Cosentyx for dogs: Dosage and safety

In this article:

• What is Cosentyx used for in dogs?
• Safety
• Cosentyx alternatives
• Summary

In this article

• What is Cosentyx used for in dogs?
• Safety
• Cosentyx alternatives
• Summary

Cosentyx is a brand-name prescription injection used in people to treat a variety of autoimmune disorders, including psoriasis and rheumatic spinal arthritis. Its active ingredient is secukinumab, a monoclonal antibody that blocks the inflammatory response. This antibody is engineered to be human, so it will not work in dogs or other animals. The conditions that Cosentyx is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat are rarely or never diagnosed in dogs, including psoriasis.

RELATED: Save up to 80% on Cosentyx

What is Cosentyx used for in dogs?

Veterinarians do not use Cosentyx as a treatment option for dogs. Its active ingredient is a monoclonal antibody called secukinumab, which will not work in dogs.

To understand why, antibodies are proteins whose only job is to glue themselves to another molecule. This allows the immune system to target and eliminate that molecule or the cell it’s attached to. 

Scientists have developed monoclonal antibodies to attach to molecules to either target them for destruction, block their effects, or switch a cell on or off. 

Secukinumab is designed to block the effects of a free-floating molecule called interleukin-17A (IL-17A). IL-17A is an immune alarm system. It binds to cells and makes them throw out proteins that activate the immune system. With a secukinumab molecule glued to it, IL-17A can’t do that. As a result, the inflammatory response is blocked. An autoimmune flare-up is quickly brought under control.

Here’s the problem: antibodies are big enough that if they don’t look “human,” the immune system will recognize them as invaders and eventually learn to destroy them. Healthcare providers call this immunogenicity, and yes, that’s a risk with many of these drugs. When a patient develops antibodies to the drug, the drug doesn’t work anymore. Scientists try to prevent immunogenicity by genetically engineering these antibodies so that most, if not all, of the molecule is “human.” 

If Cosentyx were given to a dog, its immune system would rapidly learn to destroy it. For this reason, all biologic drugs like Cosentyx have to be species-specific. Scientists have to engineer a monoclonal antibody for dogs so that most or all of it looks like it came from a dog.

Additionally, healthcare professionals use Cosentyx to treat moderate to severe plaque psoriasis, active psoriatic arthritis, rheumatic conditions of the spine (ankylosing spondylitis and non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis), enthesitis-related arthritis, and hidradenitis suppurativa. Some of these, no doubt, are bewilderingly unfamiliar to the average pet owner. Dogs are not diagnosed with these conditions; if they are, they’re very rare. 

Psoriasis

Psoriasis occurs in 2–3% of people but is not a disease found in domestic animals. There are case studies of dogs with psoriasis-like symptoms and arthritis, but no veterinary college or organization has identified psoriasis as a disease in dogs. If a dog has psoriasis-like symptoms, the most likely diagnosis is atopic dermatitis or a skin allergy. It looks like psoriasis, particularly when it’s severe. 

Rheumatoid spinal conditions

Rheumatic arthritis is a common disease in 1 to 2 people out of every 200. While most rheumatic conditions involve the smaller joints, some people have rheumatic spine arthritis. It’s characterized by pain, stiffness, and loss of the full movement of the spine. Over time, flare-ups can permanently damage the spine, a condition called ankylosing spondylitis. About 0.2% to 0.5% of the population have ankylosing spondylitis. If caught early, before there’s any permanent damage, healthcare providers diagnose the condition as non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis (nr-ASa). 

Arthritis is common in dogs, but most dogs suffer from osteoarthritis. People get it, too, caused by wear and tear on the joint tissues. Dogs can get rheumatoid arthritis, but it’s rare. Instead, dogs with arthritis, due to immune reactions, are not rheumatic but have no identifiable cause. There are no case reports of rheumatoid spinal arthritis in dogs. Spinal problems are common in dogs due to age, excess weight, injury, or wear and tear.

Other conditions

Enthesitis-related arthritis (ERA) is not diagnosed in dogs. In people, ERA is diagnosed in children with arthritis that affects the attachments between tendons and bone. 

Dogs aren’t diagnosed with hidradenitis suppurativa (HS), an autoimmune condition of the skin’s sweat glands. However, they rarely experience sweat gland swelling due to infections. These outbreaks of skin redness and pus-filled nodules can look a lot like HS in people. Pet owners may mistakenly diagnose these symptoms as HS. Sweat gland tumors also manifest as skin redness and nodules without the pus-filled nodules, sores, tunnels, and scars typical of HS.

Is Cosentyx safe for dogs?

Do not give Cosentyx to a dog. It’s not designed for canine use.

In people, Cosentyx is never used if there is any history of an allergic reaction to its active ingredient.

Side effects of Cosentyx in dogs

In people, the most common side effects of Cosentyx discovered during clinical trials were:

• Nasopharyngitis (swollen nasal passages, swollen throat, sore throat)
• Diarrhea

The most serious side of Cosentyx in people are:

• Infections
• Worsening of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)
• Allergic reactions

Interactions of Cosentyx with other pet meds

Veterinarians do not know of any drug interactions between Cosentyx and other pet medications.

Because Cosentyx weakens the immune system, healthcare providers do not use live vaccines in people taking Cosentyx. While live vaccines are normally safe, there is a risk of infection if combined with an immune-suppressing drug like Cosentyx.

Although Cosentyx is not used in dogs, any similar immunosuppressant may make live vaccines hazardous. Dogs only receive live vaccines for parvovirus, adenovirus-2, distemper, and parainfluenza.

Cosentyx alternatives for dogs

Cosentyx treats psoriasis, rheumatic spinal arthritis, enthesitis-related arthritis, and hidradenitis suppurativa.

Veterinarians do not believe dogs get psoriasis, but that owners may mistake allergic dermatitis for psoriasis. Veterinarians primarily treat canine atopic dermatitis with a therapy designed to desensitize them to allergens. Called allergen-specific immunotherapy (ASIT), veterinarians dose the dog with small amounts of allergens and gently increase the dose until the dog loses its allergic response. Medical treatments include topical corticosteroids, oral corticosteroids, Apoquel (oclacitinib), and cyclosporine, an immunosuppressant. 

They can also prescribe a monoclonal antibody developed specifically to treat atopic dermatitis in dogs. Cytopoint (lokivetmab) is an interleukin inhibitor like Cosentyx, but it blocks a different version of interleukin called IL-31. Subcutaneous injections are given once every four weeks or once every eight weeks. Side effects include injection site reactions, drowsiness, vomiting, and diarrhea.

Although dogs don’t get ankylosing spondylitis, degenerative spinal disease (spondylosis) is a common and sometimes debilitating problem in dogs. It’s more common in big or overweight dogs. Veterinarians do not use drugs like Cosentyx but usually treat it in much the same way as osteoarthritis: weight loss, physical therapy, exercise, and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). Severe cases may require surgery.

Summary

Cosentyx is not used in dogs because it won’t work. Although the FDA has approved it to treat people with rare or nonexistent conditions in dogs, it is never safe or appropriate to give a dog Cosentyx or any similar biologic drug like Humira (adalimumab) or Remicade (infliximab).