Anyone’s cat being treated with Solencia for arthritis?

[DijonMustard]

Hi all. My cat had a first injection of this a couple of weeks ago, and I’ve noticed a big difference in him. He’s livelier and eating better, and tries to attack me through the banisters as I’m walking down the stairs. (That’s a good thing, btw.)

I have an appointment for a second injection in a fortnight but I looked up Solencia today, as I’ve been so impressed by it, and I saw that it can cause skin conditions. Funnily enough, I’ve noticed that he’s quite scabby around his head, and also his tail. I can’t be sure that it’s been caused by the Solencia because he has had harvest mites recently and received a steroid injection on the date that he also had the Solencia. I had thought the mites had just not yet cleared up, but now I’m wondering whether they’ve gone and he’s developed a different problem.

I’m going to discuss this with his vet, but I just wonder whether anybody else has experience of this medication. On balance I’m thinking he’d probably be better off a little scabby if he continues to experience a lot of relief from the Solencia, which is what I think I’m seeing.

Hi, my cat had it five months on the trot and the difference was incredible.
Having had 2 hip replacements myself I really felt for him when he was limping around with arthritis in his hips. After the 2nd month of Solencia he was like a kitten again tearing around the room after a laser light, but oh dear, after months 5, I phoned the vets to cancel his next injection as the massive scabs that suddenly appeared around his chin & neck were terrible! Not only that, but he couldn't stop scratching himself, tearing great chunks of skin out of his neck, it was mortifying to witness and I couldn't stop him. One morning I had to bathe his chin and neck with cold water just to calm him down.
It's now been 2 months since we stopped the Solencia and his chin and neck scabs have all cleared up, he's stopped scratching and the hair has started to grow back, BUT he is back to limping and is obviously in pain with the arthris and can't seem to get comfortable for very long.
I feel so sorry for him and am wondering about trying the Solencia again with some antihistamine or some steroids, I am going to speak to the vet.
My cat is only 11, I wish I could get him hip replacements on the NHS!

@Incypinchy that's interesting about the scratching. We put ours on Solensia for 3 months but I noticed she was scratching a lot as though her flea treatment wasn't working any more. We stopped the Solensia as she seemed improved enough not to need it (we assumed the heatwaves have temporarily helped) but were ready to ask for it as soon as she started to struggle again, probably when the cold/damp weather starts. Will keep a closer eye if she goes back on it!

Many thanks, both - that’s very interesting! I’ll keep a very close eye on his scabs over the next week or so. I think he could live with small ones but certainly not the huge ones that @Incypinchy’s cat developed.

We did two months of it and it was great for the first 2.5 weeks then wore off so just wasn't lasting long enough. No side effects in those two months.

Thanks @MarioLink 👍

We kept Elton on it for the best part of 18 months and it was transformative. It gave him the quality of life he deserved as a young cat. He did become a bit itchy / scabby but TBH I don't think I actually knew that was a side effect and I don't think I would have made a different decision if I had known.

My arthritic 15 year old puss has been on a monthly Solensia jab since the start of 2023. It has certainly changed her life. She was originally prescribed Metacam for arthritic pain relief but it gave her the runs, so I opted for the jab even though she hates our monthly trips to the vet!

No sign of any scabbing here so far so we've been lucky. I can always tell when it's wearing off - usually the last 3 or 4 days of the month sees her moving more carefully, creakily and slowly. Otherwise it's been a godsend for her.

Maybe if the scabbing continues you could ask the vet about trying Metacam instead?

Not sure how old the OP"s cat is but Metacam / Loxicam is very hard on a cat's kidneys so is avoided if the cat is older or showing signs of CKD