Pentobarbital Sodium, Phenytoin Sodium

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220 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.
220
Total Reports
181
Deaths Reported
8230.0%
Death Rate

Active Ingredients

Pentobarbital Sodium, Phenytoin Sodium

Administration Routes

IntravenousUnknownIntracardiacOralIntradermalSubcutaneousOphthalmicAuricular (Otic)

Species Affected

Dog 118
Cat 53
Human 21
Horse 13
Unknown 9
Rat 1
Cattle 1
Other Rodents 1
Fish 1
Sheep 1

Most Affected Breeds

Unknown 33
Domestic Shorthair 26
Dog (unknown) 14
Retriever - Labrador 13
Cat (unknown) 11
Crossbred Canine/dog 10
Shepherd Dog - German 9
Mixed (Dog) 7
Domestic Mediumhair 6
Retriever - Golden 5

Most Reported Reactions

INEFFECTIVE, EUTHANASIA 132
Lack of efficacy - NOS 70
Overdose 35
INEFFECTIVE, DELAYED EFFECT 30
Death by euthanasia 19
Vocalisation 17
Accidental exposure 14
Abnormal breathing 13
Injection site pain 9
Excitation 8
Abnormal movement NOS 8
Drug administration error 8

Outcome Breakdown

Euthanized
181 (85.4%)
Recovered/Normal
21 (9.9%)
Outcome Unknown
10 (4.7%)

Data Summary

Metric Value
Total adverse event reports 220
Reports involving death 181
Case-fatality rate (reported events) 8230.0%
Distinct species in reports 10
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.

Pentobarbital Sodium, Phenytoin Sodium Adverse Event Insights

The FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine database currently holds 220 adverse event reports referencing Pentobarbital Sodium, Phenytoin Sodium, including 181 reports in which the animal died — a 8230.0% case-fatality figure among reported events only, not a population-level mortality rate. Active ingredient on file: Pentobarbital Sodium, Phenytoin Sodium. Reported administration routes include Intravenous, Unknown, Intracardiac, Oral. 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 (118 reports), Cat (53 reports), Human (21 reports), with Dog accounting for the largest share. Within those species, Unknown (33), Domestic Shorthair (26), Dog (unknown) (14) 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 (132), Lack of efficacy - NOS (70), Overdose (35), INEFFECTIVE, DELAYED EFFECT (30). Of the 212 reports with a coded outcome, Euthanized is the leading category at 85.4%. 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