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Merck Animal Health has been hit with a class action lawsuit by consumers who claim that their dog and cat drug Bravecto contains a pesticide that is harmful to pets.
Bravecto tablets and topical medications are used on both cats and dogs, and are marketed as a way to prevent ticks and fleas for up to three months.
Plaintiff Valerie Palmieri says she paid just under $50 for one Bravecto chewable tablet to treat her 78 pound German Shepherd Jake for fleas and ticks.
After taking the pill, Jake started to vomit, did not eat, and began to show symptoms of lethargy, according to the Bravecto class action lawsuit. The plaintiff reportedly took Jake to the emergency animal clinic after the dog was no longer able to walk.
Palmieri claims that she contacted Merck to talk about Jake’s possible adverse reaction to taking the drug. The company allegedly denied that that Jake’s sickness was caused by Bravecto but offered to pay for the emergency room visit.
However, the company would only pay if she signed an agreement which would release any claims against the company, according to the Bravecto class action lawsuit.
The plaintiff states that she refused to release her claims as she wasn’t sure if Jake’s symptoms would be long-term and was still not sure if her dog’s symptoms were caused by the drug.
After more tests and a trip to a neurologist, the plaintiff’s veterinarian allegedly told her that he “presumed” that Jake’s diagnosis of meningitis was a result of “Bravecto toxicity,” which was contrary to what she was told by the defendant.
Since he ingested the drug, Jake has continued to have neurological episodes, according to the Bravecto class action lawsuit. In September of this year, he reportedly fell down a flight of stairs and broke his leg. The plaintiff claims that she has spent “tens of thousands of dollars” treating Jake after he ingested Bravecto.
Palmieri says that when she purchased the tablet, the packaging and materials enclosed therein did not state that neurological adverse reactions were possible when taking the pill. In addition, the defendant allegedly did not tell veterinarians about the possible safety issues that the drug posed to pets.
“Because Defendant failed to disclose the risks of Bravecto to consumers and misrepresented the safety of Bravecto, consumers would be reasonable in purchasing Bravecto to treat their pets in a safe manner,” the class action lawsuit notes.
The Bravecto class action lawsuit also states that in September 2018, the FDA issued an alert about the possible neurological events that are associated with medicines like Bravecto to treat fleas and ticks.
The FDA has subsequently asked manufacturers to change their labels to “highlight neurological events because these events were seen consistently across the isoxazoline class of products” and “to provide veterinarians and pet owners with the information they need to make treatment decisions for each pet on an individual basis,” according to the Bravecto class action lawsuit.
The plaintiff states that the defendant now discloses that there may be some neurological reactions to taking Bravecto, including tremors, ataxia, and seizures.
“Every consumer who purchased Bravecto without being informed of the true facts about its health and safety risks prior to purchase was injured at the point of sale when, instead of obtaining a safe flea and tick medication, they obtained Defendant’s unreasonably dangerous and defective product,” the Bravecto class action lawsuit states.
Did you purchase Bravecto for your pet? Leave a message in the comments section below.
The plaintiff is represented by Mark A. Dicello, Adam J. Levitt, and Amy E. Keller of DiCello Levitt and Gutzler LLC and Jessica J. Sleater and Ralph N. Sianni of Andersen Sleater Sianni LLC.
The Bravecto Class Action Lawsuit is Valerie Palmieri v. Intervet Inc., et. al, Case No. 2:19-cv-22024, in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.
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1,796 thoughts onBravecto Class Action Says Meds Aren’t Safe For Pets
We have a litter of boxer puppies born on 4/12/23 mom was given bravecto on 4/13/23 for fleas , because the vet said there were some fleas on the puppies when I brought them to have tails docked and dew claws removed . I asked about it being safe for mom and the puppies and they said yes . The h
Vet herself went read on side effects from the packaging because one of the vet techs said it was contraindicated and said no it was fine to give to the mom that’s lactating. Now we are losing newborn puppies ! Tgey are having neurological issues and having seizure like reactions (stiffening up for about a minute), and ataxia .episodes their lips and mouth become purplish in color . We have lost 3 of the 9 puppies within 1 day after giving this medication and another one is presenting with the signs . More than likely we will loose this whole litter of puppies ! We were Excited to have this litter of puppies because they are the European Bloodlines . However we now have this heartache to deal with . Please dont give your pregnant dogs and lactating mothers this medication !
My dog started on Bravecto six months ago receiving her third dose Mar 30/2023. She has been having seizures, trouble walking and has balance issues. Im so upset because i did not know about the side effects and she is so sweet.
I had an older Shih Tzu that started having seizures occasionally and was seen by the vet but they weren’t bad enough for medications. About a month later our vet recommended we put all 3 of our dogs on Bravecto because we have property that is near a national forest and ticks were bad that spring. Within 2 weeks of giving my older dog the pill I came home from work and she was laying on the floor struggling to breathe. We rushed her to the vet but there was nothing they could do and she died. Today I saw a Brave to commercial that now says to not give the medication to dogs with seizures. I know that Bravecto killed her. I thought it was suspicious when she died but after seeing this I’m almost positive it killed her
Our 4 year-old Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever started seizing at 2 yrs. The Vet gave us Bravecto. We have evidence in our dog’s records of seizure storms occurring right after ingesting Bravecto. Now, we are wondering if Bravecto caused us idiopathic seizures in the first place? We changed vets because this vet knew our dog was epileptic and still gave us the Bravecto any way. The episodes have been awful and expensive. He is permanently on two seizure drugs now. Costing us $100/month.
Our 4 year-old Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever started seizing at 2 yrs. The Vet gave us Bravecto. We have evidence in our dog’s records of seizure storms occurring right after ingesting Bravecto. Now, we are wondering if Bravecto caused us idiopathic seizures in the first place? We changed vets because this vet knew our dog was epileptic and still gave us the Bravecto any way. The episodes have been awful and expensive. He is permanently on two seizure drugs now. Costing us $100/month.
We’ve been giving Bravecto to our 4 1/2 year old for 4 years. We had to hide it in her food to get her to eat it. She is offish not wanting food or walks or food for a day. The side effects we rationalized for the protection. Hopefully it will not shorten her life even though we stopped using it.
My Bishon never showed any signs of neurological problems, however after giving her a few doses of Bravecto, she started showing signs of coordination issues, became incontinent, and spent hours staring into space. To be fair, I’m guessing this could have happened, just time and chance, however it started happening in relation to giving her the Bravecto at that time & she hadn’t ever had any issues prior to that time.
My Sheltie once had a beautiful coat and now has a terrible skin and coat problem. Her skin has blisters and she has hair loss. She has developed many tumors on her body which the vet says are fatty tumors. She has also been on Bravecto and I had no idea these problems could be coming from this product until now. I will never give it to her again and hope it will soon leave her body.
I have a 2yr five month old English chocolate lab, pure bred. Everything was completely fine until we got the flea and tick medication from the vet for Bravecto about a month after he started taking the medication he started having muscle tremors seizures and neurological issues. We brought it up to the vet and they said that sometimes dogs will do that if they’re predisposed to epilepsy. We said that he never had any issues before he took the medication. They continue to insist that it’s epilepsy. I told them that I saw on a commercial that perfecto could cause neurological issues and that’s when we first started asking our vet about it. The vet then called Merck to talk with them about it and Merck said that it was probably due to stress and that if Milo stopped taking it, there shouldn’t be any more seizures. However, when I look into it and see that in their comments, the side effects can be permanent. Milo had his worst seizure today. I called the breeder and asked if there was any history of epilepsy in his bloodline or any of the dogs that she breeds and she said there’s never been any history of epilepsy in the 40 years that she’s been breeding dogs so I am upset that perfecto is still on the shelves and I am upset that my vet did not tell me or warn me about the side effects of Bravecto period, perfecto, and other flea and tick medication that have the pesticide in it should be taken off of the shelves
My 14 yo Yorkie took bravecto at vet recommended for fleas issues he claimed was causing his skin allergies. He had total kidney failure and I had to put him down.
My 14 yo Yorkie took bravecto at vet recommended for fleas issues he claimed was causing his skin allergies. He had total kidney failure and I had to put him down.