COMBINATION THERAPY WITH FLUOXETINE AND ALPRAZOLAM TO CONTROL ANXIETY IN A HAND-REARED SNOW LEOPARD (UNCIA UNCIA)

Abstract

A captive hand-reared adult male snow leopard ( Uncia uncia ) was treated for anxiety associated with taunting from visitors, the presence of large crowds, and introduction to a female for breeding. Behaviors included shaking, chewing on tail, panting, panicking, and bouncing off the viewing glass, pacing, and avoidance of the female. Combination therapy of oral fluoxetine and alprazolam were administered initially to minimize anxious behaviors while the fluoxetine achieved therapeutic levels. The alprazolam was tapered completely and was only used episodically on two occasions. Although a palatability issue with alprazolam initially prevented consistent dosing, anxious behavior was eliminated and successful breeding behavior was achieved for the first time. After 44 mo of therapy, there have been no anxious behaviors requiring additional medications, two additional breeding behaviors observed, and no evidence of adverse side effects with long-term use.

An online survey investigating perceived prevalence and treatment options for stereotypic behaviours in horses and undesirable behaviours associated with handling and riding

“…Despite their reported efficacy in other species (Poulsen et al 1996;Baker 2002;Hugo et al 2003;Seibert 2007;Yalcin and Aytug 2007;Landsberg et al 2008;Holman 2016;Kaur et al 2016), this survey suggested a very low use of SSRIs, with only 8.2% (4/49) of respondent veterinarians suggesting use of these agents for behavioural issues in ridden horses. Whereas acepromazine and reserpine were suggested far more commonly, 57.1% (28/49) and 44.9% (22/49), respectively.…”

“…More extensive use of SSRIs in horses may be a potential option to address owner/rider needs and improve horse welfare. SSRIs have been successfully used in other species to address behaviours such as anxiety (Landsberg et al 2008;Pineda et al 2014;Karagiannis et al 2015;Holman 2016), aggression (Seksel 2008) and compulsive disorders (Bowen and Heath 2005;Ogata et al 2013), and have previously demonstrated positive results in the treatment of stereotypic behaviours in horses (Nurnberg et al 1997) and other species (Poulsen et al 1996;Vogel and Stein 2000;Hugo et al 2003;Yalcin and Aytug 2007;Holman 2016).…”

“…Antidepressants are the largest group of agents that target neurotransmitters with the aim of modifying behaviour. They have demonstrated success in behaviour modification in many species (Poulsen et al 1996;Stein et al 1998;King et al 2000;Pryor et al 2001;Hugo et al 2003;Seibert et al 2004;Yalcin and Aytug 2007;Landsberg et al 2008;Holman 2016). In horses, their primary effect is as a long-term anxiolytic.…”