Hello & welcome, I am Dr. B, a licensed veterinarian and I would like to help you with your wee one today.
Now as I am sure you can appreciate, the dispensing of repeat prescription medications requires the vet to check the animal over to confirm that it is healthy and that it is safe for the medication to be continued. With this, the animal is under the vet's care and by giving this medication they are legally responsible for having ok'd this particular animal to take the medication at that particular time. Therefore, since the vet cannot see nor examine your dog over the phone, a call would not have been an acceptable alternative to meet this legal requirement of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (the board that provides a vet's license). And had they done so and your dog had had a problem, then they would be held accountable (which could lead to suspension or revoking of their license if they did just hand this medication out inappropriately).
Just so you are aware of what is driving your vet's request to see her every 6 months, the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) guidelines state : "
a veterinary surgeon may only prescribe a medicine of the category "Prescription Only Medicine, Veterinarian, [POM-V]" after a clinical assessment of the animal". So, this is a legal requirement when prescribing prescription-only medicines, as they are taking responsibility for that treatment and the effects if may or may not have on your lass. In regards ***** ***** this does depend on the practice's policy (which may have recently changed,), on the individual vet, or if there is concern about her continued use/ageing/health. But generally speaking this can be every 3-12 months depending on all these factors.
Therefore, while I know you have not been told that every 6 months is required before, it is not an unreasonable requirement by the practice and is a common frequency required by most practices. Still, if she is seen annually for her vaccine (which could be one of those twice yearly visits), then do have a word with the head vet of the practice. They will have the final say in this situation, and they may be able to extend that revisit frequency to annually if they feel it is appropriate in this case (based on her age, history, their practice policies which would be established by them). Otherwise, to offset costs if they do demand an every 6 months visit, you could potentially request a prescription from them between those visits to purchase the Loxicom from an internet pharmacy (as these companies do tend to be able to offer these medications for less then a small practice can).
I hope this information is helpful.
If you need any additional information, do not hesitate to ask!
All the best,
Dr. B.
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