Head tilt - ear disorder: in adverse event reports for animal drugs

Clinical sign, a VeDDRA term

Read this first. FDA says this about the data:

An API dataset query result cannot be used to estimate the risk associated with the product or compare one drug or device product with another. When looking at the results, be aware that there is no certainty that the reported drug or device caused the adverse event. This dataset should not be the sole source of information for clinical decision-making or other assumptions about the safety or effectiveness of a product. The adverse event may have been related to an underlying disease, other drugs used at the same time or other non-drug related sources.
FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine publishes these words. Source: Adverse Event Reports for Animal Drugs and Devices, read on 2 Oct 2026. The data have the reports that FDA received through 26 Jun 2026.

This page is not veterinary advice. For an animal that is ill, speak to a veterinarian.

Contacting a veterinarian How to report to FDA

From July 1987 to June 2026, FDA received 2,782 adverse event reports for animal drugs that list this sign. That is 0.2% of the 1,378,761 reports that FDA received from January 1987 to June 2026. In the 12 months to June 2026, FDA received 116 reports that list this sign.

Of the 2,782 reports, 76.8% are about dogs. A report can list more than one sign and more than one drug. A report is not proof that a drug caused a sign.

By number of reports in all years, this sign is number 210 of 1,149 clinical signs with a page. Reports that list this sign fell by 5.7% in the 12 months to June 2026, compared with the 12 months before. Reports for all animal drugs fell by 4.6% in the same periods. The newest months can get more reports in a later update. Reports about cats are 21.2% of the reports that list this sign, and 11% of all reports.

Search engines list a sign page with 3,000 reports or more in all years. The page also needs 300 reports or more in the 12 months to June 2026. This page is under one of these numbers. The site keeps the page and keeps it out of search engines.

Drug pages with reports that list this sign

The table has every drug page with 20 or more reports that list this sign, in order of name. No count decides which drug is in the table. The table has 43 drug pages.

Show the 43 drug pages

Drug pages with 20 or more reports that list this sign, in order of name
Active ingredients	Reports that list the sign
(S) - methoprene	21
Afoxolaner	59
Amoxicillin	38
Bedinvetmab	46
Betamethasone Acetate + Florfenicol + Terbinafine	38
Betamethasone Valerate + Clotrimazole + Gentamicin Sulfate	30
Buprenorphine	32
Butorphanol Tartrate	30
Carprofen	289
Cefovecin sodium	98
Cefpodoxime proxetil	25
Cyclosporine	59
Deracoxib	56
Dexamethasone	34
Diphenhydramine	21
Enrofloxacin	77
Firocoxib	53
Florfenicol + Mometasone furoate + Terbinafine	498
Florfenicol + Terbinafine	60
Fluralaner	58
Gabapentin	51
Imidacloprid + Moxidectin	26
Isoflurane	21
Ivermectin	52
Ivermectin + Pyrantel Pamoate	75
Ketamine Hydrochloride	21
Ketoconazole	74
Lufenuron + Milbemycin Oxime	21
Marbofloxacin	30
Maropitant	136
Melarsomine Dihydrochloride	61
Meloxicam	41
Milbemycin Oxime	50
Milbemycin Oxime + Spinosad	157
Moxidectin	58
Oclacitinib	55
Prednisone	71
Salicylic Acid	35
Selamectin	127
Selegiline Hydrochloride	51
Spinosad	111
Tiletamine Hydrochloride + Zolazepam Hydrochloride	38
Trilostane	34

The openFDA records give the value "MSK" for the brand name and for the manufacturer name of each drug. FDA says that MSK means "masked". So the site cannot count a report for a brand. A report can name more than one drug.

An API dataset query result cannot be used to estimate the risk associated with the product or compare one drug or device product with another.
The adverse event may have been related to an underlying disease, other drugs used at the same time or other non-drug related sources.
FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine. Source: Adverse Event Reports for Animal Drugs and Devices

Ingredients, all combinations

The list has every active ingredient with 20 or more reports that list this sign, in order of name. It has 55 ingredients.

Show the 55 ingredients

Reports by species

Dog76.8%2,136
Cat21.2%590
Cattle0.7%19
Horse0.6%16
Rabbit0.4%11
Chicken0.1%2

The share is of the 2,782 reports that list this sign. The sign is in 0.2% of all reports about the species dog. The sign is in 0.4% of all reports about the species cat.

Reports by month and by year

Reports for each month, Jul 2021 to Jun 2026. The month is the month in which FDA received the report.

FDA says that a report can take 3 to 6 months to reach the public data. The newest months can get more reports in a later update.

Reports that list Head tilt - ear disorder, by the year in which FDA received them
Year	Reports
2026	49
2025	114
2024	145
2023	117
2022	97
2021	81
2020	68
2019	72
2018	82
2017	124
2016	171
2015	126
2014	120
2013	150
2012	132
2011	127
2010	99
2009	82
2008	92
2007	73
2006	74
2005	84
2004	86
2003	51
2002	49
2001	56
2000	72
1999	75
1998	39
1997	18
1996	22
1995	9
1994	9
1993	3
1992	2
1991	2
1990	2
1989	1
1988	5
1987	2

What these reports record

Outcome at the time of the report

Reports with this sign
All reports

Recovered/Normal11.2%312, All reports: 20.7%
Recovered with Sequela[recovered, with a lasting effect]3.3%91, All reports: 2.3%
Ongoing20.6%572, All reports: 17.4%
Died8.6%238, All reports: 4.9%
Euthanized4.4%122, All reports: 1.5%
Outcome Unknown19%529, All reports: 22.7%

An outcome in a report is not proof that the drug caused it. The person who sends the report gives the outcome. Each share is of the 2,782 reports that list this sign.

Age of the animal

Reports with this sign
All reports

Under 1 year8.4%233, All reports: 9.5%
1 to 3 years14.1%393, All reports: 23.9%
4 to 7 years21.4%595, All reports: 20.2%
8 to 11 years23.1%642, All reports: 15.4%
12 years and over30.2%841, All reports: 10.7%
Age not given2.8%78, All reports: 20.3%

The outcome is for the full report, not for this sign only.

Next in the A to Z list of signs

All clinical signs

Cite this page

Pet Drug Reports. Head tilt - ear disorder: adverse event reports for animal drugs. https://petdrugreports.com/reaction/head-tilt-ear-disorder/ Source: FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine, openFDA Animal and Veterinary adverse event reports, export of 30 Oct 2026. Reports received through 26 Jun 2026.

Where the data come from

The counts come from the openFDA Animal and Veterinary adverse event files, export of 30 Oct 2026. The files have the reports that the FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine received through 26 Jun 2026. The files mask brand and manufacturer names. The site counts a drug by the active ingredients that each record gives, and gives no count to a brand, an application or a company. Ingredient names and the lists of approved products follow the FDA Green Book of 2 Nov 2026. The site counts the different spellings of one VeDDRA term together.

The site does not publish report text, lot numbers or details of a reporter. FDA's record is the authority. See how the site counts reports, the data sources and the corrections page.

Questions about this sign

What does this term mean in a report?: It is a term from VeDDRA, the list of terms that FDA and drug companies use to code a report. The person who coded the report selected the term.
How does the count of the latest 12 months compare with the 12 months before?: FDA received 116 reports in the 12 months to June 2026. It received 123 reports in the 12 months before. FDA says that a report can take 3 to 6 months to reach the public data. The newest months can get more reports in a later update.
How many of these reports have a serious flag?: Of the 1,637 reports that say if the event was serious, 67.9% have the serious flag. The person who sends a report sets the flag.
Does a drug in the table cause this sign?: The reports do not show that. A report can name more than one drug. FDA states this about the data.
When looking at the results, be aware that there is no certainty that the reported drug or device caused the adverse event.
The adverse event may have been related to an underlying disease, other drugs used at the same time or other non-drug related sources.
FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine. Source: Adverse Event Reports for Animal Drugs and Devices