Milbemycin

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6,381 adverse event reports submitted to the FDA

Important: Adverse event reports do not establish that a drug caused or contributed to the event. Consult your veterinarian before making treatment decisions.
6,381
Total Reports
109
Deaths Reported
170.0%
Death Rate

Active Ingredients

Milbemycin

Administration Routes

OralUnknownAuricular (Otic)Topical

Species Affected

Dog 6,043
Unknown 290
Cat 33
Human 14
Other 1

Most Affected Breeds

Crossbred Canine/dog 1,422
Retriever - Labrador 1,047
Shepherd Dog - German 306
Unknown 305
Retriever - Golden 250
Beagle 155
Boxer (German Boxer) 142
Dog (unknown) 139
Dachshund (unspecified) 130
Chihuahua 98

Most Reported Reactions

INEFFECTIVE, HEARTWORM LARVAE 2,776
Vomiting 809
INEFFECTIVE, ASCARIDS NOS 749
Lack of efficacy (endoparasite) - hookworm 638
Lack of efficacy (endoparasite) - whipworm 566
Diarrhoea 561
Depression 396
Anorexia 230
Underfilling, Package 176
Convulsion 125
Ataxia 83
Pruritus 70

Outcome Breakdown

Died
104 (56.2%)
Ongoing
48 (25.9%)
Recovered/Normal
13 (7.0%)
Outcome Unknown
11 (5.9%)
Euthanized
5 (2.7%)
Recovered with Sequela
4 (2.2%)

Data Summary

Metric Value
Total adverse event reports 6,381
Reports involving death 109
Case-fatality rate (reported events) 170.0%
Distinct species in reports 5
Distinct breeds in reports 20
Distinct reactions reported 20
Active ingredients on file 1

Source: FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine — Adverse Event Reporting (CVM AER). Counts reflect voluntary reports only.

Milbemycin Adverse Event Insights

The FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine database currently holds 6,381 adverse event reports referencing Milbemycin, including 109 reports in which the animal died — a 170.0% case-fatality figure among reported events only, not a population-level mortality rate. Active ingredient on file: Milbemycin. Reported administration routes include Oral, Unknown, Auricular (Otic), Topical. These numbers reflect voluntary submissions from pet owners, veterinarians, and manufacturers and therefore under-represent mild events and over-represent severe ones — a pattern the FDA has documented repeatedly for pharmacovigilance datasets.

The species most frequently named in Milbemycin reports are Dog (6,043 reports), Unknown (290 reports), Cat (33 reports), with Dog accounting for the largest share. Within those species, Crossbred Canine/dog (1,422), Retriever - Labrador (1,047), Shepherd Dog - German (306) appear most often — though breed popularity and ownership density shape these counts as much as any drug-specific sensitivity. This distribution matters because the same active ingredient can behave very differently across body sizes, ages, and species physiology.

The most commonly reported clinical signs associated with Milbemycin are INEFFECTIVE, HEARTWORM LARVAE (2,776), Vomiting (809), INEFFECTIVE, ASCARIDS NOS (749), Lack of efficacy (endoparasite) - hookworm (638). Of the 185 reports with a coded outcome, Died is the leading category at 56.2%. Because FDA adverse event data describes correlation rather than causation, these figures are best used to frame informed questions with a veterinarian and to compare reporting patterns across related products — not as a standalone safety verdict on Milbemycin.

Source: FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine — Adverse Event Reports FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine — Adverse Event Reports Data reflects voluntary submissions and may not represent actual incidence rates

Related

Data sourced from official AKC, AVMA, ACVO, and breed-club veterinary references. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainBreed Editorial