I have a male sikorae that is a bit under the weather. He has tested positive for coccidia which I am treating him and his woman for. However, He got the worst of it. Hes not eating. He drinks only a little bit. I have putting the albon on the tip of their nose for them to lick it off for I dont have to stress them to bad. I just started force feeding him but I dont want to do that if I dont have to. I am also giving him 15 minute pedialyte soaks. I would like for him to get some of his energy back if I have to give him a good dose of the albon. He doesnt take it to well unlike his woman who licks it right off her nose after a bit of coaxing. Any extra advice?
Sick male sikorae
- Thread starter Saurian
- Start date
cricket4u
New member
I do not have experience in uroplatus, but I can tell you that Albon can be really hard on dehydration and the vet should have administered subcutaneous fluids. If the vet has disregard this, if not I would suggest you speak to the vet and have it done. A severly dehydrated reptile should never be forced to eat. The vet must address the status first and he must be properly hydrated. SQ method of fluids is preferred especially if they have an inflamed gut in which will not allow water to be absorbed if given orally.
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Let me rephrase that. He drinks just not as much as he used to meaning he would move all around the enclosure but not just stays in one spot licking around there so it's almost a continuous spray he just doesnt do it as euthuesasticly as he used to is what I meant . I wouldn't be giving him it if he had no fluids cause of Albons ability to cause issues when animals are dehydrated. He doesn't pay any attention to food though so was trying to get something small in him to get some calories in him. Think I am gonna stop force feeding cause I don't like doing it and stick to pedialyte baths/sprays. It's not giving him calories though. What's a good way for that w/o ffing?
cricket4u
New member
Well my concern is that he might be too dehydrated to eat. I have seen many reptiles who are dehydrated and they rarely move, even if they need water they will hesistate due to how weak they feel. If he is that dehydrated his body will reject feeding in order for the body to protect itself. The Albon and food without proper hydration can increase uric acid and can damage his kidneys. So it's important that he is hydrated before feeding. By licking a few times his body is not getting the fluids he needs. The only way would be the vet administering fluids which will provide him with water and some nutrients. Also if you noticed runny feces chances are his gut is hypermotile and so will have problems absorbing anything that is given by mouth.
pakinjak
Member
I have had animals test positive for coccidia twice, both animals were male and both are doing just fine now. Neither were sikorae though- one was sameiti and the other henkeli. Both were prescribed the same thing you were- albon administered orally. Cricket is correct that it can be very hard on them if they're dehydrated, so you need to make sure that's not an issue before going through the round of albon. It shouldn't be a problem nose dropping water or pedialyte on the animal, and I've had good luck getting a lot of liquids into them that way. You just have to be patient and wait until they're licking. If he's severely dehydrated, you can take him in to get subcutaneous fluids... sounds complex but there's really nothing to it. You can do it yourself with the right gear and if you're comfortable/careful. I know my own vet, and let them work on my Uroplatus, but realize that most vets have never seen one and might just kill it themselves. Developing a good relationship with a qualified vet is a must for keeping Uros, IMO.
I'd keep up the soaking, nose drop lots of liquids and/or see about the subQ fluids. Once he's decently hydrated, drug away. Coccidia will kill him if you don't, so don't mess around. I'd also mush up some crickets or even CGD and try to get something in his system. Coccidia destroys the gut lining, making nutrient absorption difficult. That's why they regurge, but if you can get some nutrition into him that is in liquid form he might be able to utilize it.
Also, if you can get them into a very simple setup, housed alone preferrably that would be great. That way you can monitor if they poop/regurge and who does it. Meanwhile, you can nuke the current tank. Coccidia oocysts can remain viable for up to 6 months, and it's nearly impossible to eradicate but that doesn't mean you shouldn't try. 10% bleach mixture, steam, ammonia... (just don't mix them)
throw away the furnishings and substrate and re-do everything. Treat is like it's ebola for geckos.
I'd be interested to hear how they do, please update.
EDIT: After re-reading your initial post, I forgot to address one of your concerns- I've had all manner of medical wierdness in my Uroplatus collection, and have had to handle mine many times. I've never seen anything that leads me to believe they suffer any long term affects from being man-handled when necessary. Heck, they don't even seem to be affected short-term. I think that's a total myth/assumption that comes from their reputation for being a fragile genus. I've picked up, squeezed, gotten them to gape at me, dosed, force fed etc. only when I've needed to, but I've had plenty of animals eat that same night and seen no difference at all in them an hour later. Long story short- do what you have to do to get fluids, nutrients and the albon into that gecko.
I'd keep up the soaking, nose drop lots of liquids and/or see about the subQ fluids. Once he's decently hydrated, drug away. Coccidia will kill him if you don't, so don't mess around. I'd also mush up some crickets or even CGD and try to get something in his system. Coccidia destroys the gut lining, making nutrient absorption difficult. That's why they regurge, but if you can get some nutrition into him that is in liquid form he might be able to utilize it.
Also, if you can get them into a very simple setup, housed alone preferrably that would be great. That way you can monitor if they poop/regurge and who does it. Meanwhile, you can nuke the current tank. Coccidia oocysts can remain viable for up to 6 months, and it's nearly impossible to eradicate but that doesn't mean you shouldn't try. 10% bleach mixture, steam, ammonia... (just don't mix them)
throw away the furnishings and substrate and re-do everything. Treat is like it's ebola for geckos.
I'd be interested to hear how they do, please update.
EDIT: After re-reading your initial post, I forgot to address one of your concerns- I've had all manner of medical wierdness in my Uroplatus collection, and have had to handle mine many times. I've never seen anything that leads me to believe they suffer any long term affects from being man-handled when necessary. Heck, they don't even seem to be affected short-term. I think that's a total myth/assumption that comes from their reputation for being a fragile genus. I've picked up, squeezed, gotten them to gape at me, dosed, force fed etc. only when I've needed to, but I've had plenty of animals eat that same night and seen no difference at all in them an hour later. Long story short- do what you have to do to get fluids, nutrients and the albon into that gecko.
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BonnieLorraine
New member
I had one of my males stop eating for 2 months after being treated with Albon, it can cause animals to stop eating, even when well hydrated. I've since switched to another medication to treat Coccidea, much shorter treatment time, and it doesn't seem to affect their eating as much.
mind if i ask what medication you use? can PM me if you want
Harley_Davidson
New member
Jay what's a rain chamber for those of us that are new to all this?
jay markert
New member
Rain chamber
A rain chamber is basically a tank that has a rain bar and a pump that allows water to be spray in the tank.Google it there is some info on how to build one.
There is step by step dirctions on you tube.If you have any more questions please fill free to ask.Thanks Jay Markert Uroplatus-Specialties | Nashville, TN 37211
A rain chamber is basically a tank that has a rain bar and a pump that allows water to be spray in the tank.Google it there is some info on how to build one.
There is step by step dirctions on you tube.If you have any more questions please fill free to ask.Thanks Jay Markert Uroplatus-Specialties | Nashville, TN 37211
BonnieLorraine
New member
Yes it is Saurian. I use the shower instead of a rain chamber here. Just stick a small tree in the shower, and make sure the water stays on the cool side. Rain chambers can be rather difficult to sterilize if you're using it for more than one animal.
jay markert
New member
I like the finer mist myself.You can sterilize the rain chamber just fine.Run bleach or rocal through the system.After that run ammonia though the system.flush it out with fresh water two times.It takes me 30 mins to clean the system.Some showers are to strong you can also bounce the shower spray off the wall to create finer mist.Shower heads carry a lot of bad bacteria as well.
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