From:
"mustelidmusk"
Date: 2009-08-19 14:14:56 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] Re:Metronidazole for Giardia and IBD - Grapefruit Seed Extract
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
[Moderatior's CAUTION before this post:
We think that people MUST always check items
used with their own vets first, but in the case
of any part of grapefruit this caution becomes
especially important. Grapefruit boosts the
effects of some drugs and reduces the effects
of some others. The result is that it has resulted
in overdoses, exaggerated side effects, or poor
effects in a large number of studies.
We have also been asked in the past by vets to
issue cautions whenever a large amount of fluid
or slurry is given by syringe. Done wrong it can
be inhaled and cause aspiration pneumonia.
Using a syringe for any large amount of intake
(including food for a sick ferret) requires hands-on
training by your vet or one of your vet's techs.
Reminders: Your local water companies must
meet federal standards and also release to you
testing results. In fact, for public health there is a
move to hold bottled water to the same high standards.
Aquariums, puddles, ponds, outdoor bodies of water, etc.
can all be causes of giardia infection.]
Hi,
I just read this thread, because I went through the giardia nightmare for a year with my first set of ferrets seeral years ago.
Here is what my vet and I learned:
Local water supplies commonly contain giardia - enough to infect ferrets. The giardia concentration varies in tap water. So you can clear up your ferrets nly to have them re-infect. I was feeding bottled water, but my ferrets were licking up water in the bath tub!!!!
Some strains of drugs seem to be very resistent to the drugs that are used to treat them, and th longer this goes on, the more resistent the giardia become, and the weaker the ferrets' immune sytems become.
We were to the point where we thought our ferrets were going to waste away to the point of losing them when I tried an "alternative anitbiotic", grapefruit seed extract (GSE). The approach was to try the GSE by itelf and record the giardia count per field in the microscope. We did the same for the Metronidazole, and we then combined the two. The most effective therapy involved the combination of the two "drugs". without this, I think my ferrets would have died from getting so weak they would succumb to some opportunistic disease.
PLEASE NOTE: grapefruit seed extract is a powerful anti-biotic noted to be safe with one exception: It will irritate/"burn" skin, so you need to flush the mouth well after administering this to your ferrets. And do this ONLY under the guidance od a vet - there may be a reason you ferret may be a poor candidate for this therapy. (One of my ferrets did have IBD as well, but the GSE/metronidozole worked fine for him)
Product to use: Nutribiotic Citricidal Grapefruit Seed Extract
(not grape seed!) Here's a link for what to use:
http://www.nutribiotic.com/gse-liquid-concentrate-2oz.html
Dosing and administration:
Using a 1 cc syringe, draw 1/2 half syringe of water.
Draw up the correct amount of metronidazole.
Put 4 drops on a plate in a small pool. Draw up 2 -3 drops of GSE.
Now draw up about .2 cc of ferretone.
Using a 5 cc syringe, draw up a full syringe of water
Have ferretone nearby.
Wrap your ferret securely in a towel. wifront legs held down (like a straight jacket)
Give the icc syringe follwed immediately by the 5 cc syringe to flush the mouth.
Then give the ferretone (you actually may need to syringe the ferretone at this point!)
You may want to start with 2 drops nd increase o 3 if all is going well. Remeber that you need to flush the mouths well after giving the GSE.
Another thing to remember - once you have giardia, you have it for life. I suspect that re-infection (unless it's from a water source such as tap water, fish bowl, etc) is less likely than having a metronidole resistant strain couple with your ferrets having stress-out immune systems from the giardia, stress, etc.
The combination of mtronidazole knocked down the giardia "far eough" so my ferrets' immune systems could get the giardia under control. Thereafter, we had a very occasional minor flare-up (fecal exams detected giardia) that could be treated with the GSE alone.
because the areas we live in has very stubborn giardia, my vet now uses the GSE in his practice. I honestly do not know what might have happened without it.
Again, please do this only under the supervision of your veterinarian. I'm not a vet, and the GSE is potent stuff that's difficult to administer. Oe the "up" side, it is extremely effective, and it beats chronic giardia and severe weight loss!
Best of Luck!
-jennifer
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