FDA CVM rankings

Which breeds appear most in the FDA adverse-event record?

Breeds ranked by the total number of adverse-event reports filed with the FDA. Volume tracks how common a breed is and how actively its owners and vets report, a popular breed leads because there are simply more of them, not because it faces unusual risk.

93,675
Retriever - Labrador - #1
510
breeds tracked
1,085,823
reports across all breeds
Top 100
shown below

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 1,263 reports (Coonhound (unspecified)).

93,675
Retriever - Labrador reports (#1)
99.0%
Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) death share (#1)
93,675
#1 - Retriever - Labrador
1,263
#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.

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 the total number of reports filed; the Labrador Retriever leads chiefly because it is among the most common dogs in the United States. See our methodology for how each figure is computed and refreshed.

How to read this: Higher report counts usually reflect breed popularity and product-usage volume, not higher health risk. Common breeds naturally accumulate more reports because more of their animals are treated and more owners and veterinarians file.

Top 12 breeds by report volume

FDA CVM Animal Adverse Event database, total reports filed

  1. 1
    Retriever - Labrador 93,675 reports
    Dog · 3.7% death-coded
  2. 2
    Crossbred Canine/dog 70,591 reports
    Dog · 3.2% death-coded
  3. 3
    Domestic Shorthair 65,226 reports
    Cat · 7.2% death-coded
  4. 4
    Dog (unknown) 48,820 reports
    Dog · 8.8% death-coded
  5. 5
    Retriever - Golden 35,980 reports
    Dog · 3.7% death-coded
  6. 6
    Shepherd Dog - German 32,220 reports
    Dog · 4.4% death-coded
  7. 7
    Chihuahua 31,521 reports
    Dog · 4.2% death-coded
  8. 8
    Terrier - Yorkshire 24,924 reports
    Dog · 3.7% death-coded
  9. 9
    Shih Tzu 24,405 reports
    Dog · 3.6% death-coded
  10. 10
    Boxer (German Boxer) 19,405 reports
    Dog · 4.4% death-coded
  11. 11
    Beagle 17,970 reports
    Dog · 3.6% death-coded
  12. 12
    Pit Bull 17,865 reports
    Dog · 3.1% death-coded

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

The bar to make this top-100 list

Report volume across all 510 tracked breeds and species entries, showing where the #100 cutoff sits

1,263 Top 20% higher than 80% of 510 tracked breeds

0–250: 336 tracked breeds (66%). Below this entry. 250–500: 34 tracked breeds (7%). Below this entry. 500–750: 22 tracked breeds (4%). Below this entry. 750–1,000: 6 tracked breeds (1%). Below this entry. 1,000–1,250: 11 tracked breeds (2%). Below this entry. 1,250–1,500: 12 tracked breeds (2%). This entry sits in this band. 1,500–1,750: 7 tracked breeds (1%). Above this entry. 1,750–2,000: 2 tracked breeds (0%). Above this entry. 2,000–2,250: 2 tracked breeds (0%). Above this entry. 2,250–2,500: 5 tracked breeds (1%). Above this entry. 2,500–2,750: 5 tracked breeds (1%). Above this entry. 2,750–3,000: 4 tracked breeds (1%). Above this entry. 3,000–3,250: 8 tracked breeds (2%). Above this entry. 3,250–3,500: 1 tracked breeds (0%). Above this entry. 3,500–3,750: 1 tracked breeds (0%). Above this entry. 3,750–4,000: 4 tracked breeds (1%). Above this entry. 4,000–4,250: 3 tracked breeds (1%). Above this entry. 4,250–4,500: 2 tracked breeds (0%). Above this entry. 4,500–4,750: 3 tracked breeds (1%). Above this entry. 4,750–5,000: 42 tracked breeds (8%). Above this entry. #100 cutoff: Coonhound (unspecified) 0 5,000 every tracked breed, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more tracked 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 Reports Deaths Death-coded share Avg Age
1 Retriever - Labrador Dog
93,675
3,463 3.7% 5.2 yr
2 Crossbred Canine/dog Dog
70,591
2,237 3.2% 5.3 yr
3 Domestic Shorthair Cat
65,226
4,716 7.2% 7.1 yr
4 Dog (unknown) Dog
48,820
4,298 8.8% 5.8 yr
5 Retriever - Golden Dog
35,980
1,335 3.7% 4.6 yr
6 Shepherd Dog - German Dog
32,220
1,406 4.4% 4.6 yr
7 Chihuahua Dog
31,521
1,329 4.2% 5.9 yr
8 Terrier - Yorkshire Dog
24,924
928 3.7% 5.7 yr
9 Shih Tzu Dog
24,405
878 3.6% 6.0 yr
10 Boxer (German Boxer) Dog
19,405
862 4.4% 4.5 yr
11 Beagle Dog
17,970
650 3.6% 5.7 yr
12 Pit Bull Dog
17,865
560 3.1% 4.0 yr
13 Shepherd Dog - Australian Dog
16,274
608 3.7% 4.5 yr
14 Terrier (unspecified) Dog
14,058
433 3.1% 5.8 yr
15 Maltese Dog
13,940
453 3.2% 5.7 yr
16 Dachshund (unspecified) Dog
13,512
617 4.6% 6.1 yr
17 Cat (unknown) Cat
13,248
1,235 9.3% 6.8 yr
18 Terrier - Jack Russell Dog
10,423
383 3.7% 6.8 yr
19 Collie - Border Dog
10,130
437 4.3% 5.8 yr
20 Siberian Husky Dog
9,811
444 4.5% 4.9 yr
21 Domestic Longhair Cat
9,615
670 7.0% 7.6 yr
22 Pug Dog
9,224
481 5.2% 6.0 yr
23 Spitz - German Pomeranian Dog
9,086
449 4.9% 5.9 yr
24 Terrier - Bull - American Pit Dog
8,769
409 4.7% 4.9 yr
25 Cattle Dog - Australian (blue heeler, red heeler, Queensland cattledog) Dog
7,871
281 3.6% 4.8 yr
26 Terrier - Boston Dog
7,737
351 4.5% 5.7 yr
27 Spaniel - Cocker American Dog
7,640
303 4.0% 6.1 yr
28 Domestic (unspecified) Cat
7,576
1,014 13.4% 6.5 yr
29 Poodle (unspecified) Dog
7,534
259 3.4% 5.5 yr
30 Schnauzer - Miniature Dog
7,513
327 4.4% 6.3 yr
31 Bulldog - French Dog
7,272
323 4.4% 3.4 yr
32 Bulldog Dog
7,268
345 4.7% 3.9 yr
33 Bichon Frise Dog
7,085
274 3.9% 7.1 yr
34 Rottweiler Dog
6,557
537 8.2% 4.5 yr
35 Domestic Mediumhair Cat
6,441
499 7.7% 6.8 yr
36 Spaniel - King Charles Cavalier Dog
6,052
257 4.2% 4.8 yr
37 Dog (other) Dog
5,922
252 4.3% 5.1 yr
38 Poodle - Miniature Dog
5,483
196 3.6% 6.6 yr
39 Schnauzer (unspecified) Dog
5,387
219 4.1% 6.2 yr
40 Mixed (Dog) Dog
5,355
305 5.7% 5.4 yr
41 Hound (unspecified) Dog
4,864
112 2.3% 4.2 yr
42 Cat (other) Cat
4,798
464 9.7% 7.6 yr
43 Poodle - Standard Dog
4,638
146 3.1% 4.9 yr
44 Doberman Pinscher Dog
4,631
264 5.7% 4.5 yr
45 Great Pyrenees Dog
4,513
170 3.8% 3.8 yr
46 Deutsche Dogge, Great Dane Dog
4,353
260 6.0% 3.5 yr
47 Terrier - West Highland White Dog
4,343
212 4.9% 7.4 yr
48 Dachshund - Miniature Dog
4,234
194 4.6% 6.3 yr
49 Poodle - Toy Dog
4,180
166 4.0% 6.2 yr
50 Sheepdog - Shetland Dog
4,159
277 6.7% 6.8 yr
51 Havanese Dog
3,977
83 2.1% 5.0 yr
52 Pointing Dog - German Short-haired Dog
3,953
132 3.3% 5.0 yr
53 Hound - Basset Dog
3,947
156 4.0% 5.5 yr
54 Pinscher - Miniature Dog
3,776
197 5.2% 6.8 yr
55 Greyhound Dog
3,717
140 3.8% 5.4 yr
56 Retriever (unspecified) Dog
3,492
67 1.9% 4.5 yr
57 Spaniel (unspecified) Dog
3,209
155 4.8% 7.0 yr
58 Lhasa Apso Dog
3,196
118 3.7% 7.5 yr
59 Holstein-Friesian also known as Holstein Cattle
3,156
1,229 38.9% 1.7 yr
60 Collie (unspecified) Dog
3,131
149 4.8% 5.8 yr
61 Terrier - Rat Dog
3,078
133 4.3% 6.8 yr
62 Siamese Cat
3,073
250 8.1% 7.5 yr
63 Cattle (other) Cattle
3,054
1,497 49.0% 1.2 yr
64 Mountain Dog - Bernese Dog
3,012
128 4.2% 2.9 yr
65 Mastiff Dog
2,950
182 6.2% 3.4 yr
66 Corgi (unspecified) Dog
2,865
121 4.2% 5.4 yr
67 Shepherd (unspecified) Dog
2,865
126 4.4% 5.6 yr
68 Terrier - Bull - Staffordshire Dog
2,752
121 4.4% 5.1 yr
69 Mixed (Cattle) Cattle
2,695
1,303 48.3% 1.1 yr
70 Pekingese Dog
2,552
102 4.0% 7.0 yr
71 Weimaraner Dog
2,538
113 4.5% 5.5 yr
72 Quarter Horse Horse
2,526
280 11.1% 12.6 yr
73 Bulldog - American Dog
2,514
127 5.1% 4.3 yr
74 Cattle (unknown) Cattle
2,461
959 39.0% 1.2 yr
75 Catahoula Leopard Dog Dog
2,402
54 2.2% 4.0 yr
76 Maine Coon Cat
2,383
181 7.6% 7.2 yr
77 Horse (unknown) Horse
2,370
237 10.0% 13.8 yr
78 Spaniel - Springer English Dog
2,268
91 4.0% 6.0 yr
79 Papillon - Spaniel - Continental Toy (with erect ears or with dropped ears (Phaléne)) Dog
2,120
95 4.5% 6.7 yr
80 Chow Chow Dog
2,065
133 6.4% 7.4 yr
81 Terrier - Cairn Dog
1,953
91 4.7% 7.5 yr
82 Brittany Dog
1,879
52 2.8% 6.0 yr
83 Shepherd Dog - Belgian Malinois Dog
1,741
53 3.0% 4.5 yr
84 Shiba Inu Dog
1,673
41 2.5% 5.5 yr
85 Terrier - Irish Soft-coated Wheaten Dog
1,654
55 3.3% 6.0 yr
86 Aberdeen Angus Cattle
1,639
576 35.1% 1.3 yr
87 Corgi - Welsh Pembroke Dog
1,624
68 4.2% 5.2 yr
88 Pointer (unspecified) Dog
1,595
43 2.7% 5.0 yr
89 Pointing Dog - Hungarian Short-haired (Vizsla) Dog
1,526
65 4.3% 4.7 yr
90 Terrier - Scottish Dog
1,489
86 5.8% 6.7 yr
91 American Pit Bull Terrier Dog
1,392
97 7.0% 5.6 yr
92 Crossbred Bovine/Cattle Cattle
1,379
692 50.2% 1.0 yr
93 Dalmatian Dog
1,356
62 4.6% 5.7 yr
94 Ridgeback - Rhodesian Dog
1,331
69 5.2% 5.1 yr
95 Spaniel - Cocker English Dog
1,321
35 2.6% 6.0 yr
96 Shepherd Dog (unspecified) Dog
1,313
43 3.3% 4.6 yr
97 Shar Pei Dog
1,304
98 7.5% 5.5 yr
98 Newfoundland Dog
1,299
91 7.0% 4.9 yr
99 Saint Bernard Dog Dog
1,292
100 7.7% 4.4 yr
100 Coonhound (unspecified) Dog
1,263
39 3.1% 4.7 yr

What to do with this ranking

Report volume tracks popularity and usage, not risk - use it as a starting point, not a verdict.

  • Retriever - Labrador tops this list mainly because it is a common breed with a large treated population, not because it is unusually dangerous - check its death-coded share before drawing conclusions. Retriever - Labrador profile
  • For a risk signal that controls for popularity, compare breeds by death-coded share instead of raw report count. Highest death-rate ranking
  • Look up any of the 510 tracked breeds by species to see how a specific breed compares to others like it. Browse by species

A high report count does not prove elevated risk, and a breed absent from this top-100 list may simply be less common, not safer.

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