Pentobarbital Sodium + Phenytoin Sodium

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288 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.
288
Total Reports
228
Deaths Reported
7920.0%
Death Rate

Active Ingredients

Pentobarbital SodiumPentobarbital Sodium + Phenytoin SodiumPhenytoin Sodium

Administration Routes

IntravenousUnknownSubcutaneousTopicalIntracardiacOphthalmicOralParenteralIntraperitonealOther

Species Affected

Dog 159
Cat 40
Unknown 37
Horse 31
Human 10
Other 4
Goat 2
Other Mammals 1
Pig 1
Chicken 1

Most Affected Breeds

Unknown 87
Dog (unknown) 31
Domestic Shorthair 19
Cat (unknown) 14
Retriever - Labrador 11
Chihuahua 10
Horse (unknown) 9
Mixed (Dog) 8
Pit Bull 6
Rottweiler 5

Most Reported Reactions

INEFFECTIVE, EUTHANASIA 137
Lack of efficacy - NOS 81
INEFFECTIVE, DELAYED EFFECT 34
Overdose 18
Death by euthanasia 17
Vocalisation 15
Agonal breathing 12
Appearance, Abnormal 11
Product Defect, General 9
Stopper, abnormal 9
Partial lack of efficacy 8
Drug administration error 8

Outcome Breakdown

Euthanized
224 (89.2%)
Recovered/Normal
17 (6.8%)
Outcome Unknown
6 (2.4%)
Died
4 (1.6%)

Data Summary

Metric Value
Total adverse event reports 288
Reports involving death 228
Case-fatality rate (reported events) 7920.0%
Distinct species in reports 10
Distinct breeds in reports 20
Distinct reactions reported 20
Active ingredients on file 3

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

Pentobarbital Sodium + Phenytoin Sodium Adverse Event Insights

The FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine database currently holds 288 adverse event reports referencing Pentobarbital Sodium + Phenytoin Sodium, including 228 reports in which the animal died — a 7920.0% case-fatality figure among reported events only, not a population-level mortality rate. Active ingredients on file: Pentobarbital Sodium, Pentobarbital Sodium + Phenytoin Sodium, Phenytoin Sodium. Reported administration routes include Intravenous, Unknown, Subcutaneous, 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 Pentobarbital Sodium + Phenytoin Sodium reports are Dog (159 reports), Cat (40 reports), Unknown (37 reports), with Dog accounting for the largest share. Within those species, Unknown (87), Dog (unknown) (31), Domestic Shorthair (19) 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 Pentobarbital Sodium + Phenytoin Sodium are INEFFECTIVE, EUTHANASIA (137), Lack of efficacy - NOS (81), INEFFECTIVE, DELAYED EFFECT (34), Overdose (18). Of the 251 reports with a coded outcome, Euthanized is the leading category at 89.2%. 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 Pentobarbital Sodium + Phenytoin Sodium.

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