# Any vets in the Doncaster area



## Amilou (10 mo ago)

Hi, I'm just wondering if anyone knows any vets in the Doncaster are that can treat a boa with an respiratory infection, I have rang a few and just seem to get told there is no one there that has info on reptiles so feel a bit lost thank you x


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## Malc (Oct 27, 2009)

What's the size of the boa and how advanced is the RI ? Ceftazidime is often prescribed for treating RI in reptiles, and can be administered by the owner at home thus saving on expensive visits to have nurse administer the injections. 18 months ago my eight and a half foot male of around 11kg had an RI and a course of 4 x 2.2ml Ceftazidime Injections did the trick. Hopefully someone will chime in here with a recommendation of a vets that can prescribe this for you.


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## Amilou (10 mo ago)

She's around 5 and a half foot and nearly 3 years old, and I'm not 100% sure hse has been off her food for a while but she has done that before but it's only the last few days I have noticed signs that it might be that, thank you for the info its really helpful


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## Malc (Oct 27, 2009)

The normal signs are excessive mucus when they yawn, crackling sound / bubbles from the nostrils. More frequent re-alignment of the jaws, and in more advance cases, the snake will gape and extend the snorkel to aid breathing. This time of year most snakes are passed the breeding season (my male goes off food anytime between late October and end April), so maybe the lack of an appetite is also an indication your snake is under the weather. 

My vet wasn't a specialist in reptiles, and like any vet knew how to confirm an RI (its no different to any other animal, listen to the breathing using a stethoscope), and having discussed the anti-biotic in question she telephoned a colleague with more reptile knowledge just to confirm its use and then made up four 2.2ml Syringes ( 1mg of ceftazidime diluted in 10ml sterile water) which were kept at home in the freezer until required. The dosage was 20mg / kg The vet demonstrated where to inject (a point that is around 1/3 the snakes length from the head, and half way between the spine and a mid point between the spin and the ventral scale - sorta 2 O'clock position if you get my drift). You thaw out the syringe a couple of hours before use so it's around room temperature and inject between scales. My snake didn't really notice or react.

He was improving after the first course (1 injection every 72 hrs) but to be safe than sorry prescribed a second dose. Pleased to say that after the 6th injection he demolished a large quail and with him now eating that helped to regain some of the weight loss, and also help his immune system fight the infection naturally.

Given this post, I would suggest contacting a vet near you and try again to see if they would examine the snake. There are specialist vets that another vet can ring if needed, but I'm willing to pass on details of my vet for you to relay to your vet in needed.

Hope that helps


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## Amilou (10 mo ago)

Tha k you for that, we rang a few today and they recommended one in Sheffield, so we have appointment on Monday, it's obviously a little bit far but they really knew what they were talking about so made me feel realived thank you for all your advice x


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## Malc (Oct 27, 2009)

Amilou said:


> Tha k you for that, we rang a few today and they recommended one in Sheffield, so we have appointment on Monday, it's obviously a little bit far but they really knew what they were talking about so made me feel realived thank you for all your advice x


Your welcome, keep us informed of how things turn out


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## StuG (Nov 4, 2009)

Malc said:


> What's the size of the boa and how advanced is the RI ? Ceftazidime is often prescribed for treating RI in reptiles, and can be administered by the owner at home thus saving on expensive visits to have nurse administer the injections. 18 months ago my eight and a half foot male of around 11kg had an RI and a course of 4 x 2.2ml Ceftazidime Injections did the trick. Hopefully someone will chime in here with a recommendation of a vets that can prescribe this for you.


Really bad advice Malc. The snake needs to see a vet, really shouldn’t be advising treatment over the internet. 
The underlying husbandry issues need addressing, the animal will benefit from a physical examination, the vet can swab and prescribe the correct anti-biotic


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## ian14 (Jan 2, 2008)

StuG said:


> Really bad advice Malc. The snake needs to see a vet, really shouldn’t be advising treatment over the internet.
> The underlying husbandry issues need addressing, the animal will benefit from a physical examination, the vet can swab and prescribe the correct anti-biotic


Agreed.
There are different bacteria that cause RI, which don't always respond to the same anti bionics. Swabs should be taken to culture the bacteria to identify the best anti biotic.


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## Swindinian (May 4, 2020)

I read it differently perhaps.

Malc is directing to a vet?

Malc is sharing details of his experience. He is not diagnosing nor prescribing.
I don’t see that as being bad advice.
Just because information can be misunderstood or acted on inappropriately doesn’t mean people should hold back.

Andy


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## Swindinian (May 4, 2020)

Sometimes vets will run a course of antibiotics before swab results come back. Perhaps this leads to increased use of some antibiotics unnecessarily, but there is also the case of weighing up action versus the delay of the lab culturing.


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## Malc (Oct 27, 2009)

Swindinian said:


> I read it differently perhaps.
> 
> Malc is directing to a vet?
> 
> ...


Thank you Andy, that was indeed my intention. 

I wasn't making a diagnosis, or prescribing. I was relaying my personal account of how my boa was treated, and the treatment I given. I was also trying to give the OP some form of reassurance that administering IM drugs is something that they can do after instruction and that based on my own experience which drug worked. But the bottom line was that the snake should be seen by a vet and and they should be the ones performing the examination and prescribing any medication they deem suitable. I've never said otherwise


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## Malc (Oct 27, 2009)

StuG said:


> Really bad advice Malc. The snake needs to see a vet, really shouldn’t be advising treatment over the internet.


I sometimes wonder if posting on the forum is worth the effort.....

I was simply relaying an account from personal experience of how my Boa with a bad RI was treated, the drugs prescribed and how well the snake responded. I also advised the OP to seek a vets appointment, and nowhere in my posts did I suggest the OP treated his snake without having first having sought professional advice from a qualified vet. I went into details of the drug, its dosage and how it was made up to as a means of discussion the OP may wish to have with the vets, and explained how easy it was for me to administer the drug, hopefully to give the OP the confidence to do the same if directed.

Maybe I should stick to telling newbies to use the search function.... no wait, I was flamed for doing that as well !


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## ian14 (Jan 2, 2008)

Just be VERY careful in this scenario.
The fact is, it is illegal to provide veterinary advice or treatment unless qualified to do so.
Anti groups read these sites.
Trying to offer medical treatment for an illness isn't best form.


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## Swindinian (May 4, 2020)

I agree it is important to be considered and careful with how we present and phrase information.

However, I thought that is exactly what Malc had done.

Perhaps the phrase about the cost saving with self administering was a section which could be misconstrued, but the fact is, this could only be legally done under the supervision and instruction of a vet. But would also be preferable for the care of the animal so as to avoid the stress of return visits to the vets, reducing it to an initial and final check up, ideally.

There is always a danger of comments being misinterpreted or used against oneself, that has to be balanced against the benefits of collective learning and advancement.


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## StuG (Nov 4, 2009)

Malc said:


> Thank you Andy, that was indeed my intention.
> 
> I wasn't making a diagnosis, or prescribing. I was relaying my personal account of how my boa was treated, and the treatment I given. I was also trying to give the OP some form of reassurance that administering IM drugs is something that they can do after instruction and that based on my own experience which drug worked. But the bottom line was that the snake should be seen by a vet and and they should be the ones performing the examination and prescribing any medication they deem suitable. I've never said otherwise


Apologies Malc if I mis-read the post but that’s how it seemed to me when I read it last night. 
It seems that the OP is sensible and genuine but with the level of detail you went into would be very easy for any reading to Google the drug and buy online without consulting a vet


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## Elly66 (Feb 27, 2021)

Malc said:


> Given this post, I would suggest contacting a vet near you and try again to see if they would examine the snake. There are specialist vets that another vet can ring if needed, but I'm willing to pass on details of my vet for you to relay to your vet in needed.


Think people missed the above on Malcs post!


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## Malc (Oct 27, 2009)

I agree I can see how the information could be miss interpreted. The comment regarding self administration saving costs was down to the fact that the alternative is to box the snake up, cart it to the vet and then have a nurse do the injection which takes little to no time, and then be charged a consultation which can bump the costs up if a repeat dose is prescribed. Again trying to give the OP the confidence to perform the injections, which when done at home is less stressful for the snake. But I can see that providing such info could be taken as a cost cutting measure

I would also like to cover the point Ian raise regarding the environmental conditions. In my case the issue was down to the snake's first real breeding season, and fasting too soon, causing him to become a little run down and develop his RI. No changes have been made and he hasn't developed an RI since. 

Anyway, in future I'll be less explicit and hopefully make my viewpoint clearer - Hopefully the OP will have news for us in the next 24 hours


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## Malc (Oct 27, 2009)

Amilou said:


> Tha k you for that, we rang a few today and they recommended one in Sheffield, *so we have appointment on Monday*, it's obviously a little bit far but they really knew what they were talking about so made me feel realived thank you for all your advice x


Care to give us an update on how this went ?


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