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Pet Pharma: the "humanization" trend

The practice of prescribing medications designed for humans to animals has grown substantially over the past decade and a half, and pharmaceutical companies have recently begun experimenting with a more direct strategy: marketing behavior-modification and “lifestyle” drugs specifically for pets.

America’s animals, it seems, have very American health problems. More than 20 percent of our dogs are overweight; Pfizer’s Slentrol was approved by the F.D.A. last year as the country’s first canine anti-obesity medication. Dogs live 13 years on average, considerably longer than they did in the past; Pfizer’s Anipryl treats cognitive dysfunction so that absent-minded pets can remember the location of the supper bowl or doggy door. For lonely dogs with separation anxiety, Eli Lilly brought to market its own drug Reconcile last year. The only difference between it and Prozac is that Reconcile is chewable and tastes like beef.

Doggy diet pills may be plainly absurd, but scientists in an expanding field known as behavioral pharmacology say that the combination of new drug therapies and progressive training techniques can solve problems that in the past almost always resulted in euthanasia. The supposed effectiveness of psychiatric medicines in treating mood and behavior issues is prompting new questions in the centuries-old debate over what, exactly, separates mankind from the beasts. If the strict Cartesian view were true — that animals are essentially flesh-and-blood automatons, lacking anything resembling human emotion, memory and consciousness — then why do animals develop mental illnesses that eerily resemble human ones and that respond to the same medications? What can behavioral pharmacology teach us about animal minds and, ultimately, our own?

Marketers have a new name for the age-old tendency to view animals as furry versions of ourselves: “humanization,” a trend that is fueling the explosive growth of the pet industry and the rise of modern pet pharma. Americans forked over $49 billion for pet products and services last year, up $11.5 billion from 2003; other than consumer electronics, pet products are the fastest-growing retail segment. The market expansion is being driven both by more pets and by more spending per pet, especially by affluent baby boomers whose children have graduated from college. A third of the total spending, and the fastest-growing category, is health care, with treatments formerly reserved for people — root canals, chemotherapy, liposuction, mood pills — being administered to pets.

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Canine Cognitive Dysfunction

Canine Cognitive Dysfunction is the age related deterioration of cognitive abilities characterized by behavioral changes in dogs that cannot be wholly attributed to general medical conditions such as neoplasia (cancer), infection or organ failure.  CDS is often referred to ads "old dog syndrome" or "senility", and is manifested by one or more of the signs listed in Table #1.

CDS is not "normal aging".  A number of pathophysiological changes are suspected to play a role in its development.   These include:
* deposition of amyloid plaques in the cerebral cortex and hippocampal part of the brain
* alterations in neurotransmitters, including dopamine
* increased levels of monoamine oxidase B (MAOB) in the brain
* increased levels of free radicals

The progressive, degenerative course of canine CDS involves a gradual decline of cognitive abilities sufficient to produce functional disability in the home and/or as a family member.

How common is CDS?

The challenge of chronic dermatitis in dogs

Understanding that there are over 160 different skin disorders of dogs, some of which create chronic difficulties, Veterinarians try to solve all kinds of chronic dermatitis problems will lead you to a patient and cooperative relationship with your veterinarian. As a team, you and the veterinarian should be proactive in defining the problem accurately and in a timely manner. Satisfactory results will require the doctor's expertise and perseverance coupled with your permission and financial commitment.

There are few challenges in veterinary medicine more daunting than treating a patient for a long-term skin disorder. Chronic dermatitis cases take up about ten percent of animal hospital file folders; and these patient folders tend to be the thickest due to the multiple pages of patient history, lab test results, biopsy reports, medications and supplements dispensed, and even dermatology specialist referral summaries. Reading through all that data you would find an oft-repeated theme. Control is the goal since for sure there's no cure.

Kidney disease in dogs and cats

Kidney failure... kidney disease in the dog and cat is a common and difficult disorder to manage. 
Often called CRF... Chronic Renal Failure, it is seen most often in the older dog or cat. Kidney failure has it origins in a wide variety of causes.  For example, some animals are born with poorly constructed or functioning kidneys and never reach totally optimum health.  Eventually, these individuals usually fall into kidney failure at an early age.  Another type of kidney failure can occur after accidental ingestion of antifreeze that contains ethylene glycol. 

These situations cause sudden and often irreversible renal (kidney) failure. Quite commonly, kidney failure results from low grade, long term (chronic) inflammation of kidney tissues called chronic nephritis; the damage caused by this inflammation renders permanent damage to delicate renal tissues that are not able to repair themselves or heal as some other body tissues do.  Eventually, not enough normal functioning tissue remains to support the body's need for metabolic regulation and waste elimination. The dog or cat becomes UREMIC, a condition where body waste material builds up in the blood. These toxins promote vomiting, poor appetite, depression, and eventually death.  Bacterial invasion of the kidneys is a common cause of chronic nephritis and kidney failure.

The kidneys receive about 20 percent of the heart's blood output and play a vital role in keeping the dog or cat in normal metabolic balance. The glomerular blood vessels have a large endothelial surface which allows for the active and passive transport of many chemicals into and out of the kidneys.

Diabetes mellitus in dogs and cats

Diabetes in the dog and cat and the treatment for diabetes mellitus are interesting and challenging topics.  Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a disorder where the body is unable to regulate blood sugar levels.  (There is another dissimilar disease called Diabetes Insipidus that is associated with the pituitary gland.)  Each case seems to be different, and regulating the diabetic dog or cat so that their blood glucose levels are as normal as possible is vitally important.  The real problem with a diabetic dog or cat is that even in the presence of sugar (glucose) in the blood stream, something interferes with the entry of that sugar into the body's cells where it is required for the life sustaining energy of those cells. With no sugar in the cells, the cell dies in a very short period of time.

A highly complicated disease entity, diabetes has been classified according to what pathway of energy metabolism has been disrupted. 

Fortunately with diabetes mellitus in dogs and cats most cases can be managed successfully with insulin injections. There are several brands of insulin available to veterinarians and your veterinarian may suggest or favor one brand rather than another.  Cats often are managed by use of a PZI (protamine zinc) insulin preparation.  Do not be bashful with your dog or cat's veterinarian if you do not understand the how, why, and when of managing diabetes in dogs and cats.

Typical signs of diabetes mellitus in dogs and cats include excess water consumption and excess urination, increased appetite but with actual weight loss, and dehydration.  Dogs also commonly develop cataracts whereas cats seldom develop cataracts secondary to diabetes mellitus.
...polyuria (PU) - frequent and more productive urination
...polydipsia (PD) - increased water intake
...polyphagia - excessive appetite
...weight loss
...lethargy
...sugar in the urine

Diabetes rising in cats and dogs

MSNBC reports that as with people, the incidence of diabetes in cats and dogs is increasing. Not so much of a problem in decades past, diabetes now affects as many as one in 50 of the animals, some statistics show, especially pudgy pets.

“There is no question from what I know that is published in the literature that obesity is on the rise, No. 1, and No. 2, diabetes is on the rise right along with it,” says veterinarian Robin Downing, hospital director of Windsor Veterinary Clinic in Windsor, Colo.

Diabetes results when the body doesn't produce enough insulin, a hormone that processes glucose (blood sugar), or properly use it. As a result, the body's tissues cannot use glucose for energy, and the sugar builds up in the blood and urine.

Veterinarians say that while obesity clearly is linked to diabetes in pets, it appears to contribute to the disease differently in cats and dogs.

Fat cats are prone to diabetes because they develop insulin resistance, meaning their bodies don't effectively use insulin. As a result, the pancreas pumps out more insulin as well as another hormone called amylin.

With dogs, obesity is associated with an increased risk of pancreatitis — an inflammation of the pancreas — which can then lead to diabetes because the body doesn't make enough insulin.

A change to a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet — nicknamed the “Catkins” diet — can promote weight loss and make diabetes more manageable in cats, often sending them into remission so that they no longer require insulin injections. At the Windsor Veterinary Clinic in Colorado, three out of every four diabetic cats have their disease controlled through diet alone.

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Heartworm Disease

Does your dog cough frequently? Has he lost some weight recently? Just doesn't want to go running after that tennis ball anymore? If so, he could have heartworm disease!

Dirofilariasis or heartworm is a serious and potentially fatal illness spread by mosquitoes and it is common especially in the eastern and southern parts of the USA.

When a mosquito bites a dog to take a blood meal, it may inject a number of tiny larvae into the animal's skin. Over a period of months, these larvae migrate into the blood stream and gradually make their way to the heart and the adjacent arteries. Here they begin to grow and can often reach lengths of twelve to eighteen inches! Sometimes dogs will have tens or even hundreds of worms, all more than a foot long, clogging up the chambers of the heart.

At this stage, the blood cannot flow properly through the heart and the dog starts to show the typical signs of congestive heart failure. To make things worse, the female worms produce thousands of offspring, which can be found swimming in almost every drop of blood in the dog's body. When the next mosquito bites the unfortunate animal, it will suck up some of these juveniles and then fly off to find it's next victim...

Hypothyroidism in the Dog

Hypothyroidism in the dog, where the thyroid gland is not secreting normal amounts of thyroid hormone, is the most common endocrine gland disorder in the dog.

The endocrine glands are...
Thyroid Gland (the Master Gland), Hypothalamus, Pancreas, Thymus, Anterior Pituitary, Pineal Gland, Testis, Ovary, Parathyroid Glands, Posterior Pituitary, Adrenal Glands

All of these tissues secrete chemical substances called hormones that have a profound effect on certain "target" tissues. But of all those glands and hormones, the thyroid gland is considered the Master Gland. If the thyroid gland is malfunctioning, every cell in the body is affected. No wonder dogs, properly diagnosed with hypothyroidism and placed on appropriate thyroid hormone supplements, will look, act and feel so much better than before treatment.

SIGNS
Most dogs show signs of hypothyroidism between 3 and 5 years of age but diagnosis isn't made in some dogs until they are years older. Males and females seem to be equally affected. Routine testing of young dogs is not commonly done. Some veterinarians believe that if a dog has not acquired Hypothyroidism by 5 or 6 years of age, the odds are good that it will never be a problem for that individual. (Cats rarely acquire hypothyroidism but have more trouble with hyperthyroidism, especially older cats.)

One of the most commonly seen signs that a dog may have insufficient secretion of thyroid hormone is weight gain with apparently little food intake. Any overweight pet should be checked for Hypothyroidism.

Gastric Dilatation - Volvulus (Bloating)

Imagine this scenario. Your three year old German Shepherd is in the prime of his life. He weighs ninety pounds, runs like the wind and doesn't have an ounce of fat on his frame. After a hard day at the office you can't wait to get home to take him to the park, to run and play catch with him. Quickly gulping down a bowl of dry kibble for dinner, he's standing at the front door with the leash in his mouth, wondering why it takes you so long to put on a pair of sneakers.

Several hours later, you're relaxing in front of the TV when you notice that he's become restless - pacing up and down and in obvious discomfort. On closer examination he seems to be breathing a little heavier than normal and he's drooling too. Within a few minutes he starts to retch but is unable to bring anything up. Concerned for his well being, you quickly load him into the car and head over to your nearest emergency veterinary clinic. By the time you arrive, your very best friend has collapsed, his gums are pale and his stomach is so distended that you think it will burst. In the sudden whirlwind of activity around you and your pet, you sign the permission forms to allow the veterinarian to perform an emergency lifesaving operation to repair the severe internal trauma caused by GDV.

What is this disease and why have so many of us lost our pets to it? How can we recognize the early warning signs? More importantly, is there a way to prevent the condition from developing in the first place?

Kennel Cough In Dogs

Kennel cough in dogs is also called Canine Cough, Bordetellosis and Infectious Tracheobronchitis.

Kennel Cough in dogs will stimulate a coarse, dry, hacking cough about three to seven days after the dog is initially infected. It sounds as if the dog needs to "clear it's throat" and the cough will be triggered by any extra activity or exercise. Many dogs that acquire Kennel Cough will cough every few minutes, all day long. Their general state of health and alertness will be unaffected, they usually have no rise in temperature, and do not lose their appetite. The signs of Canine Cough usually will last from 7 to 21 days and can be very annoying for the dog and the dog's owners. Life threatening cases of Kennel Cough are extremely rare and a vast majority of dogs that acquire the infection will recover on their own with no medication. Cough suppressants and occasionally antibiotics are the usual treatment selections.

WHAT IS KENNEL COUGH?
Actually, clinical cases of Kennel Cough are usually caused by several infectious agents working together to damage and irritate the lining of the dog's trachea and upper bronchii. The damage to the tracheal lining is fairly superficial, but exposes nerve endings that become irritated simply by the passage of air over the damaged tracheal lining. Once the organisms are eliminated the tracheal lining will heal rapidly. The most common organisms associated with Canine Cough are the bacteria called Bordetella bronchiseptica and two viruses called Parainfluenza virus and Adenovirus and even an organism called Mycoplasma.

HOW IS IT TRANSMITTED?
The causative organisms can be present in the expired air of an infected dog, much the same way that human "colds" are transmitted. The airborne organisms will be carried in the air in microscopically tiny water vapor or dust particles. The airborne organisms, if inhaled by a susceptible dog, can attach to the lining of the trachea and upper airway passages, find a warm, moist surface on which to reside and replicate, and eventually damage the cells they infect.

The reason this disease seems so common, and is even named "Kennel" cough, is that wherever there are numbers of dogs confined together in an enclosed environment such as a kennel, animal shelter, or indoor dog show, the disease is much more likely to be spread. The same is true with the "colds" spread from human to human... they are much more likely to occur in a populated, enclosed environment such as an airplane, elevator, or office. All it takes for contagion to occur is a single source (infected dog), an enclosed environment, and susceptible individuals in close proximity to the source of the infection. Infected dogs can spread the organisms for days to weeks even after seeming to have fully recovered!