NEW YORK - The Food and Drug Administration approved a diet drug for dogs on Friday. Pfizer Animal Health is the company to manufacture this drug called Slentrol (dirlotapide).
The pill will go on sale later this year and will cost $1 to $2 per day. The cost of the drug will be directly proportional to the weight of man's best friend. The approval of the pill signals a worrying trend that obesity is taking its toll on animals as well.
"This is a welcome addition to animal therapies because dog obesity appears to be increasing," said Dr Stephen Sundlof, head of FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine. He was speaking after the FDA decided to approve the drug for use in dogs.
However it must be noted that the diet pill is not without problems. It can cause complications like "vomiting, loose stools, diarrhea and lethargy." The FDA said that dogs have similar problems to humans when it comes to battling obesity. They also suffer from heart diseases and joint aches due to excess weight.
In a statement welcoming the FDA approval, Pfizer said the drug was another means to help vets combat obesity in canines. "Many dog owners experience frustration with these measures because of lack of time to exercise their dogs, and difficulty restricting food and treats," the company said.
The FDA said that Pfizer recommended a course of three months with the drug, but added that dogs had been studied for 10 months.
There was mixed reaction among experts to the new drug, Bonnie Beaver, a past president of the American Veterinary Medical Association said that the drug should not be viewed as a panacea. "We know that pets are gaining weight just as their owners often do," she said.
