Wrap up: Elanco expands Kansas biologics plant, and other news

Happy Friday, dvm360 readers! The NFL season officially kicked off this week, and we had a full lineup of our own, with news and clinical content covering dogs, horses, parrots, and more!

Leading things off, Elanco Animal Health completed a $120 million expansion of its biologics plant in Elwood, Kansas, which now serves as the company's monoclonal antibody manufacturing hub. Executives told dvm360 the site now has more than 4 times the biologics capacity it had before, as demand for its dermatology product Befrena (tirnovetmab) runs 2 times above expectations. The company plans to invest another $30 million through 2028 and expects unconstrained supply in early 2027.

Here is what else came out this week on dvm360.com:

• In a Q&A, Valli Parthasarathy, DVM, PhD, DACVB, walks through common behavior problems in pet parrots, from excessive vocalization to feather-destructive behavior, and how to tell medical causes from behavioral ones. She also covers treatment, behavior modification, referral, and how to meet the behavioral needs of these intelligent birds. Read more here.
• Caitlyn Getty, DVM, PhD, DACVIM (Nutrition), explains why she treats nutrition as the first step in managing challenging gastrointestinal cases, choosing highly digestible, high-fiber, or low-fat diets based on each patient's needs. Watch the full interview here.
• Brenna R. Pugliese, DVM, MS, DACVS (Large Animal), breaks down the research on alpha-2-macroglobulin, a blood-derived protein being studied as an anti-inflammatory orthobiologic for equine joint disease. She covers how it works, why it may be an option for horses with endocrinopathies, and the research gaps that remain.
• Just in time for kickoff, The Farmer's Dog signed a multiyear deal to become the NFL's first official pet food partner, with activations planned around Super Bowl LXI, the NFL Combine, and the NFL Draft.
• UC Davis is recruiting dogs with suspected or confirmed glioma for 2 clinical trials. The CARE trial pairs an investigational autophagy-inhibiting drug with radiation therapy, and the PRISM trial follows the molecular features and progression of canine brain tumors. Both offer funding toward participants' costs.
• And more!