Pros/Cons of Popular Antibiotics

[Will0W783]

Hi,
I have been hearing a lot and talking a lot with some of my more established breeder friends, and was wondering how everyone here feels about certain antibiotics.

I usually use Amikacin as a first course, but I know it can be rough on kidneys. I have treated quite a few snakes with it when I had a nasty run of RIs last year that swept through my herp room, and not one of them died. I would give nightly warm water soaks along with a hot/humid cage and injection every 3 days.

I have also used Baytril with not so nice outcomes. I had a jungle/diamond yearling that had a very bad RI 3 years ago when I first started really building my collection. I tried a hotter humid cage for a week, then took her to the vet. He gave me premeasured Baytril in syringes. 4 hours after her first shot she was seizing and corkscrewing and had no muscle control. I called the vet and was advised to give the second dose the next day anyway. I did and 3 hours later she was dead. Whether this was from the drug or the RI had gone septic I will never know. I also had a boa with kidney disease that was given Baytril. He did not make it either but I doubt that had anything to do with the Baytril and more to do with kidney failure.

My current vet, who is the most awesome vet ever and very very knowledgeable on snakes, seems to love Amikacin, as long as soaks are given to keep hydration up.

But I have a male GTP who came to me with a throat abscess from swallowed teeth and despite multiple courses of amikacin has not been right in the year that I've had him. Every time I take him off treatment, he is bubbling and popping 2-3 weeks later, despite a warm cage and proper humidity conditions. I have 4 other arboreals and have never had a problem with any of them, so I know the conditions are not inadequate. I am just concerned with continuing on/off treatment and considering other antibiotics to ask for should he succumb again. He eats well, is active and alert and very tame. He's one of my favorite snakes and I've broken the bank on the repeated vet visits, but he's worth it to me.

One of the antibiotics I've heard good things about from other keepers is Fortaz. I've never used it, but was wondering what others' thoughts are on it. Also any other antibiotics you've used and outcomes. Hopefully this thread will help not only me but newbies who are facing their first snake sickness and wondering what to do about it.