Lokivetmab at labelled dosages was a fast, safe and efficacious therapy for the control of pruritus in dogs with allergic dermatitis.

Background: Chronic stress is implicated in behavioral and health issues in cats, but methods for recognition, evaluation, and measurement of stress are lacking. Cortisol concentration is typically used as an indicator of stress.Objectives: To evaluate use of an enzyme immunoassay to quantitate hair and nail cortisol concentrations (HCC and NCC) in cats and evaluate associations between HCC and NCC and behavioral, physical, and environmental correlates of chronic stress in cats.Animals: Forty-eight adult, owned or community cats.Methods: Cross-sectional study. Nail clippings and hair were collected from cats.Medical history and cat daily lifestyle questionnaires were completed by owners or caretakers. A commercial laboratory performed cortisol extraction and quantification using a validated enzyme immunoassay kit. Correlational and regression analyses were used to evaluate associations between HCC and NCC and behavioral, environmental, and medical factors.Results: Hair and nail cortisol concentrations were significantly associated (r s = 0.70; P < .001), but HCCs varied widely within and among cats. Cats with litterbox issues had significantly increased HCC (P = .02) and NCC (P = .001) as compared to cats without litterbox issues. Cats with groomed coats had lower HCCs (P = .02) as compared to cats without groomed coats, whereas cats with dander and mats had higher NCCs (P = .01) as compared to cats without dander and mats.Conclusions and Clinical Importance: The quantification of NCCs might improve identification and evaluation of chronic stress in cats. The variability of HCCs in individual cats warrants caution using this measurement in chronic stress studies.

Background Nonspecific induction of local innate immune responses by mucosally administered immunotherapy is a new approach to protection from upper respiratory tract infections. Therefore, a new liposome‐toll‐like receptor complex (LTC) immune stimulant was developed and investigated for its ability to activate innate immune responses in cats, both in vitro and in vivo, as part of an initial evaluation of LTC for use as an immunotherapeutic agent in cats. Objectives We hypothesized that LTC could activate innate immune responses in cats after topical application to nasal and oropharyngeal mucosal surfaces. Animals Mucosal immune responses to topical administration of LTC were assessed in 7 healthy, purpose‐bred cats, and in vitro responses were assessed using blood samples from healthy cats. Methods Cytokine and cellular immune responses to LTC were evaluated in blood samples, nasal lavage specimens, and pharyngeal swabs from cats, using reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction assays, ELISA assays, and flow cytometry. Results Liposome‐TLR complexes rapidly activated leukocytes in vitro, including upregulation of costimulatory molecule expression and cytokine production. Topical administration of LTC in healthy cats triggered rapid recruitment of monocytes to the nasal and oropharyngeal mucosa. Conclusions and Clinical Importance Liposome‐TLR complexes were found to effectively activate innate immune responses in cats after mucosal administration. These findings suggest that LTC have potential for use as a new mucosally administered immunotherapy for nonspecific protection from viral and bacterial respiratory tract infections.

BackgroundStress contributes to reactivation of feline herpesvirus‐1 (FHV‐1). The usage of pheromones to decrease stress in FHV‐1 experimentally inoculated kittens has not previously been investigated.Hypothesis/ObjectivesTo determine whether a feline pheromone would lessen stress, resulting in decreased recurrence of FHV‐1‐associated illness in kittens.AnimalsTwelve 5‐month‐old, purpose‐bred kittens.MethodsRandomized, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled clinical trial. Kittens previously infected with the same dose of FHV‐1 were randomized into 2 separate but identical group rooms. After a 2‐week equilibration period, a diffuser containing either the pheromone or placebo was placed in each of the rooms, and the kittens acclimated for an additional 2 weeks. Every 2 weeks thereafter, for the 8‐week study period, housing was alternated between kennel‐ and group housing. Blinded observers applied a standardized clinical and behavioral scoring rubric daily. After each 2‐week period, serum cortisol concentrations and quantitative PCR for FHV‐1 and glyceraldehyde 3‐phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) ratios were evaluated. Clinical, behavioral, and laboratory test results were compared between groups within individual and combined study periods.ResultsSneezing occurred more frequently in the placebo group during individual (P = 0.006) and combined study periods (P = 0.001). Sleep at the end of observation periods occurred more frequently in the pheromone group during individual (P = 0.006) and combined study periods (P < 0.001).Conclusions and Clinical ImportanceThe findings suggest that the pheromone decreased stress, and the decrease in stress response may have resulted in decreased sneezing associated with FHV‐1.

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