Muscle wasting: 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.

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From June 1988 to June 2026, FDA received 1,072 adverse event reports for animal drugs that list this sign. That is under 0.1% of the 1,378,761 reports that FDA received from January 1987 to June 2026. In the 12 months to June 2026, FDA received 107 reports that list this sign.

Of the 1,072 reports, 79.3% 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 459 of 1,149 clinical signs with a page. Reports that list this sign fell by 31.4% 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 dogs are 79.3% of the reports that list this sign, and 72.6% 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 28 drug pages.

Show the 28 drug pages

Drug pages with 20 or more reports that list this sign, in order of name
Active ingredients	Reports that list the sign
Bedinvetmab	150
Bexagliflozin	36
Carprofen	150
Cefovecin sodium	35
Cyclosporine	39
Deracoxib	32
Enrofloxacin	23
Famotidine	22
Fluralaner	49
Frunevetmab	28
Gabapentin	74
Grapiprant	39
Insulin	24
Ivermectin + Pyrantel Pamoate	25
Maropitant	50
Melarsomine Dihydrochloride	28
Meloxicam	25
Milbemycin Oxime + Spinosad	66
Moxidectin	38
Oclacitinib	26
Polysulfated Glycosaminoglycan	20
Prednisolone	21
Prednisone	61
Selamectin	21
Spinosad	21
Tramadol	28
Trilostane	129
Velagliflozin	25

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 34 ingredients.

Show the 34 ingredients

Reports by species

Dog79.3%850
Cat17.4%187
Horse2.6%28
Cattle0.3%3
Human exposure0.2%2
Mule0.1%1

The share is of the 1,072 reports that list this sign. The sign is in 0.1% of all reports about the species dog. The sign is in 0.1% 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 Muscle wasting, by the year in which FDA received them
Year	Reports
2026	42
2025	158
2024	114
2023	47
2022	30
2021	27
2020	34
2019	27
2018	54
2017	56
2016	43
2015	61
2014	56
2013	56
2012	38
2011	29
2010	11
2009	15
2008	26
2007	23
2006	18
2005	12
2004	27
2003	10
2002	8
2001	11
2000	12
1999	12
1998	7
1997	4
1996	1
1990	1
1988	2

What these reports record

Outcome at the time of the report

Reports with this sign
All reports

Recovered/Normal3.9%42, All reports: 20.7%
Recovered with Sequela[recovered, with a lasting effect]3.5%37, All reports: 2.3%
Ongoing26.7%286, All reports: 17.4%
Died13%139, All reports: 4.9%
Euthanized15.7%168, All reports: 1.5%
Outcome Unknown23.2%249, 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 1,072 reports that list this sign.

Age of the animal

Reports with this sign
All reports

Under 1 year2.1%22, All reports: 9.5%
1 to 3 years10%107, All reports: 23.9%
4 to 7 years18.5%198, All reports: 20.2%
8 to 11 years34%364, All reports: 15.4%
12 years and over32.4%347, All reports: 10.7%
Age not given3.2%34, 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

Muscle shaking
Muscle spasm NOS[NOS: not otherwise specified]
Muscle stiffness
Muscle tremor
Muscle weakness NOS[NOS: not otherwise specified]
Musculoskeletal disorder NOS[NOS: not otherwise specified]
Musculoskeletal pain
Mydriasis[dilated pupils]

All clinical signs

Cite this page

Pet Drug Reports. Muscle wasting: adverse event reports for animal drugs. https://petdrugreports.com/reaction/muscle-wasting/ 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 107 reports in the 12 months to June 2026. It received 156 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 836 reports that say if the event was serious, 74% 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