Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My Aunt has a Green Iguana that is 6 years old! He is spoiled and she keeps him very clean, in fact he poops in the bathtub every morning so there is no poop in his cage ever! She notice some blisters on his tail, took him to the vet and gave her Baytril to give him until the culture came back.. She gave baytril for a week and brought Guanni back with no improvement, the culture said it was a bacterial infection so the vet gave her penicillin shot to give him. She gave him those and she though it was getting better but now she has noticed another bump under the scales and is afraid another sore will form. Here are some pictures of the sores after weeks of meds and 2 vet trips! I told her to go to another vet to get a 2nd opinion and she plans to but the cost of all these vet trips are piling up and she is worried about her baby! Wanted to see if you have seen this before and anything she can do to help it..
Thanks Much!
Heidi

http://members2.boardhost.com/greenigsociety/

Check out the Green Iguana Society message board...lots of experienced people.

I just took a rescue to the vet and he joked about the number of reptiles with Baytril deficiency. It was kind of a dig on the wide use of the drug. He prescribed 5 injections of Fortaz to be given every 3 days. Also, I soaked the ig in a diluted Betadine solution (like weak tea) in a warm bath for 15-20 min twice daily. After the bath I put a very light covering of silvadine (SSD) ointment. SSD is used by people, horses, reptiles, whatever. It's used to treat burn victims and stubborn wounds because it works on both bacteria and fungus. It's a little stronger than Neosporin although that works in a pinch, too. It can take a long time for things to heal. You're working with a cold-blooded animal and a wound near the end of the tail. I would give it some time though, and get a second opinion if there is no progress in a week or so. I love my vet...he's board certified in avian/exotics, but he's expensive! I can so relate to the money issue.

I would also sprinkle some probiotics such as Nutribac or Benebac on the food. I take probiotics myself, so I always have some around, but it's a good idea when taking antibiotics.