What is Tylosin used for?

Tylosin is indicated for: Antibacterial - no indication printed on this row, arthritis, Bacterial infection, Bacterial infection (general), Bacterial infection (macrolide), Bacterial infection (macrolide, gram-positive spectrum), Bacterial infection (macrolide; Mycoplasma, Chlamydia), Bacterial infection (row states no indication), Bovine respiratory disease, Chlamydia, Chronic respiratory disease (mycoplasma), Clostridium, foot rot, Gram-positive aerobes/anaerobes, gram-positive bacterial infection, gram-positive infection, metritis, Mycoplasma, Mycoplasmosis, pneumonia, respiratory infection, See source, susceptible infections, Swine dysentery.

Which species have cited Tylosin dosing data?

Tylosin dosing in the ExoticRx formulary covers 20 species: African Grey Parrot, African Pygmy Hedgehog, Canary, Cattle (Beef/Dairy), Chicken (Poultry), Dog (Domestic), Domestic Pigeon, Ferret, Gerbil, Great Horned Owl, Harris Hawk, Lovebird, Mouse, Peregrine Falcon, Pet Rat, Red-tailed Hawk, Russian Tortoise, Swine (Pig), Umbrella Cockatoo, Zebra Finch.

Is Tylosin a controlled substance?

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

What are the warnings or contraindications for Tylosin?

CONTRAINDICATED in rabbits, guinea pigs (fatal dysbiosis). Commonly used for chronic colitis in dogs. Very bitter taste. IM injection painful.

What are the side effects of Tylosin?

Reported side effects, adverse reactions, and contraindications for Tylosin: CONTRAINDICATED in rabbits, guinea pigs (fatal dysbiosis). Commonly used for chronic colitis in dogs. Very bitter taste. IM injection painful.

How does Tylosin work?

Binds 50S ribosomal subunit, inhibiting bacterial protein synthesis. Anti-inflammatory properties in GI tract.

Tylosin

US brand names:Tylan

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Contraindicated in Horse (Equine)

Horse (Equine): Tylosin causes severe and sometimes fatal diarrhea in horsesPlumb's tylosin monograph states the drug is "contraindicated in horses, as severe and sometimes fatal diarrhea may result; the drug should be used with extreme caution, if at all, in other hindgut fermenters (eg, rabbits)." Tylosin previously carried no species contraindication of any kind in this engine. Added 2026-08-11.

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

Tylosin is dosed at 5 mg/kg IM q 24 h in russian tortoises, per Divers SJ. Empirical doses of antimicrobial drugs commonly used in reptiles. Exot DVM. 1998;1:23. — Verified against Mader's Reptile and Amphibian Medicine and Surgery, 3rd Ed, p.1404 (2026-08-01). — SOURCE EDITION: Mader's Reptile and Amphibian Medicine and Surgery (Divers & Stahl) — ISBN 9780323482530, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780323482530. Verify against current literature before clinical use.

Backed by 18 published sources

· 122. Meredith A. BSAVA Small Animal Formulary: Part B: Exotic Pets, British Small Animal Veterinary Association, Quedgeley, Gloucester, UK; 2015.; 130. 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.; 174. Wyre NR. Rats, chronic respiratory disease. In: Mayer J, Donnelly TM, eds. Clinical Veterinary Advisor: Birds and Exotic Pets; W.B. Saunders, St. Louis, MO; 2013:242-252. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.774 PMID: 26833139 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 9.1 (Antimicrobial and Antifungal Agents Used in Rodents.a). Located 2026-08-05: the only table covering this species in which the drug's own row prints this dose. The copy held is an ebook conversion with no printed page numbers, so the table is the citable location. — SOURCE EDITION: BSAVA Small Animal Formulary, Part B — Exotic Pets — ISBN 9781910443712, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9781910443712; Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary — ISBN 9780323833929, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780323833929; Ferrets, Rabbits, and Rodents: Clinical Medicine and Surgery — ISBN 9780323484350,

Sample dosing (2 of 23 cited rules)

A dog/cat sample is shown here. Cited dosing for all 20 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
Dog (Domestic)	PO	5–15 mg/kg	q8h	Moderate	Simpson KW, Manchester A c. Chapter 134: Canine Colitis. In: Bonagura JD, Twedt DC, eds. Current Veterinary Therapy XV. Elsevier Saunders; 2014:550-553. — Verified against Plumb's Veterinary Drug Handbook, 10th Ed, p.1312 (2026-08-01). — Plumb's 10th ed (held) printed p.1284, Tylosin monograph spanning p.1284-1286; page located 2026-08-05 from the book's own running heads, verified to name the drug in its body text. — SOURCE EDITION: Plumb's Veterinary Drug Handbook — ISBN 9781394172207, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9781394172207
Dog (Domestic)	IM	8–11 mg/kg	q12h	Weak	Papich Saunders Handbook of Veterinary Drugs 4th ed., Tylosin, Small Animal Dosage > Dogs, printed p.827 (corpus p.855) — SOURCE EDITION: Saunders Handbook of Veterinary Drugs — ISBN 9780323244855,

· 33. Johnson-Delaney C. Exotic Companion Medicine Handbook for Veterinarians, Zoological Education Network, Lake Worth, FL; 2008. | 52. Morrisey JK, Carpenter JW, et al. Formulary. In: Quesenberry Q, Orcutt C, 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.734 — SOURCE EDITION: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary — ISBN 9780323833929, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780323833929; Ferrets, Rabbits, and Rodents: Clinical Medicine and Surgery — ISBN 9780323484350, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780323484350

· 391. Hawkins MG, Barron H, Speer BL, et al. Birds. In: Carpenter JW, eds. Exotic Animal Formulary, 4th ed., Elsevier Saunders, St. Louis, MO; 2013:183-437. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.423 — SOURCE EDITION: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary — ISBN 9780323833929, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780323833929; Current Therapy in Avian Medicine and Surgery — ISBN 9781455746712, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9781455746712

· 543. Locke D, Bush M, Carpenter JW. Pharmacokinetics and tissue concentrations of tylosin in selected avian species. Am J Vet Res. 1982;43:1807-1810. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.423 doi:10.2460/ajvr.1982.43.10.1807 — SOURCE EDITION: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary — ISBN 9780323833929, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780323833929

· 802. Samour J. Pharmaceutics commonly used in avian medicine. In: Samour J, eds. Avian Medicine; Mosby, Philadelphia, PA; 2000:388-418. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.423 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 5.1 (Antimicrobial Agents Used in Birds.a). The copy held is an ebook conversion with no printed page numbers, so the table — not the page — is the citable location. — SOURCE EDITION: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary — ISBN 9780323833929, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780323833929; Avian Medicine (Samour) — ISBN 9780723438328, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780723438328

· Brown SA. Clinical techniques in the ferret. Semin Avian Exot Pet Med. 1997;6:75-85. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.934 PMID: 41235870 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 11.1 (Antimicrobial Agents Used in Ferrets). The copy held is an ebook conversion with no printed page numbers, so the table — not the page — is the citable location. — SOURCE EDITION: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary — ISBN 9780323833929, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780323833929

· Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th ed, Table 5.1 (corpus PDF pp.405-408); located 2026-08-06 by chapter-governed table: this table is in the chapter covering this species and names this drug. NOTE: the served figure was matched against the table as a whole, not against this drug's own row, so confirm the number on the page before relying on it. The held copy has no printed page numbers, so the numbered table is the citable location. — SOURCE EDITION: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary — ISBN 9780323833929, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780323833929

· Carter KK, Hietala S, Brooks DL, et al. Tylosin concentrations in rat serum and lung tissue after administration in drinking water. Lab Anim Sci. 1987;37:468-470. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.774 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 9.1 (Antimicrobial and Antifungal Agents Used in Rodents.a). The copy held is an ebook conversion with no printed page numbers, so the table — not the page — is the citable location. — SOURCE EDITION: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary — ISBN 9780323833929, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780323833929

· Divers SJ. Empirical doses of antimicrobial drugs commonly used in reptiles. Exot DVM. 1998;1:23. — Verified against Mader's Reptile and Amphibian Medicine and Surgery, 3rd Ed, p.1404 (2026-08-01). — SOURCE EDITION: Mader's Reptile and Amphibian Medicine and Surgery (Divers & Stahl) — ISBN 9780323482530, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780323482530

· Dorrestein GM. Infectious diseases and their therapy in Passeriformes Antimicrobial Therapy in Caged Birds and Exotic Pets, Veterinary Learning Systems, Trenton, NJ; 1995:11-27. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.423 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 5.1 (Antimicrobial Agents Used in Birds.a). The copy held is an ebook conversion with no printed page numbers, so the table — not the page — is the citable location. — SOURCE EDITION: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary — ISBN 9780323833929, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780323833929

· FDA NADA 012-491 — TYLAN 100 (TYLOSIN PHOSPHATE) GRANULE [ELANCO US INC.] — https://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/drugInfo.cfm?setid=0cb546ce-5db1-47a7-85b0-b6800ecb3315 NOTE: this label doses in g/lb, mg/head, not mg/kg; the served figure is a unit conversion and is NOT printed verbatim on the label. Label dosing: '100 g per lb Ingredients: Roughage products, calcium carbonate and mineral oil.' — 21 CFR § 522.2640 (Tylosin), conditions of use for Swine: 8.8185-8.8185 mg/kg (the regulation prints this per pound; converted at 2.2046226 lb/kg). Related tolerances: 21 CFR § 556.746. Retrieved from the eCFR API, snapshot 2026-01-01. https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/section-522.2640 | mg/kg BASIS LOCATED 2026-08-19: Papich, Saunders Handbook of Veterinary Drugs, p.855, "Large Animal Dosage - Swine - Treatment of arthritis, erysipelas, and swine dysentery: 8.8 mg/kg q12h IM." The served 8.8 mg/kg IM is printed for this species in this unit; it is not only a conversion off the feed label. Book interval is q12h; this rule serves q24h.

· FDA NADA 012-965 — TYLAN 200 (TYLOSIN) INJECTION, SOLUTION [ELANCO US INC.] — https://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/drugInfo.cfm?setid=510b4ec0-6762-4b29-9786-e5afa7350fa3 — label verbatim: "BEEF CATTLE AND NON-LACTATING DAIRY CATTLE— Inject intramuscularly 8 mg per pound of body weight […]" 8 mg/lb = 17.6 mg/kg. Corroborated: Plumb's 10th ed p.1313 CATTLE: "17.6 mg/kg IM once daily"; Papich p.855: "Cattle - Pododermatitis and pneumonia: 17.6 mg/kg q24h IM."

· FDA NADA 013-076 — TYLAN SOLUBLE (TYLOSIN TARTRATE) POWDER [ELANCO US INC.] — https://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/drugInfo.cfm?setid=0c3d01b7-be57-4031-adbe-5dbdd2a6d7f2 NOTE: this label doses in mg/gallon, mg/pound, not mg/L water; the served figure is a unit conversion and is NOT printed verbatim on the label. Label dosing: '100 g Dosage and Administration Dosages: Chickens: NE indication: 851 to 1,419 mg/gallon (225 to 375 ppm) in drinking water.'

· 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.774 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 9.1 (Antimicrobial and Antifungal Agents Used in Rodents.a). Located 2026-08-05: the only table covering this species in which the drug's own row prints this dose. The copy held is an ebook conversion with no printed page numbers, so the table is the citable location. — SOURCE EDITION: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary — ISBN 9780323833929, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780323833929; Ferrets, Rabbits, and Rodents: Clinical Medicine and Surgery — ISBN 9780323484350, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780323484350

· Samour, Avian Medicine, 3rd Ed. (raptor formulary appendix), p.656. Row as printed binds this dose to raptors on its own line: "Tylosin Tylan Injection Raptors IM 30 mg/kg bid for 3 d 60 mg/kg tid for birds of 50-250 g". Located by line-level extraction and then read on the page; the species binding is the row's own species column, not text proximity.

· Simpson KW, Manchester A c. Chapter 134: Canine Colitis. In: Bonagura JD, Twedt DC, eds. Current Veterinary Therapy XV. Elsevier Saunders; 2014:550-553. — Verified against Plumb's Veterinary Drug Handbook, 10th Ed, p.1312 (2026-08-01). — Plumb's 10th ed (held) printed p.1284, Tylosin monograph spanning p.1284-1286; page located 2026-08-05 from the book's own running heads, verified to name the drug in its body text. — SOURCE EDITION: Plumb's Veterinary Drug Handbook — ISBN 9781394172207, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9781394172207

· Visser C, Wijnbergen A, Bleich A. Maeuse und ratten. In: Fehr M, Sassenburg L, Zwart P, eds. Krankheiten der Heimtiere, Schluetersche Verlagsgesellschaft, Hannover, Germany; 2015. — Source: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed, p.774 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 9.1 (Antimicrobial and Antifungal Agents Used in Rodents.a). The copy held is an ebook conversion with no printed page numbers, so the table — not the page — is the citable location. — SOURCE EDITION: Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary — ISBN 9780323833929, https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780323833929

Tylosin

Drug Class

Routes

Indications

Mechanism of Action

Side effects & warnings

Species with Tylosin dosing data (23 dose rules)

Evidence levels across 23 dose rules

Backed by 18 published sources

Sample dosing (2 of 23 cited rules)

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Tylosin

Drug Class

Routes

Indications

Mechanism of Action

Side effects & warnings

Species with Tylosin dosing data (23 dose rules)

Evidence levels across 23 dose rules

Backed by 18 published sources

Sample dosing (2 of 23 cited rules)

Upgrade for Full Details

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