Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I've got an Anaconda with tapeworms. I'm planning on giving it Droncit (PRAZIQUANTEL). About 6mg (dosage is 5-8 mg/kg; the Anaconda is about 1 kg; will weigh with digital scale when arrives in mail). That's for weighing the snake. I also have a small digital scale accurate/readable to 0.1 g that I use for weighing coins.

So, I need to deliver about 6 mg of the pill to the snake. Six mgs isn't much. Anyone have good ideas/recommendations for delivering such a small amount? Options include:

1) buying another scale that can accurately weigh 6 mg
(and put dosage into mouth/ear of dead mouse?)
2) dilute entire pill in water; cut water to dosage
(and put solution in mouth of dead mouse or inject in mouse)

Yes, I can afford taking it to a vet, but I'm sick and tired of getting ripped off by the medical community. Too many times I've gone to a vet or human doctor and pay $100 for a $5 job. No more. Thanks for anyone's suggestions.

Danny,
Don't dilute it in water. I think I can help you with the 0.1 gram scale if you can tell me the Droncit concentration in mg. contained in one of the pills. They come in different concentrations and I need to know which one you have.

Kelly

Thanks for responding. I have 2 types I bought:

1) From Tradewinds. Each tablet contains 34 mg of Praziquantel.

2) Droncit from Bayer. Each tablet is 50 mg Praziquantel.

Thanks !

Danny,
Use the 34 mg pill as it will be easiest to partition. If your scale is sensitive enough, weigh the entire pill and then take that weight times 0.2 as you will need one-fifth of it for the correct dose on a 1 Kg. snake. Take a one sided razor blade and cut off a piece of the pill that matches the calculated weight. If your scale is not sensitive enough, you can just cut off a piece that you estimate as one-fifth of the pill. Droncit is not highly toxic and 34 mg is a low concentration for a pill, so a close guess won't be off enough to be any problem. Hopefully the snake is eating pre-killed, as you can just place the piece down the throat of the smallest feeder it will eat. Don't feed between doses. Give one more equal dose in two weeks. If the weight of the anaconda is not 1 Kg., just adjust the dose accordingly. Droncit is an excellent drug for tapes and your anaconda will be clean of them shortly.

Kelly

I really appreciate the info. Yes, I only feed it pre-killed. I am pretty concerned because I've only had the anaconda for about 5 months now, and 3 times there were tape worms in his water bowl. Each time, at least a thimble full of them, so my imagination is going wild about how many must be in him. As soon as my scale to weigh the snake arrives in the mail, I'll do what you suggested and post any issues. Thanks again.

P.S. Is this odd for a supposedly "zoo born" anaconda? Makes me wonder...regards.

Bayer makes an injectable form which is alot more accurate to dose. If you have access to it use that, just make sure to give the injection deep intramuscularly. Not to sound like a jerk, but the reason you pay $100 is for expertise, medications and delivery. If you are really serious about the tablet, then half of a 34mg tablet is 17mg, half (1/4 tab) is 8.5mg which is safe or at the high end of the dose. Repeat again in 2 weeks. Naturally I would advise you to get an accurate weight before giving any meds. Don't dilute the tablet in water, especially tap water. The chlorine in it can have an effect on the medication. Good Luck!
Sincerely,
Roly
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Miami Hurricanes #1
NATIONAL CHAMPS 83,87,89,91,01

Thanks for info, I didn't know Droncit was available in liquid form. I've already bought tablet Droncit from 2 different companies, so I guess I'll stick with that for now, but will use that info for future reference. Yeah, I'm just bummed out with doctors/vets, I just traveled 30 miles to go a specialist, he did nothing, said for me to get my records and make another appointment. Not first time that sorta thing has happened to me. I paid $30 deductible cash and god only knows what he'll charge my insurance company. It really is a rip off. Now, if my dog got run over, I would definitely take it to the vet obviously...Thus my attitude.

Danny,
You are correct. It is almost impossible for a true captive born anaconda to acquire a tapeworm infestation. The life cycle of cestodes requires one or more intermediate hosts to support the stages of larval development needed before the adults can develop in the final host. It would be almost impossible for this cycle to occur in captivity. The eggs shed in the feces of one snake will not develop into a tapeworm if ingested by a cage mate. It must go through the intermediate host before it can move to the next developmental stage in it's life cycle. Therefore, you can be virtually 100% certain that this anaconda is wild caught.

Kelly

Oh well...at least my anaconda, if not CB, has a good personality. I've had him about 4 or 5 months now, take him out regularly (2/3 times a week), and he has never showed any signs of aggression, has never bit me or tried, always very calm. I guess I'm lucky for that.

I just got my weighing scale today so I can weigh him soon. But, he had cloudy eyes day before yesterday so I may have to wait...thanks for the info.

` Hey, I wouldn't be on a bummer about it not being captive bred. Especially if your Anaconda has parasites that you can cure. No major diseases is the big thing, parasites are just a bother to be cured.
` Look at it this way: If you get a nasty snake, it can be much harder to cure than most diseases. It can also be impossible, in some snakes, to change their behavior. So how about ending up with a perfectly healthy Anaconda who, as an adult, won't let you get near him? I've seen a lot of them, and it's no fun.
` Try to keep the treatment[s] from stressing him, as much as you can. You're lucky to have a tame, non aggressive critter.
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You certainly have some good points there, yes, I guess I'm lucky my anaconda is so docile. I just gave him his first dosage of Droncit (for the tapeworms) yesterday. In 2 weeks I give him the next (and last I guess) dosage. Regards.