Reptaid - experience answers??

[nickb]

Posted this before but iPhone made title said "retaid" doh. Does anybody have experience with this product? I got some without doing too too much research but I had heard good things about it and how it boosts immune system. But upon receiving the item the instructions had all sorts of precautions. It also has a small amount of alcohol in it, so that also makes me raise an eyebrow. I've also talked to experienced keepers who are very knowledgable and they have said they don't believe in it and have never used it. So I'm wondering what to do.

Experienced keepers?? Reptaid users? Looking for educated responses please thanks to anyone who can help

 

[pssh]

I've used it before. I had a chameleon that had mouth rot several times (twice before i got her) and twice when I got her. I couldnt find out what had been used on her before I had her so we just went with what my vet thought was best. Then it came back again a few months later and I had a new bottle of reptaid so I decided to use it before i went back to the vet and had to get cultures done. It completely got rid of the mouthrot and she never got it again after that. The vet confirmed that it was gone. I honestly wasnt sure what to expect and wasnt sure it would even work, but I am now a believer. I mean, its not like a cure-all miracle drug, but I use it when I get a new chameleon or if one starts to act a little differently. Its not a substitute for a vet visit, but I like it.

 

[crocky]

I have always used on my dragons if needed but never my Cham ( only because I just got him not long ago and hopefully won't have to )
But from my experience it is good stuff

 

[ferretinmyshoes]

I don't use it.

 

[jannb]

I don't use it either. I only use what my vets prescribe.

 

[nickb]

I don't use it.

Any reason you or Jann don't use it??

Off topic but I saw the thread on you feeding your boy with the syringe - where do you get the ones with the plastic tip? And how often do you sterilize it? Or are they disposable? Just curious

Thanks for the responses guys

 

[jannb]

Any reason you or Jann don't use it??

Off topic but I saw the thread on you feeding your boy with the syringe - where do you get the ones with the plastic tip? And how often do you sterilize it? Or are they disposable? Just curious

Thanks for the responses guys

I don't use it because if I have a problem with one of my chameleons I have a wonderful chameleon vet and he doesn't recommend it. When my guys are sick I like to use only drugs prescribed by the vet. I feel like, why chance anything else.

 

[nickb]

I don't use it because if I have a problem with one of my chameleons I have a wonderful chameleon vet and he doesn't recommend it. When my guys are sick I like to use only drugs prescribed by the vet. I feel like, why chance anything else.

Yeah, that's a good call. I need to find a good Chameleon vet near NH for check ups and what not. I'll have to check out that vet reference list on here

 

[deadhd5]

While I don't pretend to have the knowledge or training of Jann or ferritinmyshoes, I do want to offer my personal experience.

I got Reptaid about a month and a half ago. I have 3 chams, one of which had no issues. One cham had become lethargic and spent a lot of time in the dark parts of his cage and didn't have much of an appetite. The third cham had been gaping for a few months (but never showed other signs of RI like wheezing or popping).

I gave a 10 day regimen of Reptaid to all 3 by injecting the Reptaid into crickets. The one with no issues seemed to not be affected by it. The cham who was lethargic became much more active. He began hunting crickets for the first time in months. The cham who was gaping ceased after 5 days of treatment. The improvements have lasted for over month.

That is just a personal account of my experience. I value both the advice of vets, but also the experiences of many long time keepers who have shared similar experiences.

 

[ferretinmyshoes]

I'm of the same opinion as Jann. I'll stick with good nutrition to promote immune health and proven treatments for illnesses. I don't necessarily think it's harmful, but I don't necessarily think it's going to help either. There aren't any studies to show one way or the other so I prefer to use things I can back up with scientific evidence. Jmo.

 

[deadhd5]

Forgive me, I am playing a little devil advocate here but it seems pharmaceutical companies aren't clamoring to spend money to test alternative remedies in human medicine, much less chameleon medicine.

Are there really pharm companies putting money into developing chameleon treatments? I can't even find a vet in my area that knows how to treat chams and I live in one of the 10 largest metro areas in the country.

Certainly good nutrition and husbandry are the best preventative medicine at our disposal.

 

[ferretinmyshoes]

Not devil's advocate, good questions to ask! The antibiotics and medications used in chameleons are not necessarily developed specifically for chameleons, however they are developed for animal use. So knowing the pharmacokinetics (how the body metabolizes it) in dogs and cats (generally the species most tested for) allows vets and researchers to apply it to other species. So the pharmaceutical companies are not necessarily the ones that provide the evidence for medications in chameleons. Private researchers and even individual vets can use medications in trials and then publish the data to show its efficacy in species like chameleons. So the drug may not be specifically approved for them because then the pharmaceutical companies would have to fund extensive trials on them, and like you said, there's no interest to do so. Interstingly cats are usually not even on approval labels of many medications used everyday on them! Dogs are enough because then others can prove it out in cats. So the science is still there, just via different means.

 

[deadhd5]

Thanks ferritinmyshoes! If you practiced in Cincy then I wouldn't think twice about reptaid!

 

[nickb]

I'm of the same opinion as Jann. I'll stick with good nutrition to promote immune health and proven treatments for illnesses. I don't necessarily think it's harmful, but I don't necessarily think it's going to help either. There aren't any studies to show one way or the other so I prefer to use things I can back up with scientific evidence. Jmo.

Really awesome responses. Thanks for the opinions everyone. Ferret I was reading your blogs on gutloading and Q&A. Nice stuff, more people need to read those - well written and informative.

I'm big on trying to keep everything as organic and natural as possible with my boy, so I'm glad I waited on administering it to him. It's also organic though, so good to have just in case, I suppose.

There seemed to be something on the bottle about being able to remove the alcohol from the solution? I'm not sure if that would make it any safer but it mentioned something about adding hot water to it