What antibiotic should I use for chronic diarrhea?

If it's a bacterial infection the antibiotics I would use are Baytril, Cipro, Clavamox, Augmentin or Amoxicillin. With the exception of Clavamox, you can get all of them online without a prescription. Baytril could also be used to treat dogs and cats, so that's probably what I would buy.

If he has a yeast infection, antibiotics will probably make it worse. I treat yeast infections with Fluconazole, which you can also buy online without a prescription.

-Kathy

I was wondering where you get Baytril, Cipro, Augmentin and Fluconazole online without a prescription? Thanks.
 
Oxine AH is great to have on hand. 7 small drops per gallon of drinking water (not activated with citric acid) is very effective on bacteria/pathogens in the gut. Casein in calf milk replacers can tighten up droppings in enteritis type situations as well. The trick is not to give it for too long. An hour or two of drinking on a hot day. Then run vitamins-electrolytes-probiotics in waterers for the rest of the day. In real hot weather it can help for a few days of that routine since they eat less in hot weather. Some watery droppings are normal in that case.

To prevent it from getting out of control, use vitamin-electrolyte-probiotic soluble powder in waterers 3 times a week, or according to label instructions. Avoid excessive feeding of greens during a bout of the squirts, and focus on formulated feeds. I've found this to be helpful.
 
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Quote: Seriously? You're a vet, right? Are vets not aware how available the above drugs are?

-Kathy
For those that might want to order some of the drugs mentioned above, just do a search for the name of the drug and fish or the name of the drug and birds.

Baytril for birds finds this:
https://www.google.com/search?sourc...l4j0i22i30.0.0.1.4822...........0.yxF1FarlqcI

-Kathy

Thank you.

From vet's perspective, I do know that the drugs are available. My clients come in to see me instead of buying medication online and treating conditions themselves and I spend my time diagnosing and treating animals not researching ways for non-clients to not seek my advice. It is helpful for me to see where folks can obtain the medication because on occasion people that come in fess up to self-medication but can't give any specifics about the drugs, so having this information may help me treat patients in the future

My distributor requires me to have a separate account with Bayer before I can even purchase Baytril from them. The distributors I purchase from require me to provide my state license information prior to me purchasing medication. I am assured that the drugs I purchase have been handled in a way preserve efficacy and they are the real deal and I am sure they are not counterfeit. My reputation depends on that assurance

Many drugs available for fish or caged birds are not marketed to Poultry and in fact Quinolones including Baytril/enrofloxacin have been pulled for use in Poultry (from 2005: "U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Lester Crawford is announcing the Agency's final decision to no longer allow distribution or use of the antimicrobial drug enrofloxacin for the purpose of treating bacterial infections in poultry."). I got on the website you referenced to ask whether I needed a prescription for Baytril or for any of the drugs. They started the chat, but failed to respond (as in left the chat window open for 20 minutes with no response) after they realized I was asking about chickens. I have to believe that they know that it is not legal for them to sell the product for use in Poultry but do not have a disclaimer on the website.

As a vet, I have to adhere to a strict code of ethics and regulations. I cannot give medical advice without a valid pet-client-vet relationship ths I am barred from making specific diagnoses or recommendations online. I am not supposed to compound (mix drugs up in any way that is not approved on the label) any antibiotics if there is a labeled version of the drug, and regulations specifically state that concerns about money is not a valid reason to compound a drug that is available in a formulation for animals.

As a chicken owner, I sympathize with other owners when there are illnesses within their flock. I wish I could help more.

How frustrating do you think it is for us vets to want to help people out, have to adhere to regulations or potentially get sued or lose our license if we do not and then get scolded for not wanting to see chickens when there are vets who will see poultry but the owners don't want to spend the money to bring their pets in for advice becasue they can get free advice from non-vets online and get some medication online, although they will call me and ask me to provide drug withdrawal information for drugs I did not prescribe? It ends up putting vets in a very uncomfortable position, overall.
 
I respect and sympathise with your position, as I have worked closely with veterinarians in the past (I am not a vet, nor a tech, just someone that has worked alongside them).

That said...

I hope that you can also understand that many people that treat their own birds without seeing a licensed vet are not trying to begrudge money to you or any other vet. It is not a lack of desire that stops some (or maybe most?) owners from seeing a vet when a bird is unwell. Many people are not within several hours drive of a veterinarian that is specialized in avian biology (even less than those who have studied avians AND will see poultry). My own avian vet is over 2 hours drive one-way, and I am one of the lucky ones. Folks in those situations can either self-treat birds, or not treat at all. While I firmly believe that any medication should be administered with care, education, and common sense... well, that's not always the case. To that end, it is true that many more experienced members will advise one another on treatment. It is not an ideal situation, but it is the reality for many people that keep chickens.

That said, I have also been advised by two different vets that Baytril should not be given to any bird intended for consumption, or to any hens whose eggs will be eaten, because the withdrawal time is indefinite. The last time my avian certified vet administered it was to a rooster of mine that was never to be for human consumption.
 
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Thank you.

From vet's perspective, I do know that the drugs are available. My clients come in to see me instead of buying medication online and treating conditions themselves and I spend my time diagnosing and treating animals not researching ways for non-clients to not seek my advice. It is helpful for me to see where folks can obtain the medication because on occasion people that come in fess up to self-medication but can't give any specifics about the drugs, so having this information may help me treat patients in the future

My distributor requires me to have a separate account with Bayer before I can even purchase Baytril from them. The distributors I purchase from require me to provide my state license information prior to me purchasing medication. I am assured that the drugs I purchase have been handled in a way preserve efficacy and they are the real deal and I am sure they are not counterfeit. My reputation depends on that assurance

Many drugs available for fish or caged birds are not marketed to Poultry and in fact Quinolones including Baytril/enrofloxacin have been pulled for use in Poultry (from 2005: "U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Lester Crawford is announcing the Agency's final decision to no longer allow distribution or use of the antimicrobial drug enrofloxacin for the purpose of treating bacterial infections in poultry."). I got on the website you referenced to ask whether I needed a prescription for Baytril or for any of the drugs. They started the chat, but failed to respond (as in left the chat window open for 20 minutes with no response) after they realized I was asking about chickens. I have to believe that they know that it is not legal for them to sell the product for use in Poultry but do not have a disclaimer on the website.

As a vet, I have to adhere to a strict code of ethics and regulations. I cannot give medical advice without a valid pet-client-vet relationship ths I am barred from making specific diagnoses or recommendations online. I am not supposed to compound (mix drugs up in any way that is not approved on the label) any antibiotics if there is a labeled version of the drug, and regulations specifically state that concerns about money is not a valid reason to compound a drug that is available in a formulation for animals.

As a chicken owner, I sympathize with other owners when there are illnesses within their flock. I wish I could help more.

How frustrating do you think it is for us vets to want to help people out, have to adhere to regulations or potentially get sued or lose our license if we do not and then get scolded for not wanting to see chickens when there are vets who will see poultry but the owners don't want to spend the money to bring their pets in for advice becasue they can get free advice from non-vets online and get some medication online, although they will call me and ask me to provide drug withdrawal information for drugs I did not prescribe? It ends up putting vets in a very uncomfortable position, overall.
The reason for this website is to help people take care of their sick poultry. There are farm stores that sell many antibiotics for treatment of various diseases of cattle, goats, sheep, and pigs, and a few for poultry. Most of us on here are aware of the ban on Baytril, and the problem with overuse of antibiotics in general. What you don't seem to realize, is that even though you are willing to see a chicken, most cities in this country do not have vets that see chickens.
My daughter is a vet, and she just can't believe that people on this website give out information to those with chicken problems with all of your liability issues. The point is that we give out advice as friends who have either gone through illness with our own birds or have read literature from studies and many university poultry departments websites that offer information for free. People on this website who try to get Baytril for their chickens are not commercial poultry farms who give drugs to their animals for public consumption. We are a group of backyard enthusiants who are just trying to help their own sick animal.
Many of us would gladly pay to see a vet, and do if we can find one, but many of us can't afford the high price of a vet visit for our $2 chickens. I live in a fairly large metropolitan area, yet no vets her see chickens, and my own daughter was not taught much of anything about chickens except to recognize bumblefoot. Yes it is illegal to prescribe Baytril in the US, but many vets will still prescribe it. Some people feel that the ban was frivolous, singling out one drug, yet we are very limited on the drugs that will treat certain infections. Penicllin G is about the only one available for wound infections or animal bites. Respiratory drugs just don't work well.
I don't quite understand your reasoning for coming on here lecturing everyone as some other vets have done in the past, and calling online companies to lecture them for selling the drugs. If you are a good vet, I'm sure you will have plenty of business from chicken enthusiasts.
 
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I respect and sympathise with your position, as I have worked closely with veterinarians in the past (I am not a vet, nor a tech, just someone that has worked alongside them).

That said...

I hope that you can also understand that many people that treat their own birds without seeing a licensed vet are not trying to begrudge money to you or any other vet. It is not a lack of desire that stops some (or maybe most?) owners from seeing a vet when a bird is unwell. Many people are not within several hours drive of a veterinarian that is specialized in avian biology (even less than those who have studied avians AND will see poultry). My own avian vet is over 2 hours drive one-way, and I am one of the lucky ones. Folks in those situations can either self-treat birds, or not treat at all. While I firmly believe that any medication should be administered with care, education, and common sense... well, that's not always the case. To that end, it is true that many more experienced members will advise one another on treatment. It is not an ideal situation, but it is the reality for many people that keep chickens.

That said, I have also been advised by two different vets that Baytril should not be given to any bird intended for consumption, or to any hens whose eggs will be eaten, because the withdrawal time is indefinite. The last time my avian certified vet administered it was to a rooster of mine that was never to be for human consumption.
Its not about the money. To be clear, Vets have an code of ethics that say that they are not practicing appropriately if they dispense advice or medication without a valid client-patient-vet relationship. I am not an avian vet but have an interest in birds and have seen practice with avian vets, so not all non-avian vets are incompetent but they cannot say that they have a special interest in birds nor are specialists or any wording of that kind.

I have had people people show up in my office with vaccines they have purchased from outside sources (feed stores, internet, grocery store) and ask if I could give the shots to their animals becasue that would be cheaper. I cannot becasue I do not know the source and how that vaccine was handled prior to the owner buying it or how they stored it after getting it. If the pet gets a reaction to the vaccine, it is on me and I cannot take that liability. What kind of person does that..and it has happened more than once. WOuld you go into your kid's pediatrician with a vaccine you bought at a pharmacy and ask them to give it to your kiddo?

A vet I worked with was called out to a colic (horse) in the evening. He rectally palpated the horse and determined it needed to go to the teaching hospital for evaluation. The horse ended up having a torn colon and they decided to euthanize. The owner sued my colleague for the cost of horse, plus vet services,plus cost of previous training, previous boarding etc so he wanted $40K from a $1K horse. The thing is that the owner had his neighbor come over and the neighbor rectally palpated the horse prior to calling the vet out. Did he sue the neighbor? No. He sued the vet--the owner thought it was all my colleague's fault and did not take any responsibility for letting a layman palpate his horse. The liability is real.
 
I don't quite understand your reasoning for coming on here lecturing everyone as some other vets have done in the past, and calling online companies to lecture them for selling the drugs. If you are a good vet, I'm sure you will have plenty of business from chicken enthusiasts.
Actually, my intent was not to lecture anyone but to get information and ended up explaining what I have to go through from my side. I was specifically responding to Kathy's post about antibiotics and asked the simple question about where you buy them without a prescription since I did not know. She slapped me back saying the as a vet I should know that information and implied I was stupid for not. I contacted the website since it did not say they required a prescription (most online websites do).

I really only wanted to know where people buy drugs that traditionally require a prescription without a prescription. I am very sorry that I upset you!
 
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Absolutely, the liability is real. It's a very frustrating situation for you, other vets, and educated animal keepers.

My post was not about the bad customers you've had in the past that are trying to cut corners and expenses (such as your client that brought you a vaccine and asked you to administer it).

Your prior post seemed to suggest that you were frustrated that people would come here and seek advice and buy medications online instead of spending the money to see someone that has the education and experience to properly diagnose, treat, and perscribe medications (a licensed vet). I was simply trying to ephasize that true, there are people out there that would go to lengths to get out of paying anything extra at a vet. But most people on here (not all! But a great deal) simply do not have access to any vet (avian specialist or general) and must make do with what they have, and they have the internet and this forum as a resource.
Again, it is hardly ideal. Truly, it is frustrating for many involved. But it is the current reality for those that simply do not have the access to a vet.

To use your analogy:
My post is not about a situation where someone would buy a vaccine for their animal, and ask the vet to administer it (to save money). That situation is unfortunate and I really do understand your frustration with it.

My post is about a situation where someone does not have a vet, and so turns to the advice of those here that do not have a legal limitation on giving advice on where to get the vaccine and how to administer it. This of course is frustrating in a different way-- bad advice might be given. It is then on the owner of the animal to do appropriate research and try to weed out the bad advice from the good. This is easier said than done, of course. But it's the best they have as they can not even call a long-distance vet that they can not physically travel to, for advice, as (per your own admission) vets can not simply offer advice over the phone most of the time without seeing the patient. This is because of ethics, and... liability.
 

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