Monoclonal antibody treatment for arthritis in cats

[OzarksRider]

@Rackonteur

I hate taking her (and me) to the vet every month.

This is one of my concerns as well. For many cats, the stress of frequent vet visits is not minor. For my cat, this would be a big negative impact on his quality of life.

My cat is not yet on Solensia, or any other medication for arthritis. I started the thread because it was something the vet said we might consider if my cat was having pain from arthritis. I had taken my cat to the vet because he came home one day limping badly on his left front leg, and I didn’t know whether he was brewing an abscess from a bite or if he had somehow wrenched his leg or if he was having pain from arthritis. Long story short, it appears that this was a soft tissue injury that has mostly healed. I still see an occasional hitch in his step, but he’s jumping up on counters and going about his daily cat errands so I’m not doing anything with him for now. But, he’s 15 years old and arthritis may become an issue in the not too far distant future, hence my question about Solensia.

I don’t know what to make of owners’ comments on the vet’s website, especially those about dementia and worsening arthritis in some cats taking Solensia. It’s impossible to know if these are side effects of the drug or if these things would have happened anyway, since all of these cats are old, and dementia and worsening arthritis happen with age. Also, like the vet said, people tend to report bad outcomes more often than good results, so the possible bad side effects may be over-represented. However, the fact that the human version of the drug was rejected by both the FDA and the European counterpart is a big red flag for me. It makes me wonder if the drug is really safe or all that effective for cats and dogs.

[Renn_aissance]

My 14-year-old Himalayan has been on Solensia since May and it has been life-changing for him. His arthritis is most noticeable in his shoulders and he has difficulty climbing and descending stairs. Each Solensia dose lasts him about 6-8 weeks. When he has it on board, the 3am zoomies are a sight to behold- up the stairs, down the stairs, up the stairs, down the stairs, Risky Business slides down the hallway. He has his normal range of motion immediately after getting up from his naps instead of requiring a lot of warm-up time. I find him on the dining table again… I can tell when he needs his next shot because he pauses to consider how he will jump up on something he shouldn’t be on, rather than just launching himself like a flying squirrel.

So far he has not experienced detrimental side effects, but he’s only been on it for a few months. (To be fair, he does vomit… but I can’t say it’s with any greater or lesser frequency than without Solensia. When you gorge your food and then bolt around the house before you digest, consequences occur. When you feel good enough to bolt around the house more often, consequences may occur more often.) He also takes Dasuquin and fish oil. We started the Solensia when those stopped managing his symptoms. My vet did not encourage us to try Adequan or other therapies because they have seen moderate improvements in about half their patients with Adequan, but significantly improved activity in the vast majority of their patients with Solensia, so they are now recommending Solensia as the next line of defense when not contraindicated. Alfie has seen two unrelated specialist vets for different reasons this year and when they heard he was on Solensia, both of them have said that they also have seen excellent results with this treatment in their practices as well.

He does not love going into the vet every 6-8 weeks, but it’s a quick visit and a Churu goes a long way towards obtaining (grudging) consent. We’d have to do the same visit frequency if he were on Adequan.

In general, I am not incredibly concerned about long-term side effects in an older animal because my priority is prolonging their quality of life. If Alfie lives to be 18 or 20 and develops dementia at that age from Solensia, then I think I will have been a good minion to him by helping him stay comfortable in his body until his mind is ready to go. I would feel differently if he were 5.

[Rackonteur]

Thank you for posting that. My girl is 19, and you got me thinking again about aging and possible mental changes. I think about it all the time but it is good to hear others’ experiences and thoughts.

We had a very good vet visit just this morning: labs very good, weight holding, vitals good. Velvet got her rabies vaccination (main reason for the appointment), and the vet said she looks great for her age. We’ve also ordered a bottle of fluoxetine for anxiety. Works for me and hopefully will help Velvet.

I think the vet trips make me more upset than they do her, even though I love our vet and team.

[beowulf]

I finally committed to the Solensia. I brought my old girl in for routine senior exam + Solensia injection. When she was injected sub-q, the second the tech pulled the needle out, what looked like half of the solution literally shot out down my cat’s back. I didn’t realize how much liquid it was until we got home as the cat was really agitated. She didn’t reinject.

The time to say something was probably at the appointment. I’m hoping I see improvement anyway. Unfortunately my vet won’t let me administer this at home so it sounds like we’ll be coming in once a month.

[Whoosh]

My late girl Dezzie (cat) started showing signs of arthritis at age 14. On bad days she’d limp around like a grade 5 lame horse. It was heartbreaking: I’d carry her at home so she wouldn’t have to walk as far. She was pretty unhappy with pain meds and didn’t like wet food, so even getting Cosequin in her was difficult (for what good any of it did.)

Solensia was recommended by our vet after a couple months of this. “Life-changing” and “night and day” are appropriately hyperbolic descriptions. My husband and I were stunned at the improvement. She was like a kitten again. It also seemed to improve her appetite and overall attitude; less grouchiness and better eating.

If it had been $900 a month I would have paid it. Our vet gave us the option to try at-home injections and going 45 days instead of 30 to ease the financial burden. Alas, our girl only lasted a few more months after this (unrelated condition). So I can’t say if long-term use would have changed my perspective. But for those few months, it made a difference for us.

[Rackonteur]

@Whoosh I am so sorry to hear about Dezzie. But I’m glad the Solensia helped her.

My Velvet just came galloping out of the bathroom, across the bedroom, into the living room, and up onto the sofa, just as she did yesterday. The Solensia is helping her.

But I envy you the ability to give it at home.

@beowulf, I hope it helps your kitty. The tech always takes Velvet into “the back” to inject her, and I hadn’t thought about a shot being botched. She’s never wet when we get home. But we switched vets a while back when a tech at another vet got alcohol all over my girl in a blood draw.

[hallie2]

I’m using the dog version for my 11 y/o arthritic lab. It’s a mixed blessing. The drug made her feel so much better she became more playful, got frequent zoomies and tore a cruciate ligament. Now surgery.

[Rackonteur]

Oh no! That’s horrible. I am sorry to hear that.

[beowulf]

It’s only day one but I just watched my old girl jump onto my SO’s chair – which is usually a whole thing. She just up and did it in one jump. I’ll keep updating as the days pass.

[Rackonteur]

Velvet has done her second gallop all the way from the bathroom into the living room and up onto the sofa.

[thatmoody]

We have the oldest of our older cats on Solensa (he’s 14), and just started our elderly dog on Librela. I’ve been so happy with the changes in the cat that I’m getting ready to add another one onto it. Geriatric animals ain’t cheap, but I’m really glad to have an option to enhance their quality of life. The dog is EXTREMELY arthritic and is now playing with our puppy a lot more, and is a lot less grumpy. He was already on gabapentin and we’re continuing that, but this is a good add-on for him.

[PonyApocalypse19]

I was reading up on the Librela for dogs and there is a concern about using it when there are problems like tendon tears and neurological issues. I would ask your vet/surgeon about continuing it and the risks involved.
My dog got his second shot in April and we had to let him go 5 days after the shot just when I was noticing his overall arthritis improvement. Not sure if anything that happened to him was related to the shot, but the only thing I can think of is that the shot masked some of the pain he was in. I’m not blaming the shot for what happened, he had multiple issues ongoing and I think he was in his final decline anyways, but it just pokes my brain that maybe it was a factor.
I don’t know that I will use it in the future for my other dog. I think some of the personal stories of suspected adverse reactions are due to underlying un-diagnosed conditions specifically neuro based and that the animals are just geriatric.
I hope everyone has better luck.

[Renn_aissance]

@PonyApocalypse19

Not sure if anything that happened to him was related to the shot, but the only thing I can think of is that the shot masked some of the pain he was in.

That is the mechanism- it blocks the pain receptors.

My horse vet and I were talking about this class of medication for horses and she brought up that while she would love to have this in her toolbox to extend quality of life in oldsters who are well other than their end-stage arthritis, the nuance of prescribing it in any animal expected to “perform” in any way is complex, and a part of her doesn’t want it to become available for horses because of the potential for abuse.

[beowulf]

@Renn_aissance

a part of her doesn’t want it to become available for horses because of the potential for abuse.

Does she know it is already being used off label for horses? I agree, it’s a big problem.

[Renn_aissance]

If it is, she’s not aware of it.

We discussed this about 2 weeks ago when it was thought that my horse’s arthritis had reached the point where this would be the remaining appropriate treatment, had it been available. Happily, he is doing much better.