Brand: DRONTAL ®

Company: ELANCO (BAYER)


FORMULATION: «tablets» for oral administration; may be chewable, flavored, coated, etc, depending on the country

ACTIVE INGREDIENT(S):

USA:

UK and other EU countries:

CHEMICAL CLASS of the active ingredient(s):


INDICATIONS: CATS

PARASITES CONTROLLED* (spectrum of activity):


RECOMMENDED DOSE*:

USA and other countries: 1 tablet per 8 lbs bodyweight

  • Cats 2 to 3 lbs. ≈ 0.9 to 1.4 kg bw: ½ tablet
  • Cats 4 to 8 lbs. 1.8 to 3.6 kg bw: 1 tablet
  • Cats 9 to 12 lbs. 4.1 to 5.4 kg bw: 1½ tablets
  • Cats 13 to 16 lbs. 5.9 to 7.3 kg bw: 2 tablets

UK and other EU countries: 1 tablet per 4 kg bodyweight: equivalent to 57.5 mg/kg pyrantel embonate and 5 mg/kg praziquantel.  

  • Cats <2 kg bw: ½ tablet
  • Cats 2.1 to 4 kg bw: 1 tablet
  • Cats 4.1 to 6 kg bw: 1½ tablets
  • Cats >6 kg bw: 2 tablets

* Can be slightly different in some countries: read the product label!


SAFETY

  • LD50 (acute oral) in rats: n.a. for the tablets. >5000 mg/kg for pyrantel; 2840 mg/kg for praziquantel
  • Estimated Hazard Class according to the WHO: not applicable for veterinary medicines

Suspected poisoning? Read the articles on pyrantel safety and/or praziquantel safety in this site.

Never use on cats tablets approved only for use on dogs, and vice-versa. Never use on small dogs tablets approved for large dogs. Learn more about tablets and their safety.

You may be interested in the following articles in this site dealing with the general safety of veterinary products:


RESISTANCE PREVENTION

Risk of resistance development? NO

There are reports on resistance of Ancylostoma spp to pyrantel in dogs and horses, but it does not seem to be widespread. And there are no reports on resistance of Ancylostoma tubaeforme to pyrantel in cats after decades of use.

There are no reports on resistance of of tapeworms to praziquantel.

Learn more about resistance and how it develops.


MARKETING

Are the active ingredients of this product ORIGINAL* or GENERICS**?

  • Pyrantel: GENERIC (introduced in the 1960s)
  • Praziquantel: GENERIC (introduced in the 1970s)

*Meaning that they are still patent protected and generics are not yet available
**Meaning that they have lost patent protection and may be acquired from manufacturers of generic active ingredients other than the holder of the original patent.

COUNTRIES where this product is marketed: wordlwide, including the USA, the EU and numerous other countries
GENERIC BRANDS available? YES, in some countries.

Click here to learn more about GENERIC vs. ORIGINAL drugs.


COMMENTS

DRONTAL is BAYERS's original and classic all-round dewormer for cats with pyrantel and praziquantel, effective against roundworms and tapeworms. This product has been in the market for more than 30 years.

Pyrantel is a narrow-spectrum anthelmintic belonging to the chemical class of the tetrahydropyrimidines that was introduced in the 1960s (by PFIZER → ZOETIS). It  is effective against roundworms and a few tapeworms (depending on the dose) in the gut, but not against those in other organs (e.g. the lungs, the skin, etc). It is effective against important cat worms such as Toxocara cati and Uncinaria stenocephala. It is used a lot in pets and horses but rarely in livestock. There are dozens of products for pets with generic pyrantel.

Praziquantel is a veteran isoquinoline anthelmintic introduced in the 1970s (by BAYER). Praziquantel adds efficacy against tapeworms (e.g. Dipylidium caninumTaenia spp) but has no efficacy whatsoever against roundworms, hookworms or whipworms. It is the anthelmintic most vastly used against tapeworms in pets. There are hundreds of antiparasitic brand for pets containing praziquantel.

BAYER marketed a febantel + pyrantel + praziquantel tablet for dogs under the trade name DRONTAL PLUS.

Pyrantel and praziquantel have no residual effect, i.e. they act against the worms during a few hours after administration but are quickly metabolized and excreted. For this reason treatment must often be repeated for certain indications. This is in contrast with wormers containing macrocyclic lactones (e.g. milbemycin oxime, selamectin) that ensure efficacy against numerous roundworms during weeks after a single treatment.

For an overview and a list of the most popular pet wormers click here.


DISCLAIMER

This article IS NOT A PRODUCT LABEL. It offers complementary information that may be useful to veterinary professionals and users that are not familiar with veterinary antiparasitics. 

Information offered in this article has been extracted from publications issued by manufacturers, government agencies (e.g. EMEA, FDA, USDA, etc.) or in the scientific literature. No guarantee is given on its accuracy, integrity, sufficiency, actuality and opportunity, and any liability is denied. Read the site's DISCLAIMER.

In case of doubt contact the manufacturer or a veterinary professional.