptions are standardly valid for up to 6 months from the date of signing unless the prescriber specifies a shorter period.
   However, if the first dispense takes place during the prescription validity period, the remaining repeats may be dispensed beyond the validity period up to a maximum of 1 year from the signed date.

Once either of these limits is reached, the prescription is deemed to be exhausted, and we will be unable to process your order without a new prescription from your vet. 

Once your prescription has been authorised, it will be saved under the “Prescriptions” tab on your Account Page.

You'll see two numbers alongside your saved prescriptions under the “Prescriptions” tab on your Account Page. These are: 

• The total amount prescribed 
• The amount purchased so far

For repeat prescriptions, you will also see the expiry date of the prescription. This means you don’t need to buy all of your pet’s medication in one order but can order it as and when you need to in manageable, affordable chunks.

We are registered as a Veterinary Practice Premises with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. You can verify our status by contacting the RCVS directly. Their contact details are available on the RCVS website.

Our premises reference number: 7159324.

Head Vet: Sarah Page-Jones (BVSC CertSAS MBA PhD MRCVS)

Reference number: 6150505.

This can be verified by visiting the register list at RCVS.

The Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) is the government agency responsible for issues concerning the use and manufacture of veterinary medicines in the UK.

The Summary of Product Characteristics (SPCs) for all the medicinal products sold on this site are available from the Veterinary Medicine’s Directorate Product Information Database.

For guidance and advice for animal owners, please visit the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) website.

If you have a complaint about a veterinary medicine that you do not feel Pet Drugs Online has resolved satisfactorily, you can contact the VMD.