Diclofenac: veterinary dose and monograph

At a glance

Drug class

Anti-inflammatory

Also known as

Voveran, Diclonac, Dichlofenac sodium

Species with doses

Horses

General dose range

1 mg/kg PO NOT recommended in animals — check the species tables for the indication

Routes

Topical

Last reviewed

1 October 2026

Indications

• No recommended veterinary indication — included for safety/regulatory awareness
• (Human medicine: pain/inflammation — not a veterinary use case)

Diclofenac dose by species

Doses are per administration unless stated. mg/kg doses scale with body weight; per-animal, per-quarter and infusion-rate doses are shown as the reference writes them.

Dogs

• Not recommended: Neither Papich 5e nor Plumb’s gives a systemic dose for dogs; GI ulceration and renal injury are likely. Use meloxicam, carprofen or another approved NSAID.

Cattle

• Banned (India): Veterinary diclofenac was banned in India in 2006 because residues in cattle carcasses caused catastrophic vulture declines. Use an approved NSAID (e.g. meloxicam) instead.

Horses

• Joint osteoarthritis (1% topical cream): Plumb’s p.391 (Surpass label): hock, knee, fetlock and pastern osteoarthritis — five-inch ribbon twice daily for up to 10 days; wear gloves.

Buffalo

No buffalo-specific doses are on file, so buffalo are dosed as cattle.

• Banned (India): Veterinary diclofenac was banned in India in 2006 because residues in cattle carcasses caused catastrophic vulture declines. Use an approved NSAID (e.g. meloxicam) instead.

Contraindications

Cattle, buffalo and all food-producing animals (BANNED in India — vulture conservation). POULTRY / chickens — Carpenter's 6th ed documents severe renal toxicity and high mortality at 2.5 mg/kg IM q24h ×7 days (raised creatinine/uric acid); avoid in all fowl. Cats (high NSAID sensitivity). Renal disease, dehydration, GI ulceration, bleeding disorders, concurrent corticosteroids or other NSAIDs. Use validated veterinary NSAIDs (meloxicam, carprofen, etc.) instead.

Species-specific warnings

Cattle: BANNED for veterinary/food-animal use in India — livestock residues cause fatal renal failure in vultures. Use meloxicam instead.

Cats: Cats are highly sensitive to NSAID toxicity and lack glucuronidation capacity — do not use diclofenac.

Adverse effects

• GI ulceration, perforation and haemorrhage
• Acute kidney injury (renal papillary necrosis)
• Hepatotoxicity
• Fatal visceral gout / renal failure in vultures and other scavenging birds
• Narrow margin and high toxicity in cats

Drug interactions

• Other NSAIDs / corticosteroids: greatly increased GI ulceration/perforation risk
• ACE inhibitors, diuretics, aminoglycosides: increased nephrotoxicity
• Anticoagulants: increased bleeding risk
• Highly protein-bound — displacement interactions

Pregnancy and lactation

Avoid — NSAIDs risk fetal cardiovascular (ductus) effects, and diclofenac has no veterinary safety profile to support use.

Monitoring

• If ever exposed: renal values (BUN/creatinine), liver enzymes, GI signs (melaena, vomiting)
• Regulatory awareness — do not dispense for cattle/food animals
• Choose and document a licensed veterinary NSAID instead

Toxicity and overdose

Narrow therapeutic index in domestic animals: GI ulceration/perforation, acute kidney injury and hepatotoxicity. Ecologically catastrophic to scavenging raptors — the prime example of an agricultural drug driving wildlife collapse (Indian/South-Asian vulture crisis). This is why its veterinary/food-animal use is prohibited.

Management: No specific antidote. Decontaminate if recent ingestion (emesis/charcoal); aggressive IV fluid diuresis to protect kidneys; GI protectants (omeprazole/proton-pump inhibitor, sucralfate, misoprostol) for ulceration; monitor renal and hepatic values and treat AKI supportively. Misoprostol counters NSAID GI effects.

Clinical pearls

• Teaching point: diclofenac in livestock nearly wiped out South Asia's vultures — use meloxicam, the proven vulture-safe NSAID, in cattle
• Veterinary/food-animal diclofenac is banned in India — never dispense it for cattle or buffalo
• For dogs/cats, reach for licensed veterinary NSAIDs (meloxicam, carprofen, robenacoxib) with established safety margins
• A real-world reminder that drug residues in carcasses have ecosystem-wide consequences

Mechanism of action

Non-selective inhibition of cyclo-oxygenase (COX-1 and COX-2), blocking prostaglandin synthesis to produce analgesia, anti-inflammatory and antipyretic effects. Loss of protective COX-1 prostaglandins underlies the GI and renal toxicity; in Gyps vultures, diclofenac causes acute renal tubular necrosis and visceral gout at the residue levels found in treated-livestock carcasses.

Formulations and products

• 50 mg tablet (human)
• Injection 25 mg/mL (human)
• Topical gel 1 % (human)
• Voveran — 50 mg tablet; 25 mg/mL injection; 1 % gel, Tablet / injection / gel (human-label)

Storage

Human products 15–30 °C; not stocked for veterinary food-animal use (banned). Topical gel per label.

Before you use this dose

Reference doses for veterinary professionals. Confirm the dose against the product label, the patient’s condition, current guidance and local regulations before use; the attending veterinarian remains responsible for every clinical decision.

Other anti-inflammatory drugs

• Carprofen
• Deracoxib
• Dexamethasone
• Dimethyl Sulfoxide (DMSO)
• Firocoxib
• Flunixin Meglumine
• Grapiprant
• Isoflupredone Acetate

Frequently asked questions