Our lovely eleven year old has recently been diagnosed with this horrible disease. She had been very poorly and had lost lots of weight, although she still looked big as she had retained water.  She is steadily improving with the help of medication being Vetmedin 5mg and furosemide 40mg  twice daily. I thought at the time she was just being fussy over her food as she wouldn't eat very much, it was very worrying.  The vets we go to have been very good over the years. I've seen them quite regularly with our other dog. We have always had pet insurance but decided to cancel earlier on in the year as the payments had risen ridiculously and we now save the premiums towards the vets bills into a savings account. It's still in credit at the moment!  The vet was very good at the start when we bought the medication off them and even put the two items on the same prescription when we  first got the medication off the internet. They now say that each medicine has to have a separate prescription and they will only give two months worth of medication at a time. They charge £15 for each prescription and I got the feeling that they were not very keen to give it.  We telephoned a week in advance to order it and they still didn't have it ready for us but had put the drugs aside in the hope I guess that we would buy from them. I'd just like to know if this is normal with prescription medication. She also developed Horner's disease back in June but that seems to have subsided a little. I'd be very grateful for any advice you may have.  Many thanks in advance. Ange

My dog is on monthly doses of Advocate now as she did have lungworm earlier this year. The price is nearly double from my vets with the pack of 3 months the same cost as a pack of 6 months on the internet. I requested a prescription and they were not very happy especially as I asked for a prescription to cover a years worth of medication. They did eventually supply this for a 12 month supply in 2 boxes of 6 doses, the cost £13.50 plus vat, but worth it to save online.
They have plenty of money off me for other things so I explained that I have to save where I can.

Not my current vets (have never had a need to ask them for a prescription) but when I had a dog on heart medication I did ask my previous vet and was told £10 a prescription and only one month at a time -hence it was pointless doing it.

My last dog developed this when she was about 11 and had a further 3 years on meds. She was still insured so I didn't have to worry about costs, but I initially looked into getting her meds off the internet. The vet charged for writing the prescription and put all the meds onto one as at that time it was still excepted by the company on the Internet. So that would have been a further extra expense which I wouldn't be able to claim back as the insurance company didn't pay prescription charges. In the end I just got them off the vet which saved the hassle, but I did wonder if we were getting close to the insurance limit at the end as she was on three different meds two of which were rather expensive.
I had no idea anything was wrong with the dog as her appetite was fine and she appeared normal, perhaps a bit slower and not requiring long walks which I put down to her age. One warm day whilst out for a walk, she almost collapsed and we had to rest her for about two hours (at a a handy pub) before slowly walking home. The vet finally diagnosed the DCM and we started the meds. The effect was miraculous and she sprang back to life and thoroughly enjoyed most of the next few years. Towards the end she went off her food and lost weight very quickly and we realised there wasn't much more we could do as her kidneys were failing. Her borrowed time was over.
Good luck with your girl, I hope she has plenty more years with you.

My old boy who I lost this year lived with Cardiomyopathy for the last 14 months of his life. We were told to stop all exercise after he had heart scans and lung X-Rays. We had to stop anyway as his tongue used to turn blue/purple and he just couldn't walk very far - this was very sad as we used to walk together for miles every day. He was emaciated at the end but never lost his appetite. If anything he wanted to eat more until the last 2 days of his life, thats when we knew our time was coming to an end :-(

He was on vetmedin and fortekor daily and my vet used to give me a prescription for 6 months at a time. He charged £8 for the first prescription but didn't charge thereafter. I always took my boy in for regular check ups though. My vet is very good, more like a friend now and I must say that there is rarely a week when I am not in there due to the care that my other animals need, so I don't think that this is the norm.

It sounds to me like they are trying to force you into buying the medication from them. From memory, we saved around 50% by buying from the internet. My vet actually advised me to buy it from the internet to save me some money as he said that buying any meds from vets, they put a huge mark up on it and he doesn't think it's right for ongoing medication.

Mine charge £15 a time and it takes around three days to have it ready.  They don't drag their feet, if I ask for it the nurse checks with the relevant vet re. dosage and history and that's it.

In fact they gave me one a while back when I hadn't even asked for it - I asked for some metacam for Saffi, as she'd started responding to it after being on PLT for a while and the vet just put a prescription out even though I've never had one for Saffi for anything as everything is covered on her insurance!

My vet charges £6.05 and every time I have had a prescription - for Advocate (box for 6mth supply) or meds for previous dogs  (either 3 or 6 mth depending on what it was for) they will do it within 48 hr. they do insist on check up every 6 mth .

I think the 6 month check up is the law.

Yep, this is from Vets website

Veterinary Surgeons are only allowed to prescribe POM-Vs to animals under their care. It is a requirement laid down by the Veterinary Medicines Directorate to reassess all patients requiring repeat prescriptions at least every six months, to ensure they are on the correct type and dose of medication and that it is having no detrimental side effects.

It certainly is, I had this confirmed the other week when I rang up to order some more Xanax for Phoebe - I've now got to check with neighbours to find out if they are having fireworks this year, to see if it's worth putting her through the trauma of going to the vet to be checked over to get some more (I have about a dozen left but if there are fireworks next door we'll go through those very quickly).

I get the need for it and I do agree with it but for dogs like Phoebe it's a nightmare!

Thanks everyone for all of your help. When we first took her to the vet she had to have an immediate dose of something! straight into a vein as she was so poorly. I do agree that the medication has made such a difference to Sefa but her appetite is still hit and miss but she is now putting on weight and she did enjoy a week in West Wales last week. When we next go to the vet for a check up we will seek a 6 month prescription and see how well that goes down...lead balloons come to mind!!! Thanks again. Ange

Even with £15 per prescription (covering 2 months supply) the amount you will save on the internet should still make it worthwhile, but I would push for more. I would be surprised if you got 6 mths, but you might negotiate 3!  It has become a point of principle with me to ALWAYS get a prescription, since I think it is obscene price vets charge for medicines. You can usually save 50 - 70% online. Disgraceful.

I must be lucky with my vet. My affenpinscher has a collapsing trachea and I get 1 prescription, which I pay for, which lasts 12 months.  I can't remember if it cost £12 or £15  but whatever it costs it is well below buying the meds directly from the vet. I  then order from Viovet and get the meds for 6 months and then phone through for the next six months. I only pay them for 6 months at a time.  I wondered why they offered 6 months at a time and then I realised he might not be here in 12 months.  Sad but true.  However, my vet must see Teddy every 12 months otherwise he can't prescribe the meds.  I have done this for the last 3 or so years and it works very well. Mind you, if I need short term meds  for either him or my setter, I get them from my vet.

It's been a difficult couple of days as Sefa died yesterday morning, I think that her heart just gave out.  She went downhill over the weekend. I cooked her porridge which she ate and took her outside as she didn't want to go by herself and her legs just went from beneath her. I'm so glad it happened when I was with her and not in the night.  I don't think that she suffered although she seemed nervous and disorientated about even walking on the kitchen floor and although she struggled with food she did eat but was very thin at the end. At least we didn't have to decide about putting her down, she went in her own way which was how she was in life. It's still such a terrible shock even though you know that they can't go on forever and you think that you'll never get over the loss. Our lovely Sefa.

I'm so sorry to read this. RIP Sefa. x

Oh I'm so sorry. I'm glad you didn't have the make the decision, but it's still so hard. Rest in peace Sefa.

Sorry to hear that, glad you had another few months with her and you were able to be with her until the very end.
Run free.

I am so sorry :-(  It's 2.5 years since I lost my Soli to this and it still hurts, but time will make it easier.  Take care of yourself.

I am so sorry.  I have 2 bitches with it.  The one old dear also has epilepsy, yet she looks as if she will go on for years.  The bitch more recently diagnosed is not so lucky.  The heart vet has said to me that it will be sooner rather than later.  We keep having to up the diuretics.  :-(

I'm just loving her while I can.  So I understand your sadness.

Run free at the bridge Sefa.  xx

I am so sorry :-( My old boy had this condition and was so, so thin at the end, we lost him last May. His legs also just went from under him and he collapsed one morning whilst he was eating his breakfast. I rushed him to the vet but he couldn't walk out of the surgery so we made the sad decision that he couldn't continue any more.

You are right, even though we know their time is short, it is still one hell of a shock when the sad day comes.

Run free Sefa. My thoughts are with you. 

Thank you for your kind words. It is a comfort. It's so difficult to adjust without her. Sam her half-brother is missing her dreadfully so we've been keeping him busy. It's just the little things like when it comes to tea time you could set your clocks by them, but it was actually Sefa who was the time keeper because Sam hasn't bothered.  He relied on her a lot as when they were both outside it would be her that would bark for them both to come in.  Even though she'd been ill, she would watch everyone like a hawk, she'd know that you were going out even before you knew yourself, if that makes any sense. I know he'll adapt but it's not easy. Sorry I can feel tears again.

They become such an integral part of our lives. I have my old boys half Sister and like you are going through with Sam, she missed him terribly. They were partners in crime. She stopped eating and definitely went into mourning.

Fully understand about her knowing you were going out before you did, I had the same. My boy lived for his food and we used to say that we never needed a clock when it came to food times, he would always start his Sister off. When I went out and came back, even though we had another dog, the house just didn't feel or smell the same.

Its easy to say stay strong but sometimes we need to let it all out and just when we think we are coming through the other side, something trivial will happen and then the pain starts again. It is early days, in time you will start to smile at the memories again. Until then, take care. xx