We are open Monday through Friday from 8:00 am until 6:00pm and Saturdays from 8:00am until 12:00 noon. We are closed Sundays. We are closed on major holidays (Martin Luther King Holiday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day), Thanksgiving weekend (Thursday through Sunday), and during the Cornell University holiday week (Christmas day through New Year’s day).

Our pharmacy is located just within the entrance to the Cornell University Companion Animal Hospital in the area of the Veterinary College buildings, and across Campus Road from the “B” parking lot.

If using an internet mapping service or GPS, set the destination to 930 Campus Rd. This will put you in front of the main hospital building.

Our mailing address is:

CUHA Pharmacy

19 Veterinary College

Ithaca, NY 14853

We fill prescriptions only for animals.

We fill prescriptions for any animal, from aardvark to zebra and everything in between. Most commonly, of course, we fill for dogs and cats, but horses, cows, goats, pigs, sheep, birds, ferrets, and rabbits are also part of our practice base. We also fill prescriptions for some of the unusual pets like hedgehogs, sugar gliders, guinea pigs, snakes, and lizards, as well as wildlife animals and zoo animals.

Yes. Your veterinarian can call the prescription in to 607-253-3231 option 1, or fax a written prescription to 607-253-3092. You may also bring your written prescription into the pharmacy. We are not able to fill prescriptions for controlled substances written by external veterinarians. You may pick up your prescription or if you wish to have it shipped to you, you need to contact the pharmacy to provide billing information and to confirm shipping information before we would prepare your order.

Yes. We fill prescriptions from outside veterinarians. You must either 

1.) bring us a written prescription form, 

2.) have your veterinarian call us with a prescription, or

3.) have your veterinarian fax us a prescription.

Most routine prescriptions are ready shortly after we receive the order, provided we have that medication in stock. Some compounded items may take up to 24 hours. Allergy vaccines and some other items that are obtained by special arrangements may take much longer.

We can accept faxed prescriptions from prescribers. However, by law, we cannot accept faxed prescriptions directly from consumers.

Do not wait until you are out of medication. 

Request a refill a couple of days ahead, and don’t forget to plan for holidays and weekends. 

Download the Refill Assistant app, our partner in providing your pet’s prescriptions! This app is efficient and easy to use. You can quickly order your pet’s prescription, view the prescription history and receive automatic reminders when it’s time to renew. Simply download the app and enter our zip code: 14853

Want to order from your desktop computer? Use our online refill order form here. You may also bring your prescription into our pharmacy to have it refilled while you wait, or you may call ahead. Each prescription is assigned a unique prescription number which is on the label affixed to your medication container. Please provide us with that number as well as some other identifying information such as your name, your pet’s name, your client number, your pet’s case number, and the name of the drug.

If the prescriber is a veterinarian practicing here at CUHA, we will send out a request for authorization of a new prescription. Please allow 24 hours for us to get a response. If you have an external veterinarian, you must have your veterinarian contact us with a new prescription authorization.

Your veterinarian will designate the number of allowable refills with each new prescription. The number of refills allowed will be indicated on the label of your prescription vial. Our systems allow us to provide a maximum of 6 refills. Refills must occur within a year of when the prescription was originally filled. After one year, all prescriptions are inactivated. Prescriptions for controlled substances have different requirements.

Yes. Typically clients use priority mail, which takes about 3 business days for delivery and is the least expensive option. If you need overnight or 2 day shipping you can request FedEx delivery for an additional fee. Call us if you want more information about shipping your prescription.

Yes. 

US Priority Mail (delivery in 2-3 business days): 

• Under 1 pound $9.00 
• Over 1 pound $16.00 

Federal Express: East of Mississippi River 

• Overnight delivery $22.00 
• 2nd day delivery $16.00 
• Dry Ice $39.00 (priority overnight) 
• Saturday Delivery $36.00 

Federal Express: West of Mississippi River 

• Overnight delivery $33.00 
• 2nd day delivery $24.00 
• Dry Ice $54.00 (priority overnight) 
• Saturday Delivery $51.00

Yes. Medications requiring refrigeration are required to be shipped via Fed Ex Overnight. This is the best way for us to ensure items arrive at the correct temperature. These medications are shipped inside a box including an insulated envelope with an ice pack. 

There are a couple of medications requiring deep freeze for storage; these are shipped on dry ice via priority FedEx overnight delivery. 

We are very careful to prepare your package properly just prior to its pick-up for shipment. We are not responsible for melted ice packs resulting in damaged medication or packages left unattended in hot weather. Please be sure to check your mail early and often if you anticipate receiving a package from us with medication that might require refrigeration.

Yes. There are many products that we compound to tailor the prescription specifically to your pet. We make customized strengths of capsules, formulate suspensions so that dosing can be more flexible, and compound many specialized mixtures. Compounded prescriptions often have different storage requirements and shortened expiration dates. Read your label carefully.

Read more about compounded prescriptions.

Because we cannot easily ascertain what the effect might be on a commercial product, we do not typically encourage flavoring of those products. We do, however, compound many prescription items into suspension formulations to which we can add flavoring. Flavors which we have include beef, chicken, lamb, tuna, bacon, fish, apple, pina colada, banana, grape, peanut butter, bubble gum, molasses, cheddar cheese, and watermelon. 

Your veterinarian must specify the desired flavor with the original prescription.

We are licensed to fill prescriptions for controlled substances only if they are prescribed from our veterinarians practicing here, at CUHA. We cannot fill prescriptions for controlled substances from external veterinarians. Controlled substances in schedule two (CII) may not be refilled. 

Controlled substances in schedules three, four, and five (CIII, CIV, CV) may be refilled, if authorized by the prescriber, up to five times within 6 months of the original filling of the prescription. Refills cannot be provided in advance of the number of days of supply obtained on a previous fill for that medication.

We fill prescriptions for allergy vaccines, but only if prescribed by veterinarians at CUHA. We cannot fill allergy vaccine prescriptions for external veterinarians. Allergy vaccine orders are custom compounded for your pet, and are sent to an external compounding facility. It may take up to several weeks for your order to be processed. Your order must be paid for in advance and we will call you when it is ready.

We try to fill all new prescriptions as we receive them and generally, prescriptions may be picked up at the pharmacy within a couple of hours. If at all possible, try to give us at least 24 hours notice for a refill. Medications that are compounded, that need to be ordered, or otherwise require special handing may take longer. 

Packages that are shipped via US Postal Service priority mail leave the pharmacy on Mondays through Fridays at 11:00am. The cut off time for FedEx is 2:00pm. We do not ship on holidays or weekends.

Yes. However, when we reduce the quantity on a prescription, that reduction applies for the life of the prescription. In other words, each subsequent refill will be at the reduced quantity, and we cannot increase the number of refills to make up the difference.

No. We can dispense only to a maximum, the quantity prescribed by your veterinarian. However, if refills are authorized, we may provide multiple refills at one time if the prescription is not for a controlled substance.

You may have any prescription filled at any pharmacy that you choose. However, keep in mind that a human pharmacy will not stock medications approved only for veterinary use. Also, not all pharmacies will provide custom ordered compounded medications.

Yes, we have a limited number of over the counter items available, including flea and tick products, anti-arthritics for bone and joint health, nutritional supplements, oral care products, and artificial tear products.

Yes. All heartworm medications require a prescription.

Yes. We have a limited selection of prescription pet food. 

Pet Food Policy: 

Pet food orders received prior to 11:30am will be available after 2:00 pm of that day. Orders received after 11:30am will not be available until after 2:00 pm of the next day. Due to limited storage space, a maximum of three cases of canned food and three bags of dry food may be ordered at one time. Food not picked up within seven days of ordering will be restocked in the warehouse. Pet food may only be returned for credit if the patient either will not eat or will not tolerate the food. The client MUST return the food within 30 days of the dispense date.

Because of the potential for tampering and incorrect storage, New York state public health law does not allow us to accept medications for return once they have left our pharmacy, even if the container is intact and unopened. The pharmacy is not licensed to accept unwanted or expired medications. Check with your local police department for options on disposing of these medications.

We accept cash, checks, VISA, Master card, and Discover. We do not accept American Express. 

If you have recently placed an order with CUHA Pharmacy we are able to securely keep a credit card token on file. When placing your order please share the last four digits of the card number you wish to use in order to process the payment. 

Payment must be received in advance before items will be shipped. If you wish to pay by check, please plan in advance and we will ship your order when your check is received.

No. We do not bill to third party payers. However, we will provide you with a detailed receipt which you can use to submit a claim on your own.

No. We do not discount the price of medications when buying a larger quantity.

No. Cornell employees, everyone in fact, pays the same prices for all of our medications and other products.

We feel that our pricing is competitive and fair. Please feel free to ask about the price of any medication. We want you to be able to make a well informed decision and we certainly understand that taking care of a pet is a big responsibility that can at times get to be expensive. 

Please tell us if you are uncertain about your ability to pay for your pet's medication. There may alternative options that you can explore rather than to have your pet go without.