Is Codeine & Opioid Painkillers toxic to dogs or cats?

Opioids are rapidly absorbed by every route, and respiratory depression is the killer: a sedated dog that breathes slower and slower can progress to respiratory arrest without treatment. Combination products multiply the danger - co-codamol and Percocet pair the opioid with acetaminophen, adding liver toxicity on top. Dogs show pinpoint pupils, unlike cats. Vets carry naloxone, the same reversal agent used in human overdoses, so reaching a clinic quickly genuinely changes the outcome.

Toxicity is dose-dependent. Your dog's weight and the quantity consumed are both important - include these when you call poison control.

Cats can react to opioids with paradoxical excitement before sedation sets in, and show dilated pupils where dogs show pinpoint. The lethal mechanism is the same: respiratory depression progressing to arrest. Combination products containing acetaminophen (co-codamol, some cold-and-flu remedies) are doubly dangerous for cats, who cannot metabolise acetaminophen at all. Naloxone reversal is available at veterinary clinics.