Can Apoquel® Be Given To Cats?

Ron Hines DVM PhD

Apoquel® is not approved by the FDA or the EMA for use in cats. I am not a fan of Apoquel® because it produces too many side effects. But veterinarians and physicians have always had wide discretion in making their own treatment decisions. These are called “extra label uses” and they are based on the knowledge and experience of the veterinarian you personally rely on. One Company study on its use of Apoquel® in cats to lessen the symptoms of allergic skin disease was promising. (see here ) Three other reports were a bit less promising. read here, here & here

The doses of Apoquel® that give cats relief from itching (aka feline atopic skin syndrome or FASS) are similar to the doses suggested for dogs. However, cats absorb Apoquel® and eliminate it a bit faster than dogs do and are not as predictable as to the dose required or how long itch relief lasts after each dose. They might require somewhat more of the drug and at more frequent intervals than dogs. (read here & here)

Just as in dogs, Apoquel® suppresses aspects of your cat’s immune system other than those responsible for itching. Often it takes more than a few months before the results of that immune system suppression becomes apparent. Studies to date have only been short term – not long enough to judge what might happen to your cat taking this drug long term. For example, a 6-year-old, feline immunodeficiency-positive cat given Apoquel® for 5 months developed a fatal case of toxoplasmosis. (read here) All medications given to us or our pets pose some risk. If you are considering Apoquel® for your cat, it would be wise to have its blood screened for antibodies against Toxo that might indicate it was a carrier of that parasite and also to refrain from allowing your cat outdoors where it might hunt rodents. I would not feed that cat a raw meat diet either.

When cats are diagnosed as having allergic dermatitis or eosinophilic granuloma complex, there are veterinarians who have already dispensed this medication to their client’s cats. Getting a new use approval from the FDA or the EMA is a lengthy, costly process. Those costs can be greater than the potential revenue the drug will generate for the company even if it does gain a new use approval. So many drug companies opt to just let veterinarians take the lead in establishing an accepted “off label” medication use. So for now, we just have to wait and see how things go relying on feedback from cat-owners like you and veterinary internet chatter.

If you have used Apoquel in your cat, please let me know how your cat did, and I will post your observations

here: for other readers to see. Also browse through the Apoquel® Dog Owner’s reports to get an indication of what one might expect. But remember that cats are not little dogs. How they metabolize medication and how those medications affect them can be quite different – especially when liver metabolism is involved.

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