Three Months. One Shot. Zero Daily Pills. Zoetis’ New Feline OA Therapy Just Changed the Game
Feline osteoarthritis is the chronic condition we all know is common, underdiagnosed, and frustrating to manage. Now, Zoetis is raising the bar for long term pain control in cats. Zoetis has received Health Canada approval for Portela™ (relfovetmab injection), a monoclonal antibody therapy designed to alleviate pain associated with osteoarthritis in cats with a single injection lasting up to three months. For veterinary professionals who have struggled with compliance, caregiver fatigue, and hard to medicate patients, this approval signals a meaningful shift in how feline OA pain can be managed.
Up to 40 percent of cats show clinical signs of osteoarthritis, yet only about 18 percent are formally diagnosed with OA pain. Cats are masters of subtlety. Reduced jumping, changes in grooming, sleep disruption, and shifts in social behavior often get written off as “just aging.” Chronic pain does more than limit mobility. It affects cognition, sleep, appetite, and the human animal bond. When pain goes untreated, quality of life steadily declines. This is where long acting, low stress therapies become especially valuable.
Portela is a monoclonal antibody that targets nerve growth factor, a key mediator of osteoarthritis pain and inflammation. By binding NGF, Portela reduces pain signaling associated with joint disease. While Portela and Solensia® both target NGF, Portela is designed to bind a different site on the molecule, allowing for a longer duration of effect. The result is pain relief for up to three months following a single subcutaneous injection.
In a nine month European field trial, Portela demonstrated effectiveness in alleviating OA pain and was generally well tolerated. Importantly for clinicians, cats with chronic kidney disease at IRIS stages 1, 2, or 3 were included and tolerated treatment. Reported clinical signs in treated cats included pain upon injection, skin infection, dermatitis, hair loss, and anorexia. As with other biologic therapies, patient selection and monitoring remain key.
Practical advantages in the clinic
For millennial era practices focused on fear free handling, client experience, and workflow efficiency, Portela checks several boxes:
Once every three months dosing reduces handling stress
Eliminates daily oral medication battles
Supports improved caregiver compliance
Ideal for fractious cats or multi cat households
Fits naturally into quarterly wellness or chronic care visits
Portela should not be used in cats with known hypersensitivity to relfovetmab or its excipients, in breeding, pregnant, or lactating cats, or in cats under 12 months of age.
Portela joins Solensia in Zoetis’ expanding osteoarthritis pain portfolio for cats. Together, these therapies reflect a broader trend in veterinary medicine toward targeted biologics and longer acting pain control solutions. Zoetis anticipates commercial availability of Portela in Canada and the European Union in 2026, giving clinics time to plan protocols, client education strategies, and pricing models. Health Canada’s approval of Portela signals continued momentum in feline pain management. It reinforces the importance of proactively identifying OA and treating it as the chronic, life altering condition it is. For veterinarians, Portela represents another tool to improve feline quality of life, strengthen client trust, and make chronic pain management more realistic in the cats who need it most.
Read the official announcement: Click Here
