Reptile & Amphibian Forums

went to the vet today. in about a month, all he's gained is 3 grams. went from 26 to 29. tested his poop, but came up negative... however i have a sneaking suspicion that it was never really poop to begin with, and the treasured pile that i found yesterday was really only a piece of old rotten collard greens piece... so we can't treat him for parasites. yet. his eyes werent looking so good so we had to continue with the eye cream i was given at the last appointment and now i'm injecting him once every 3 days with the tiniest bit of anti biotics every 3 days. i'll have to find a REAL bathroom sample soon because we have another appointment in about 2 weeks. but i'm wondering. does anyone know if the anitbiotics would help if he has parasites?

-gina

depends,what kind are they? did the vet deworm last time you took him or anything?i know with most mammals any deworming is actually a couple of weeks long process,and the deworming has to be done like once a week for a month(depending of course) so maybe he needs another dosage? if not maybe ask for a procautionary deworming for the tort just in case there is something?? if yours was infact a stool sample,and it came up negative,you can compare yours to the results of my torts fecal as soon as i get the results back(which wont be for a bit),if he has any parasites.(since they were from the same batch,i highly doubt he got anythign while being in my house,all my animals are clean)

What did the vet say about the lethargy? Antibiotics won't help with parasites that I know of. I would definitely do another fecal check to make sure he's in the clear. If the antibiotics help, you should notice a difference within a few days or so.
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Sohni
Northern California

0.1 Baja de L.A. Rosy Boa
0.1 Okeetee Corn Snake
1.1 Rubber Boas
1.0 Leopard Gecko
0.0.2 Hermann's Tortoises
plus my kids' herps:
0.0.1 California King Snake
1.0 Mexican Rosy Boa
0.1 Leopard Gecko

she said the lethargy is probably due to parasites. however, turns out the sample i provided her with was not a sample at all, but some old greens, so tough luck on my part. his eyes weren't looking so good. actually, i caught him eating tonight. yay. the antibiotics are more of a precautionary thing in case he has any sort of infection (he's so tiny it was impossible for her to draw any blood) and i was sent home with 4 syringes to inject him every 3 days. i need to go back with a REAL poop sample as soon as my boyfriend gets back from florida so i can afford more treatment... we'll see how the antibiotics do in the mean time. anyhoo... he went up from 26 grams to 29 grams... i KNOW that's tiny, but any comments on this?

-Gina

If he is fighting parasites or an infection, what you want to worry about is weight loss. A small weight gain or even maintaining a steady weight is good (although a full bladder could easily account for a few grams). You'll know more as soon as you can get that fecal sample checked.

BTW, your tortoise may not eat when you're watching. It sometimes takes them a while to get used to you peeking in at them.
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Sohni
Northern California

0.1 Baja de L.A. Rosy Boa
0.1 Okeetee Corn Snake
1.1 Rubber Boas
1.0 Leopard Gecko
0.0.2 Hermann's Tortoises
plus my kids' herps:
0.0.1 California King Snake
1.0 Mexican Rosy Boa
0.1 Leopard Gecko

oh yeh,what were the anitbiotics called and what exactly are they for?

ceftazidime or something or the other . i really hope it works, since he may have an RI... although he really isn't displaying any obvious symptems.

i stuck him in a bowl tonight full of chopped up collards and a sprinkling of dried krill to attract his appetite with the smell. i went down on the floor, did a few crunches, came up a few minutes later and spotted him with his mouth full. i guess that's good news. so now i know not to feed him with my face looming directly overhead lol... so, now that we know that he isn't losing weight, maybe its possible that there aren't parasites? hmmm... thanks everyone for your advice, though. it really helps tons.

-Gina