Slentrol : Weight Loss Drug for Dogs

Slentrol, a wonder drug for dog obesity? I just came across a glowing review of Slentrol, a diet pill for dogs, that smelled a lot like an ad. It claimed Slentrol is the newest drug to control weight in dogs, and is approved by the FDA. You can give this diet pill to your dog, it will reduce their appetite, and they will lose about 3% of their body weight every month. If your dog weighs 50 lbs., that is 1.5 lb. weight loss every month, or 18 lbs. in a year. Sounds great, being overweight can pose health risks, but how safe is this drug? It might be healthier to be a fat dog than suffer from some of the adverse reactions reported on the Slentrol website.

ADVERSE REACTIONS:
The adverse reactions associated with treatment with SLENTROL include vomiting, loose stools/diarrhea, lethargy, and anorexia. These adverse reactions were mainly observed during the first month of treatment or during the week after a dose increase. Vomiting was usually mild in severity, of short duration, and resolved with continued SLENTROL treatment. The SLENTROL-treated dogs generally had an increased frequency and duration of vomiting and diarrhea compared to the control dogs. The control dogs received corn oil.

In addition to the adverse reactions listed above, there were other abnormal findings. Many control and SLENTROL-treated dogs had dental disease, abnormal skin and ear findings, and lameness/arthritis. The incidence of these findings were similar in both control and SLENTROL treated groups and most dogs had similar lesions noted pre-treatment. Two dogs in the SLENTROL treatment group developed corneal ulcers. One SLENTROL-treated and one control dog developed signs consistent with pancreatitis. One treated dog developed inappropriate urination and defecation and another treated dog developed polyuria and polydipsia.

A 5 year old Beagle with no medical history of seizures in the SLENTROL treatment group had a seizure on Day 52 of the study. The dog continued to receive SLENTROL until additional seizures occurred 11 and 12 days later. The investigator referred the case to a neurologist and the seizures continued approximately twice weekly. The neurologist found no lesions that support the causality of the seizures.

A 5 year old Dachshund developed a hepatopathy after 82 days of treatment and was withdrawn from the study for vomiting, increased hepatic enzymes, and anorexia. Vomiting continued for a few days after stopping treatment and the dog was hospitalized due to the anorexia. ALT activity levels continued to rise after all clinical observations resolved.

During weight stabilization, vomiting (16.1%) and lethargy (4.8%) were the most frequent adverse reactions associated with treatment with SLENTROL. Other adverse reactions included diarrhea (1.6%), anorexia (1.6%), and ataxia (1.6%).

In the post-treatment period, a 6 year old spayed female Chihuahua, was found dead by the owner 7 days after stopping dirlotapide therapy. The cause of death was not conclusive but did not appear to be related to the dirlotapide therapy.

Some dogs treated with SLENTROL displayed a mild to moderate elevation in serum hepatic transaminase activity early in treatment that decreased over time while treatment continued. Hepatic transaminases generally returned to normal when treatment was discontinued.

source

To each dog his own, but I think diet and exercise is key. It would be nice to have a magic pill to take care of our problems with no effort on our part, unfortunately life doesn't work that way. Slentrol is no exception.