By Joe Smydo
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The Munhall, Pa., resident picked up Colby’s prescription at a Giant Eagle pharmacy for no charge – it was one of the grocer’s free antibiotics – and the ailing kitty unwittingly joined a marketing revolution.
Pet medications, once the domain of veterinarians, are increasingly available at grocers, chain pharmacies, specialty pet stores and retailers such as Walmart and Target, all of which are finding the $7.6 billion-a-year pet-med market to be the cat’s meow.
Instead of paying whatever their vets charge – and doctors have been criticized for big markups – pet owners now can shop for the best prices and rack up retailer loyalty points in the process.
In addition to getting some antibiotics for free, for example, Giant Eagle customers earn “fuelperks” on certain pet-med purchases. Rite Aid, which offers pet medications at some stores, offers discounts through its “Rx Savings Program.” Target customers can apply pet-med purchases to a promotion offering 5 percent off a day’s purchases.
Some stores, such as Giant Eagle, which began marketing the service in 2012, mainly dispense the pet-appropriate doses of medications their pharmacies carry for people. Others, such as Target, carry those medications plus drugs manufactured exclusively for pets.
Target rolled out pet medications on a limited basis in 2010. Now, according to its website, the retailer sells about 70 medications for cats and about 100 for dogs, a list that includes antibiotics and antifungals, pain relievers and parasite-killers and drugs for the eyes, gallbladder, heart, liver and thyroid.
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Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
on April 13, 2014 - 9:30 PM
When her 12-year-old cat needed an antibiotic a year ago, Karen Sable went, of all places, to a grocery store.The Munhall, Pa., resident picked up Colby’s prescription at a Giant Eagle pharmacy for no charge – it was one of the grocer’s free antibiotics – and the ailing kitty unwittingly joined a marketing revolution.
Pet medications, once the domain of veterinarians, are increasingly available at grocers, chain pharmacies, specialty pet stores and retailers such as Walmart and Target, all of which are finding the $7.6 billion-a-year pet-med market to be the cat’s meow.
Instead of paying whatever their vets charge – and doctors have been criticized for big markups – pet owners now can shop for the best prices and rack up retailer loyalty points in the process.
In addition to getting some antibiotics for free, for example, Giant Eagle customers earn “fuelperks” on certain pet-med purchases. Rite Aid, which offers pet medications at some stores, offers discounts through its “Rx Savings Program.” Target customers can apply pet-med purchases to a promotion offering 5 percent off a day’s purchases.
Some stores, such as Giant Eagle, which began marketing the service in 2012, mainly dispense the pet-appropriate doses of medications their pharmacies carry for people. Others, such as Target, carry those medications plus drugs manufactured exclusively for pets.
Target rolled out pet medications on a limited basis in 2010. Now, according to its website, the retailer sells about 70 medications for cats and about 100 for dogs, a list that includes antibiotics and antifungals, pain relievers and parasite-killers and drugs for the eyes, gallbladder, heart, liver and thyroid.
continue to read here
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