Scovella for Horses: What the EU Opinion Means for EMS, Laminitis

Scovella for horses: what the EU committee decided

Scovella for horses has been recommended for approval in the European Union, but it is not authorised there yet. At its Nov. 3–5, 2026 meeting, the European Medicines Agency's veterinary committee (the CVMP) adopted a positive opinion for the medicine, a velagliflozin oral solution made by Boehringer Ingelheim.

The EMA reported the decision in its meeting highlights, and Boehringer announced it on Nov. 10. Here is what the committee said, in its own terms:

• What it is for: reducing hyperinsulinaemia (too much insulin in the blood) and the associated risk of laminitis.
• Which horses: those with equine metabolic syndrome (EMS) that is "not responsive to changes in husbandry and exercise regimen."
• How it got here: the opinion follows a re-examination of the opinion the committee adopted in June 2026, when it did not back the product.
• A first: the EMA says Scovella is the first veterinary medicine the committee has recommended under the limited-market framework since the EU's veterinary medicines regulation took effect in 2022.

Boehringer's global head of equine, Saskia Kley, said the opinion recognises the need for new treatments for hyperinsulinaemia, according to Spanish veterinary outlet Diario Veterinario.

What kind of drug it is

Velagliflozin belongs to a class called SGLT2 inhibitors. As the company describes it, the drug is designed to stop the kidneys from reabsorbing glucose, so more sugar leaves in the urine, which it says brings insulin down.

That is the whole idea: bring insulin down in horses where management alone has not done it.

Positive opinion vs authorised: what the wording means

This is the part most headlines blur. A CVMP opinion is expert advice; the European Commission makes the legally binding decision.

Neither the EMA highlights nor Diario Veterinario's report gives a date for the Commission's decision, a launch date or a price. Treat any timeline you see on social media as a guess.

What about Great Britain, the US and Latin America?

Great Britain runs its own system. The Veterinary Medicines Directorate's April 2026 update, published by the British Equine Veterinary Association, lists Scovella as authorised in Great Britain as a prescription-only veterinary medicine for hyperinsulinaemia in insulin-dysregulated horses and ponies that don't respond to husbandry and exercise changes.

An EU opinion changes nothing in the United States, Mexico or the rest of Latin America. Each country's regulator decides separately, and your own vet is the one who knows what is legally available where you live.

Equine metabolic syndrome and high insulin, in plain language

Insulin is the hormone that moves sugar out of the blood after a meal. In some horses, the body releases far too much of it, either all the time or after sugary and starchy feed. Vets call this insulin dysregulation, and the high blood level itself is hyperinsulinaemia in horses.

Equine metabolic syndrome is the bigger picture. The MSD Veterinary Manual describes it as a set of features in horses, ponies and donkeys with insulin dysregulation at its core and a raised risk of laminitis. The British Horse Society compares it to type 2 diabetes in people.

MSD says EMS usually shows up between 5 and 16 years of age. It is most common in ponies and in breeds such as Saddlebreds, Tennessee Walking Horses, Paso Finos, Morgans and Mustangs, though any horse can develop it. Our guide to insulin dysregulation in horses explains why even fit sport horses are not exempt.

EMS laminitis risk: why high insulin hurts hooves

Laminitis is damage to the laminae, the tissue that anchors the bone inside the hoof to the hoof wall. It is very painful and can end a horse's working life.

High insulin is the link. MSD says hyperinsulinaemia-associated laminitis accounts for about 90% of laminitis cases in the general horse population. Bouts often develop in spring, when new pasture growth appears, and in autumn, when nights turn freezing, and affected horses often show signs of earlier episodes.

Boehringer uses similar numbers in its announcement, as reported by Diario Veterinario. The company says insulin dysregulation affects an estimated one in five horses and is linked to over 90% of laminitis cases. Those are company figures, not an EMA finding.

The season matters right now in the Northern Hemisphere. See Fall Laminitis in Horses for the hoof warning signs.

Signs of EMS to watch for

You can't confirm EMS by eye; that takes a vet and blood tests. But these clues, listed by MSD and the British Horse Society, are worth a conversation:

• A cresty neck or fat pads behind the shoulders, at the tailhead or above the eyes.
• Fat around the sheath or udder.
• An easy keeper that won't lose weight on a sensible diet.
• Repeated bouts of laminitis, or growth rings on the hooves that hint at past episodes.
• Drinking and urinating more than usual.
• Lethargy.

Some horses with insulin problems are a healthy weight, so a trim outline doesn't rule it out. Tracking weight still helps: use a weigh tape and our body condition score chart.

Call your vet the same day if your horse is reluctant to walk, leans back to take weight off the front feet, or has hot feet or a pounding pulse at the fetlock. Those point to laminitis, which is an emergency. Our health basics page covers everyday checks.

Why diet and exercise stay first-line

The committee's wording makes the order clear. The recommended use is only for EMS horses that have not responded to husbandry and exercise changes, so those changes have to be tried, properly, first.

That matches the textbooks. MSD calls diet the most important element of EMS management and says drugs should not be used without a proper diet. The British Horse Society says EMS is treatable with a good weight-management plan agreed with your vet.

In practice, the plan your vet builds usually includes:

1. Less sugar and starch: limited or no grazing, no grain or sugary treats, and low-sugar hay. A forage test tells you what is really in the bale.
2. Slower eating: slow feeders or several small meals. See our nutrition section.
3. Controlled grass time: a dry lot, a track or a grazing muzzle.
4. Exercise, once the feet allow it: MSD notes that exercise improves insulin sensitivity after laminitis has resolved.
5. Regular hoof care: MSD suggests trims about every four weeks for at-risk horses.
6. No crash diets: severe restriction carries its own risks, MSD warns.

A medicine doesn't replace any of that. MSD also notes that with SGLT2 inhibitors as a class, very high blood fats (triglycerides) have been reported in some horses, though it says the clinical relevance is unclear. That is one reason vet supervision and follow-up bloodwork matter.

We could not open the EMA's own product page to check Scovella's official side-effect list, so we are not printing one. Your vet will have the approved product information.

Questions to ask your vet

Take these to your next appointment:

• Has my horse actually been tested for insulin dysregulation, and when was the last test?
• Have we given diet and exercise changes a fair, measured trial? How will we judge it?
• Should I test my hay or change turnout this season?
• What would make my horse a candidate for medication, and what would rule it out?
• What monitoring would a medicine involve, and what would it cost here?
• Could something else be going on, such as PPID (equine Cushing's)?
• Which signs mean I should call you the same day?

Don't try to source prescription medicines online or borrow them from another barn. A drug like this is prescribed for one horse, after testing, with follow-up.

What to watch next

• The European Commission's decision. Until it comes, Scovella is recommended, not authorised, in the EU.
• Published product information. Official documents will spell out the conditions of use, warnings and side effects.
• Your own country's regulator. Approval in Europe or Great Britain doesn't carry over anywhere else.
• Your horse's baseline. Weight, neck crest, hoof comfort and insulin results are worth recording now, whatever happens with new drugs.

We'll update this page when the Commission rules. More health stories are in Trends.