This section covers prescription diets, supplements, flea and worming treatments, and everyday care for eyes, ears, skin and joints. Most of it is for dogs and cats, with a small amount for rabbits and other small pets.
Some things need a vet, not a purchase
If any of the following is happening, close this page and ring your vet or an out-of-hours service now rather than ordering something.
A cat straining in the litter tray or going repeatedly without producing anything. A dog with a swollen, hard abdomen who is retching without bringing anything up. Any animal that has collapsed, is struggling to breathe, or is having a seizure. A cat that has not eaten for a day or more. Sudden weakness in the back legs. Repeated vomiting, particularly with blood.
None of these will be sorted by anything we sell, and some of them are hours-matter emergencies. We would rather lose the sale.
Prescription diets
The veterinary diets here are formulated for diagnosed conditions and they work by restricting or adjusting things a healthy animal needs. They are not a general upgrade, and some are genuinely unsuitable for an animal that doesn't need them.
If your vet has named a diet, buy exactly that. If they haven't, start with an appointment rather than a bag of food. Reordering something your vet already put your pet on is exactly what this section is for.
What supplements can and can't do
Joint, liver, kidney and digestive supplements are feed supplements, not medicines. At best they support a treatment plan. A joint supplement will not reverse arthritis, and a liver supplement will not fix liver disease.
They tend to be worth it when a vet has suggested one, when you're supporting an older animal alongside proper treatment, or where there's a specific reason. They're rarely worth it as a general precaution for a healthy young animal.
Give them time. Most joint and skin supplements need six to eight weeks before you can judge whether they're doing anything.
Flea and worming
Some flea and worm treatments can be sold by a retailer and some can only be supplied by a vet. The stronger products, and anything for an animal with a diagnosed problem, come from your vet. What's here covers routine prevention.
Two things worth knowing. Treat the house as well as the animal, because most of a flea population is in your carpets rather than on your pet. And follow the weight bands on the box exactly rather than estimating.
Never use a dog product on a cat
This matters more than anything else on the page. Some flea treatments made for dogs contain ingredients that are seriously toxic to cats, and using one on a cat, or letting a treated dog sleep against a cat, can kill it. Check the box says cat before it goes anywhere near one.
Narrowing it down
The Veterinary Condition filter on the left is the fastest route: skin, digestion, joints, urinary, kidney, liver, thyroid, anxiety, eyes and ears. Or start from dog health, cat health or small animal health.