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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1,807 thoughts onBravecto Class Action Says Meds Aren’t Safe For Pets
What of those of us who lost pets after administering Bravecto, not due to neurological issues, but other major side effects that subsequently lead to their death? I gave my German Shepherd his first and only dose of Bravecto, and less than a month later, he was in liver failure. I find it ironic that a dog who previously had no health issues that we were aware of suddenly developed liver failure. Especially since the MSDS for Bravecto states that “the liver is the main elimination organ of Fluralaner and is a sensitive target for effects.” My dog never recovered from this and after eight months of expensive medications, special foods, multiple xrays, bloodwork, and abdominal fluid cultures, his medications stopped working and it was time to end his suffering. This dog had no problems before he was given this medication. Merck was made aware of him having problems and I was given a case number. I will never forgive myself for being talked into this horrible pesticide, and will always feel guilt for having given it to him.
My dogs are dying from it, one has liver failure the other sever nerve damage and can’t walk.
Hello,I took my dog Cocoa to her vet on 10-6-19
She was prescribed Bravecto by her vet.
She took the chewable on 10-7-19
Within a couple weeks, she started getting various Lumps/Bumps pipping out all over her body.
1st one was on her forehead, about the size of a dime in width, about 1/4 inch high, then they started appearing everywhere.
She stated to get sick and her face became swollen and red. Took her back to the vet, because by this time wasn’t getting better.
12-4-19 , from that day on she got worse. she couldn’t walk, stopped eating, was very weak, her heart was pounding.
Took her back to the vet on 12-11-19.
They did xrays and bloodwork, he said her liver and heart were inlarged , but everything looked good.. too just wait for her bloodwork results in the morning.
My Cocoa passed away late that night/ early morning hr of 2:30 am.
Had I known how bad this medicine was, trust me, I Never Would Have Given Her This.
She didn’t deserve to be in so much pain..
I even asked the vet if this was safe for her..
Reassured by her vet.
Now my girl is gone and I can’t bring her back, she suffered and died from Bravecto,,
This has to stop.
We must be our pets voices
My Labrador, Willow had her 2nd dose of Bravecto in July 2018, she weighed just over 20 Kgs so was given the 20-40 Kg tablet. I questioned the vet as to whether I gave the whole tablet or not as she was literally just over 20 kgs and the same tablet could also be given to a dog twice her weight. I was told to give the whole tablet which I did with her food that evening. The following day she was quite lethargic but it was a hot day so didn’t think anything of it. She went out into the garden and started staggering across the lawn like she was drunk and then quickly recovered. Again put this down to the heat. A few days later she started having seizure like episodes where she began to shake, loss control of her legs, have a fearful look in her face and was very vocal with lots of mouth clacking etc. This lasted about 5 mins and then once again she went completely back to normal. Took her to vets who told us it was just low sugar and heat and if she did it again to give her honey. I questioned if it could be related to Bravecto and was told it was just a coincidence. Willow had a further 5 episodes over following months so we were referred to consultant neurologist who performed MRI scan, lumber puncture and various blood tests. Results all clear so diagnosed with idiopathic epilepsy and she was started on Pexion which had no affect. Dosage increased twice with no affect, Willow was having on average 3 seizures a month so we went back to neurologist whom I questioned again could it be Bravecto as by this time the warning had appeared on the leaflet re possibly causing neurological issues. He said it was a possibility it was Bravecto that had caused the epilepsy. Changed medication to Phenobarbital (Ephipen) and we have had slight improvement but 18 month later Willow still has seizures and has had over 30 that we have been aware of. She was a fit and healthy pup before the Bravecto was administered. I will never give my dog any drugs for ticks and fleas or worms etc and now use natural preventatives. My vet still sends us reminders for Bravecto to be given despite warning on label saying not to give to dogs with neurological issues! These drugs need banning, please do not use on yr animals.
Yes my dog took it
Both my dogs showed reactions after their second dose. My female’s vulva was swollen badly and red with inner tissue bulging out. My male looked like he was having vertigo – his legs were splayed outward and he looked through me when I spoke to him. I could tell something was wrong. The vets didn’t think it was the Bravecto even though it was the latest treatment. They said to report it to Merck, which I did. They were defensive and non-committal. Fortunately, I stopped the Bravecto meds and started a detoxification series of milk thistle, probiotics, raw food, and CBD oil for dogs. You have to tell your vet and they’ll claim it’s safe cause they don’t know any better. It seems though that they’d realize the main ingredient is a neurotoxin. We are in a trend of over-medicating our animals for fear of a flea. There are other, safer, more natural ways to treat for fleas. My dogs only got two doses and I was lucky to catch it. Other stories Ive read are horrendous and sad.
I purchased bravecto for my dog
My dog died after taking bravecto. ? He had seizures and other serious neurological problems. Had no idea what had happened at the time and spent a few thousand $$$ trying to save him. We miss him terribly. Thank you bravecto.
This is what we believed killed my dog. He was 12 and healthy and started acting as if he couldn’t walk, stand, and very confused, kind of like a stroke. We took him to the vet and bloodwork came back fine and they weren’t sure what was going on with him. After a couple seizures, within a week my dog was dead. Please do not give your pets this poison, I beg you!
I treated 6 pekingese dogs. One died due to an adverse reaction to his explosive diarrhoea. Another was pregnant and lost her pups. She also had horrible diarrhoea. The other 4 were ok. The one that died was autopsied and Merck claimed that his septic hernia was nor related, even though it was the abdominal strain that his explosive diarrhoea that caused it. The girl eventually recovered and is still well.
I think this is what killed my cat. We gave her the drops and not long after she started spasming and running and couldn’t calm her down. The emergency vet said to give her half an aspirin and come to the office the next day. She progressively got sicker and sicker and there was nothing the vet could do. We no longer use this shit on any of our pets and I warn all my family and friends.