Pet owner resources
Read the information sheet below, then print or download it for reference. Follow the instructions on your pet’s dispensing label and from your veterinary team.
Cisapride
Pet owner information sheet
💊 The most important rule: give this medication exactly as your veterinarian prescribed it — the right dose, at the right times, for the right number of days.
What is this medication for?
- Chronic constipation / megacolon (first-line prokinetic for feline constipation)
- stomach/intestinal stasis/reflux esophagitis, megaesophagus regurgitation, esophagitis stricture prevention, detrusor atony
How is it given?
Give exactly as your veterinarian prescribed — never change the dose or stop on your own unless your veterinarian has told you to.
- Timing is the prescription: 15–30 minutes BEFORE meals — giving it with food wastes the prokinetic window.
What if I miss a dose?
- Give it as soon as you remember — unless it is almost time for the next dose (then skip the missed one; never double up).
- Call your clinic if you miss more than one dose in a row.
Side effects — what should I watch for?
Effects listed as common in this handout
- Diarrhea, cramping (Possible)
Worth a phone call to your veterinarian
- Cardiac arrhythmias (QT prolongation) (The reason for human withdrawal — ECG monitor susceptible patients)
⚠️ Contact your veterinarian or an emergency clinic IMMEDIATELY if you notice
- Overdose: wobbliness/unsteadiness, hypersalivation, muscle fasciculations, overheating, seizures (APCC reports)
Before starting (or refilling), tell your veterinarian if your pet:
- has or has had: stomach/intestinal perforation/obstruction, bleeding; hypersensitivity
- has or has had: Hepatic insufficiency — halve the dose; cardiac disease / arrhythmia history
- is pregnant, nursing, or used for breeding
- is taking any other medications, supplements, or flea/tick products, including:
- CYP3A4 inhibitors: ketoconazole/itraconazole/fluconazole, chloramphenicol, cimetidine, erythromycin-class macrolides, grapefruit
- QT-prolonging drugs: amiodarone, clarithromycin, moxifloxacin, procainamide, quinidine, sotalol, TCAs
- Anticholinergics
- Benzodiazepines
- Warfarin
- Oral narrow-index drugs
Storage and handling
No commercial product since July 2000 — obtained from compounding pharmacies. Oral suspension 10 mg/mL (Ora-Plus/Ora-Sweet) or injectable 1 mg/mL (tartaric acid) recipes in Papich; injectable refrigerated, light-protected, 14-day beyond-use date.
Good to know
- Timing is the prescription: 15–30 minutes BEFORE meals — giving it with food wastes the prokinetic window.
- Withdrawn from the human market for fatal arrhythmias (QT) — the compounding-only status makes interaction screening (azole antifungals, macrolides) mandatory before dispensing.
- For feline megacolon, cisapride + lactulose + dietary fiber is the classic medical triad before subtotal colectomy is considered.
- Activated charcoal binds unabsorbed cisapride in overdose.
This information sheet is educational and supplements — it does not replace — your veterinarian's individual instructions. Doses are set by your veterinarian based on your pet's weight, health, and other medications.
Questions? Contact: _________________ (clinic) • After-hours emergency: _________________