jajeanpierre
Chameleon Enthusiast
What options do I have to treat a giardia infection?
These are imported wild caught quads, imported in December and February.
They've all gone through three Panacur treatments as follows:
Three or four days in a row,
Ten days after last dose, four or five days in a row,
Ten days after last dose, five days in a row.
The number of doses in a row varied based on my opinion of how the animal was coping and how long they had been in my care/captivity. The vet gave me the protocol of "three to five days in a row" so there was flexibility.
She told me giardia was pretty resistant. We chose Panacur because of its safety, the heavy parasite load and their being so newly imported.
I didn't get fecals on all the animals before we started the worming process. I'm starting to get fecals on them all now and they are still coming up with giardia. So far, I've had three fecals done after the treatment, and one came up with "some" giardia, another giardia and nematodes, and one was clear. (The vet said the roundworms could have been at a life cycle stage where the Panacur couldn't kill them and have now migrated to the gut.)
The vet is recommending another two treatments of five days in a row and a recheck. I'm only re-treating the ones that the vet diagnoses with parasites. I did a "shotgun" approach to the whole collection with the exception of the gravid female when two came up with giardia, etc. I waited until she laid her clutch and then tested her (no giardia thankfully). I'll be getting fecals done on the whole collection. The vet is an hour away and I want to make sure the stool is very fresh. They just haven't cooperated and all pooped early enough in the day for me to take it in.
I do not believe they are re-infecting themselves but of course, they very well could be. I am meticulous about washing hands between servicing each cage and not ever putting anything that was in one cage into another cage. Food items that escape are flushed down the toilet. I remove stool whenever I see it and the floor is bare. They are misted many, many times a day and all have live plants in their enclosures which I suspect is a perfect habitat for giardia.
All seem to be doing well in spite of everything, with the two bigger males from the December shipment having their ups and downs.
How have others handled giardia? Any suggestions?
These are imported wild caught quads, imported in December and February.
They've all gone through three Panacur treatments as follows:
Three or four days in a row,
Ten days after last dose, four or five days in a row,
Ten days after last dose, five days in a row.
The number of doses in a row varied based on my opinion of how the animal was coping and how long they had been in my care/captivity. The vet gave me the protocol of "three to five days in a row" so there was flexibility.
She told me giardia was pretty resistant. We chose Panacur because of its safety, the heavy parasite load and their being so newly imported.
I didn't get fecals on all the animals before we started the worming process. I'm starting to get fecals on them all now and they are still coming up with giardia. So far, I've had three fecals done after the treatment, and one came up with "some" giardia, another giardia and nematodes, and one was clear. (The vet said the roundworms could have been at a life cycle stage where the Panacur couldn't kill them and have now migrated to the gut.)
The vet is recommending another two treatments of five days in a row and a recheck. I'm only re-treating the ones that the vet diagnoses with parasites. I did a "shotgun" approach to the whole collection with the exception of the gravid female when two came up with giardia, etc. I waited until she laid her clutch and then tested her (no giardia thankfully). I'll be getting fecals done on the whole collection. The vet is an hour away and I want to make sure the stool is very fresh. They just haven't cooperated and all pooped early enough in the day for me to take it in.
I do not believe they are re-infecting themselves but of course, they very well could be. I am meticulous about washing hands between servicing each cage and not ever putting anything that was in one cage into another cage. Food items that escape are flushed down the toilet. I remove stool whenever I see it and the floor is bare. They are misted many, many times a day and all have live plants in their enclosures which I suspect is a perfect habitat for giardia.
All seem to be doing well in spite of everything, with the two bigger males from the December shipment having their ups and downs.
How have others handled giardia? Any suggestions?
