Pet Drug Reports

Reported signs

Reported sign · VeDDRA term

Lateral recumbency: reports listing this term

In plain language: lying on the side, unable to rise

3,460reports listing the term, 2005–20260.3% of all reports
353reports, 12 months to March 2026410 in the 12 months before
89%classed serious, as reportedall reports: 38.6%
71.6%of these reports concern dogscat 21.4%

"Lateral recumbency" (lying on the side, unable to rise) is a coded term listed in 3,460 adverse event reports received by FDA, 0.3% of the database. Terms come from VeDDRA, the veterinary dictionary that FDA and drug companies use to code what a reporter describes.

353 reports listed it in the 12 months to March 2026, down 14% from 410 in the 12 months before. FDA posts reports quarterly with a delay of three to six months, so the newest months are incomplete and usually grow in later releases.

By active ingredient, the drugs named most often in those reports are moxidectin, maropitant and fluralaner. That order mostly follows how many reports each has overall; the table gives the term's share within each drug's own reports as well.

71.6% of the reports concern dogs, 21.4% of the reports concern cats and 2.7% of the reports concern cattle. Of reports listing this term that state seriousness, 89% were classed as serious; 39.5% record a death or euthanasia among the outcomes.

Drugs named most often in these reports, by active ingredient

Active ingredients recorded for the drugReports listing the termShare of that drug's own reports
Moxidectin3550.6%
Maropitant3522.2%
Fluralaner3090.4%
Afoxolaner2700.4%
Bedinvetmab1951%
Cefovecin sodium1861.4%
Ivermectin + Pyrantel Pamoate1840.1%
Carprofen1830.4%
Milbemycin Oxime + Spinosad1800.1%
Gabapentin1701.6%
Melarsomine Dihydrochloride1550.7%
Buprenorphine1311.8%
Dexamethasone1093.7%
Diphenhydramine1032.1%
Pyrantel Pamoate + Sarolaner880.2%
Butorphanol Tartrate871.2%
Famotidine872.9%
Enrofloxacin821%
Oclacitinib770.3%
Prednisone760.8%
Spinosad750.1%
Meloxicam710.4%
Selamectin700.1%
Isoflurane671.3%
Robenacoxib671.8%

Ordered by number of reports, which mostly tracks how many reports a drug has overall. Across the whole database the term appears in 0.3% of reports. A drug's presence in a report means the animal received it, not that it produced the sign; FDA states that these data cannot be used to compare one product with another. openFDA masks brand and manufacturer names in adverse event records, so the reports counted here cannot be attributed to a particular brand.

Single ingredients, pooled across combinations

Active ingredientReports listing the termShare of the ingredient's own reports
Moxidectin4740.5%
Pyrantel Pamoate3800.2%
Maropitant3522.2%
Fluralaner3230.4%
Afoxolaner3080.4%
Ivermectin2730.1%
Milbemycin Oxime2590.1%
Spinosad2520.1%
Bedinvetmab1951%
Praziquantel1910.2%
Cefovecin sodium1861.4%
Carprofen1830.4%
Gabapentin1701.6%
Sarolaner1630.2%
Melarsomine Dihydrochloride1550.7%
Buprenorphine1311.8%
Dexamethasone1152.3%
Diphenhydramine1032.1%
Butorphanol Tartrate961.2%
Selamectin910.1%
Famotidine872.9%
Enrofloxacin851%
Oclacitinib770.3%
Prednisone760.8%
Imidacloprid750.3%

Species split

Dog71.6%2,477
Cat21.4%742
Cattle2.7%92
Horse2.1%72
Turkey1%36
Pig0.5%18

Coloured bar: share of reports listing this term. Grey bar: the species' share of all reports. The term appears in 0.3% of all dog reports; The term appears in 0.5% of all cat reports.

Trend

02345Apr 2021: 34May 2021: 17Jun 2021: 16Jul 2021: 19Aug 2021: 19Sep 2021: 16Oct 2021: 15Nov 2021: 17Dec 2021: 14Jan 2022: 102022Feb 2022: 15Mar 2022: 19Apr 2022: 13May 2022: 16Jun 2022: 14Jul 2022: 19Aug 2022: 32Sep 2022: 22Oct 2022: 18Nov 2022: 15Dec 2022: 18Jan 2023: 172023Feb 2023: 17Mar 2023: 15Apr 2023: 15May 2023: 22Jun 2023: 27Jul 2023: 32Aug 2023: 30Sep 2023: 27Oct 2023: 37Nov 2023: 31Dec 2023: 25Jan 2024: 252024Feb 2024: 29Mar 2024: 26Apr 2024: 44May 2024: 45Jun 2024: 36Jul 2024: 42Aug 2024: 37Sep 2024: 42Oct 2024: 27Nov 2024: 15Dec 2024: 38Jan 2025: 362025Feb 2025: 27Mar 2025: 21Apr 2025: 37May 2025: 38Jun 2025: 29Jul 2025: 38Aug 2025: 28Sep 2025: 28Oct 2025: 25Nov 2025: 26Dec 2025: 27Jan 2026: 322026Feb 2026: 28Mar 2026: 17

Reports by month FDA received them, five years to March 2026. The newest months are incomplete because FDA posts reports with a delay of three to six months.

02034062005: 220052006: 12008: 420082010: 12011: 2720112012: 1392013: 16520132014: 1962015: 23220152016: 2172017: 19820172018: 2452019: 25520192020: 2272021: 20220212022: 2112023: 29520232024: 4062025: 36020252026: 77

Outcomes and ages in these reports

Outcome recorded in the report

Recovered/Normal25.6%886
Recovered with Sequela1.3%44
Ongoing22.8%789
Died19.2%666
Euthanized20.6%713
Outcome Unknown12.5%433

Age of the animal

Under 1 year13.2%457
1 to 3 years23.3%807
4 to 7 years20.5%711
8 to 11 years20.7%716
12 years and over19.6%679
Age not given2.6%90
MeasureReports listing this termAll reports
Reports3,4601,357,245
Classed serious, of reports stating it89%38.6%
Death or euthanasia recorded, per 1,000 reports395.163.8

Grey bars and the right-hand column are the whole database. Outcomes are as stated by the reporter and describe the report as a whole, not this term alone.

Questions about "Lateral recumbency"

What does "Lateral recumbency" mean in an adverse event report?

In plain language: lying on the side, unable to rise. It is a VeDDRA dictionary term picked to code what the reporter described. The report's free-text description is not published by FDA and is not shown here.

How many reports list lateral recumbency?

3,460 reports through March 2026 (0.3% of all reports), 353 of them in the latest 12 months.

Which drugs are named most often alongside this term?

By active ingredient: moxidectin (355), maropitant (352), fluralaner (309), afoxolaner (270) and bedinvetmab (195). Drugs with many reports overall lead almost every term's list. Brands cannot be identified: openFDA masks them.

Which species are involved?

dog (71.6%), cat (21.4%), cattle (2.7%) and horse (2.1%).

Does a drug appearing here mean it produced this sign?

No such conclusion can be drawn. FDA states that "there is no certainty that the reported drug or device caused the adverse event" and that the event "may have been related to an underlying disease, other drugs used at the same time or other non-drug related sources."

My animal shows this sign. What now?

This site cannot assess an animal. A veterinarian can; for an emergency, contact a veterinary emergency clinic. See the guide on when to call a vet.

Where this comes from. Counts are built from the openFDA Animal & Veterinary adverse event bulk files released 28 Sep 2026, which hold reports FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine received through 31 Mar 2026. openFDA masks brand and manufacturer names in these files, so drugs are counted by the active ingredients each record discloses and no figure is attributed to a brand, application or company. Ingredient names, and the separate reference lists of approved products, follow the FDA Green Book as of 1 Oct 2026. Spelling variants of the same VeDDRA term (for example with and without a cross-reference note) are pooled. No report text, lot numbers or reporter details are published. See the methodology and sources; FDA's record is authoritative, and corrections are handled within five working days.