Any experience with heavy-duty antibiotics?

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I may have to put one of my horses on a heavy-duty antibiotic for a resistant bacterial infection. I want to prepare him as well as I can. I am thinking I will start him on probiotics right away, then wait till temperatures cool down a little, to help with the stress to his body before actually beginning the treatment. He has been carrying this infection for a long time, so another month or two shouldn't make that much difference. One of the antibiotics is supposed to be hard on the kidneys and it is injected. The other is oral and is hard on the GI tract. Don't know yet which--if any-- will be the prescribed one.

Has anyone given such an antibiotic to a horse? If so, what kind of things do I need to ask the vet? Are some probiotic products better in this situation than others? What other things can I do to help the horse as much as possible?

I'd appreciate anyone's experience.
 
Hello

I am not sure what the question is? I would assume your Vet is recommending this antibiotic treatment? I would certainly consult him at this point to get the answer to your question.

But in answer to your "general" question: Most medications, antibiotics and others can have side effects and can vary according to type of antibiotic, what is to be used for, etc. The benefits of using any particular drug "should" outweigh the side effects. Again your VET is the best one to ask this question. Yes, some meds are hard on the stomach, some the kidneys and so on.

Good luck,

Beth
 
The only oral antibiotic I have given is Septra.

I had to use it twice this year for two mares who suffered bad dystocias and had bad discharges afterwards.

I gave 3 tablets twice a day, dissolved in water, and syringed into their mouths.

The horses weighed approx 300 pounds, hence the 3 tablet dose twice daily for 7 days on one mare and 10 days on the other.
 
I had a suckling colt on Doxycycline, but I don't know if that is a "heavy-duty" antibiotic. He choked so it was to treat proactively for any hint of pneumonia. He had no adverse reactions to it, not even any diarrhea. It was given orally, I crushed it and put it in a syringe of vanilla flavored yogurt. I also gave him Probios paste every few days while on the antibiotic, and several days after he finished the 2 week dose. He was nursing and on pasture 24/7.
 
I'm not sure how heavy duty it is, but over the years I have used Naxcel a few times. It is an injectible antibiotic. Most recently, we used it on a filly when she was newborn as a preventative (she'd needed 2 plasma transfusions). She was on it for one week and did fine.
 
Gastroguard is a good idea I hadn't thought of.

The antibiotics are Amakasin, injectable, and Enrofloxacin (Baytril)--I think it is a chemo drug, oral. When the vet mentioned that these were the only two antibiotics that lab tests showed could kill the bacteria, he acted like they were something very uncommon to use and might take weeks of use.

The horse had an infected injury when I got him (rescue).

I was just trying to get prepared in case he has to go through this so I will have fewer surprises.
 
Before you do the heavy duty drugs, have you tried Eqyss Microtek? It's a shampoo and spray that works wonders on skin issues. I used it on rain rot with wonderful results and any other "mysterious" skin conditions. It is antibacterial, but not as drying of the skin as other products commonly used to treat skin issues. It's great for fungal or bacterial skin problems.
 
Hi

My apologies, when you said heavy duty antibiotics I was assuming you meant via IV.

Glad you clarified that. We have used Baytril before, it is a wonderful drug and was administered IM in our case twice a day for three days. Cleared up the problem in that time. At the time we used it it was commonly used with racehorses and still fairly new to "other equines". I prefer and have used Naxel on most other cases requiring this type of antibiotics with great success and also for short periods of time.

I would think tho., that if a horse needs antibiotics it would not be good to wait to give them?

Beth
 
Any antibiotic we give here is given with an Immune support (I love the products from Chamisa Ridge). They have products for liver/kidney care - nettle and milk thistle, etc.

We also give FastTrack as a probiotic.

My two alternative vets have other products we've tried as well over the years - vitamins for specifics, a 'drawing' bandage for a horse that spiral cut his leg with the hock joint exposed, collodial silver, acid water, etc.

Equine Essentials from Tahitian Noni is really good too.

Antibiotics kill the good and the bad bacteria, why probotics are (IMHO) a neccesity.

One of my friends swears by Platinium Performance.
 
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Thanks everyone for the great information! I hope to have all the culture results this week so I can make a decision.

I have heard of that Microtek shampoo before. The vet did suggest that antibiotics have trouble getting to the skin and he suggested antibacterial shampoos. So I will check into that.

Now I have some good information to discuss with the vet.

Again, thanks for the replies!

Marsha
 
Did the vet do a sensitivity test on the cultures?

If so that is your BEST bet to kill it.

However antibotics can cause SERIOUS side affects if poop changes CALL YOUR VET IMMEDIATELY.

I'm with the others I'd try the lime sulfur BEFORE an antibotic its MUCH safer. I also tried the Micro Tek it didn't help mine at all.
 
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was it Baytril you were thinking of using??? if so, i have used it on SEVERAL occasions with GREAT success!! it has very few side effects, i usually give it to babies if they get sick, i always use it once daily, and Pennicillian 2 times a day. That combo always works for me, not much is resistant to those, Baytril is strong were Pennicillian is weak, and vice versa, Baytril i have given to all kinds of animals with good success, heck i have been thinking of using it on myself when i get sick!LOL! just kidding!! Good luck , hope things turn out well
 
I just started my mare on Baytril today (ordered by the vet). I am glad to hear others have had success with it. We are giving it IV. I understand it can be given orally, but my vet said it should be mixed with lots of molasses if given orally, as it can 'burn' the mouth. So, if your med is Baytril- check about giving it IV.

All the best-

Peggy
 
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Hawk has been on TUCOPRIM for 6 days now. He gets 1 1/2 Tbsp daily. I mix it with his food and he gobbles it up. He is on 2 tsp probiotic daily and I've increased his alfalfa ration. So far he is tolerating it very well. He takes the Tucoprim for 3 weeks. I am still bathing him twice a week with fungal shampoo. The Tucoprim is a white powder. The first day I measured out all that white stuff and mixed it in his feed, I thought NO WAY will he eat this. He tasted it suspiciously at first then ate it all and licked the dish.

Has anyone used this product?

It has turned off cooler here lately, so maybe that is why no new skin areas have popped up, but I am HOPING it is because this regimen is working and he will be cured for good.

I think I mentioned that the vet was most reluctant to use Baytril on him. I don't think he felt Hawk's condition was serious enough to justify its use. Even though the bacteria that showed up in the culture was resistant to most antibitoics, there is a good chance that Tucoprim will kill it.

Still no idea of cost of all this. I tried to pay for the antibiotic and the office said they would bill when they got the lab invoice.

Thanks for all the good information and moral support!
 
It is good to hear that Hawk is tolerating the antibiotic well. I hope he continues and his skin condition clears up.

Don't know about you, but I am sick of this rainy weather! I like the coolness though.
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I have a yearling filly on Tucoprim now for a sinus infection. There's no problem with her eating it! It's an inexpensive antibiotic, so I don't think you'll be getting an outrageous bill for it. Good luck and I hope it works!
 
I have used Tucoprim too, it is easy to administer. I don't like giving shots especially when it has to be given over a long period of time.

Good luck, sounds like he is improving.

Beth
 
Marsha, my Mom's QH mare was recently on Tucoprim, so you can imagine she got a LOT compared to what Hawk is getting. She didn't care for it, but it was very inexpensive and that was with her getting a big container of Tucoprim.
 
I purchased a filly once that had a horrible skin fungus and NOTHING killed it... finally had to get antibiotics from the vet and she was on them about 3 weeks, and that did the trick. It was long ago, so I dont remember what she was on. I do remember that in about four days her hair was growing in already, but she needed the full treatment to make sure the fungus was killed.

I would follow what your vet recommends only, as they are the ones who have seen the horse, the lab results and knows what should be done for your horse.

Probiotics are good and I have used live bacteria yogurt also. I would just follow your vets advice though.
 

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