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coccidia....drug help

jaysun

jaysun

kare4corns
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i have a cornsnake that has cryptosporidium, and if its possible i'd like to find the drug "sulphamethazine" and administer it myself,if anyone knows where or how i can buy this please let me know or if you have any other thoughts,please i'd like to hear.i dont want to have to bring this snake to the vet for this...i've seen it done before and its just a shot of liquid down the hatch.i'd hate to have to pay a vet all that $$ for a simple job.

thanks in advance,

jayson rafter
 
How do you know the animal has Crypto if it hasn't been seen by a veterinarian? It's very dangerous to be administering dosages of medications without being sure what you're medicating for. Not to mention it's illegal, too.
 
vet.

i did bring the snake to the vet(sorry i should have mentioned that)that is how i know what it is.my problem was the price for this!! and the vets here (that are somewhat close) really dont like checking reptiles...(yea this is what they told me,i had to pull legs for them to check it(both vets.)witch is crap!!,i should have had no problems!!but thats a whole other thing.i have gotten other drugs for reptiles through the net.(legally) i just dont want to have to cull an awesome snake because the vets here suck,ya know!! i dont want anything illegal and was not aware of that drug being illegal ??for me to use,but understandable.and from what its looking like,im unfortunately gonna have to put her down... seeing as i cant get help. :(:censored:

thank you for the info.
 
The drug is expensive...and requires a prescription to purchase, even on line. It's also more than a single "shot of liquid down the hatch" - it is multiple doses over time. Sometimes the vet will provide you with the Albon to administer, after the diagnosis is made...of course, since you left without, you could be charged another office visit if you choose to go back for it - depending on your relationship with your vet (shich doesn't sound good, from the tone of your post).
There is a generic that can be acquired without one, but it isn't in the correct form or concentration to be easily administered to a corn snake....and I won't speak to its effectiveness in your situation.
Crypto is pretty serious stuff...and by the time it's diagnosed it is generally pretty advanced. It's also pretty contagious, so you have to worry about more than just that snake. Good luck with your choices.
 
Harald explained it very well. I think my comment might have sounded a little smart-ass so I apologise. I want to make sure you're 100% sure the snake has what you're treating it for. I've seen people lose animals over situations like that. The wrong drug to an animal whos immune system is potentially compramised could come down to a very tragic ending. I'd hate for that to happen to you.
 
thank you both...

also from what i've read,i do know its contagious,the infected snake was taken out of its original cage and put in quarantine tupperware,my question is how contagious is it?? i know it can get in through liquids,stool,and saliva.are there other ways of getting infected like...airborne??:ack2:
 
The most common way for it to get passed around within a collection is by keepers, when going from cage to cage.
 
keepers???

do mean by me touching them and then going on to the next cage without washing my hands?? everything for this dude is cleaned daily including fresh water.so even though im super-duper carefull theres still a good possibility i could pass this on?...are there any type of warning signs that i should look for in the rest of my collection... and kinda off the subject but i noticed we are both in upstate n.y so you must be close to me.where do you take your stuff and im wondering if we've ever met?
 
Yes.

I'm not close to you....
*edited to remove name of person who is not close to you either, I just always seem to think he's in Rochester
 
signs??

are there any type of signs?? that i should be looking for in my collection.

thanks the help & knowledge,very much appreciated
 
There is no definite cure for cryptosporidiosis. I know people use sulfonamide antibiotics which seems to help but does not clear the infection. Sulfonamides may slow or stop replication but no study has shown that they diminish shedding. We are trying to use ponazuril but have not had many cases recently. Sorry for the crappy news!
Michael Wenninger DVM
 
jaysun,

I can appreciate your predicament as I too have been in your position and it is very discouraging when your veterinarian, who is supposed to be your advocate, tells you there is nothing they can do to help you. Please understand that these individuals are admitting to their own limitations in order t o protect your interests and the health of your pet. It seems counter intuitive but if the vets you have consulted are not experienced in dealing with this disease in reptiles, it is likely that more harm than good may come from the situation.

I discourage you, however, from attempting to treat cryptosporosis at home. This disease cannot be cured with a simple oral medication. Often times these animals remain carriers of the disease long after therapy and in some cases it never resolves. There is currently no definitive treatment for Crypto and only experiemental clinical trials with sulfa drugs have been attempted with the hope of success.

Additionally, Crypto is a know Zoonotic agent meaning that iof you are exposed (which you are) you to can contract this disease and this can severely impact your health. Given the carrier status of these individuals any animal being treated for crypto should be hospitalized. This is not a treatment that would commonly be sent home with an owner given the nature of this pathogen. Your animal will require IV fluids, intensive hopital monitoring, Possibly total parenteral nutrition if it goes off feed and monitoring every 4-6 hours during the entire duration of therapy. It is potentially dangerous for you to treat crypto at home. For you and your pet. Many of the Sulfa-based drugs that have been experimentally used to manage crypto also have very severe side effects and need to be done under the supervision of a veterinarian because many of those are severely teratogenic and can result in severe dehydration. Animals receiving this therapy need to be intensively monitored and isolated in quarantine during the entire duration of therapy. If your concerns are financial in origin, your best and safest option would be to have the animal euthanized. This will prevent uneccessary animal suffering that may result from financial deficits and will lessen the likely-hood of exposing you and the rest of your collection to this potentially dangerous and drug resistant agent. If you truly wish to try have this animal treated, it will need to be hospitalized for treatment. This is for your own personal safety. PLEASE DO NOT TREAT CRYPTO AT HOME YOURSELF!!! If you become infected, there will be no garantee that you will be able to receive effective treatment and Crypto can be life threatening. As for locating a better veterinarian, I strongly recommend you contact the Veterinary College in your state. all of these institutions have fully functional clinics and many specialize in exotic animal medicine. It will be worth your money spent. If not, for the sake of your pet, please consider Euthanasia.
 
jason,

thank you very much for your concern,i did do a whole lot of reading on this.and everything you said is totally true...as for the lil dude, i actually did bring him to a local university (this was also recommended to me by others as well) and they are treating her(however they do) she was donated for research. again thank you and everybody else for your help,concern and knowledge.

jayson rafter
 
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