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Update on the eimeria infested corn

chaoscat Jan 15, 2005 02:42 AM

The blizzard isn't going to make it.

For the past week, I've watched her go downhill. Today, she can't even right herself. She just sits there. Her heart beat is very slow, like that of a brumating snake. Her eyes do not dilate anymore.

I'm not sure if its the eimeria that killed her, or if the ivermectin injection did. She started to get much worse after the ivermectin.

I'm really worried that my other adult corns may have this eimeria, even though so far, they have tested negative. I bought some sulmet, does anyone know how much I should put in their drinking water?

My babies and my yearling corns are safe, as they have not been anywhere near the infested corn.

This is a big blow to me. She was the best blizzard corn I ever saw. Nearly no yellow anywhere. She was a prize in my collection.

This whole week has gone to hell... since her problem, I now have an albino bull snake who hasn't eaten his last two meals-he's a baby, and he's not doing so well. He has a lot of air in his gut-could it be a twisted gut?

Then yesterday, my male savu python got loose. My only male, and we cannot find him. We tore apart the snake room, no sign of him anywhere.
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Lower Ground Reptiles

www.lowergroundreptiles.net

Replies (3)

joeysgreen Jan 15, 2005 07:26 AM

It sure does sound like a crappy week, fingers crossed to make the next better

The other corns housed with the blizzard probably have it as well, although without any stress a healthy immune system should be able to keep it in check. I'd consult your vet about adding drugs to the water and euthanizing that suffering blizzard if it hasn't gone already. In my experience ivermectin is very hard on very debilitated animals but if it gives the final nail in the coffin, your animal probably wouldn't have made it anyway.

chaoscat Jan 15, 2005 11:53 AM

>>It sure does sound like a crappy week, fingers crossed to make the next better
>>
>>The other corns housed with the blizzard probably have it as well, although without any stress a healthy immune system should be able to keep it in check. I'd consult your vet about adding drugs to the water and euthanizing that suffering blizzard if it hasn't gone already. In my experience ivermectin is very hard on very debilitated animals but if it gives the final nail in the coffin, your animal probably wouldn't have made it anyway.

No other snakes were housed with her, thankfully, but she was in with a couple of my males for breeding season.

Right after the ivermectin, she went straight downhill. Is ivermectin bad for colubrids? I've used it in boas before with success and no side effects.

Have you ever heard of a corn with eimeria before? From what I've been reading, its almost identical to crypto, but was supposed to be treatable. Unfortunately, it seems as if the treatments have killed the snake, rather than curing.
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Lower Ground Reptiles

www.lowergroundreptiles.net

joeysgreen Jan 16, 2005 07:01 AM

I work at an emerg. vet clinic so we don't see a whole lot of reptiles, or do much follow up (left for the regular DVM). Ivermectin is safe in colubrids, but as with all animals, at the proper dosage. I don't have the formulary in front of me, but say, if the dose is 2-4units then generally the lower dose would be given if the snake is considered overly compromised. Many things could have happened. It is quite possible that your snake had much more than emeria and the ivermectin caused a sudden die off of huge amounts of parasites. This leaves a large amount of dead animals in and anaphylaxis is a risk. It's hard to say, but if overly worried, I"d ask for a necropsy to determine the actual cause of death; it may help manage the rest of your snakes, or it may not, but at least you'd know.

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