What routes can Ketoprofen be administered by?

Available routes: PO, SC, IM, IV.

Is Ketoprofen a controlled substance?

Ketoprofen is not federally scheduled in the US. Controlled-drug status differs by country — verify your local rules.

Ketoprofen

US brand names:Ketofen

Sourced from published veterinary references. Awaiting credentialed clinical reviewer — our editorial process.

Ketoprofen is dosed at 1 mg/kg IM q12-24h in rabbits, per Paul-Murphy J, Ramer JC. Urgent care of the pet rabbit. Vet Clin North Am Exotic Anim Pract. 1998;1:127-152. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.860 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 10.4 (Chemical Restraint/Sedative/Anesthetic/Analgesic Agents Used in Rabbits.a,b). Verify against current literature before clinical use.

Drug Class

Analgesic

Routes

POSCIMIV

Indications

Analgesia Analgesia (NSAID)Analgesia and anti-inflammatory therapy Analgesia/anti-inflammatory (NSAID)anti-inflammatoryanti-inflammatory (NSAID)Arthritic painEmpiric analgesiaMusculoskeletal painNonsteroidal antiinflammatoryNSAID (analgesia/anti-inflammatory)NSAID (suspected caseous abscess)

Show all 15

OVHPost-operative anti-inflammatoryPostoperative pain

Mechanism of Action

Non-selective COX inhibitor with potential lipoxygenase inhibitory activity. Anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and antipyretic.

Side effects & warnings

Short-term use only (3-5 days). GI ulceration risk. Avoid with other NSAIDs. Not approved for cats in all jurisdictions. Monitor renal function.

Species with Ketoprofen dosing data (33 dose rules)

Ball Python Bearded Dragon Betta (Siamese fighting fish)Blue-tongue Skink Cat (Domestic)Chicken (Poultry)Chinchilla Corn Snake Degu Dog (Domestic)Duck Eastern Box Turtle Ferret Goldfish Great Horned Owl Green Iguana

Evidence levels across 33 dose rules

Moderate×22Weak×10Anecdotal×1

Each ExoticRx dose rule is graded by the strength of its primary evidence — see the editorial process.

Sample dosing (2 of 33 cited rules)

A dog/cat sample is shown here. Cited dosing for all 27 species — reptiles, birds, pocket pets, livestock, and equine — is free on the per-species pages above. Pro adds the weight-based calculator for every species.

Species	Route	Dose	Frequency	Evidence	Source
Cat (Domestic)	SC	1–2 mg/kg	Single dose	Moderate	Tobias KM, Harvey RC and Byarlay JM (2006) A comparison of four methods of analgesia in cats following ovariohysterectomy. Veterinary Anaesthesia and Analgesia 33, 381-389 — BSAVA Small Animal Formulary, 10th Ed, Part A, p.221Compilation only — we have not located an independent source that prints this figure.
Dog (Domestic)	SC	1–2 mg/kg	Single dose	Moderate	Narito T, Sato R, Tomizawa N et al. (2006) Safety of reduced dosage ketoprofen for long term oral administration in dogs. American Journal of Veterinary Research 67, 1115-1120 doi:10.2460/ajvr.67.7.1115 — BSAVA Small Animal Formulary, 10th Ed, Part A, p.221

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Backed by 23 published sourcesShow

· 471. Tuttle AD, Papich M, Lewbart GA, et al. Pharmacokinetics of ketoprofen in the green iguana (Iguana iguana) following single intravenous and intramuscular injections. J Zoo Wildl Med. 2006;37:567- — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.253 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 4.6 (Analgesic (Including Antiinflammatory) Agents Used in Reptiles).
· A critical review on the pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and opioid drugs used in reptiles. Vet Anim Sci. 2022;17:100267. PMID: 36043206; PMCID: PMC9420515; DOI: 10.1016/j.vas.2022.100267. (Table 8; original data cited as Tuttle et al., 2006) URL: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9420515/
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Calculate Dosage for Ketoprofen

Avian Medicine: Principles and Application (Ritchie, Harrison & Harrison), p.826. Row as printed binds this dose to raptors on its own line: "Ketoprofen 1-5 mg/kg IM q12h Avoid in Gyps vultures; raptors, waterfowl".

· BSAVA Small Animal Formulary, 10th Ed, Part B: Exotic Pets, p.174

· Barrantes Murillo DF, Anderson S, Capobianco C, Lewbart GA, Wiederhold NP, Canete-Gibas CF, Negrao Watanabe TT. Systemic Exophiala equina infection in an Eastern box turtle (Terrapene carolina carolina): a case report and literature review. Front Vet Sci. 2023;10. PMID 37252397, PMC10213272. Full text and Table 2 read: "ketoprofen 2 mg/kg IM SID for 3 days" in a free-ranging Terrapene carolina carolina. Dose figure corroborated by carpenter Table 4.6: "Ketoprofen 2 mg/kg PO, SC, IM q24-48h280,471 | Most species, green iguanas/PK, loggerhead sea […]". NOTE: carpenter's own superscripts on that row resolve to 280. MacLean RA et al., propofol anesthesia in loggerhead sea turtles, and 471. Tuttle AD et al., ketoprofen PK in the green iguana - carpenter's own reference oddity, faithfully transcribed, not our error.

· Corum O, Oguz H, Erdogan T, et al. Pharmacokinetics, plasma protein binding and bioavailability of Ketoprofen in Pekin ducks after different routes of administration. Br Poult Sci. 2025;67(1):25-30. doi:10.1080/00071668.2025.2525518 https://europepmc.org/article/MED/40757501

· Flecknell PA. Analgesia and post-operative care. Laboratory Animal Anaesthesia; 2016:141-192. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.792 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 9.4 (Analgesic Agents Used in Rodents).

· Hocking PM, Robertson GW, Gentle MJ. Effects of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs on pain-related behaviour in a model of articular pain in the domestic fowl. Res Vet Sci. 2005;78:69-75. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.648 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 6.5 (Nonsteroidal Antiinflammatory Agents Used in Backyard Poultry, Gamebirds, and).

· Kubiak M. Sugar gliders. In: Kubiak M, eds. Handbook of Exotic Pet Medicine; Wiley Blackwell, Oxford, UK; 2021:125-139. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.710 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 7.4 (Analgesic Agents Used in Sugar Gliders).

· MacLean RA, Harms CA, Braun-McNeill J. Propofol anesthesia in loggerhead (Caretta caretta) sea turtles. J Wildl Dis. 2008;44:143-150. | Tuttle AD, Papich M, Lewbart GA, et al. Pharmacokinetics of ketoprofen in the green iguana (Iguana iguana) following single intravenous and intramuscular injections. J Zoo Wildl Med. 2006;37:567-570. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.253 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 4.6 (Analgesic (Including Antiinflammatory) Agents Used in Reptiles).

· Meredith A. BSAVA Small Animal Formulary: Part B: Exotic Pets, British Small Animal Veterinary Association, Quedgeley, Gloucester, UK; 2015. / Morrisey JK, Carpenter JW. Formulary. In: Quesenberry KE, Carpenter JW, eds. Ferrets, Rabbits, and Rodents: Clinical Medicine and Surgery, 4th ed., Elsevier, St. Louis, MO; 2021:620-630. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.792

· Meredith A. BSAVA Small Animal Formulary: Part B: Exotic Pets, British Small Animal Veterinary Association, Quedgeley, Gloucester, UK; 2015. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.792 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 9.4 (Analgesic Agents Used in Rodents).

· Mohan K, Jayakumar K, Narayanaswamy HD, et al. An initial safety assessment of hepatotoxic and nephrotoxic potential of intramuscular ketoprofen at single repetitive dose level in broiler chickens. Poult Sci. 2012;91:1308-1314. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.648 doi:10.3382/ps.2011-01929 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 6.5 (Nonsteroidal Antiinflammatory Agents Used in Backyard Poultry, Gamebirds, and).

· Morrisey JK, Carpenter JW, et al. Formulary. In: Quesenberry KE, OrcuttCJ, Mans C, et al. Ferrets, Rabbits, and Rodents: Clinical Medicine and Surgery, 4th ed., Elsevier, St. Louis, MO; 2021:620-630. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.944 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 11.6 (Analgesic Agents Used in Ferrets).

· Morrisey JK, Carpenter JW. Formulary. In: Quesenberry KE, Carpenter JW, eds. Ferrets, Rabbits, and Rodents: Clinical Medicine and Surgery, 4th ed., Elsevier, St. Louis, MO; 2021:620-630. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.792

· Narito T, Sato R, Tomizawa N et al. (2006) Safety of reduced dosage ketoprofen for long term oral administration in dogs. American Journal of Veterinary Research 67, 1115-1120 doi:10.2460/ajvr.67.7.1115 — BSAVA Small Animal Formulary, 10th Ed, Part A, p.221

· Oh SS, Narver HL. Mouse and Rat Anesthesia and Analgesia. Curr Protoc. 2024 Feb;4(2):e995. doi:10.1002/cpz1.995. PMID: 38406895; PMCID: PMC10914332. URL: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10914332/

· Paul-Murphy J, Ramer JC. Urgent care of the pet rabbit. Vet Clin North Am Exotic Anim Pract. 1998;1:127-152. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.860 doi:10.1016/s1094-9194(17)30158-5 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 10.4 (Chemical Restraint/Sedative/Anesthetic/Analgesic Agents Used in Rabbits.a,b).

· Ramsey I, ed. BSAVA Small Animal Formulary, 10th ed. Part B: Exotic Pets. Gloucester: British Small Animal Veterinary Association; 2023. p.174.

· Samour, Avian Medicine, 3rd Ed. (raptor formulary appendix), p.672. Row as printed binds this dose to raptors on its own line: "Ketoprofen Ketofen (Rhône Mérieux) Raptors IM 1 mg/kg sid for 1-10 d Pain relief, arthritis […]".

· Tobias KM, Harvey RC and Byarlay JM (2006) A comparison of four methods of analgesia in cats following ovariohysterectomy. Veterinary Anaesthesia and Analgesia 33, 381-389 — BSAVA Small Animal Formulary, 10th Ed, Part A, p.221

· Tuttle AD, Papich M, Lewbart GA, et al. Pharmacokinetics of ketoprofen in the green iguana (Iguana iguana) following single intravenous and intramuscular injections. J Zoo Wildl Med. 2006;37:567-570. doi:10.1638/06-029.1 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 4.6 (Analgesic (Including Antiinflammatory) Agents Used in Reptiles).

· Tuttle AD, Papich M, Lewbart GA, et al. Pharmacokinetics of ketoprofen in the green iguana (Iguana iguana) following single intravenous and intramuscular injections. J Zoo Wildl Med. 2006;37:567-570. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.253 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 4.6 (Analgesic (Including Antiinflammatory) Agents Used in Reptiles).