167% RIP-OFF ON ANIMAL MEDICINE

But there’s a way to save a fortune...

VETS are ripping-off pet lovers with crippling mark-ups as high as 167% for medicines which can be brought for a fraction of the price online. Last year the UK’S 13 million pet owners spent a record £7.16billion on their furry friends – with a trip to the vet being the biggest single expense. Reader Lena Mceleney was shocked when we showed her how much larger veterinary practices are hiking up their prices to unsuspecting customers. Her miniature Yorkshire Terrier Pippa was prescribed a six-month course of Bravecto flea tablets from the vet at a cost of £80 for two boxes. But we found the same drug online for £14.99 a box – £50.02 cheaper than the vet’s price, which was a mark-up of 167%. Lena, of Kempston, Bedford, said: “I can’t believe how they can justify the cost. “Not only are vet bills astronomical, adding so much on to the price of medi- cines is so unfair on pet owners. I’ll buy Pippa’s medicines online from now on.” Jenny Finch’s nine-year-old Jack Russell Terrier called Badger was diagnosed with heart disease in May. Her vet prescribed Vetmedin at the cost of £63 a month – or £766.50 a year but she found the drug online for cheaper. The 58-year-old carer from Croydon, south London, said: “It is awful when it is cheaper to have your animal put down than what it costs to treat it. “We’ve been told Badger has one to two years to live and will need to take this medicine for the rest of his life. “The cost each month through the vet was £63 so I looked online. My vet charged me £18 for a prescription. “On the internet I found the exact same medicine for £80 for approximately a three-month course. That’s £456.25 a year, which will save me £310.25.” To save forking out high fees, ask your vet to write out a prescription, which typically costs £8 to £14, then go online. But be wary of bogus sites.