Pinworms
- Thread starter matt0101
- Start date
cricket4u
New member
Pinworms are pretty much a normal part of leopard gecko's gut flora. This is why it's so important to have an experienced reptile vet perform the fecal exam. Depending on the numbers, the vet may or may not find it necessary to treat. I suggest that you have a second fecal done by a reptile vet.
Elizabeth Freer
Well-known member
Matt ~
Is it possible for your vet to do a phone consultation with a reptile vet regarding this fecal?
(These are those posts I don't like to miss.) ;-)
Last edited:
cassicat4
New member
An experienced herp vet I often go to has confirmed this notion. Whenever I've had her perform fecals, she always asks my reason for doing so. WC? Symptoms of illness? Maintenance check?
For WC species, she'll usually treat them (Panacur is a common medication). The stress of captivity often causes parasites to bloom out of control, and from her experience, WC species often harbor more than one type of parasite, so she likes to treat the most obvious one. For CB species, unless there are high numbers of pinworms or eggs present in the float or smear OR if the reptile is showing symptoms of being affected by the parasite (e.g. lethargy, anorexia, abnormal stool, dehydration, etc.) she's not a fan of treatment. She believes too many reptiles are overtreated as it is, which can just lead to either the parasite becoming drug-resistant, or the treatment taking a serious toll on the animal because there are no reptile-specific medications available. All medications were designed for other animals and diluted to be "safe" for reptiles, but there's still a risk of side effects. Treating a reptile unnecessarily (i.e. because there's no real reason to do so) is stressful for them.
As Cricket mentioned in your other thread, a healthy and stress-free animal can keep their parasite load under control. This is especially true with CB species. Get a second opinion, but in the meantime, unless he is showing symptoms of a high parasite load, I would not be concerned. Just monitor him as you would do with any pet to make sure he stays healthy, and focus on providing him with good husbandry and a stress-free existence.