Butorphanol
“This page provides important general information for pet owners whose animals have been prescribed Butorphanol for pets in Perth during a consultation by Dr Noor.”
Butorphanol
(byoo-tor-fa-nol)
Description:
This medicine is an opioid-type pain medicine (a strong pain reliever).
Other Names for this Medication:
- Stadol®
- Torbutrol®
- Torbugesic®
Common Dosage Forms:
- For animals:
- injections that come as 0.5 mg/mL, 2 mg/mL, and 10 mg/mL
- tablets that come as 1 mg, 5 mg, and 10 mg
- For people:
- injections that come as 1 mg/mL and 2 mg/mL
- a nasal spray that comes as 10 mg/mL
This handout does not include every piece of information that exists for this medicine. It is meant to answer common questions, but it does not replace medical guidance. If you still have questions or need more details, call your veterinarian or your pharmacist.
Key Information – Butorphanol for pets
- Butorphanol is an opioid medicine used for short-term pain control, for calming (sedation), or to reduce coughing (in dogs). It can be given as a shot or given by mouth.
- You may give tablets either with food or without food. If your pet throws up or seems unwell after getting butorphanol on an empty stomach, give the next dose with food or a small treat. If vomiting keeps happening, contact your veterinarian.
- The most common effect is sleepiness.
- Tell your veterinarian if you notice major changes in your pet’s behavior, eating, or bowel movements.
How is this medication useful?
Butorphanol for pets is an opioid medicine that can be used to reduce coughing in dogs and, in many kinds of animals, to help with pain. It may also be combined with other medicines to help calm an animal or help with safe handling and restraint. In some cases, it is used during chemotherapy to help prevent vomiting caused by chemotherapy.
The FDA (U.S. Food & Drug Administration) has approved this medicine for dogs, cats, and horses (horses must not be intended for food) to treat pain, and it is also approved to reduce coughing in dogs. The FDA also allows veterinarians, in certain situations, to prescribe and use medicines that contain this drug for other species or for other medical problems. You and your veterinarian can talk about why this medicine is the best option.
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What should I tell my veterinarian to see if this medication can be safely given?
Many different factors can change how this medicine works for your animal. Talk with your veterinarian about the following so you can decide together what is best.
- Other medicines can affect butorphanol. Tell your veterinarian and pharmacist about everything your pet receives, including prescription medicines, over-the-counter products, vitamins, supplements, and herbal products. Also share how much you give and when you give each one.
- Tell your veterinarian about any health problems your animal has now, or has had in the past.
- If your animal has had the same illness or problem before, tell your veterinarian what was used to treat it and whether it helped or did not help.
- If your animal is pregnant or nursing, discuss the possible risks of using this medicine.
- Tell your veterinarian and pharmacist about any past medicine reactions or side effects your animal has had, including allergic reactions, not wanting to eat, diarrhea, itching, or hair loss.
How long until I will know if this medication is working, and how long will the effects of this medication last?
You should usually see improvement within 1 to 2 hours. After that time, your animal’s signs should start to get better.
This medicine does not last long. Its effect ends within 24 hours. However, the helpful effects may last longer if your animal’s kidneys and/or liver are not working well.
When should this medication not be used or be used very carefully?
No medicine is completely safe for every patient. Your veterinarian will talk with you about any special concerns for your animal.
If any of the following apply to your animal, talk with your veterinarian about the possible risks and benefits.
- Animals that have an allergy to this medicine.
- Animals with lung disease. In rare cases, butorphanol can reduce breathing ability. The company that makes it recommends that butorphanol should NOT be used in animals with lung problems that create a lot of mucus, because it may stop the animal from coughing up that mucus.
- Animals that are pregnant. Butorphanol does not seem to have a very large risk of causing birth defects, but the company that makes it warns not to use it during pregnancy.
- Animals that are elderly, very weak, or frail.
- Animals with low thyroid function (hypothyroidism), severe kidney disease, or adrenal gland failure (Addison’s disease).
- Animals with head injury or other serious brain/spinal cord problems (for example, coma).
- Animals with heartworm disease.
- Animals with liver disease. The company that makes it does not recommend using it in dogs that have a history of liver disease.
- Animals that might have a specific genetic change called ABCB1-1Δ (also called MDR1), unless they have been tested. This change is most often found in “white feet” breeds such as collies, Australian shepherds, Shetland sheepdogs (Shelties), and long-haired whippets. Dogs with this change may react much more strongly to the medicine and may need far smaller doses.
- Turtles or tortoises. In these animals, butorphanol does not seem to give good pain relief and it can reduce breathing.
What are the side effects of this medication?
Side effects that may be serious or indicate a serious problem:
- Dogs, Cats: Sleepiness (drowsiness) is the most common effect. However, some animals may act unusually excited instead.
- Dogs, Cats: Stomach and bowel effects can happen, such as eating less, vomiting, constipation, or (rarely) diarrhea.
- Horses: Soon after a dose, unsteady movement and sleepiness can occur. If the dose is high, this may be followed by excitement, such as head tossing and jerking, wanting to move more, and stronger reactions to loud sounds.
- Breathing suppression (rare), such as trouble breathing or not being able to wake your animal.
- Horses: With higher doses, the eyes may move back and forth (nystagmus), drooling may occur, seizures may occur, and body temperature may become high (hyperthermia).
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Contact your veterinarian right away if you see any of these signs.
- Horses: Stomach and bowel effects. Butorphanol can slow down or stop normal gut movement. This is not common, but horses may show signs of colic, such as:
- rolling
- repeatedly looking back at the belly
- kicking at the belly
If my animal gets too much of this medication (an overdose), what should I do?
If you see an overdose happen, or you think one may have happened, call your veterinarian or an animal poison control center immediately for instructions.
How should this medication be given?
To get the intended effect, give this medicine exactly the way your veterinarian directed. Always read the prescription label so you are sure you are giving it correctly.
- Butorphanol may be given as a tablet by mouth or as an injection (a shot). It comes in many tablet sizes and injection strengths. Confirm that you are measuring and giving the exact amount your veterinarian prescribed.
- You can give tablets with food or without food. If your animal vomits or seems sick after getting the medicine on an empty stomach, give the next dose with food or a small treat. If vomiting continues, contact your veterinarian.
- If your veterinarian has told you to give injections into a muscle or under the skin (subcutaneously), make sure you understand where to give the shot and how to do it correctly.
- If you are giving injections at home:
- put used needles and syringes into a sharps container right after use
- do not use needles or syringes again
- your veterinarian or pharmacist can help you get sharps containers
- avoid accidentally poking yourself
- do not try to remove the needle from the syringe
- keep sharps containers away from children and pets
- when the container is about three-quarters full, throw it away following your local rules
- If giving the medicine is difficult, contact your veterinarian or pharmacist for advice on how to dose with less stress.
This medicine may be used for different lengths of time depending on the situation. Make sure you understand how long your veterinarian wants you to keep giving it. You may need prescription refills before treatment is finished. Do not stop this medicine without speaking with your veterinarian, because there may be important reasons to keep using it.
What should I do if I miss giving a dose of this medication?
If you forget a dose, give it as soon as you remember. Then wait the usual amount of time between doses that your veterinarian recommended before giving the next one. Do not give two doses at once and do not give extra doses.
How should I store this medication?
- Keep tablets at room temperature, protected from bright light, in the original prescription bottle or in an approved pill organizer.
- Do not let the injectable liquid freeze.
- If your veterinarian or pharmacist has prepared a custom-made (compounded) form for your animal, follow the storage directions and the expiration date provided for that product.
- Store this medicine where children and animals cannot reach it.
Can handling this medication be hazardous to me, my family, or other animals?
No special handling steps are needed unless you are allergic to this medicine. Wash your hands after touching any medication.
How should I dispose of this medication if I don’t use it all?
- Do not put this medicine into the toilet or pour it into a sink drain.
- If your area has a community medicine take-back program, use that.
- If there is no take-back option:
- combine the medicine with used coffee grounds or cat litter so it is unpleasant to children and animals and not recognizable to someone searching the trash
- put that mixture into a sealable plastic bag to prevent leaks
- place it in the household trash
Do not keep leftover medicine to use later, and do not give it to anyone else.
What other information is important for this medication?
- Butorphanol can partly cancel out the effects of other pain medicines and calming medicines. Do not give other pain medicines together with butorphanol unless you have spoken with your veterinarian first.
- Using this medicine may be prohibited in some animal competitions. Check the rules before entering your animal in a competition while your animal is receiving this medicine.
- If you have more questions about this medicine, contact your veterinarian or pharmacist.
©2025 Educational Concepts, LLC, a division of Instinct 69
“Disclaimer: The information on this page is provided as general educational material only. Every animal’s health situation is unique, and treatment decisions must be based on a full veterinary assessment. Always follow the specific instructions given during your consultation, and contact the prescribing veterinarian if you have any concerns.”