BackgroundTo our knowledge, this is the first description of long-term nutritional management in a dog with paroxysmal dyskinesia.Case summaryAn obese 9-year-old, male entire, German Spitz was presented for dietary management after being diagnosed with calcium oxalate urolithiasis and suspected pancreatitis. Since he was seven years old, the dog has had a history of neurological signs, which were thought to be epileptic seizures. He was treated with phenobarbital and potassium bromide and was clinically controlled. For his nutritional advice, aiming to minimize one of the most important risk factors for the diseases, a weight loss program was started and successfully executed. However, 10 months later, the dog restarted presenting neurological episodes at a high frequency (3x/week). Based on videos and the characteristics of the neurological signs, the dog was diagnosed with paroxysmal dyskinesia. To investigate the role of gluten intake on this patient's neurological signs, a dietary trial with a commercial hypoallergenic diet (gluten-free; hydrolyzed protein) was followed. During the 3 months of the dietary trial, four neurologic episodes related to food indiscretion occurred. Upon the decrease in neurological episodes, the anti-seizure drugs were slowly discontinued. During this period, the dog presented only two neurologic episodes that were related to the days that the anti-seizure drugs were decreased. For 4 months the dog remained episode-free. However, a change in the dog's diet to another gluten-free diet (higher fat) led the dog to vomit and experience another neurologic episode. Once the dog was back to the previous gluten-free diet, it clinically improved, and no other clinical signs were reported by the client during the next 5 months.ConclusionAlthough a relationship between gluten and paroxysmal dyskinesia cannot be confirmed, the dog's improvement after the nutritional management and the removal of the anti-seizure therapy is supportive of dietary association.

Objectives The aims of this study were to determine owners’ perception of their cats’ quality of life (QoL), and whether there is a correlation with weight-loss variables, as well as to identify the main difficulties owners encounter during controlled weight loss in their obese cats. Methods The study was carried out as an e-questionnaire survey addressed to owners of cats starting a weight-loss programme. The e-questionnaire was provided at a single time point after the conclusion of the study (24 weeks). Results Nineteen completed questionnaires were included. Eighteen cats had a lower weight at the end of the weight-loss period, two of which had successfully reached their target weight. Mean weight loss was 13.84% body weight at a rate of 0.53% weight loss/week. Although the perceived QoL was not correlated with weight-loss variables ( P >0.05), it increased over time, even in cats that did not reach their target weight, and was statistically correlated with increased activity ( r = 0.73; P <0.01), mobility ( r = 0.78; P <0.01) and play time ( r = 0.61; P <0.01). The main difficulties encountered by owners were not giving (32%) or permitting the cat to eat extra food (26%). The main presumed difficulty for the cat was having its food decreased over time (53%). Most owners considered their cats happy (42%) and quite happy (53%) during the study, and no statistically significant correlations were found between the weight loss, food-seeking behaviour and stress parameters ( P >0.05). Conclusions and relevance Although several difficulties were encountered throughout the study, increased QoL and energy levels in their cats were noticed by owners. A positive perspective on weight-loss programmes is important to keep owners motivated and achieve the target weight in their cats. Furthermore, this survey provides insights into the perceived difficulties of weight-loss regimens in cats.