emergency meds question

[lenny]

Does anyone know a vet that specializes in exotic fish? Two of my seahorses have developed extreme gas bubble syndrome in their tails and apparently the only medication that can treat it is diamox, but I need a prescription for it. By the time I order it online it might be too late so I'm trying to find a local source that I can get some from today. If I can't get the medication asap, I'm going to have do "surgery" and lance each individual bubble, which I just cant imagine is going to be any fun for the seahorses in question.

My own vet cant do it since they know nothing about seahorses, and my personal doctor cant do it because its for them and not for me. (apparently, it is prescribed as a diuretic for humans.)

I even tried getting a hold of the GA Aquarium yesterday, but ran out of time after being on hold for 35 min. trying to reach someone.

If anyone knows of a vet that might know about exotic fish, can you please share their info so I could try to contact them today?

Thanks, y'all.

 

[jmaneyapanda]

I hate to say it Lenny, but no vet, that I could think of, would prescribe it to you, without having just cause. IE- seeing your seahorses. Barbara has the most realistic aspect. If your vet knows you, and is comfortable with you, prove to him/her that you did your homework, and that would be your best shot. Otherwise, prescribing off label is a touchy subject, and Im pretty sure this drug wasnt offered as a seahorse med!

 

[linda lee]

You might check with UGA College of Veterinary Medicine and the Correll Center for Aquatic Animal Health. Might be a dead end, but a phone call or email couldn't hurt.

http://www.uga.edu/gm/artman/publish/0308aquarium.html">http://www.uga.edu/gm/artman/publish/0308aquarium.html</a>

[IMG]http://www.georgiaaquarium.org/newsroom/pressdetail.aspx?id=41">http://www.georgiaaquarium.org/newsroom/pressdetail.aspx?id=41</a>

 

[dannybradley]

Talk to Porter at Petland Dunwoody. He breeds sea horses and has dealt with this issue personally. He'll be able to provide you with some good information regarding this. Just hope he's working today- If not, PM me and I can probably get you his cell phone number.

770-396-7358 (Petland Dunwoody)

UPDATE: I called ahead, he's working until 9PM tonight.

 

[lenny]

Thanks for the suggestions folks. I've talked with many vets, animal clinics and the georgia aquarium, who all see to refer me in a circle, lol. Dont get me wrong, I understand the prescription/ethics issues, and thats why I was asking if anyone knew anyone I could contact to try to convince them. The problem that i've been encountering is that none of the vets knows anything about seahorses, and I've been told by a few that even If I could prove the right treatment, that they couldnt prescribe the meds since they don't know enough about the condition themselves, which I understand. It's just very frustrating. So far I'm at a dead end, and will end up doing the "surgery" myself tomorrow night.

Thanks for your suggestions folks.

 

[jmaneyapanda]

as a last ditch, go to RC, and look in the fish disease forum, and theres a sticky at the top which is called "looking for an aquatic vet". It may help. maybe.

 

[lenny]

I just received a book length email from Pete Giwojna, who's been my seahorse guru, as well as one of the countries' leading seahorse experts. He gave me a great source to obtain Diamox online, and tips for performing the "surgery" on the bubbles to help the horses survive until the medication can get here (which could be up to two weeks, unfortunately). I will be keeping a copy of his email as a regular file, and would be happy to forward it to any seahorse keepers who might have this problem.

That being said, I am going to urge all seahorse keepers to keep a supply of this stuff (100 tablets for about $20, which is more than enough for a few cycles of treatment), so that if and when this happens to you. Mind you, you will also need to setup a small hospital aquarium, for both the diamox and/or the "lancing" routes to recovery. Apparently you can also cure the problem with a saltwater compression chamber, or a very large vertical tank, but I dont have either of those, nor do most hobbyists.

I would be happy to pm the information on obtaining the diamox to any who might need it, but don't want to post it openly here since they're not a sponsor, lol.