Enrofloxacin (baytril)

[Smore86]

Hi all- I’m new to this group and very happy that I found it.

My Guinea pig S’more had signs of a URI, I took her to the vet as soon as I notice and they prescribed her Baytril for two weeks. She finished the meds and I wasn’t confident that the URI was gone (but she was eating, pooping and doing everything normal on that medication). I took her back in for a check up and the doctor said she didn’t have the gunk in the eyes anymore, and didn’t notice anything but if I wasn’t confident all the symptoms were gone she will prescribe enrofloxacin. So she’s been on enrofloxacin for two days and I’m noticing she’s not eating much, laying around more and doesn’t seem like her happy self, I read some side effects may be loss of appetite and depression in guinea pigs... my question is, should I stop the medication because she seems worse on it?

 

[Siikibam]

Please don’t stop the medicine unless you’ve spoken to the vet. Some antibiotics can lead to loss of appetite. You’ll have to step in and syringe feed her. Weigh her daily at the same time and adjust the syringe feed accordingly. You are aiming to help her maintain so feed her every couple of hours during the day.

I’ve no experience with enroflaxin nor the side effects so can’t help you with that I’m afraid. What made you think the URI wasn’t gone? What symptoms did she still have? Did the vet check her over again before prescribing the enroflaxin?

 

[Piggies&buns]

Enrofloxacin is the active ingredient in the product brand named Baytril. You’ve been given the same medication this time as you were given for the first two weeks.

You need a vet to confirm whether the lungs are clear and whether piggy is better or not before deciding whether to use more medication. You must not stop giving a medication without consulting a vet.

Antibiotics can wipe out their good gut bacteria and disrupt their appetite. Please step in with syringe feeding her and weigh her daily so you can ensure she is getting enough food. You can also give a probiotic as that can help settle the gut.
Once she is fully recovered from the URI, and is off the meds, her appetite will return.

Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide

 

[Wiebke]

Hi all- I’m new to this group and very happy that I found it.

My Guinea pig S’more had signs of a URI, I took her to the vet as soon as I notice and they prescribed her Baytril for two weeks. She finished the meds and I wasn’t confident that the URI was gone (but she was eating, pooping and doing everything normal on that medication). I took her back in for a check up and the doctor said she didn’t have the gunk in the eyes anymore, and didn’t notice anything but if I wasn’t confident all the symptoms were gone she will prescribe enrofloxacin. So she’s been on enrofloxacin for two days and I’m noticing she’s not eating much, laying around more and doesn’t seem like her happy self, I read some side effects may be loss of appetite and depression in guinea pigs... my question is, should I stop the medication because she seems worse on it?

Hi

Enrofloxacin is the active ingredient in baytril; so your piggy is basically on a second course of it.

If you have concerns, contact your vet clinic on their advice whether you should stop or not. We are not qualified to tell you to stop a prescribed treatment.

Please step in with feeding and watering support as much as needed. Use your kitchen scales to weigh your boy daily at the same time in the feeding cycle (I prefer to do this first thing in the morning when the weight is lowest) and adjust the feeding frequency to how much your piggy takes with every session and how his weight is (loss or ideally stabilising).

The green guide links in the post above give you all the practical step-by-step information, including where exactly to cut off the syringe tip if you have to improvise with mushed up pellets to allow the rougher fibre strands in pellets to pass through the narrow bit of the syringe.

All the best!