Diabetes PetCare Alliance

Posted by justinelee in Animal Safety, Blog, Pet Health

Diabetes PetCare Alliance™ Supports Screening Pets During Pet Diabetes Month

Merck Animal Health, Purina and Zoetis continue 7-year partnership to facilitate diabetes management.

Veterinary clinics have from Sept. 1 to Oct. 31, 2021, to enroll in the Diabetes Pet Care Alliance™ program, which provides veterinarians with free diabetes education and management tools to give to owners of newly diagnosed diabetic pets. Clients whose pets are diagnosed between Nov. 1 and Dec. 31, 2021, are eligible to receive the free kits. Clinics can enroll in the program by visiting usa.petdiabetesmonth.com.

The opportunity to facilitate long-term successful management of diabetes drove company partners Merck Animal Health, Purina and Zoetis to form the Diabetes PetCare Alliance program in 2014.

The earlier pets are diagnosed with diabetes, the greater the likelihood they can receive a positive prognosis for this chronic disease. The goal of the Diabetes PetCare Alliance program is to raise awareness of pet diabetes among owners and facilitate the screening of at least 2,000 pets during the month of November, which is Pet Diabetes Month.

Program helps clients gain confidence in diabetes management

The need to raise awareness of the importance of diabetes screening and to minimize fears about the disease’s manageability is real. It’s estimated that 1 in 300 adult dogs and 1 in 230 cats in the United States have diabetes.^1,2 And while diabetes diagnoses are on the rise, increasing by 79.7% in dogs and 18.1% in cats since 2006,³ only two-thirds of cat owners and half of dog owners are satisfied with diabetic control in their pets.⁴

Through the Diabetes PetCare Alliance program, veterinarians provide clients whose pets are diagnosed with diabetes with free kits to help familiarize them with what they need to do manage their pets’ condition and jump-start the process. Program kits include:

• One AlphaTRAK^® 2 Blood Glucose Monitoring System from Zoetis
• One 6-pound bag of Purina^® Pro Plan^® Veterinary Diets DM Dietetic Management^® Feline Formula for cats or Purina^® Pro Plan^® Veterinary Diets EN Gastroenteric Fiber Balance^® Dry Formula for dogs
• One 10 mL vial of Vetsulin^® (porcine insulin zinc suspension) from Merck Animal Health

Veterinarians can enroll or learn more about the program, by visiting usa.petdiabetesmonth.com.

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1. Feline diabetes mellitus in the UK: The prevalence within an insured cat population and a questionnaire-based putative risk factor analysis. McCann TM, Simpson KE, Shaw DJ, et al. J Feline Med Surg 9:289-299, 2007.

2. Canine diabetes mellitus; can old dogs teach us new tricks? Catchpole B, Ristic JM, Fleeman LM, Davison LJ. Diabetologia 48:1948-1956, 2005.

3. Banfield Pet Hospital. State of Pet Health: 2016 Report. Available from https://www.banfield.com/pet-health/State-of-pet-health

4. Aptekmann, KP, et al. J Am Anim Hosp Assoc, 2014. (v1.0) – Owner Experiences in Treating Dogs and Cats Diagnosed with Diabetes.

AlphaTRAK 2 is a registered trademark of Zoetis Belgium S.A. and the Zoetis logo is a registered trademark of Zoetis Services LLC.

Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets is a registered trademark of Societé des Produits Nestlé S.A.

Vetsulin is a registered trademark of Intervet Inc.

About National Diabetes Month

National Diabetes Month is an initiative sponsored by the National Diabetes Education Program, a federally funded program sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and includes over 200 partners at the federal, state and local levels.

About Merck Animal Health

For more than a century, Merck, a leading global biopharmaceutical company, has been inventing for life, bringing forward medicines and vaccines for many of the world’s most challenging diseases. Merck Animal Health, a division of Merck & Co., Inc., Kenilworth, N.J., USA, is the global animal health business unit of Merck. Through its commitment to The Science of Healthier Animals^®, Merck Animal Health offers veterinarians, farmers, pet owners and governments one of the widest ranges of veterinary pharmaceuticals, vaccines and health management solutions and services as well as an extensive suite of digitally connected identification, traceability and monitoring products. Merck Animal Health is dedicated to preserving and improving the health, well-being and performance of animals and the people who care for them. It invests extensively in dynamic and comprehensive R&D resources and a modern, global supply chain. Merck Animal Health is present in more than 50 countries, while its products are available in some 150 markets. For more information, visit www.merck-animal-health.com or connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter at @MerckAH.

About Sure Petcare

Sure Petcare, the pet technology specialist, provides pet products that empower owners to care for their pets in entirely new ways. Founded in 2007, we have developed an award-winning range of microchip-operated pet doors and feeders, which solve many problems commonly experienced by pet owners. SURE PETCARE^TM, along with HOMEAGAIN^®, is a Companion Animal portfolio of digital products within Merck Animal Health. In 2017, Sure Petcare expanded its product range to include connected devices designed to provide proactive pet care by giving owners data and insight into their pets’ day-to-day behaviors, activities, and routines. Over time, this information will provide pet owners a greater understanding of their pet’s health and well-being. Sure Petcare sells direct through retail stores and veterinary practices in 35 countries. Through its commitment to The Science of Healthier Animals^®, Merck Animal Health offers veterinarians, farmers, pet owners and governments one of the widest ranges of veterinary pharmaceuticals, vaccines and health management solutions and services as well as an extensive suite of digitally connected identification, traceability and monitoring products. Merck Animal Health is dedicated to preserving and improving the health, well-being and performance of animals and the people who care for them. For more information, visit www.surepetcare.com or connect with us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook or Instagram.

In July 2021, Sure Petcare launched in the U.S. the FELAQUA^® CONNECT, a unique water delivery and drinking monitoring system for cats. Designed in collaboration with leading veterinary behaviorists, FELAQUA CONNECT allows cat owners to keep track of their cats’ daily water intake via the SURE PETCARETM App, while the smart water delivery system provides the cat with a source of fresh water.  

Each cat within a household is registered to FELAQUA CONNECT via their microchip.

FELAQUA CONNECT integrates with the SURE PETCARE App via a Hub, which allows the App to “talk” to the device and record each registered cat’s drinking behavior such as which cat drank, what time it drank, and how much it drank. It also provides reports on the cat’s overall drinking patterns on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis. With this information, cat owners can easily detect any changes in their cat’s drinking patterns.

About Nestlé Purina PetCare 

Nestlé Purina PetCare creates richer lives for pets and the people who love them. Founded in 1894, Purina has helped dogs and cats live longer, healthier lives by offering scientifically based nutritional innovations. Purina manufactures some of the world’s most trusted and popular pet care products, including Purina ONE, Pro Plan, Fancy Feast and Tidy Cats. Our more than 8,700 U.S. associates take pride in our trusted pet food, treat and litter brands that feed 51 million dogs and 65 million cats every year. More than 500 Purina scientists, veterinarians, and pet care experts ensure our commitment to unsurpassed quality and nutrition.  Purina Pro Plan is a leader in the advanced nutrition category, with more than 140 targeted formulas to help your pet thrive throughout every stage of life. For more information, visit www.proplan.com or follow @ProPlan on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook. 

Purina promotes responsible pet care through our scientific research, our products and our support for pet-related organizations. Over the past five years, Purina has contributed more than $150 million towards organizations that bring, and keep, people and pets together, as well as those that help our communities and environment thrive. 

Purina is part of Nestlé, a global leader in Nutrition, Health and Wellness. For more information, visit purina.com or subscribe here to get the latest Purina news.  

About Zoetis

Zoetis is a global animal health company dedicated to supporting customers and their businesses in ever better ways. Building on 60 years of experience, we deliver quality medicines and vaccines, complemented by diagnostic products and genetic tests and supported by a range of services. We are working every day to better understand and address the real-world challenges faced by those who raise and care for animals in ways they find truly relevant.