While the current tools to assess canine postoperative pain using physiological and behavioural parameters are reliable, an objective method such as the parasympathetic tone activity (PTA) index could improve postoperative care. The aim of the study was to determine the utility of the PTA index in assessing postoperative analgaesia.

Leishmaniasis is a life-threatening zoonosis of which dogs are the major reservoir and sandflies are the vectors. Until now, the prevalence of canine leishmaniasis (CanL) in the Slovenian dog population was unknown.

Staphylococcus pseudintermedius infections present a serious challenge because of the emergence of resistance to numerous conventional antibiotics. Antimicrobial peptides are novel alternatives to traditional antibiotics due to their unique mechanism of action. In this study, we investigated the antibacterial activity of 12 short synthetic peptides against two clinical isolates of S. pseudintermedius isolated from two dog cases with ophthalmic lesions. In addition, the ability of the peptides to disrupt the established biofilm of these two S. pseudintermedius isolates was investigated. RRIKA and 5RHH showed good antimicrobial activity with MICs 2 and 4 µg/ml, respectively. IK8aIID and Indolicidin showed antimicrobial activity with MICs 8 and 16 µg/ml, respectively. Indolicidin, 5RHH and IK8aIID showed a significant biofilm mass % reduction up to 90%.  Taken together, these results support the potential use of antimicrobial peptides for the treatment of S. pseudintermedius infections.

Opioids are considered the gold standard to manage acute or chronic or mild to severe pain. Tramadol is a widely prescribed analgesic drug for dogs and cats; it has a synthetic partial agonism on μ-opioid receptors and inhibits the reuptake of norepinephrine and serotonin. However, the biotransformation and resultant metabolites differ between species and depend on cytochrome P450 interactions. Dogs mainly produce the inactive N-desmethyl tramadol metabolite, whereas cats exhibit an improved antinociceptive effect owing to rapid active O-desmethyltramadol metabolite production and a longer elimination half-life. Tapentadol, a novel opioid with dual action on μ-receptors and noradrenaline reuptake inhibitory activity, is a promising option in dogs, as it is less reliant on metabolic activation and is unaffected by cytochrome polymorphisms. Although scientific evidence on the analgesic activity of tapentadol in both species remains limited, experimental studies indicate potential benefits in animals. This review summarizes and compares the pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, and therapeutic efficacy of tramadol and tapentadol in dogs and cats with different pain conditions. According to the available data, tramadol seems a more suitable therapeutic option for cats and should preferably be used as a component of multimodal analgesia in both species, particularly dogs. Tapentadol might possess a superior analgesic profile in small animals, but additional studies are required to comprehensively evaluate the activity of this opioid to manage pain in dogs and cats. [J Adv Vet Anim Res 2021; 8(3.000): 404-422]