Program Tablets for dogs and Program Suspension for cats, are given with food at monthly intervals to prevent flea infestations. It is important to treat all pets in the household to ensure that all fleas are made infertile. Program tablets and suspension are both available without prescription from just £24.99 for a pack of 6 treatments.

Thursday 28th March - Open 8:30am - 6:30pm

Friday 29th March - Closed (Bank Holiday)

Saturday 30th March - Closed

Sunday 31st March - Closed

Monday 1st April - Closed (Bank Holiday)

Tuesday 2nd April - Open 8:30am - 6:30pm

During the shut down, please feel free to place your order through the website, or if you have any enquiries please leave us an answer machine message or email us at info@petprescription.co.uk and we will respond to your message on our return on Tuesday 2nd April.

We hope you have a great weekend!

This is a subject that has long been debated, with some saying that wet foods are better and others promoting the benefits of dry foods. We look at the pros and cons of each.

Wet food is high in protein and fat and contains very little carbohydrate. It typically contains around 80% moisture, which means it can help to manage lower urinary tract disease in cats and dogs. Wet pet foods are generally closer in composition to what a wild cat or dog would eat. Often it is considered more expensive to feed your pet a wet food as they need to consume more to take in the same amount of calories, however, this can be a real plus if you are trying to lower the calorie consumption of your pet to manage their weight.

Dry foods typically contain less than 10% moisture and their major energy source is carbohydrates. Many owners favour feeding a dry kibble because of the convenience of being able to leave it down for their pet without it quickly deteriorating, whereas wet foods often begin to smell quite quickly. Another major benefit of dry pet food is that it helps to keep your pet’s teeth healthy.

So, which is better? Wet or dry pet food? Or would a mixture of the two formats actually be the ideal solution? While every pet owner needs to take into consideration all factors, including the individual tastes of their cat or dog, the benefits coming from both types of food could be achieved by feeding a mixture. Additionally, by feeding a mix of both wet and dry pet food, your cat or dog will enjoy a variety of smells, tastes and textures, thereby enhancing their enjoyment each and every mealtime.

At the present time, there are more than 75 authorised equine passport issuing organisations in the UK, meaning that the system is open to fraud and abuse. 

Owen Paterson, the Secretary of State, has agreed that there is a need to overhaul the system for equine identification to ensure that the rising number of horses slaughtered in the UK for human consumption were safe to eat.

The UK's first Healthy Happy Hound Report, commisioned by Butcher's Pet Care, has reported that 24% of dogs are considered by their owners to be unhappy. A further 1% actually considered their dog to be depressed? What could have made these hounds so sad? the report identified three areas of a dog's life that have the greatest impact on them;

1. Pack life

Dogs are naturaly sociable animals, used to spending the majority of their time within a pack. In the modern world, a dog's 'pack' is made up of the humans in it's family and any other pets. On average, it was found that dogs spend 3 hours a day without company. So, spend as much time with your dog as possible and this will increase their happiness.

2. Nutrition & Diet

Dog's are primarily carnivores, yet the report showed that only 14% of dogs are being given a solus meaty dog food diet on a daily basis, even though 29% of owners said they thought their dog preferred it. The report also highlighted that 32% of dog owners did not know how much their dog weighed, and 37% did not know how much they should weigh. Therefore, although only 3% of owners thought their dog was overweight, the PDSA's national statistics report states that actually 35% of dogs are overweight. If we have an understanding of how much our dog should weigh, we can then feed them the best food in the right quantities.

3. Play & Exercise

In the wild, a dog would spend an average of four and a half hours exercising daily, but the current average is only 33 minutes. Dog's need regular exercise and play, so if possible, give them opportunities to have the freedom to run free and explore.

The Goverment has proposed to introduce regulations in England that make it compulsory for owners to have their dog microchipped and also registered on one of the authorised commercial databases from 6th April 2016. The details of any new owner would also need to be registered before they sold or gave the dog away and they would need to keep their details on the database up to date.

The charity Dogs Trust noted that in 2010/11 52% of stray dogs could not be reunited with their owners by UK local authoriites as they were unidentifiable. Therefore, it is hoped that compulsory microchipping would help to reduce the burden on animal rescue centres and also reduce the costs faced by local authorities.

At present, a number of animal rescue centres and charities provide a free microchipping service, or the cost of microchipping at a vet practice is around £20 per animal.

What would this mean for pet owners?

It would mean that you could only buy animal medication from your Vet, or you would need to get a written prescription from them, even for products such as Frontline and Drontal. The thinking behind this proposal is to give greater control over the supply of wormers, to prevent future problems with resistance. However, the cost of buying some products is likely to increase.

Until then, we will have to wait and see what is decided...

All of the cats in the survey were given special treats over the christmas period, including christmas dinner, chocolate, stuffing or christmas pudding. As well as helping to pile on the pounds, many of these foods are actually toxic to cats. For more information, please see our full article on Poisonous Substances to Pets Common in Winter.

It has just come to our attention that Merial, the manufacturers of Frontline spot on flea treatments, will be increasing their prices from 1st February.

Our current stock doesn't expire until 2015 so we would suggest that now is a good time to stock up on this well-known pet essential.

Remember, we also give greater discounts when buying at least 2 boxes in our Multibuy deals so even greater savings are possible.

If you have any questions about the product, which strength is best for your pet, or administration, please feel free to give us a call on 01473 222392.

Vets recommend that dogs are wormed regularly, usually every 3 to 6 months, depending on how much they like to scavenge. Unlike most flea products, worming tablets do not have a lasting effect and work once at the time of dosing to clear out any internal parasites the dog may have. Unfortunately, this means that your dog can quickly pick up worms again and be suffering with an infestation before you know it.

We recommend using a broad spectrum wormer, which means that it works against both round and tape worms, not just one type of parasite. Drontal dog worming tablets do just that, with only one dose required. Drontal dog worming tablets are also highly palatable so most dogs will happily take them as a treat. Alternatively, they can be crushed and added to food, if your dog is a bit fussy.

And to make worming your dog even more palatable to you, we are offering BUY 3 GET 1 FREE on Drontal bone shaped dog worming tablets.

Our website will remain open throughout christmas and new year for ordering.

Royal Mail have told us that they are already experiencing delays in delivery of post to all parts of the UK. This is because of an increased volume of mail with Christmas fast approaching as well as the recent flooding and snow fall in certain areas.

So, what can you do to avoid running out of your pet's medication and food?

• We would strongly recommend ordering your pet's medication as early as possible, as delays are bound to get worse nearer to xmas.
• Consider upgrading the delivery to 1st class at just £1.50 per order, regardless of how many items you order.
• Check that the address details we have for you are accurate, including the postcode.

Don't forget we are still offering free delivery on all food orders until Monday 17th December, so take advantage and stock up early!

You can also vote for your favourite pet from each category- Dogs, Cats, Equine and Other pets (small furries, reptiles etc.).

Tired of lugging heavy bags in and out of the car?

Do not despair, help is at hand! Until Monday 17th December, we are offering FREE delivery on all food orders, no matter how big or small. Have your pet's food delivered direct to your home or work address.

One less thing to worry about ;-)

The Accredited Internet Retailer Scheme is the VMD's way of facilitating self-regulation by UK based internet retailers selling veterinary medicines. It is a response to concerns about the increase in the number of internet retailers and the extent to which they comply with the Veterinary Medicines Regulations (VMR). In order to receive this accreditation, we not only have to meet all of the inspection requirements but also all non-compulsory recommendations made by the VMD. They can then vouch that we provide professional advice when selling veterinary medicines and that we ensure their correct storage as required by UK law.

Greater peace of mind for Pet-owners!

• 
  Paypal is one of the safest payment systems online
• Saves time as all it requires is you to login to paypal to pay!
• PayPal remembers card and bank details meaning you don't have to reenter them each time you order
• PayPal is used throughout the internet by thousands of websites 

Previcox from just £23.49 for 30 tablets.

Flexadin from just £9.99 for 30 tablets with 50 bonus pet points.

Hurry as these offers are only on whilst stocks last...

These are the postcodes that are affected;