how to give antibiotics?

[turtletania]

How do I give the antibiotics to my sulcata?

I noticed this morning that she has a clear liquid (only a very small amount) coming from one nostril.

She is 3 years old now. Weighs 2lb (1 kilo). Temps are 80 to 90 across the 6ft table..... and humidity is 90.
She is eating fine. Still wondering around. Everything seems normal. We have no vets here (or even for 200km around us) but i have antibiotics that I get each time i do venture to the city so i always have on standby.

So questions:
1. should I give her some?
2. how much should i give her?
3. how do i do it, cos she is so strong?

---

small update:

i noticed the clear liquid early morning when she woke up..... i haven't given antis yet.
BUT, i did up the temps a little (as per the health thread) and I have refreshed the substrate with new soil.

The liquid is not apparent at the moment, but I am keeping a VERY close eye on her.

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Tania:

I don't think you're going to get a response from one of us average-Joe members, and we really should NOT give out that kind of help on an open forum like this.

Antibiotics are very different from each other and dosages need to be figured out by body weight, strength of the antibiotic, etc. A veterinarian needs to tell you what dose to use.

Maybe if you PM our own Dr. Todd (exoticsdr) and tell him the strength of your medicine and the weight of your tortoise, he can help you. But in a PM, not on the open forum.

 

[turtletania]

yvonne thanks for that... i wasn't really sure who to contact which is one reason i stuck it in open forum.

 

[Laura]

I cant help with dosage etc. and like yvonne mentioned.. that is one reason..
but when you do find out what to give. ..
I fed it to mine. I had baytril tablets.. they were still eating, so it was very easy.. I hid it in bananas. tomaotes, and strawberries.. they ate it down and never knew...

 

[turtletania]

Laura that answers how to give it ... thanks for that tip.... now just to find out how much. I have put in a request with a vet in Malaysia and hope to get an email back about it. Gave him dimensions and weight of Dixie so hope that helps.

 

[turtletania]

Ok.... so further update::::

I got the tablet from a friend and rang the vet who told me how much to give her.
So i shaved off the required amount and put it on a small amount of food this morning.
She has eaten it all up... so hopefully after a few times of this she will lose the snot.

Have to ring the vet again though, to find out how often to give it to her!!!

 

[Maggie Cummings]

I personally think that we rush to give antibiotics too quickly and possible not for the correct reasons. She had clear snot form one nostril, that didn't mean that she has an Upper Respiratory Infection, you don't know that the type of antibiotic you have is for an URTI. She should have snot bubbles from both nares I think before we rush to give antibiotics. I know that tortoises are sick for a long time before they show signs of sicknesses but I don't think Respiratory Infections are included in that thinking. I think that we give too many antibiotics, too quickly and in doing so we are lessening the effect of them.
I'm getting a migraine so I am not being able to make my point... I think... so I'm gonna go take drugs and lay down and will try this again later...

I just think that clear fluid from one nostril does not mean she is sick and I think it is too soon to give an antibiotic to her. I would up her basking temps to 105 or so and her cool end to 80. I would moisten her substrate and I would soak her in bird vitamins and watch her for signs of illness, and keep us posted. In the mean time take 2 aspirin and call us in the morning...

 

[Tom]

You said temps are 80-90 across the enclosure, but how hot is the basking spot? 90 is not warm enough in my opinion. I like it closer to 100 in that one spot. I'd go to 110 in your case.

Anti-biotics are fine when needed, but why did the tortoise get sick in the first place? Fixing the symptoms will not solve the original problem. I'd love to figure out why your tort got a runny nose in the first place. Usually, if you catch it early and correct the problem(s) they will usually get better on their own.

 

[Yvonne G]

Thanks for that, Tom. Sometimes we forget the simple answer. I use antibiotics as a very last resort. I up the temp, lessen any stressors and hope for the best. If the nasal discharge changes from bubbles or clear fluid to thick yellow mucous, or if the tortoise stops eating, THEN I'll opt to start the antibiotics.

 

[onarock]

When was the last time she had a fecal exam? If your saying that the fluid is clear I would get a fecal exam done. Sometimes parasites in a tort can bring about syptoms similar to the onset of R.I. It appears your not close to vet, but I would hate to see you give this tortoise antibiotics if its not necissary, besides if it is parasites the antibiotics are not going to help and you may still have the same issue. What kind of tortoise? Good Luck

 

[Tom]

Thanks for that, Tom. Sometimes we forget the simple answer. I use antibiotics as a very last resort. I up the temp, lessen any stressors and hope for the best. If the nasal discharge changes from bubbles or clear fluid to thick yellow mucous, or if the tortoise stops eating, THEN I'll opt to start the antibiotics.

No thanks necessary. You remind me of that sort of thing far more than I remind you.

 

[turtletania]

thanks everyone for the help..... fecal test is not possible... i have tried, and tried, and tried, but there just is no option... one of the reasons I am concerned.
I have now upped the basking temp to 110.... have only given the one dose of antis, so will hold off on any more until i see what happens.

She is still eating well... and howed into a hisbiscus like crazy this afternoon.

I have completely cleaned out her table and replaced the soil. WHich she is now digging lovingly in.
I have washed everything in the table too.

I have ordered the parasite stuff "Reptaid" online ..... so should I give this to her when it comes? How can I figure out if it is parasites. I have access to microscopes at work.... is it worth looking at myself? will i see something obvious?

what other reasons are there for clear fluid from the nostril? I have seen some after bathing, but that usually goes after a short time. This is constant. Could it be linked to hydration?

Here is the set up:

And here is Dixie.... (and yes I know she has some pyramidding, but that was with her previous owner... all new growth is beautiful and smooth.) She has doubled in size in the past year.