Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Anyone catch todays [ban] episode? Ive never heard of curing an RI that way! I have had dmong recommend fagyl to me with strict instructions on administering it(luckily i havent need to yet. one rule if i remember correctly was do not feed during treatment. Today brian claims to put flagyl on a prey item as a way of administering! interesting.

I have heard of people doing that in the past too, but it pretty much goes against my common sense and logic to be quite honest. I mean, it is an antibiotic, and it kills intestinal bacteria both good AND bad!. So with that said, the snake would have to be fairly lucky to digest the prey item at best if the Flagyl was given because of a bad intestinal infection to begin with.

Some have claimed that Flagyl actually "stimulates" a snakes appetite, but I also have to wonder if it isn't simply due to the medication helping eradicate whatever ailed the snakes gut to begin with that gave the people the "illusion" of the Flagyl doing this, or not?

In any case, it is common medical knowledge to not feed the snake while being treated with this medication, even though a snake could possibly not regurge a meal while being on this medication in some situations.

If a snake is being treated with Flagyl because it has previously regurgitated, adding it to food is certainly the opposite thing you would then want to do..LOL!. Even though some people do this, I certainly would NOT. Heck as we all know, lots of people do things without knowing about the "what and why's" about what theyare doing.

Now being that Flagyl IS an antibiotic, it could possibly have some benefit even in other areas of the snakes body, such as the lungs, but sensitivity cultures would best dictate what antibiotics would best target any given bacteria anyway. I think lots of people use things in a "hit-or-miss" fashion anyway for many things, and some would get lucky using certain things once in a while..LOL!

The very bottom line is that a snake sure as heck isn't going to die of starvation in a couple of weaks, but it sure as heck could die from continual regurging, especially if very small and delicate.

BTW, where was the previous thread taking place?

thanks, ~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com

I agree, although im not a vet. I know letting a snake go a few weeks without food wont hurt it and it makes sense to not feed while treating with an antibiotic. Which thread are you referring to? I saw this on brian barcyzks webshow on snake illness's.

LOL!!, yeah, him and all his jolly band of "cronies" he has working for him are all real "scholars" for sure..LOL!

Some of the stupid nonsense I see them talk about on "SnakeByte. TV" is a complete waste of video equipment..LMAO!!

Like this great video for example.......

LINK

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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com

the link didn't show up (a good thing)

Consider yourself very luck actually that it didn't..HAHAA!

~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com

Yeah point well made. Ive been watching it since last winter. I enjoy seeing the collection and to tell you the truth i will watch pretty much anything that features snakes (unless J lo and ice cube are in the cast). Brian is an incredible business man. Look at how he has marketed his web show. he even has merchandise for sale not that i would be caught dead in any of it at a show surrounded by my peers LOL. congratulations to him and his successful business ventures. Misinformation to the masses is not really a great thing though.

Yeah, I must agree with you on all counts there!..LOL!

~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com

The use of metronidazole (Flagyl) for enteric bacterial infections in snakes has decreased over the years due to the development of much more effective antibiotics that have far fewer side effects and much wider spectrums of anti-bacterial activity. However, flagyl is still the drug of choice for flagellate protozoans as well as Entamoeba infections in reptiles. Flagyl alone has bactericidal activity against only a select few anaerobic bacterial species and is therefore only going to be effective in cases of enteric bacterial infections where these species are the causative agents. In most cases of enteric bacterial infections, it is therefore, when indicated by susceptibility testing, commonly combined with another cephalosporin or fluoroquinolone class antibiotic to significantly broaden the antibacterial spectrum of the therapy.

While Flagyl should not typically be given with food, in cases where administration is difficult, it can be given with a meal. However, when dosing Flagyl within a food item, it should be the smallest food item that you can get the snake to eat. Not only will this provide for only a slight decrease in bioavailability of the drug, the smaller food item will greatly decrease the possibility of regurgitation, if that is an issue. Due to its limited spectrum of antibacterial activity, it typically will not cause a major disruption of the indigenous intestinal flora.

Kelly

"in cases where administration is difficult, it can be given with a meal"

Yes, that's exactly what I stated. And with snakes, dosing via a thin tube is as easy as pie in my opinion, and really couldn't be simpler.

Now a person not feeling comfortable doing it?.....certainly, but "difficult",...no way. I think it is probably comparable to a person being coordinated enough to eat a meal with a fork to be quite honest. To me, it was never anything more than "common" sense as to the physical administration. But many people are intimidated by all sorts of simple everyday things as we all know.

~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com

"While Flagyl should not typically be given with food"

This is the quote I meant to highlight..LOL!

Anyway, flagellates and Entamoeba activity is what causes many of the regurges in snakes, and this is indeed what Flagyl(metronidazole) works great on eradicating, as well as soothing the inflamed intestinal tract tissue that these parasites cause.

~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com

I would agree that colubrids and other small snakes would be an easy group to tube with no problem at all, but the difficult ones I was referring to were 20 plus kilo boas and pythons. If they are feeding, administering Flagyl, or any other drug, in a very small food item is a much easier way to go than risking physically damaging a large struggling boid. Over half of all cases of enteric bacterial infections in snakes involve diarrhea without regurgitations, and many times they will hold down a very small food item even if they have been regurgitating. So with these larger boids, placing the meds in a small food item is a much less stressful and viable option for the animal. If any animals health has been compromised to the point that it needs medication, the less stress they have to endure, the better the chances are of recovery.

Kelly

Yes, knowing that you are into the large boids, I knew you would bring it up anyway..LOL!. I would definitely agree that a very small meal(if they would indeed accept it) would be the far better way to go on very large snakes. Otherwise, any snakes that don't need to be gang-tackled and wrestled, are far better off with no meal for delivery. I am quite sure we are on the same page here.

~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com

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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com