This week in Animal Health: MWI Animal Health and Covetrus to Merge

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Brakke Consulting’s 
Animal Health News & Notes for February 20, 2026
Copyright © Brakke Consulting
Editor: Christine Merle DVM, MBA, CVPM 
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IN THE NEWS:

Brakke Consulting News
Brakke Search is Hiring

Earning News
Nestle

Company News
Antinol Plus
Boehringer Ingelheim ( IMRAB)
Boehringer Ingelheim (NexGard/NexGard COMBO)
Cencora (MWI Animal Health)
Ceva (SA
Chewy
Covetrus
Elanco
Freshpet
GekkoVet (MX)
Hallmarq
Harrison’s Bird Foods
Invictos Orthopedics
NORD Holding
OR Technology
Royal Canin (MX)
Secure DX
Seek Labs
Spark Spine
Panacea Korea
VetSkill (UK)
VIN
Virbac
Zoetis (UK)

Animal Health News
European Union
Spain
United Kingdom
United States

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Company Earnings News

• Nestle announced its full year 2025 results with Overall Growth of 3.5% compared to prior year with Net profit of Swiss Francs 9B (US$11.61B). Real Internal Growth was noted in the PetCare category with its Pro Plan, Purina ONE and Friskies brands. (company press release)

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Company News Releases

• Cencora and Covetrus announced a definitive agreement that will merge Covetrus and MWI Animal Health into a combined company. The transaction values MWI enterprise value at $3.5B with Cencora receiving $1.25 B in cash proceeds, $800M in preferred equity and $1.45B in common equity in the combined company when the deal closes. (company press release)
• Boehringer Ingelheim has voluntarily recalled a single lot of IMRAB 3TF due to the potential of the vaccine containing sterile water instead of actual doses. (company press release)
• The FDA has issued emergency use authorization for treatment of New World screwworm infestations to Boehringer Ingelheim’s NexGard chewable tablets in dogs and NexGard COMBO in cats. (gov)
• Virbac and the Human Animal Bond Research Institute (HABRI) announced a partnership to advance the well-being of people and animals through education and outreach efforts. (com)
• Freshpet has earned the Clean Labe Project’s Purity Award, the only pet food brand to earn this certification across entire US and Canadian portfolio. (yahoo.com)
• Antinol Plus has partnered with the Senior Dog Veterinary Society, to bring education and resources to veterinarians on supporting dogs as they age. (com)
• Chewy settled its antitrust claim over conspiring with Elanco to restrict competition for Elanco’s Advantix medications. (com)
• Seek Labs was awarded a $2M USDA federal grant to develop a novel, mutation-resistant therapeutic for highly pathogenic avian influenza. (com)
• Hallmarq Veterinary Imaging and OR Technology will combine forces to form an international group backed by a fund advised by NORD Holding. (company press release)
• Secure DX, an animal health diagnostics company, and Panacea Korea, a developer and manufacturer of diagnostic testing solutions, have formed a strategic partnership to bring a new portfolio of animal disease testing kits and equipment to market in North America. (com)
• Spark Spine, an orthopedic implant company, and Invictos Orthopedics, a veterinary surgical solution company, are partnering to bring Spark’s Elecro-Mechanical Polymer (EMP) implant technology to the veterinary market. (com)
• VIN (Veterinary Information Network) announced that it has added AI Mode to its database search. (company press release)
• Harrison’s Bird Foods announced the renewal of its partnership with the Brightsmith Lab at Texas A&M University supporting continued nutritional research and conservation of wild parrots in Peru. (company press release)
• MX- GekkoVet, an AI powered clinical decision tool, and Royal Canin are expanding their strategic collaboration to Mexico as they expand their partnership to Latin America. (com)
• SA- The National Livestock Fisheries Development Program signed a memorandum of understanding with Ceva to localize veterinary vaccine production and biotechnology development in Saudi Arabia. (com)
• UK- The Veterinary Medicines Directorate released an in-depth assessment of selected adverse events and issued a statement confirming continued positive benefit-risk balance for Zoetis’s Librela. (uk)
  UK- VetSkill has expanded its company’s qualification suite to equine and farm animal. (vettimes.com)

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Animal Health Price Tracker

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Animal Health News

• US- FDA GUIDANCE DOCUMENT- The FDA released a final guidance document for Industry that defines durations of Use for Certain Medically Important Antimicrobial Drugs for Food-Producing Animals. (gov)
• US- LOAN ESTIMATOR-The VIN Foundation launched its “40 in 60”, a detailed loan projection for veterinary school, that will illustrate the gap between federal loan caps and total program costs. (com)
• US- KC ANIMAL HEALTH CORRIDOR- Akston’s CEO Todd Zion has been appointed to the KC Animal Health Corridor Advisor Board in the Entrepreneur in Residence seat. (com)
• EU- PUBLIC HEALTH- A new Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the European Food Safety Authority and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations highlighting their common objective to sound regulatory science to protect public health. (europe.eu)
• SP- AFRICAN SWINE FEVER-Confirmation that the outbreak of ASF at the end of November did not originate at the Animal Health Research Center of the Institute for Agrifood Research and Technology (IRTA-CReSA). (cat)
• UK- NEW CEO- XLVets, a community of independently owned veterinary practices, announced Kerrie Hedley, will become the CEO at the annual meeting in June. (com)

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Brakke Consulting Viewpoint

The Western States Veterinary Conference in Las Vegas this week featured a vibrant atmosphere in the exhibit hall, with our Brakke Consulting team delivering another well-attended presentation on the state of animal health and the future of innovation. By the way, global growth of animal health companies last year might be greater than you think – probably over the 10-year CAGR of 5+%.  Although 2025 presented notable challenges in the companion animal segment, particularly with visits to veterinary clinics, livestock performance was strong, which we are happy for.  Our individual meetings, engagements with industry leaders, and interactions at the Veterinary Angel Network for Entrepreneurs (VANE) social event reflected a prevailing sense of optimism for 2026 — albeit a cautious one in certain views. There is renewed enthusiasm for innovation and strategic partnerships, alongside a growing acknowledgment of the comprehensive value of have both livestock and companion animal businesses in the portfolio of animal health companies. And we are eager to assist animal health companies of all scales, especially start-ups, to realize your objectives and milestones for 2026.

Dr. Alexis Nahama

Going to AHNTI in London? Reach out to connect with Brakke while you are there.

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Your View
Last week we asked you when the last outbreak of FMD occurred in the US. The last outbreak of FMD in the US occurred in 1929 near Montebello, California and it involved feeding contaminated meat scraps to swine.  The disease spread to swine, sheep and cattle and was quickly eradicated using mass depopulation, strict quarantines and movement bans. Congratulations to the 25% that got the question right.
This week– the biggest industry buzz is the merger of MWI Animal Health and Covetrus, combining supply chain expertise with technology enabled solutions. We want to know your thoughts on the merger. Click here to share your opinion.