Can Cats Take Ozempic? Biotech Companies Are Testing GLP-1 Weight-Loss Drugs for Felines

Have you ever tried to help an overweight cat slim down? It’s not easy. You can’t take a cat jogging. Diet changes often meet stubborn resistance. And most cats simply refuse a consistent medication schedule.

Now two U.S. biotech companies think they’ve found an answer. Akston Biosciences and OKAVA Pharmaceuticals are both testing GLP-1 drugs for cats. This is the same drug class behind Ozempic, Wegovy, and Mounjaro in humans.

Neither product has FDA approval yet. No GLP-1 obesity drug currently exists for pets. Both trials remain in early stages, so researchers still need to confirm safety and effectiveness in animals, a process that falls under the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine.

The two approaches differ interestingly. Akston runs its clinical trial at Cornell University with about 70 overweight or obese cats. The study lasts roughly three months. It tests a once-weekly injection, similar to how many human GLP-1 medications work.

OKAVA, based in San Francisco, takes a different route. Its trial, called MEOW-1, uses an implant that a veterinarian places under the skin. The device slowly releases medication for up to six months. That distinction matters, since getting a cat to accept regular injections can frustrate even the most patient owner.

The numbers here are striking. The Association for Pet Obesity Prevention found that vets classified 61% of cats and 59% of dogs as overweight or obese in 2022. That means most pets in both categories carry excess weight, not just a small subset.

Akston CEO Todd Zion calls feline obesity one of veterinary medicine’s most common problems. He also calls it one of the hardest to treat. Cats simply don’t respond to the same weight management interventions that help overweight dogs or humans.

Some caution applies here too. Cat physiology differs from human physiology, so a drug that works safely in people won’t necessarily work the same way in animals. Veterinary drug approval also follows its own regulatory track, separate from human prescription drug approval, with distinct safety and dosing standards. Nothing guarantees these products will reach vet clinics soon, and the eventual cost of any approved treatment remains unknown.

Money clearly drives part of this research. Morgan Stanley projects U.S. pet food spending will hit around $65 billion in 2026. Total pet spending should climb from about $196 billion in 2025 to over $240 billion by 2030. That growth has caught the attention of biotech investors, not just traditional pet food companies watching the rising cost of human obesity care.

Still, analysts urge some restraint. Human obesity treatment became a multi-billion-dollar phenomenon, but that doesn’t guarantee the same outcome in veterinary medicine. Pet owners will likely need a prescription and veterinary oversight for any future feline GLP-1 treatment, much like the human versions already require under FDA drug safety rules.

Both trials expect to report initial results later this year. Until then, no approved GLP-1 option exists for cats. Owners of a chubby feline should stick with traditional approaches for now: portion control, vet-guided diet plans, and patience.