Online Prescription Refills
As of January 1, 2020, Briargate Boulevard Animal Hospital will no longer approve prescriptions from third party online pet medication retailers like Chewy.com or 1-800-Pet-Meds.
There are multiple reasons for this policy change. First and foremost is that buying from these online sources is not always the safest way to get the medications, preventives and prescription foods your pet needs. The FDA has warned consumers multiple times about online pharmacies. Some of these companies sell “diverted” items—products purchased in bulk and then sold to the online retailer before being resold to the consumer. Diverted products may no longer carry the manufacturer’s guarantees for safety and efficacy. The result is you may receive mishandled or expired food or medications, or even counterfeit products.
The pets of unsuspecting families pay the price in lack of protection from parasites, ineffective medication therapy or in the worst cases, serious illness and death when these preventives and medications are handled incorrectly or are counterfeit.
Our doctors have also experienced third-party online pharmacies substituting medications with similar but not equivalent products and randomly changing medication strengths and dosing instructions. This puts pet safety at risk and our doctors feel that by approving prescription requests from third-party online pharmacies they are endorsing the safety and legitimacy of the products from that pharmacy, and that is not an endorsement they are comfortable making.
We understand that life is busy and convenience plays a huge role in wanting to order from online stores. So, we now have our own trusted online pharmacy partner where you can purchase medications, heartworm, flea and tick preventatives, regular and prescription foods and much more to be delivered straight to your door! Simply visit our online store to create an account, then select the products you would like to order and it will send us a prescription approval request. You can set up auto-shipments if you like, and your purchases will still qualify for the same manufacturer rebates and guarantees we offer in-hospital.
Your pet’s health is and always will be our highest priority. We want to ensure that your pet receives only the safest and most effective foods, medications and preventive care products. If you still prefer to obtain your pet’s prescriptions from a third-party online pharmacy, we will provide a written prescription that you can fill at the pharmacy of your choice. The written prescription ensures that the doctor’s instructions are clear and cannot be changed, and puts responsibility for the safety and quality of the products received in the hands of the owner.
We invite you to call us at (719) 528-5557 if you have any questions or concerns or would like a written prescription prepared for pick up during business hours.