Determination of the therapeutic effectiveness of the drug against siphonaptero-sis of cats based on selamectin and praziquantel

One of the common diseases of cats is siphonapterosis, a disease caused by fleas. Sustained effectiveness of the drug against fleas and suppression of flea egg production is necessary to ensure optimal control. The article presents data on determining the therapeutic effectiveness against siphonapterosis of cats based on selamectin and praziquantel. The purpose of our research was to determine the therapeutic effectiveness of the new drug “Selgrad” and to compare the hematological indicators of sick cats before and after treatment with the specified drug. The drug “Selgrad” was used for the experiment, one milliliter of the drug contains 60 mg of selamectin and 80 mg of praziquantel. The drug was used in cats in which the presence of fleas was detected during the examination. Siphonapterosis was suspected in the presence of characteristic clinical signs of the disease. Clinical signs of animals affected by siphonapterosis included itching, animals biting and scratching the abdomen and sides of the body, biting the tail. Animals with high intensity lesions had weight loss, emaciation, and malodor. The largest number of fleas in cats was found in the area of the head, the upper part of the neck, near the tail, on the belly. As a result of research, 100 % effectiveness of selamectin and praziquantel was found in the treatment of cats infested with fleas. When analyzing the morphological parameters of the blood of cats affected by siphonapterosis, it was established that they have significant differences from the parameters of the blood of unaffected cats. Siphonapterosis in cats causes a probable decrease in the hemoglobin level by 20.03 %, the number of erythrocytes by 24.61, and an increase in the number of leukocytes by 50.0 %, compared to a group of unaffected animals, which indicates inflammatory processes in the animal's body. The hematocrit level in sick animals was 8.21 % lower compared to the control group. Further studies of the morphological composition of the blood carried out 10 days after the treatment did not reveal any probable changes in comparison with the control group. In the future, it is planned to conduct a study of the acute toxicity of the proposed drug.