How to Administer Baytril?

[torizazu]

Hey all, I am supposed to give my fatty cham .6 ml of Baytril liquid orally once a day for a URI, and I have been putting the syringe as far back as I can in his mouth to avoid getting any drops in his trachea and also I have not been squirting it in, but slowly letting it drip down his throat (as slowly as I can without him biting me).

I am really afraid of getting it in his lungs, so are there any suggestions on how to avoid this besides just putting the syringe behind the tongue and near the back of the throat?

Thanks!

 

[jannb]

I would not put it way back in his mouth.....that would scare me even more than dropping it in the front of his mouth. If he's still eating you could inject it into his favorite feeder.

 

[torizazu]

Well, I suppose I could but it would have to split up into several feeders and his cage is 24x24x48 so there would be no way I could ensure he was eating all of the medicated crickets...he is super mad at me lately because of the baytril and extra handling and won't take crix from my hand

The vet told me farther back is better because supposedly his trachea is rather far up in the mouth Where in the mouth should I put the syringe then?

 

[ferretinmyshoes]

I agree with Jan...let him lick it up at his own pace and you don't have to worry about forcing it down the wrong tube, which is very easy to do, especially if they're struggling. And if you could inject it into a big juicy hornworm or something you wouldn't have any risks. Their trachea is closer to the front of the mouth, but if he's not swallowing it because it's mad it could flood up to the trachea and he could still inhale it.

There are risks any time you forcefeed liquids of any kind. If that's what you have to do just try to be careful about it.

 

[torizazu]

Ah, I hadn't thought about larger feeders. Maybe a superworm?

 

[ferretinmyshoes]

The only problem I'd foresee with superworms is that since they have a hard shell there may not be room to swell with the volume of the meds so it may squirt back out the injection hole. Try it with water first to see if it will work so you don't waste the meds if it doesn't.

 

[torizazu]

Thanks, Ferret You always have the best ideas!!!

 

[Syn]

What did your vet suggest that you do?

 

[jojackson]

Supers wont work, Ive tried it mate, it does exactly what ferret said and the worm seems to die/stop moving immeadiately. You wont get much in a super, maybe a series of hornworms or silks would be easier if you go that route.

 

[torizazu]

Hmm... there's not a place in KS so far I have found to purchase those bugs at though and I need a solution asap

AHHHHHHH! Dang it!

 

[jojackson]

How about, ring your vet and ask about using a tube on the end of the syringe.
You will need to ask specifically, exactly how deep into the throat you can safely
put the tube and how to go about it.
A tube down toward the stomach will generally elimenate 'flood back' and risk of inhalation.
You also need to be sure your lizards stomach can easily contain the required dosage
otherwise you may need to split the dose in two a few hours apart, this is something to ask aswell.
p.s. Naturally you need to take care that tube has no 'bits' on the throat end that may cause cuts inside the throat.
Standard aquarium tubing (softened in boiling water, and not hot at the time of use) will work in a pinch, but
your vet may provide one, or possibly you might be able to acquire suitable gastric tube at a pharmacy.

 

[ferretinmyshoes]

Hmm... there's not a place in KS so far I have found to purchase those bugs at though and I need a solution asap

AHHHHHHH! Dang it!

You'll have to order worms online probably. There are a couple of sites that regularly have hornworms available and can usually ship overnight. Right now there's a greatlakeshornworms.com sponsor ad on my screen.

Tube feeding is an option like jo said if you're comfortable with it and have a blunt tube that can't be bitten off but I'd suggest having someone show you how to do it first. Your vet or one of their staff should be able to show you very quickly so you know if you're doing it right. The end of the tube needs to be blunt/soft so it doesn't cause trauma in the throat, and if he can bite through it (they can bite pretty hard when they're mad) he could swallow it. He's going to resent you for excessive handling however so I would try the worm method first personally because it's just so much easier if it works. And maybe throw in a regular worm between "medical worms" so he doesn't lose interest if the taste is weird.

You have a few options available, you'll have to evaluate for yourself which one will work best in your situation. Hope you are successful!

 

[jannb]

I have actually used super worms to inject meds on several occasions. They will die fast after injected. I make sure the cham is hungry and have him standing by to eat as soon as the worm is injected.

 

[spadefish]

Is the cham eating at the moment? Sometimes, with URI's, they don't eat much. Injecting a feeder with antibiotics is fine but only as long as the cham will eat it. If the dose is .6 ml, that is not a tremendous amount and the cham must be fairly large for that big of a dose. So, I don't know if I would be concerned about the cham being able to tolerate that amount. I would, however, be concerned that it takes in enough fluid to tolerate the baytril at all. If not drinking reliably well (and you really have to give more fluids with abx administration), then you might want to talk to the vet about subQ fluids. Not hard to give and may help protect the kidneys.

As for oral meds, in my experience, the cham will puff up, essentially hold its breath for a second or two and then exhale before inhaling again. That's when the med goes in. If the only alternative is no meds in a cham with a URI, then you have to give the meds. Injectable antibiotics are an option, but you have to either go to the vet every day to get the injection or work with a vet who trusts you enough to give the injections yourself at home.

 

[summoner12]

If the vet tells me I need to administer one drop worth.... I just place one drop on the chams tongue as he chews a recently acquired food item.... So say I feed off a super worm (my chams love them... so a sure fire way of getting them to open their mouth..) as they are smacking their lips and moving their tongue around to chew on the worm I just dab a drop of baytril on the tongue as it passes near the opening of the mouth.

 

[Echoezra]

I will preface my advice by saying, i am new to chams and have never given medicine to one yet. But if I was in your situation, I like the hornworm idea best, and i like summoner's idea too if he will eat with you hovering over him, that is. But if all you have right now is crickets and if he won't eat with you right there, then I would probably try this - dose one cricket, put just that one somewhere obvious that you can track for a little while (like on the screen) back away and wait til he eats that one, then in a little bit, put a second etc. Rather than several loose everywhere at once. If he's hungry and still eating... At the very least, if he gets one or two in him, it might make a lesser amount that you'd have to force feed and worry about doing wrong, right?

 

[summoner12]

I will preface my advice by saying, i am new to chams and have never given medicine to one yet. But if I was in your situation, I like the hornworm idea best, and i like summoner's idea too if he will eat with you hovering over him, that is. But if all you have right now is crickets and if he won't eat with you right there, then I would probably try this - dose one cricket, put just that one somewhere obvious that you can track for a little while (like on the screen) back away and wait til he eats that one, then in a little bit, put a second etc. Rather than several loose everywhere at once. If he's hungry and still eating... At the very least, if he gets one or two in him, it might make a lesser amount that you'd have to force feed and worry about doing wrong, right?

This is a good idea, I have tried it when supplementing fish oil.

 

[Psi]

Hey all, I am supposed to give my fatty cham .6 ml of Baytril liquid orally once a day for a URI

0.6ml???

Are you sure on that dose?

I give Ball Pythons 0.25ml and they're significantly bigger.

 

[ferretinmyshoes]

0.6ml???

Are you sure on that dose?

I give Ball Pythons 0.25ml and they're significantly bigger.

Not all reptiles have the same dosage schedule as they metabolize the drug differently, and in this case it may be compounded with a flavoring agent since lizards tend to care about taste more than snakes. If that's so then the concentration may be completely different than the one you use since it's diluted.

Like someone above mentioned good hydration is critical during a course of baytril so make sure he's getting lots of water every day!

 

[privdncr]

Baytril

I have recently taken my male jacksons (Atreyu) to the vet for a mouth infection .The doc put him on Metacam and Baytril. He is still taking the Batril and I have to open his moth manualy and simply just let one drop fall in. I also force feed him wax worms and he is doing great so far.I will post pics of him as soon as I can.