Pet health marketing shifts focus to cats’ sense of smell with scent-inspired campaign for NexGard SPECTRA

Paper + Spark launches a novel fragrance-based campaign for Boehringer Ingelheim’s NexGard SPECTRA, leveraging cats’ olfactory sense to revolutionise parasite prevention advertising.

Paper + Spark has devised an earned-led campaign for Boehringer Ingelheim Australia’s NexGard SPECTRA for Cats, using an unusual premise to avoid the fatigue that often surrounds parasite-prevention advertising.

Rather than lead with the medicine, the agency built the story around a simple behavioural insight: cats navigate the world largely through scent, and smell shapes their comfort, health and day-to-day interactions. That idea became the basis for Cat No. 9, a limited-edition fragrance created with perfumer Jocelyn Fullerton and television presenter Jessica Rowe.

The campaign is designed to do two things at once: draw attention from media and social audiences, and reinforce a product truth. Boehringer Ingelheim says the formulation is low-odour, a feature developed with cats’ sensitivity to smell in mind.

In a crowded category where monthly parasite protection is familiar territory for pet owners, the company and agency appear to have opted for a cultural hook rather than a conventional launch. The wider product family is positioned for broad-spectrum feline parasite control, covering fleas, ticks and worming needs, underscoring how commercial claims in animal health increasingly rely on sharper storytelling as well as clinical utility.

Paul Everson, director at Paper + Spark, said the team wanted to start with something genuinely interesting rather than another product pitch. Jordana Busenshut, group marketing director at Boehringer Ingelheim Australia, said the campaign offered a credible route into a well-worn category.