FDA Announces the Approval of CIDR for Sheep

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this week announced the approval of EAZI-Breed Controlled Intravaginal Drug Release (CIDR) sheep insert (progesterone solid matrix) for induction of estrus in ewes during seasonal anestrus. This progesterone CIDR is a steroid hormone that allows out-of-season breeding in sheep.

"It is great that this sheep management tool will soon be accessible to producers here in the United States," commented Jim Logan, DVM, chair of the American Sheep Industry Association's Animal Health Committee. "We are hoping that the product will be available for sale by mid-December."

The data to support this approval were gathered in collaboration with the National Research Support Project-7 (NRSP-7), a U.S. Department of Agriculture program intended to support the approval of new animal drugs for minor species of agricultural importance.

"Members of the U.S. sheep industry have long cited this type of product as their top priority need," said Meg Oeller, DVM, director of the Center for Veterinary Medicine, Office of Minor Use and Minor Species (MUMS) Animal Drug Development. "And through efforts with our partners at NSRP-7 and the pharmaceutical firm, the FDA can now point to an approved drug product that is fulfilling a real need in the sheep industry. It represents the true spirit of the MUMS Act."

EAZI-Breed CIDR Sheep Insert is manufactured by Pharmacia and Upjohn, a division of Pfizer, Inc., New York, N.Y.