About Maggie Search

Maggie Search exists because of a simple, uncomfortable fact: two owners can be prescribed exactly the same medicine for exactly the same condition, and pay very different amounts for it.

Not a different medicine. Not a different dose. The same active ingredient, in the same box, at a different price depending on where it was bought.

We built a free tool that makes that difference visible.

What we actually do

Maggie Search maps veterinary medicines by their active ingredient — the substance that treats your pet — rather than by brand name.

That distinction is the whole point. Rimadyl and Carprieve both contain carprofen. They are made by different manufacturers, sold under different names, and often carry different prices. Many vets can prescribe either.

Most owners never learn this, because prescriptions are written in brand names and nobody explains that alternatives exist.

We show you:

• Which UK-authorised products share the same active ingredient
• Where each one is sold
• What it costs today

Then you take that information to your vet, and they decide what is right for your animal.

What we will never do

We are deliberately narrow about this, and we would rather say it plainly than bury it:

• We do not prescribe. Only a vet can decide what your pet should take.
• We do not recommend substitutions. We show equivalents; your vet approves them.
• We do not sell medicines. We are not a pharmacy and never handle your prescription.
• We do not give veterinary advice. Every article we publish carries that reminder for a reason.

If you ever see us drift from this, tell us. It is the line the whole thing rests on.

Why the active ingredient matters so much

In the UK, prescriptions are written for a specific product. That is right and proper — dose, formulation and licensing all matter.

But you have a legal right most owners do not know about: you can ask your vet for a written prescription and buy the medicine from any VMD-registered pharmacy you choose. A vet cannot refuse to write one for a medicine they are already prescribing to your animal.

For a one-off course of antibiotics, that right is worth little. For a lifelong daily medication — heart disease, epilepsy, arthritis, thyroid, diabetes — it is worth a great deal, because the cost repeats every month for years.

That is who we built this for.

How we make money

Openly: some pharmacy links on this site earn us a commission, through affiliate networks including Awin.

Three commitments that go with that:

1. It never changes what we show you. Ranking is by price and relevance, not by what pays us.
2. It never costs you more. The price is the pharmacy's price, commission or not.
3. We tell you. No hidden affiliate relationships.

The tool is free to pet owners and always will be. The full framework we operate under is set out in our legal basis.

Who is behind it

Maggie Search is operated by KG Global Commerce Ltd, registered in England and Wales (Companies House number 17266029).

We are named after Maggie, a Pomeranian.

Our sources

Medicine data comes from the UK Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) Product Information Database, the official register of veterinary medicines authorised in the United Kingdom. Where our articles cite clinical evidence, we link to the primary source.

Our editorial content is written by the Maggie Search Editorial Team. It is researched carefully and reviewed for accuracy — but it is written by informed non-veterinarians, and we say so rather than implying clinical authorship we do not have. Every health article states clearly that it does not replace veterinary advice.

If you spot something wrong, we want to know: [email protected]

Get in touch

• General: [email protected]
• Privacy: [email protected]
• Pharmacy partnerships: [email protected]