Panacur Effects? - Page 2

Samba · 07-08-03, 03:44 PM

Just a question... Does anyone have an idea on how long it takes a leopard gecko to recover it's appetite after being dewormed with Panacur? It's been over a month and I'm still assist-feeding my baby. =/ If you've had this experience, please inform me! Thanks!

drewlowe · 07-08-03, 03:56 PM

samba for my other 6 leos that were given panacur for all the full doses. It took about 3-4 weeks for them to finally get their appetites back. now they are all eating like little piggies. I should post a pic of rouge or speedball cause those 2 are huge.

Hoped that helped a little. Just remember loki is a special case. not every leo that takes panacur ends up like her.

eyespy · 07-08-03, 04:00 PM

It's really tough to say whether the Panacur caused liver damage or whether it was the parasites themselves or some entirely unrelated thing. Liver disease is the number 1 killer of captive herps and there are so many different causes of it, it's tough to say with any surety unless the necropsy included deep tissue analysis of the liver to see if there was an excess level of Panacur found.

Just the waste products pumped out by a heavy parasite load is enough to cause liver failure so the condition may have existed before Panacur was ever given.

Samba · 07-08-03, 04:20 PM

I know, Eyespy. I have had the vet hold onto Darwin's liver so that when I get the money I can find out, once and for all, what casued his death. We really don't think it was the Panacur as much as we suspect the Droncit. There is some dosage inconsistencies that could have over-dosed him. We'll keep you posted when we do have the toxicology done. I also suspected that toxic shock (from the dead bodies of all the parasites) could have also caused his liver damage. We just won't know until we get the test done. As for the baby, I don't know what to do. This is getting really frustrating, I've tried just about everything in the book to try and get her to eat. What really irks me is that she'll consume if I put the darn worms in her mouth!

Alicewave · 07-09-03, 08:07 AM

Samba, about the apetite, sometimes you have to withhold the assist feeding before the apetite will return. Make sure the gecko has a good enough fat store to last a couple weeks without food and offer fresh mealies in a dish everyday until you start to see some missing. But leave her alone. Don't wiggle food in front of her and hope she takes it. For me that never worked. Sometimes assist feeding can stifle the feeding response so you basically have to "starve" them til they realize they have to hunt for themselves again.

Of course always monitor it's health if you think it can't last go back to assist feeding til it gets bigger and try again. Another thing you can try is a product called "JumpStart" just before the "withholding" period. It's supposed to be an apetite stimulant. This method worked really well with Aurora. It took her at least two weeks to start eating on her own. Once she did she was eating like a horse. Be patient and as long as there is still a decent bulge to the tail hold out. (unless of course you see other signs of ill health). I had assist fed aurora up to 35 grams and she dropped back to 25 til she ate on her own. I worried like hell but it was worth it. Good luck.

Samba · 07-10-03, 09:11 AM

Thanks, Meg. I have starved my baby (it killed me!) Yesturday I couldn't take it any longer and fed her (this is after about two weeks). The first time I starved her was for five days. She lost a little weight, and it scared me, and I felt so guilty for not feeding her! I had a problem with JumpStart a few years back, and am hesitant about using it again. Currently my baby is about 8 grams, (she was around 10 when I bought her in March). She acts like a normal gecko, she just won't eat. I hope she'll come around soon because this is really bothering me, especially after losing Darwin. =( I keep careful notes on how much she eats, what she eats, and when, as well as when she deficates. I can't really find anything wrong with her, so I'm guessing it's the Panacur. I spoke to her breeder not too long ago, and he said if something happened to her he'd replace her, but I don't want to lose her at all. She's negative for worms now, so this is really confusing. Thanks for the advice, I'll keep you guys updated.

Alicewave · 07-10-03, 11:46 AM

Only 8 grams! wow. That's how big Aurora was when I rescued her. She was 6 months at the time. I had to syringe feed Enteral insectivore for two months before I was confortable letting her try to feed on her own. Enteral Insectivore is probably better nutrition than worms anyway so I would suggest you just go with that for a while until she is bigger. This way you can be sure all the nutrients she lost with her bout of worms and from the Panacur are fully restored before you let her eat on her own.

drewlowe · 07-10-03, 11:56 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Alicewave
Enteral Insectivore is probably better nutrition than worms anyway so I would suggest you just go with that for a while until she is bigger. This way you can be sure all the nutrients she lost with her bout of worms and from the Panacur are fully restored before you let her eat on her own.

alicewave where can you get enteral insectivore at and how much does it cost??? it would be helpful for loki to have some of this stuff. thank you for any information.

Alicewave · 07-10-03, 01:49 PM

It's from the US but she has shipped to Canada. It's not expensive and doesn't take long. I don't think you can order online yet but go to www.herpnutrition.com the number is right on the site, you can call in an order, may have to leave a message for her to get back to you. She's a reptile nutrition specialist.

Samba · 07-11-03, 02:54 PM

Jaime-Enteral Insectivore was originally recommended to me by Meg. I bought a lot of the stuff for about 13 bucks. I think one bag is like 3 bucks plus 5 dollars for s&h. Meg, I coat the mealworms with the Enteral Insectivore and Rep-Cal before feeding to her. Grrr, this baby is driving me nuts! I really hope she regains her appetite soon... =/

Linds · 07-11-03, 03:42 PM

I know this is a bit off topic, but...

Quote:

Originally posted by Samba

Well, I dewormed the baby, (I haven't dewormed Girl yet because I'll be breeding her soon... not sure what effects the medicine could have on developing eggs, etc.)

Unless you are positive that Girl is 100% healthy (this means free of parasites), breeding shouldn't be an issue. If there is any doubt (which it sounds like there is since you and the vet were considering treatment), she should be wormed and brought to condition first. A lot of parasites cannot be passed down from mother to baby, but some can.

Samba · 07-15-03, 08:37 AM

Linds, thanks for the helpful advice. Girl was dewormed when I first got her over a year ago, then six months ago. When preparing to breed my geckos, I always get them a vet check. That was how I discovered that Darwin had tapeworms. Furthermore, all of my Leos are housed separately. Girl had a fecal done and was negative for parasites, the vet only recommended dosing her with Panacur again because I was treating Darwin and the baby. Girl is in the utmost health, and I am thankful for that, considering I've lost Darwin and am having difficulty with the baby. I still haven't bred her yet, as I am looking for another male. (The stud I was going to use also had worms at his vet check). Thanks again. =)