Drug profile

The FDA adverse-event record for Azithromycin

147 FDA reports name Azithromycin, a high-volume drug in the CVM extract. Species, reactions, and outcomes follow.

#635 of 2,679
by report volume (all drugs)
147
adverse-event reports
21.8%
death-coded share
Cat
most-reported species

Corpus placement

According to the FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine openFDA adverse-event extract, Azithromycin ranks #635 of 2679 by total reports (147) and #209 of 1130 by death-coded share (21.8%). National dual: Milbemycin Oxime + Spinosad is #1 of 2679 drugs by total adverse-event reports (149,624) at death-coded-share rank 965 of 1130 drugs with at least 50 reports (2.3%); separately, Atlantic Salmon Transgenic Whole (Opafp-Ghc2 Rdna Construct Inserted Into The A-Locus In The Eo-1A Lineage) is #1 highest death-coded share at 97.8% (report rank #821).

149,624
Milbemycin Oxime + Spinosad reports (#1)
97.8%
Atlantic Salmon Transgenic Whole (Opafp-Ghc2 Rdna Construct Inserted Into The A-Locus In The Eo-1A Lineage) death share (#1)
#635
This drug, reports of 2679
#209
This drug, death share of 1130

Report volume reflects how common a breed or drug is and how often owners and vets file — not actual risk. Death-coded share ranks are limited to entries with enough reports to be meaningful. The two maps do not agree at #1.

Release-over-release change

What changed in the latest FDA data snapshot

PlainBreed reconstructed the prior snapshot from dated openFDA partitions through 2025 Q4, then compared it with the 2026-07-27 openFDA export. Azithromycin has 147 reports now versus 146 in that prior snapshot: 1 more (0.7%).

Report change
+1
Death-coded reports
+0
Death-coded share
−0.1 pts

This compares reported-event counts in two source snapshots. It does not establish a change in real-world risk, product safety, or disease incidence.

Subscribe to Azithromycin changes

Signature read: death-coded report count at 32 is the most distinctive stamp on Azithromycin's FDA AER row.

Important: Adverse event reports do not establish that a drug caused or contributed to the event. Consult your veterinarian before making treatment decisions.
147
Total Reports
32
Deaths Reported
21.8%
Death-coded share of reports

Active Ingredients

Azithromycin

Administration Routes

UnknownOralSubcutaneous

Species Affected

Cat 80
Dog 62
Human 3
Horse 1
Unknown 1

Most Affected Breeds

Domestic Shorthair 46
Retriever - Labrador 8
Domestic Mediumhair 8
Bulldog - French 5
Pug 5
Chihuahua 5
Unknown 4
Cat (unknown) 4
Domestic Longhair 4
Beagle 4

Most Reported Reactions

Vomiting 25
Lethargy (see also Central nervous system depression in 'Neurological') 24
Not eating 18
Death 15
Death by euthanasia 15
Other abnormal test result NOS 14
Diarrhoea 14
Decreased appetite 13
Lack of efficacy - NOS 12
Weight loss 12
Anorexia 11
Nasal discharge 10

Outcome Breakdown

Ongoing
50 (34.5%)
Outcome Unknown
37 (25.5%)
Recovered/Normal
24 (16.6%)
Died
17 (11.7%)
Euthanized
15 (10.3%)
Recovered with Sequela
2 (1.4%)

Azithromycin: high death-coded share in the FDA AER row

Read these counts as reporting volume, not risk: per our methodology, a widely-prescribed drug will rack up more raw FDA reports in a given year than a rarely-used one at an identical true rate, so we recommend comparing within similar-exposure products rather than across the full 2025 catalog.

High-volume nationwide drug peers

Two openFDA-derived peer sets for Azithromycin, both floored at ≥50 reports so the neighborhoods stay in the advertised mass.

What to do with this drug

A report does not prove a drug caused the reaction; consult a veterinarian before acting on this data.

Source: FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine openFDA Animal & Veterinary Adverse Events (CVM AER) · 2025

openFDA Animal & Veterinary Adverse Events (FDA CVM) for Azithromycin (#635 of 2,679 by report volume); death-coded 21.8%. PlainBreed drug row · death-coded report count stamp 32 · vintage 2025.

Informational only. FDA adverse-event reports are voluntary and do not prove causation; consult a veterinarian before acting on them. Verify with FDA CVM →