FDA CVM rankings

Which breeds carry the highest share of fatal-outcome reports?

Among breeds with at least 50 adverse-event reports, this ranks the proportion of each breed's reports that recorded a death, a reporting statistic shaped heavily by sample size and reporting bias, not a measure of real-world risk.

275
breeds qualify (50+ reports)
99.0%
top rate - Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar)
Top 100
shown below
50+
reports required to rank

Data updated September 2026

The verdict

According to the FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine openFDA adverse-event extract, Retriever - Labrador is #1 of 510 by total adverse-event reports (93,675) at death-coded-share rank 195 of 275 breeds with at least 50 reports (3.7%); separately, Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) is #1 highest death-coded share at 99.0% (report rank #233). Among the 100 breeds shown, the #100 cutoff to make this list is 6.2% (Dogue de Bordeaux).

93,675
Retriever - Labrador reports (#1)
99.0%
Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) death share (#1)
99.0%
#1 - Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar)
6.2%
#100, the cutoff to make this list

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. The #1 breed rests on only 97 reports (a small sample, under 100), so its place at the top is less certain than the share alone suggests.

According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Center for Veterinary Medicine, more than 1,085,823 animal-drug adverse-event reports across 510 breeds had been filed as of the July 2026 data release, drawn from the openFDA Animal & Veterinary Adverse Event database. This ranking orders breeds by their death-coded share, the proportion of a breed's reports in which the recorded outcome was death, among breeds with at least 50 reports. See our methodology for how each figure is computed and refreshed.

How to read this: Death-coded share is the percentage of a breed's adverse-event reports where the recorded outcome was death. It does not mean a drug caused the death, and it is not the breed's overall mortality rate. The 50-report minimum keeps tiny samples from dominating, but the smallest qualifying breeds still swing widely.

Top 12 breeds by death-coded report share

FDA CVM Animal Adverse Event database, breeds with 50+ reports

  1. 1
    Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) (Fish) 99.0%
    97 reports · small sample
  2. 2
    Turkey (unknown) (Turkey) 70.6%
    245 reports
  3. 3
    Chicken (other) (Chicken) 67.6%
    136 reports
  4. 4
    Boer (Goat) 61.3%
    62 reports · small sample
  5. 5
    Chicken (unknown) (Chicken) 58.4%
    433 reports
  6. 6
    Pig (other) (Pig) 52.9%
    51 reports · small sample
  7. 7
    Pig (unknown) (Pig) 51.8%
    490 reports
  8. 8
    Sheep (unknown) (Sheep) 51.0%
    257 reports
  9. 9
    Crossbred Bovine/Cattle (Cattle) 50.2%
    1,379 reports
  10. 10
    Cattle (other) (Cattle) 49.0%
    3,054 reports
  11. 11
    Red Angus (Cattle) 48.6%
    107 reports
  12. 12
    Mixed (Cattle) (Cattle) 48.3%
    2,695 reports

Source FDA openFDA Animal & Veterinary Adverse Events · July 2026 extract

The bar to make this top-100 list

Death-coded share among the 275 breeds with 50+ reports, showing where the #100 cutoff sits

6% 64th percentile higher than 64% of 275 qualifying breeds

5%–10%: 1 qualifying breeds (0%). This entry sits in this band. 20%–25%: 2 qualifying breeds (1%). Above this entry. 25%–30%: 3 qualifying breeds (1%). Above this entry. 30%–35%: 4 qualifying breeds (1%). Above this entry. 35%–40%: 5 qualifying breeds (2%). Above this entry. 40%–45%: 6 qualifying breeds (2%). Above this entry. 45%–50%: 3 qualifying breeds (1%). Above this entry. 50%–55%: 7 qualifying breeds (3%). Above this entry. 55%–60%: 7 qualifying breeds (3%). Above this entry. 60%–65%: 21 qualifying breeds (8%). Above this entry. 65%–70%: 11 qualifying breeds (4%). Above this entry. 70%–75%: 15 qualifying breeds (5%). Above this entry. 75%–80%: 13 qualifying breeds (5%). Above this entry. 80%–85%: 11 qualifying breeds (4%). Above this entry. 85%–90%: 12 qualifying breeds (4%). Above this entry. 90%–95%: 12 qualifying breeds (4%). Above this entry. 95%–100%: 142 qualifying breeds (52%). Above this entry. #100 cutoff: Dogue de Bordeaux 5% 100% every qualifying breed, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more qualifying breeds. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source FDA openFDA Animal & Veterinary Adverse Events · July 2026 extract

# Breed Species Death-coded share Deaths Reports Avg Age
1 Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) Small sample Fish
99.0%
96 97 0.7 yr
2 Turkey (unknown) Turkey
70.6%
173 245 0.1 yr
3 Chicken (other) Chicken
67.6%
92 136 0.2 yr
4 Boer Small sample Goat
61.3%
38 62 1.5 yr
5 Chicken (unknown) Chicken
58.4%
253 433 0.2 yr
6 Pig (other) Small sample Pig
52.9%
27 51 0.5 yr
7 Pig (unknown) Pig
51.8%
254 490 0.7 yr
8 Sheep (unknown) Sheep
51.0%
131 257 0.9 yr
9 Crossbred Bovine/Cattle Cattle
50.2%
692 1,379 1.0 yr
10 Cattle (other) Cattle
49.0%
1,497 3,054 1.2 yr
11 Red Angus Cattle
48.6%
52 107 1.0 yr
12 Mixed (Cattle) Cattle
48.3%
1,303 2,695 1.1 yr
13 Crossbred Porcine/Pig Pig
44.2%
164 371 0.3 yr
14 Brangus Small sample Cattle
43.1%
28 65 1.9 yr
15 Cattle (unspecified) Cattle
39.8%
41 103 1.4 yr
16 Simmental Small sample Cattle
39.6%
38 96 1.4 yr
17 Cattle (unknown) Cattle
39.0%
959 2,461 1.2 yr
18 Holstein-Friesian also known as Holstein Cattle
38.9%
1,229 3,156 1.7 yr
19 Charolais Cattle
38.0%
49 129 1.7 yr
20 Jersey Cattle
37.8%
126 333 1.7 yr
21 Goat (unknown) Goat
36.9%
83 225 1.2 yr
22 Rabbit (other) Small sample Rabbit
36.5%
19 52 3.5 yr
23 Aberdeen Angus Cattle
35.1%
576 1,639 1.3 yr
24 Hereford cattle Cattle
31.8%
47 148 1.2 yr
25 Rabbit (unknown) Rabbit
31.0%
45 145 3.7 yr
26 Saddlebred - American Small sample Horse
16.0%
15 94 14.6 yr
27 Miniature Horse
15.9%
26 164 12.1 yr
28 Mixed (Horse) Horse
15.5%
16 103 6.3 yr
29 Standardbred (unspecified) Horse
14.9%
21 141 8.8 yr
30 Paint Horse
13.7%
53 386 14.3 yr
31 Rex - Devon Small sample Cat
13.6%
12 88 7.6 yr
32 Sphynx Cat
13.6%
25 184 5.0 yr
33 Domestic (unspecified) Cat
13.4%
1,014 7,576 6.5 yr
34 European Small sample Cat
13.0%
7 54 5.3 yr
35 Tennessee Walking Horse Horse
12.9%
24 186 14.8 yr
36 Pony (unspecified) Horse
11.9%
18 151 18.3 yr
37 Tonkinese Cat
11.9%
14 118 9.7 yr
38 Percheron Small sample Horse
11.5%
6 52 15.5 yr
39 Burmese Cat
11.4%
18 158 8.8 yr
40 Manx Cat
11.3%
32 284 7.3 yr
41 Collie - Smooth-haired Dog
11.3%
18 160 6.5 yr
42 Quarter Horse Horse
11.1%
280 2,526 12.6 yr
43 Mixed (Cat) Cat
10.7%
32 298 4.7 yr
44 Himalayan Cat
10.6%
68 640 8.6 yr
45 Mustang Small sample Horse
10.4%
7 67 13.1 yr
46 Morgan Horse
10.3%
15 145 16.6 yr
47 Appaloosa Horse
10.2%
17 167 15.9 yr
48 Horse (unknown) Horse
10.0%
237 2,370 13.8 yr
49 Domestic ferret (Pet ferret) Ferret
9.9%
15 152 4.8 yr
50 Mastiff (unspecified) Dog
9.8%
56 569 5.3 yr
51 Horse (other) Horse
9.8%
29 296 11.6 yr
52 Persian Cat
9.7%
118 1,215 7.3 yr
53 Cat (other) Cat
9.7%
464 4,798 7.6 yr
54 Arab Horse
9.6%
45 467 16.9 yr
55 Abyssinian cat Cat
9.5%
19 201 7.6 yr
56 Cat (unknown) Cat
9.3%
1,235 13,248 6.8 yr
57 Bulldog - English Dog
9.1%
104 1,142 5.9 yr
58 Pointer - English Pointer Dog
9.0%
16 178 5.4 yr
59 Dog (unknown) Dog
8.8%
4,298 48,820 5.8 yr
60 Ragdoll Cat
8.7%
90 1,029 6.7 yr
61 Hound - Afghan Dog
8.5%
11 129 5.8 yr
62 Carolina Dog Small sample Dog
8.5%
6 71 6.0 yr
63 Mastiff - Neapolitan Small sample Dog
8.5%
6 71 3.7 yr
64 Scottish Fold Shorthair Small sample Cat
8.3%
5 60 5.5 yr
65 Rottweiler Dog
8.2%
537 6,557 4.5 yr
66 Thoroughbred Horse
8.2%
100 1,222 12.0 yr
67 Dachshund - Standard Smooth-haired Dog
8.2%
52 636 8.9 yr
68 Siamese Cat
8.1%
250 3,073 7.5 yr
69 Sheepdog - Old English (Bobtail) Dog
7.9%
12 151 5.2 yr
70 Crossbred Equine/horse Horse
7.9%
15 190 14.3 yr
71 Pointing Dog - Italian Wire-haired Small sample Dog
7.8%
5 64 4.5 yr
72 Bombay Cat
7.8%
9 116 7.4 yr
73 Domestic Mediumhair Cat
7.7%
499 6,441 6.8 yr
74 Saint Bernard Dog Dog
7.7%
100 1,292 4.4 yr
75 Friesian Small sample Horse
7.7%
4 52 11.9 yr
76 Terrier - Bedlington Small sample Dog
7.7%
5 65 7.0 yr
77 Maine Coon Cat
7.6%
181 2,383 7.2 yr
78 Shar Pei Dog
7.5%
98 1,304 5.5 yr
79 American Shorthair Cat
7.5%
33 442 7.1 yr
80 Domestic Shorthair Cat
7.2%
4,716 65,226 7.1 yr
81 Russian Cat
7.2%
44 611 7.7 yr
82 Cattle Dog - Flanders (Bouvier) Dog
7.2%
21 292 5.0 yr
83 Warmblood (unspecified) Horse
7.0%
38 541 12.8 yr
84 Spaniel - American Water Small sample Dog
7.0%
4 57 5.6 yr
85 Snowshoe Cat
7.0%
8 114 7.6 yr
86 Newfoundland Dog
7.0%
91 1,299 4.9 yr
87 American Pit Bull Terrier Dog
7.0%
97 1,392 5.6 yr
88 Domestic Longhair Cat
7.0%
670 9,615 7.6 yr
89 Terrier - Kerry Blue Small sample Dog
6.9%
5 72 6.1 yr
90 Irish Wolfhound Dog
6.9%
20 290 4.0 yr
91 Spitz - Dutch (Keeshond) Dog
6.9%
23 335 6.7 yr
92 Collie - Bearded Dog
6.9%
12 175 8.0 yr
93 Hairless Dog - Mexican Small sample Dog
6.8%
4 59 5.4 yr
94 Sheepdog - Shetland Dog
6.7%
277 4,159 6.8 yr
95 Shepherd Dog - Belgian Tervueren Dog
6.6%
8 122 6.0 yr
96 Chow Chow Dog
6.4%
133 2,065 7.4 yr
97 Bullmastiff Dog
6.4%
35 548 3.8 yr
98 Crossbred Feline/cat Cat
6.3%
36 571 6.7 yr
99 Mastiff Dog
6.2%
182 2,950 3.4 yr
100 Dogue de Bordeaux Dog
6.2%
9 146 4.0 yr

Small sample: 20 of the 100 breeds above have fewer than 100 FDA reports behind their share. They clear the 50-report floor, but they sit in the same sort as breeds with thousands of reports, and a few records can move their rate a long way. Each carries the marker, and each breed page repeats the caveat.

Download the openFDA animal adverse-event extract cited on this page: plainbreed-openfda-aers-statistics.csv (FDA public records · CC BY 4.0).