We do not receive or store your credit card information. We do not keep it in the file either as we never receive it.

 

Flea, Tick, Intestinal Parasite, and Heartworm Prevention Policy

Stittsville Kanata Veterinary Hospital supports safe, consistent, and medically appropriate parasite prevention for pets. This includes flea, tick, intestinal parasite, and heartworm prevention when recommended by the veterinarian.

Clients may choose to purchase prevention directly from our clinic, through our clinic’s online store when available, or through an outside pharmacy of their choice.

When prevention is requested through an outside pharmacy, the request still requires veterinary review, dose verification, safety screening, documentation, and prescription preparation. This policy explains how outside pharmacy prevention requests are processed.

Outside Pharmacy Prevention Request Fee
 

An outside pharmacy prevention request fee applies when a client asks us to prepare a flea, tick, intestinal parasite, and/or heartworm prevention prescription for an outside pharmacy.

Current fee: $38 + HST = $42.94

This fee covers:

• Medical record review

• Confirmation that we have recent and sufficient patient information

• Current weight review

• Dose verification

• Drug interaction and contraindication screening

• Product suitability review

• Written prescription preparation

• Pharmacy communication

• Medical record documentation

• Prescription expiry tracking

This is not simply a faxing fee. It reflects the medical, documentation, and administrative work required to safely prepare an outside pharmacy prevention request.

Payment must be received before the request is added to the doctor task list.

Fee Review and Updates
 

The outside pharmacy prevention request fee is reviewed periodically.

As clinic operating costs, veterinarian review time, documentation requirements, pharmacy communication workload, regulatory obligations, and market conditions change, this fee may be adjusted to ensure the service remains sustainable while still supporting client choice.

The applicable fee is the fee in effect at the time the outside pharmacy prevention request is submitted.

Updated Clinic Prevention Pricing
 

We have updated our clinic prevention pricing.

In many cases, the total cost may be similar once the outside pharmacy request fee and pharmacy processing steps are considered. Clients are welcome to compare both options and choose whichever works best for them.

Purchasing prevention directly through the clinic may be faster and may avoid the separate outside pharmacy request fee, faxing process, and pharmacy follow-up steps.

What Clients Must Provide
 

Before an outside pharmacy prevention request can be processed, clients must provide:

• Outside pharmacy name

• Correct pharmacy fax number

• Pet’s current weight, especially if there has been any recent weight change

• Payment of the outside pharmacy prevention request fee

• Any relevant medical updates listed below

Clients are responsible for confirming the correct pharmacy fax number directly with the pharmacy.

The clinic is not responsible for finding, verifying, or correcting outside pharmacy fax numbers.

If the fax number provided is incorrect, incomplete, or not accepted by the pharmacy, the request may be delayed or not received by the pharmacy. A corrected request may require additional processing time and, if repeat processing is needed, an additional request fee may apply.

Medical Update Checklist
 

Before we prepare an outside pharmacy prevention request, please tell us if any of the following apply:

• Your pet has not been examined recently

• Your pet’s weight has changed or may have changed

• Your pet has developed any new symptoms

• Your pet has been diagnosed with any new medical condition

• Your pet is taking any new medications or supplements

• Your pet has missed doses of prevention

• You want to change prevention products

• The requested prevention includes heartworm protection

• Your pet has travelled or may travel outside the local area

• Your pet has had vomiting, diarrhea, appetite changes, lethargy, coughing, breathing changes, seizures, collapse, allergic reactions, or other health concerns

• Your pet has had a previous reaction to flea, tick, intestinal parasite, or heartworm prevention

If any of these apply, the veterinarian may need to review the file more closely.

In some cases, an updated examination, reassessment, testing, or consultation may be needed before prevention can be prescribed safely.

Processing Timeline
 

Outside pharmacy prevention requests may take up to 5 business days to process after all required information and payment have been received.

Processing begins only once we have received:

• Payment

• Outside pharmacy name

• Correct pharmacy fax number

• Current pet weight, if needed

• Required medical update information

• Any required testing, examination, or reassessment information

This timeline allows enough time for the veterinarian to review the medical record, confirm product suitability, verify the dose, prepare the written prescription, document the request, and send it to the pharmacy.

Same-day access is generally only available when prevention is purchased directly from the clinic, if medically appropriate and in stock.

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Client Responsibility After the Request Is Sent
 

After the outside pharmacy prevention request has been sent, clients are responsible for checking directly with the pharmacy to confirm whether the prescription has been received, processed, priced, stocked, and filled.

The outside pharmacy is responsible for its own:

• Inventory

• Pricing

• Pickup timing

• Dispensing process

• Account or payment issues

• Pharmacy-side processing delays

The clinic is not responsible for outside pharmacy stock, pricing, pickup timelines, or pharmacy-side delays.

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Prevention Duration and Reassessment
 

Parasite prevention prescriptions are generally issued for up to 6 months, depending on the pet, product, medical history, risk level, and veterinarian discretion.

Parasite prevention needs are reassessed every 6 months because weight, travel, exposure risk, season, medical history, physical health status, and product suitability can change.

An updated examination, reassessment, testing, or consultation may be needed before another prevention prescription is issued, especially if the veterinarian does not have recent and sufficient information to prescribe safely.

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Current Weight Requirement
 

A current weight is required for safe dose verification.

If the pet’s weight has changed, may have changed, or is close to a product dose range cutoff, the client must provide an updated weight.

A reliable home weight may be acceptable in some cases. If the weight is uncertain, the pet is near a dose cutoff, or dose accuracy is especially important, an in-clinic weight check or reassessment may be required.

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Heartworm and Tick-Borne Disease Testing Requirement for Dogs
 

Before heartworm prevention can be prescribed or dispensed, a dog needs a heartworm / tick-borne disease screening test when due.

This test checks for:

• Heartworm

• Lyme disease

• Ehrlichia

• Anaplasma

The test is $125, takes about 10 minutes, and requires an appointment.

Once the test is completed, we can dispense or prescribe the recommended prevention to help protect against heartworm, Lyme disease, intestinal parasites, ticks, and fleas.

If you prefer not to do the test, we can still dispense or prescribe flea and tick prevention, but we cannot dispense or prescribe heartworm prevention.

This is because giving heartworm prevention to a pet that may already have heartworm disease can be dangerous and may cause serious, potentially life-threatening complications.
 

Please contact us if you would like to book the testing appointment.

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Medical Questions

Please contact the clinic if you have medical questions about prevention, including:

• Side effects

• Missed doses

• Changing prevention products

• Changing dose range

• New symptoms

• New medications or supplements

• Possible drug interactions

• Whether a prevention product is still appropriate for your pet

• Whether your pet needs testing, reassessment, or an examination before prevention can be prescribed

Some medical questions may require veterinarian review, consultation, updated examination, or testing before we can provide advice or issue another prevention prescription.

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We support safe and appropriate flea, tick, intestinal parasite, and heartworm prevention.

Clients may choose to purchase prevention directly from our clinic or request an outside pharmacy prevention prescription when medically appropriate.

Outside pharmacy prevention requests require veterinary review, current patient information, accurate pharmacy information, payment of the request fee, and appropriate testing or reassessment when needed.