Edit: I need someone to actually prescribe the medications. I was surprised that our vet requires our dog to fail training, a thundervest, pheromones, and supplements first before he will write a prescription. The thundervest is $42 including tax/shipping, the training would be at least that and likely much more, and we simply don’t have the money to waste on this.
Context: our 6yo kid just died after a year on hospice, we spent thousands on her funeral, need to spend thousands more on her headstone soon, and our house just needed its AC system replaced for 8 thousand dollars. I have zero budget for trying out crap that doesn’t work.
We took our dog to the vet today to ask about anxiety meds, because she’s always been high strung, but as she gets older, she’s getting to the point that she barks at truly any sound someone makes in the house. We have a toddler and it startles her every time. After burying my 6yo three weeks ago, I have no emotional bandwidth nor money to do what the vet suggested (pay a trainer to get her to stop barking, try a thundervest, try pheromone plug ins, try supplements). If all those fail, he’s willing to consider meds.
I am unable and unwilling to spend all this money on stuff that I do not think will help. The vet couldn’t even trim her nails today because she was too hyped up and wiggly and anxious, yet we need to spend more than a hundred dollars on all these things first.
Is there an online option to get a vet prescription for anxiety meds? The one I found said they’ll reach out to her vet, which seems dumb, because obviously if he would prescribe them I’d just do that.
She’s up to date on vaccines, gets monthly heartworm/flea/tick preventative. She’s healthy. She is just yappy and we need to spend as little money as possible to get her to calm down.
Need Affordable Prescription for Dog Anxiety Meds
byu/CoffeeOatmilkBubble inFrugal
Posted by CoffeeOatmilkBubble
18 Comments
I have heard good things about Dutch but I haven’t used it myself. My 50 lb dog takes 30 mg of fluoxetine every day. He barks a lot in the yard still but he’s much better.
I’m so sorry about your loss.
We had our vet send our dog’s Prozac script to Walmart! They have a lot of meds at a set low price and we were able to fill them at a low price. We were unable to use good rx at other pharmacies but Walmart made her scripts affordable.
I pay like $10 a month for puppy Prozac through chewy… I just had my vet send the prescription in. It’s super cheap, and probably cheaper if you get it at Walmart pharmacy. Just an FYI Prozac needs to build in the system and takes several weeks to work, it’s definitely not a miracle drug in the beginning.
I’m so sorry for your loss btw
There are many online pharmacies and pet places like chewy who will fill a prescription from your vet. Call around and check prices. Especially ask for larger quantities which is usually cheaper.
So sorry for your loss – sounds like you’ve been through some horrendous times. Hope better days are ahead for you 🩷
Re anxiety meds, I used to volunteer at a shelter and learned that doggo anxiety is usually expensive and complex to treat. There are otc treats/sprays/wearables which may or may not work; meds which may or may not work; and of course training which is the slowest, most expensive, but imo the most effective treatment of all. This is why vets like to start with this first.
Gentle question: are you sure you have the financial & emo bandwidth to continue caring for a pet? Is there maybe a family member or close friend who could at least temporarily foster your doggo to give you a much-needed break so you can process all of the big life challenges you’re going through? Rehoming a dog is gut wrenching but so is trying to care for an animal we’re no longer able to.
Best of luck no matter what you decide. Feel free to PM if helpful 🩷
Try Canada pet care. That’s who I use for all my dogs meds, no prescription required
I’m sorry for your loss and recent troubles. Just an FYI if you did want to try a thundershirt or calming solutions/treats, Petsmart has an easy 60 day return policy on products and the staff are usually very accommodating. Just keep your receipt.
My vet approved CBD for anxiety, so that’s what I give. It’s not as strong as Rx stuff, but it helps my dogs chill.
Go to a different vet. Ours prescribed anxiety meds without all the hoops.
We tried Prozac and it didn’t work for our guy, but trazodone does. Our vet was easy about prescribing it after we talked with him and said all the other things we’ve been trying.
I’d be very upset with the vet if they knew that was the purpose of the appointment but failed to just tell you those steps over the phone. No need to bill for a visit just for that.
I’m so sorry for your loss. If I were you I would reach out on your local Facebook group for recommendations. There may be a vet in the group willing to help, or your community members can give ideas on vets in the area that are more lax. I used to work in the veterinary field and not all vets have the same standards of practice so there’s got to be someone nearby that won’t require all that.
Your dog is reacting to the upheaval in your family and your stress. You can’t explain things to a dog.
A good Vet doesn’t just throw pills at animals. Just like a good people doctor doesn’t just write prescriptions without investigating an issue.
You can try anxiety herbal supplements, cbd, and behavior mod on your own. There are many things to try that don’t involve an rx or a lot of money. I’m sorry for your loss and your financial stress, but I dont think you have your dog’s best interest in mind. You just want a quick fix sedative.
Costco and Sam’s club have great prices on prescriptions for dogs if you can get a script
Exercise the dog
Just go to a different vet. Many will Rx Fluoxetine (Prozac, Reconcile) without hoops. Some vets may require labwork but not all. Pheromones and supplements will not help with severe anxiety on their own, Thundershirt can be helpful, but the best results include training and Rx meds for severe cases.
Edit: it may be worth checking for hypertension as well.
I am so, so sorry to hear about your tremendous loss.
I just came across the website called Pawp – it’s a remote veterinary service that gives you access online to a veterinarian 24/7. Looks like writing scripts is a big thing that they do. Ironically, if you have Walmart plus it’s a completely free service for the year. Otherwise, it’s $99 for the year. Even if you don’t have the Walmart plus, you can always try one or both out as a 30 day trial. Then cancel immediately (so you don’t forget to cancel) and it gives you the rest of the month free. With my Dad being a veterinarian and doing a lot of charitable stuff along the way, it drives me nuts when I hear about veterinarians that try to overprice or nickel and dime people instead of truly helping,
You can give CBD to pets. We use it on Fourth of July.
Tangential, but look into a website called The Headstone Guys. I got my mother’s headstone from them. It was pretty reasonable. I’m sorry to hear about your daughter.
Also, if you do end up getting a prescription, see if you can get it cheaper on 1800petmeds. My dog has CHF and his vetmedin is actually reasonable there. $60-$70ish instead of over $90 at the vet. The vet sends prescriptions to Walmart pharmacy for his furosemide and enalapril. It’s $9 for 30 days of both. Walmart has a $4/$9 list for many medications. You xan use GoodRx for others.