PROVET HEALTHCARE INFORMATION - Buying Drugs From Pet Shops Or Chemists

You should seek the advice of your veterinarian if your pet is ill as only he or she can correctly advise on the diagnosis and recommend the treatment that is most appropriate for your pet.

Many healthcare products for pets can be bought from pet shops, pet stores, chemists and other retail outlets. These products are often for the treatment of common conditions such as worms, fleas and lice - and similar products can be supplied by veterinary practices. Are the products in retail outlets as good as those available from veterinarians ?

All products sold on the basis of having a positive clinical benefit - such as a claim to kill worms or fleas, should have scientific evidence to support such a claim.

A "veterinary medicinal product" is any medicinal product intended for use in animals. In the UK an independent authority - "The Veterinary Medicines Directorate" is responsible for legally classifying veterinary medicines into several categories :

•AVM-GSL medicines There are no legal restrictions for the retail supply of veterinary medicines classified as AVM-GSL ("over the counter" medicine) but a responsible approach to the supply of these medicines is still expected.

•POM-V medicines A Veterinary Medicinal Product (VMP) that has been classified as a POM-V may only be supplied to the client once it has been prescribed by a veterinary surgeon following a clinical assessment of an animal, or group of animals, under the veterinary surgeon's care.

•POM-VPS A veterinary medicines classified as POM-VPS may be prescribed by any Registered Qualified Person (RQP - a veterinarian, a pharmacist or an appropriately qualified SQP (Suitably Qualified Person). A clinical assessment of the animal(s) is not required when prescribing this category of veterinary medicine and the animal does not have to be seen by the prescriber. However sufficient information about the animal and the way it is kept must be known to the prescriber in order to prescribe and supply appropriately.

•NFA-VPS A veterinary medicine classified as NFA-VPS may be supplied by an RQP (a veterinarian, a pharmacist or an appropriately qualified SQP) provided the requirements for supply are met. These medicines do not require a prescription.

•SAES The Small Animal Exemption Scheme (SAES) permits certain medicines to be placed on the market without a marketing authorisation (MA), subject to certain conditions. This exemption scheme applies only to veterinary medicines labelled exclusively for use in one or more of the following animals that are not intended for human consumption: aquarium animals (including fish kept in closed water systems), cage birds (meaning birds kept in cages or aviaries), homing pigeons (meaning pigeons kept for racing or exhibition), terrarium animals (meaning reptiles, amphibians and arthropods kept in tanks and cages - including animals free-living in domestic gardens), small rodents (meaning domestic mammals of the order rodentia), ferrets and rabbits.

•CD All controlled-drugs (CDs) are listed in one of five Schedules in the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001 (MDR) and the Misuse of Drugs Regulations (Northern Ireland)(MDR (NI)) 2002. A list of commonly encountered CDs can be found on the Home Office website (www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/drugs/drug-licences/controlled-drugs-listN) and requests to establish the control status of other drugs can be sent to Home Office licensing enquiries at licensing_enquiries.aadu@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk. A list of all current veterinary medicines that are CDs is also available on the VMD website (www.vmd.defra.gov.uk). The substances are scheduled according to their therapeutic usefulness and need for legitimate access, as well as potential for misuse and the harms caused by that misuse, to both the individual and society. Schedule 1 CDs are subject to the greatest restrictions and Schedule 5 the least.

•Specified Feed Additives Feed additives authorised under Regulation EU 1831/2003 belonging to the functional groups; coccidiostats, histomonostats and certain other zootechnical additives ie non-antibiotic growth promoters.

A "veterinary prescription" is defined by EU law as "any prescription for a veterinary medicinal product issued by a professional person qualified to do so in accordance with applicable national law". The word "veterinary" takes its normal meaning "of or for animals". In the UK there are two classes of medicines available only on veterinary prescription, POM-V and POM-VPS, described above. Only in the case of POM-V medicines does that veterinary prescription have to be issued by a veterinary surgeon.

•the circumstances of the animals being treated;

•the available authorised veterinary medicinal products;

•the need for responsible use of medicines and the requirement to prescribe the minimum amount of product necessary for the treatment (subject to the minimum pack size manufactured and any authority to break bulk in the Regulations);

•the abilities and competence of the person who will administer the product; and

•any available animal health plan.

The regulations covering veterinary medicines do not apply to other categories of product including :

If a company wishes to register a product for veterinary use as a POM it is a complicated and expensive procedure during which the following have to be proved by adequate scientific evidence:

Many of the most potent veterinary drugs are POM products, this is regarded as the "gold standard" for drug classification, and these are the ones that veterinarians will invariably prescribe for the treatment of diseases. However, this does not mean that a GSL product that can be supplied by a pharmacist or other retailer is not effective. The question is - is it as effective ?

The choice of a specific product to treat a specific condition is not always straight forward. For example, some worming preparations are effective only against roundworms, some are effective only against tapeworms, and some are effective against both types of worm. Of these products some are more effective than others against one type of worm. So, how can a consumer choose the best worming product for his/her pet ? The answer is they can't - unless they know a lot about :

So, Provet's recommendation is: Get the advice of your veterinarian about which products are best for your animal - even if you decide to purchase a product from your pharmacist or pet shop rather than from your veterinary practice.