TERMINATION OF UNWANTED PREGNANCY IN DOGS WITH THE DOPAMINE AGONIST, CABERGOLINE, IN COMBINATION WITH A SYNTHETIC ANALOG OF PGF2ALPHA, EITHER CLOPROSTENOL OR ALPHAPROSTOL

Associations of a dopamine agonist, cabergoline, and a synthetic analo g of PGF2alpha, either alphaprostol or cloprostenol, were used to indu ce pregnancy termination in 15 mature Beagle bitches. Alphaprostol (20 mu g/kg/d) was injected subcutaneously (sc) in combination with caber goline (1.65 mu g/kg/d, sc) daily for 5 d from Day 32 after the LH pea k in 5 animals. Cloprostenol 2.5 mu g/kg/d in one group (n=5) and 1 mu g/kg/d in another group (n=5) was also used in combination with the s ame dosage of cabergoline, following the same protocol, but starting f rom Day 25 after the LH peak. Treatment efficacy, defined by the numbe r of pregnancy terminations, was 100% in all treated groups. Dose-rela ted side effects due to PGF2alpha were observed (excessive salivation, prostration, vomiting, diarrhoea, scratching at the injection site), and were less severe with cloprostenol than with alphaprostol. In the group treated with the lowest dosage of cloprostenol, no adverse react ions were noticed. In all treated groups, interestrus intervals compar ed with previous cycles and in control animals were reduced after trea tment.