Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I brought my Colombian Boa home from the vet today after having had a laceration in the mouth area stitched closed.
The vet gave him an injection of a non steroidal anti-inflammatory and I believe one intramuscular injection of Baytril. The vet gave me three syringes of Baytril to administer at home in order to prevent infection. The instructions are one syringe full (1.3 cc) (snake is 13 lbs) intramuscular injection every other day. I have a few concerns that I'm hoping some of you with experience may be willing to help me resolve.
First of all, when I got home, I did a search on the internet for "baytril" and found at the Bayer website that Baytril injections are only approved for use in dogs. There is also mention of concerns about baytril causing partial and full blindness in cats (I believe oral administration). No mention of reptile use, in fact a search for "reptile" in that area returns zero hits. However, after searching the forums here it seems as though it is a popular and commonly prescribed antibiotic for reptiles. Have any of you observed adverse reactions in your animals while treating with baytril?
Also, I'm worried about administering intramuscularly. I read a Vet Q&A column in Reptiles magazine about injected antibiotics which states "There is one drug commonly used in exotic animal medicine that is labeled (meaning approved by the FDA) for a single intramuscular injection only. After that time it must be given orally.... It is a common practice for veteranarians to use this drug against the label warnings and administer multiple injections...". The text states that injecting antibiotics that are not designed for this type of use can cause "sterile abscesses" which can leave disfiguring scars at injection sites. The snake already has a bit of a lump at what seems to be a spot where medication was injected, and the last thing I want to do is cause new wounds to my recovering animal. Would I do better to ask my vet about oral antibiotics instead?
Any experience in this area that anyone is willing to share will be much appreciated. The first injection is due on the 28th, so please give me something to think about tonight and tomorrow! Thanks in advance for any response.

have on a couple of occasions administered baytril to my boas while under qualified verterinary care and prescription. In both cases, the medicine was prescribed for mouth infections.(stomatitis)

My animals had no ill side effects and recovered fine. Just be prepared to have some help with restraining the animal while you attempt to deliver the medication. Did the vet give you good instructions regarding what part of the body to inject, how you should angle the needle, how you should switch fom side to side one injection to the next? That you should inject in between scales?

Hope this was helpful, reply if you have further questions regarding this post.

Mark

He did provide instructions along those lines. Your response is very helpful, thank you for responding and doing so so quickly!

The common recommendation for the application of Baytril in boas is 7.5 mg per pound of bodyweight subcutaneous on 7 successive days.

I would not recommend intramuscular injections of Baytril.

You have to add NaCl - solution to the Baytril injection, otherwise it will cause ugly scars on the animal.

Baytril is normally very good compatible in boas.
Boa constrictor

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Beware of Commies and Mutts!

yikes. thank you for responding with this information, i appreciate it very much.

I just wanted to give my opinion on Baytril. I have never treated my reptiles with it, but may be able to offer something more to think about. Drugs that are not labled for certain species may be safe to use. I would bet that Bayer has not tested or applied for FDA approval in reptiles. Their market would not justify it. It would not be benifecial enough to spend the thousands of dollars in studies it takes to get approval. Cats are treated with baytril when it is what is called for. Not all cats will experience the retinal detachment that MAY occur from the use of this drug. A few of hundreds of thousands whose vets submitted paperwork probably were the cause of the lost labeling. The dosage does seem high, but the possibility of dilution exists. I would venture to guess that there is not a drug approved for snakes on the market.....is there?

That's a good point. Thank you for your thoughts on the matter, they are quite helpful.

Baytril is a relatively safe antiobiotic for reptiles. In fact, it has been used so extensively (and inappropriately) that it has lost some of its effectiveness (new Baytril resistant bugs have evolved). There are two different concentrations of Baytril sold. The burns which Herman refers to are caused by the more concentrated version, hence his suggestion to dilute. (This more concentrated version is for larger animals, an 80 lb dog would need almost 10 cc of the dilute stuff.) From the amount you are injecting it is clear that you have the more dilute version, which should cause no problems. Because of the amout injected, I find it helpful to massage the site of the injection for ten seconds after removing the needle. This helps spread out the medicine so that it does not leak back out. And yes, the injection should be into the muscle (per Mader).