Warning about Librela and Solensia. Potential severe side effects.

Recently I wrote a post on another website about these two drugs: Librela and Solensia. They are both used to treat arthritis in pets. I think they are delivered by injection. They received FDA approval in America in January 2022 to relieve pain. The products are manufactured by animal health giant Zoetis.

My initial article was about warning pet owners about the potential dangers of this drug in terms of the severe potential side effects. But when I search the Internet for information about these drugs the predominant information is about how good they are. There is some references to side effects but I don't think the warnings have been sufficiently publicised.

That is why I am doing this cross post. As I said, these drugs were regarded as being significant advancements in treating osteoarthritis in pets. They target a protein called nerve growth factor. The vets are saying that this could exacerbate underlying nerve conditions and other medical problems.

Although Zoetis says that the side effects represent a fraction of the more than 18 million shots of this drug given in the US and internationally, there has been a plethora of complaints.

It appears that health regulators in America and in Europe have received thousands of complaints from dog and cat owners saying that their pets have developed serious or severe side effects. Sometimes the side-effects were so bad that they had to euthanise their companion animals.

Zoetis stock tumbled by 7% on these reports. Side-effects are normal in all medication as all medications are potentially poisons. But the issue here appears to be that some of these companion animals, as mentioned, have been euthanised because of the side-effects.

Like any reasonable person I am not saying that cat and dog owners should tell their veterinarians not to use these drugs. I'm just saying that companion animal owners should be aware of the potential - albeit a small potential - for severe side effects. They can then discussed the matter with their veterinarian with knowledge. They can ask their veterinarian what they think and ask him or her whether there are alternatives which are as effective with lesser side-effects.

It's about options and being aware of those options. I've always believed that cat and dog owner should go to the veterinarian armed with some knowledge about cat and dog health and the drugs that might be prescribed as it allows a proper discussion. It allows for informed consent on behalf of their companion animal.

A companion animal caregiver cannot give informed consent without knowledge. They act as trustees and the highest level of trust and responsibility towards their companion animals. To discharge that responsibility they need to have knowledge to discuss matters with their veterinarian in a meaningful way.

This page is an attempt to help provide that the necessary knowledge.

P.S. please forgive the occasional typo. These articles are written at breakneck speed using Dragon Dictate. I have to prepare them in around 20 mins.