Dreaded Giardia

Posts : 15 Join date : 2012-10-16

Well, as the title says.... -Sigh-

I took fecal samples from five of my eleven cages to the K-State diagnostics department at the vet school to be tested yesterday. One cage came back positive for giardia today (I was emailed the lab results if anyone is interested. They don't say too much though.), and the other four were negative. I was told by the parasitology department that they saw very few cysts in the sample. That combined with them exhibiting no symptoms makes them believe that they caught it early... thankfully. Now begins the 'fun' part...

-My remaining 6 cages will be tested Monday (we're running regular floats and the specific giardia test)

-The cages that came back negative will be retested in 4 weeks per the vet's recommendation to verify that they're really negative

-My positive cage will obviously be treated with Flagyl, which scares the &*^% out of my after the bad experience that I had with it previously (words of encouragement please!?)

-They're currently in a huge glide-arium, but are being downsized to make cleaning easier until we're cleared

-Cage will be steam cleaned daily, pouches boiled, etc.

What am I missing? I have the link for the cleaning regime, have another appointment with the vet Monday, know this is a pain to get rid of and highly contagious, etc.

Just needing some encouragement.

(Side note - Has anyone heard of Dr. Carpenter at Kansas State? He mentioned that he's written some things about gliders, edited books about them, etc. I know that Linda S. uses him! He came highly recommended! Anyway, he mentioned that he thinks they may have contracted it from grapes as he's had multiple exotics lately that developed it soon after eating grapes from Chile. I remember reading something about this years ago... I DID feed grapes a month or so ago...)

Subject: Re: Dreaded Giardia Mon Apr 29, 2013 7:18 am

It sounds like you have a plan and your vet should be able to confirm that this plan is your best option. The medication should be fine as it has been used many times with gliders.
Read the two sticky posts above and you will get all the answers you need as they tell you everything you should need to know.

Posts : 15 Join date : 2012-10-16

I do still have a few questions.

-How should I sterilize the glide-arium? I have a top loading washer, so that isn't an option. I also do not have a bathtub (shower only). I have a steam cleaner though!

-I'm highly allergic to bleach. My fiance is assisting with the cleaning where he can, but a good majority of it will still fall to me. I read on one of the other posts that boiling is sufficient for bedding and the like. Is this the case?

-The vet advised me to leave the infect cage in the glider room as long as their feces was contained and could not be spread. They're in a glide-arium at the moment, so that isn't an issue. I'm just curious on everyone's thoughts on this. Technically everyone has been exposed anyway since we're unsure how long the Giardia has been present. The thought of leaving them in the room, precautions or not, makes me a bit nervous though...

Posts : 15 Join date : 2012-10-16

BCChins wrote:: It sounds like you have a plan and your vet should be able to confirm that this plan is your best option. The medication should be fine as it has been used many times with gliders.
Read the two sticky posts above and you will get all the answers you need as they tell you everything you should need to know.

Whoops, I forgot to address the medication.

I had another suggie on Flagyl last year after presenting with watery stool. After trying clavamox with no improvement the vet switched him to Flagyl as a precaution (despite a negative fecal). Within days he went from showing slight improvement to crashing on me with dehydration, rectal bleeding, etc. We ended up losing him. A secondary vet suspected a possible overdose or medication sensitivity.

Subject: Re: Dreaded Giardia Mon Apr 29, 2013 7:51 am

Wow....you've got tons of work ahead of you! And I can see why the use of Flagyl would scare the begeezus out of you! I am wondering....did any gliders show symptoms? I'm in the process of gathering enough sample material for a fecal float to be done on my new girl, and Giardia is always in the back of my mind. I will be glad when I have enough and she is shown to be clear.
I hope that all goes smoothly! Please keep us updated!

Subject: Re: Dreaded Giardia Mon Apr 29, 2013 8:55 am

You can steam clean the gliderium and then place it in direct sunlight to dry completely making sure the sunlight gets into every nook and cranny to completely dry (extended time), sunlight (UV rays) can penetrate those eggs....

Sounds to me that the Flagyl was more a senisitivy issue unless it's dosing was way to high in mg/strength... Hugs, I can understand why you would be scared of it though! It also sounds like your in very good hands!!

Posts : 15 Join date : 2012-10-16

That's doable! Should I spray it down with vinegar water first? It's supposed to rain tomorrow, so I'm going to try to get it outside this afternoon.

What about leaving them in the glider room? It's a HUGE concern for me, though I was assured that it won't spread if feces and bedding and such are contained.

We're at the vet now waiting for medication. They suggested treating all 19 sugs if anyone else comes up positive, but want to charge me $90 per glider for JUST the exam. That's virtually impossible despite a healthy vet fund!

I'll update once we're home. Is it ok to post dosesges here? I can't look at the rules on this phone. Lol

Posts : 15 Join date : 2012-10-16

Cherry flavored metro it is. Scared to death to give it. :(

Posts : 15 Join date : 2012-10-16

Well, we're home from the vet! It was mostly good news. As good as possible given the situation anyway.

-My babies weighed in at 88 grams and in the 140s. Perfect!

-No signs of any other problems, dehydration, etc.

-Direct fecal smear was negative (as expected), but no repeat float was given.

-We were sent home with cherry flavored Flagyl to give for 7 days on, 7 off, and then 7 on again.

-Repeat fecal a month from the date of the last dose of medication.

I've left my fiancé a 'to do' list for the evening since I wont be home until late. It includes:

-Steam clean the glide-arium, then wash it with a water/vinegar solution. Clean all parts of the frame in bleach water, reassemble OUTSIDE where it will stay for a day or two in the sunlight (and the rain pending the weather).

-Bleach all toys, pouches, bowls, water bottles, etc.

-Transfer gliders to the hospital cage for easier cleaning and maintenance.

This cage will have a cover around it to keep any feces or food matter contained inside of the cage. It will be bleached daily, and pouches will be boiled daily and dried in the sun.

The vet worried me a bit by pointing out how easy it is to spread in the glider room, which I'm aware of. It's not impossible to keep from spreading though with proper hygiene measures, correct? Reassure me! Lol.

(Side note - the remaining gliders will be tested Wednesday. All who came back negative will be tested again in a month. If anyone else comes back positive we have a tentative plan in place to treat everyone in the most cost effective way possible given the number of sugs involved.)

Posts : 15 Join date : 2012-10-16

I just got the furkids into their temp. hospital cage in the bathroom. After a lot of thought I decided that it's just easier to sterilize my bathroom daily. Plus, even though the other sugs may have been exposed to it... I have several testing negative. Why risk it by leaving them in the same room?

Poor babies are so stressed out. New pouch, cage, toys, room. They FREAKED when I went to move them and played a game of "chase me around the glide-arium if you want me!"

Their 'big' cage comes down tomorrow to be cleaned, along with all of their toys and such that are in it. I set a few easily cleanable toys aside to rotate in for them daily when I clean their cages, and a smaller wheel that's easier to clean.

Round one of meds went down, but not without a fight. I think tomorrow I'll try hiding it in yogurt... Lol.

Posts : 126 Join date : 2011-05-06 Location : Vancouver, WA

The last time I had to give Flagyl to a trio, two of three took it happily when disguised in a finger of yogurt, but the third I had to put it on a cheerio to get her to eat it.

Good luck, I hope everything goes smoothly!

Posts : 15 Join date : 2012-10-16

I have one who takes it easily enough. He crabs, I put the syringe in, he realizes there's food, problem solved. Lol. His mate.... it so much. She runs, hides, won't open her mouth, etc. It took 15 mon. this morning, but I got them to take it finally. Lol.

Posts : 15 Join date : 2012-10-16

So, the yogurt didn't help. I resorted to just forcing them to take it and then following it up with yoggies as an apology. Whatever works. Lol.

Subject: Re: Dreaded Giardia Wed May 01, 2013 9:43 am

The old "Ask for forgiveness, not permission" thing. I use it all the time!

Subject: Re: Dreaded Giardia Wed May 01, 2013 1:06 pm

Flagyl is very bitter and it is very hard to hide. Not surprised they resist wanting to take it even in a treat.

Subject: Re: Dreaded Giardia Tue May 07, 2013 9:45 am

I would advise adding in probiotics to keep the gut in line if you haven't done so :)

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