for SCIENCE!
Yesterday, mareklamo and I brought lilaboux and ahltis to the vet for a checkup. The vet commented on how healthy lilaboux is for an 18-year old cat, and then asked if we would be willing to enroll her in a clinical trial for a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (Robenacoxib), sponsored by Novartis Animal Health. They took some blood samples and X-rays to determine if she has physical signs of osteoarthritis, which the drug is designed to treat, and to be sure that she is sufficiently healthy to participate. If she meets the criteria, we'll be given either the drug or placebo to administer once a day for 30 days. mareklamo will keep a journal recording any changes in her gait or other signs of improvement. mareklamo and I initially marveled at the idea of including a placebo for a study on cats, but then we realized it's for us -- since we'll be the ones monitoring her and recording changes. If we expect the drug to cause improvements, then we might exaggerate improvements or see improvements that aren't really there.
Unsurprisingly, lilaboux disapproves.
Unsurprisingly, lilaboux disapproves.