Snake Worming

[Harty]

Just had a look for any info. about worming snakes in the forums and could not find any. Thought I would post a bit of information that I have picked up in the last day.
It was suggested to me that the reason why my snake was not growing very much is that he may have worms, and that I should take him to the vet to get checked out.(thanks Bangles).
I took him there yesterday and they did a feacal floatation. They found what they though was worm lavae :cry: :cry: . The treatment that they suggest I give snakey was:
A product called Panacur(apparently it is sheep drench). Inject this into his food and follow up with the same dose 2 weeks later. The formula for the dosage to administer is (100 x body weight(kg)) divided by 25. This gives you the dose in ml.(my eg. 40gm snake = .16ml).

What I am hoping for here is that the more experienced snake people can elaborate on this subject(eg. diff. types of worms, products, frequency of worming, dosages,experiences) so newies like myself can learn more about problems associated with worms.

Harty

 

[pythonss]

worming..

hi harty
we also use panacur. but when you purchase it make sure on the strenght you get..
there is pan 10 and pan 100
we use pan 10 as its easyer to control and less chance of making a calculation error..
the rate we have use for many years is 2mls per 5 kilo of body weight

so if your snake is 2 1/2 kilo you use one ml etc
hope that helps.\paul.

 

[africancichlidau]

Hope ya not blaming my rats Harty me old mate Only joking buddy, (I hope).

 

[Harty]

Not at all Africa. The one that he was hugging the other night he did not eat. They are too big for him. Average size meal according to the forum thread is 20-25% of body weight. The smallest of your lil critters is 18 grams(alf is only 40 gms.).pinkies for a bit longer. Think he has had the worms for a while..

Paul. Now you have got me worried. The formula they have given me works out to be 10 times bigger dosage per body weight(eg. 10ml per 2.5 kg) than the formula you mentioned. I hope I have not given him too much as he had it last night...h.

 

[pythonss]

worming

hi harty..
do you know what strnght you were given..

im not certain but i think you can also get weaker doses as well, like pan 5 which would be double the rate of pan 10 per body weight.

also nearly every vet will give a differant rate. but the rate you were given would have to be excessive if using pan 10..
did you buy a bottle.? of did they give it to you in prepact needles for you to take home.. if pre packed it may have been diluted to make it easy to fill the needle with.
i would ring your vet and just find out what you are using.

how much is your snake in body weight? and how many mls were in the needle.. some needles have a gauge on the side by the ml some have it by the . ml which was the needle you used.
cheers paul.

 

[Magpie]

It's very hard to give vet advice over the net isn't it? I've seen this a few times on this and other sites. Not knocking pauls advice at all but i reckon it's better to go to a knowledgable vet or phone someone who really knows their stuff (like paul.) By the time all the replies are done, it often seems too late when using the net. Not trying to insult anyone here, just something that I've seen happen a few times. :cry:

 

[Harty]

Paul, No idea what the strength was. They gave me a little in a container enough for the two dosages. As i mentioned in the first post my snake's weight is 40 grams. The needle had graduations in .1's so by the formula I gave him about .15ml. Will give them a ring and find out exactly what strength it was. Thanks for your care paul.

Magpie, I understand where you are coming from. I guess what I was looking for was the experiences and methods that the more experienced people use to worm their snakes. I thought it might have been a helpful forum topic for new people to the game if there was some general information about how snakes are wormed and problems associated with worms. Obviously everyone's situation is different and an experienced person or vet should be consulted if unsure about anything.(Probably the other reason I posted is that I was told the vet had dealt with reptile's before but did not seem very sure about things. Will not be going there again..)
I might have a look around and see what info. i can gather. If I can get enough it may be worth submitting as an article..

 

[Magpie]

Sorry Harty, it obviously sounded like I was sying you did the wrong thing, that was not what I meant. I sort of meant that it is real hard for anyone to give advice over the net.

 

[pythonss]

worming.

hi harty..
keep us posted on what you find out from the vet..cheers

magpie i know where you are comming from. trying to answer some qs are very much a worrie.
i to feel via phone or in person is the way to go but not everyone knows who to ring straight off
with the net getting the right answer to so many questions can take a week to work through and in that week so much can happen.
cheers paul.

 

[Leza_Meredith]

Has anyone wormed using Ivomec? A girlfriend of mine has 8 pythons, and was told that Ivomec twice yearly is a good way to go. I can't recall the dose rate...maybe someone else knows more.

Leza

 

[africancichlidau]

Welcome aboard Leza-meredith Welcome to the site

 

[polymorphene]

welcome leza
i prefer not to use ivomec, alot of ppl swear by it but i dont like to use such strong chemicals on my snakes (they dont even get tap water only bottled) but im a bit fussy with them :shock:

i didnt have a lot of sucess with Panacur so i used milbemax but i dont know if this would be suited to your snake...my snake is small also but i dont think the panacur worked for the worm she had..my snake had the worms before i got her too and seemed to have them for quite a while to stunt her growth so much..since worming she has started to grow really well
good luck with your baby

 

[Hawkeye]

Also what are peoples ideas regarding worming. Should every snake have it or just large collections? If you just feed store bought feeder rats that are clean is it essential?

Cheers Hawkeye

 

[Pinkie]

Bottled water for your snakes!! :shock: :lol:

 

[lutzd]

Bottled water

...And what's so funny about that! :x :wink:

I've got one of those water coolers at home and my snakes only get water from that! Nothing but the best, for my babies!!! :lol:

 

[polymorphene]

nothing wrong with bottled water :shock: i wouldnt trust anything thats in tap water these days, i dont even drink it myself..
Its not too xpensive and they're definateley worth it :wink:

 

[Magpie]

I've been thinking about getting bottled water for my snakes for a while now. Their water bowls build up a hard residue that is quite dificult to scrub off using our tap water. I know several peoples who use it for their herps.