I’ve been trying to get a (6 monthly) repeat prescription for flea and worming stuff off the vets this morning, and I’ve been told they won’t prescribe anything until the vet has seen my cat.

Is this normal? It seems like unnecessary hassle. My moggy has been fit and healthy, so there’s been no need to go to the vets, and I know how much he weighs etc. Is there some obvious, and sensible reason I’m missing? I don’t imagine there’s much a black market for cat wormer?!

I don’t want start anything about vets being money grabbing bar stewards etc. everyone has to make a living etc..

Can you not get that type of stuff over the counter in pet shops.

That’s what I thought – why do you need a prescription?

You can. But not the good stuff.

If it is the proper prescription stuff then why would you expect them to to let you have it without seeing the cat. You wouldn’t get anything from the gp.

He gets a combined flea and wormer spot on stuff, so it’s less stressful for me (!) than playing with tablets. Also, generally in the past, the stuff I’ve had over the counter has made him throw up, and the stuff he’s had from the vets hasn’t caused any problems, so I’d like to stick with it if possible.

I get my hayfever stuff every year without seeing my GP, I just submit a repeat prescription, and the receptionist asks if anything’s changed in the past 12 months….

We get our dog stuff from the vet. She only visits for yearly jabs and the odd injury.

If it is the proper prescription stuff then why would you expect them to to let you have it without seeing the cat. You wouldn’t get anything from the gp

Never had a repeat prescription?

[pedant on]
He needs a new jag obviously!

Nixie has it. The over the counter stuff is rubbish or fleas have immunity to it (frontline). The prescribed stuff works but the vet likes to see the animal to prescribe it which, I agree, is a pain.

I had this and I think legally (or maybe professionally??) they have to see the animal every 6 months. Our cat had the same medication for years and we had to take it in every 6 months.
Yes it’s an extra cost but it was covered by insurance anyway.

The over the counter stuff is rubbish or fleas have immunity to it (frontline)

hmm. my dog was riddled with fleas after my ex rather neglected the situation for a prolonged period. once shot of her i nuked the house from orbit ( idiran, in quantity, including the hoover bag ), and i use the other stuff that has the same active ingredient as frontline available from pets.co.uk ( IIRC – the stuff is effipro i think ), and have had very few problems since. i don’t treat her all the time, just if i notice she’s starting to scratch, or i spot a passenger when i brush her. which is probably less frequent than i aspire to. i also put her bedding out on the line quite often ( supposed to kill flea eggs with UV ), and when i wash her bedding i treat with idiran before i put it down for her.
pets don’t get to keep pets! 🙂

Dan there are a few online suppliers that only need you to type in the weight of your cat before they will send out prescribed flea treatment.

Be warned though, counterfeit flea treatment is out there too

I read the first post as the cat hasn’t been there before. In which case I don’t blame the vet. If the vet wants to see the cat every worming time then that’s up to him surely?
Change vets?

Diatomaceous earth, its natural (not a chemical) can be used for fleas AND worms, Very effective.
Oh and its much much cheaper than anything from the vets.

The Benefits Of Diatomaceous Earth For Dogs

You can buy the good stuff online; loads cheaper then the vet too.

Be warned though, counterfeit flea treatment is out there too

The decent/reputable vendors are easy to spot.

[pedant on]
He needs a new jag obviously!

[actual pedant]

That’s not pedantry

[/actual pedant]

I used all manner of stuff on mine, the only stuff that ever worked reliably was Frontline spot-on stuff. Worth a try before you rule it out.

Try a different vet?

I’m a vet (not smalls though, only horses) -it is now a legal requirement that you can only prescribe for animals “examined” in last 6 months, punishment for failing to comply with medicine legislation = big fine/jail time for the vet. So our hands are sort of tied. You can potentially get round it with a “verbal” consultation which is what we try to do for most clients.
Cant tell you which flea stuff is any good as not treated a dog or cat for 17years, have to phone a friend when ours get ill, which goes doing v well with the wife 🙁

I always get my cat flea and worm treatment online from vet-medic.com.
Can recommend.

Have used Frontline on our cats for years, never had a problem with it not working.

Used other stuff prior to that with less success,spent 10years working in the Pest Control industry so are aware pesticides and how they work.

Bear in mind that Frontline only kills adult fleas that come into contact with the cat, eggs can lay dormant for ages any larvae will not be affected either ,you need to treat the house to kill these off.
Cheap and easy way to do this is to sprinkle Ant powder down on the floor last thing at night ,then vacuum it up first thing in the morning(only need a very light dusting).

Do this a couple of times over a fortnight/month and it should help break the whole flea lifecycle.

Bear in mind that Frontline only kills adult fleas that come into contact with the cat, eggs can lay dormant for ages any larvae will not be affected either ,you need to treat the house to kill these off.

IIRC it says just this on the box, but explains that existing eggs will hatch, land on the cat and then cark it. I didn’t bother with treating the house (I was going to but didn’t get round to it) and the problem went away soon after I started with Frontline.

hello dickyhepburn, i’m a horse vet too. i think we need a cpd meeting for mountain biking equine vets. plenty of cpd points and a days on the hills. should it be organised here or on BEVA ? either way get it sorted !