Fecal Test

[MitsuMike]

Well I decided I had my guys for a few months now. Getting Mocha (on hold due to weather) next tuesday and my Leo this Friday. So I was gonna wait a few weeks and right before I make the decision to take the new girl outta quarantine I am just gonna have everyone tested.
Now the Tech was telling me if they all live in the same enclosure then they would only need 1 fecal sample. Now does a rack count as a single enclosure. I mean if 1 has it the others will soon enough. Or do I need individual samples. I was thinking individual but I am just making sure.
Also a single fecal test cost me $23.90 a test. So I would be racking up over a 100 dollar vet bill with NO visit or her even looking at my snakes. Does this sound right??

[zantedeschia]

My vet charges $38 office visit and $15 for a fecal test. $8 for a cloacal wash if I don't bring in a sample. So for just a simple checkup, it costs me around 65 bucks for one snake.

[MitsuMike]

My vet charges $38 office visit and $15 for a fecal test. $8 for a cloacal wash if I don't bring in a sample. So for just a simple checkup, it costs me around 65 bucks for one snake.

I'm not trying to do an office visit, just a fecal sample test. I don't wanna find out what a office visit would be.

[GenePirate]

To conserve costs, you can do it this way....Combine four or five fecal samples into one. They will homogenize it and charge you for one test. If it's negative, aces. If parasites are found, then you will have to do individual fecals for the four or five animals that contributed to the sample.

[kc261]

If you have found a vet who is willing to do a fecal test without an office visit, that sounds like a reasonable price to me.

One possibility is to get a fecal sample from all 4 of your snakes, and combine them, and have the test done on that. If this test comes back negative, you can be reasonably sure that none of your snakes have internal parasites, however it is not quite as good as getting them tested individually because if only one has parasites, you have basically diluted the stuff the vet is looking for, making it easier to miss. If it comes back positive, you will then need to have each snake tested individually to find out which ones need treatment.

Your snakes do not count as being in the same enclosure if they are in separate tubs in a rack. Most internal parasites are transmitted by contact with infected fecal matter, and in a rack, snakes should not have access to another snake's fecal matter, so one should not be able to infect another.

[kjay]

i may get flamed but if it were me and the snakes ate fine look fine and feces is a solid consistancy i would not test them. reason being is they may very well carry a protazoa load which is normal its when its over loaded its a problem. I have dewormed all my snakes at once in the past with pancur. and i had one snake with rank smelling feces,runny and i used proper dose of metrondiazonole/flagyl and cleared it up.

i have been screwed around by many vets in the past and find at times not always but at times they become test crazy. flagyl can be bought from aquarium stores. please research and make the appropriate decision. my comment is just food for thought. i wouldnt use this approach with a suspected RI or other health issues but parasites i would

[MitsuMike]

i may get flamed but if it were me and the snakes ate fine look fine and feces is a solid consistancy i would not test them. reason being is they may very well carry a protazoa load which is normal its when its over loaded its a problem. I have dewormed all my snakes at once in the past with pancur. and i had one snake with rank smelling feces,runny and i used proper dose of metrondiazonole/flagyl and cleared it up.

i have been screwed around by many vets in the past and find at times not always but at times they become test crazy. flagyl can be bought from aquarium stores. please research and make the appropriate decision. my comment is just food for thought. i wouldnt use this approach with a suspected RI or other health issues but parasites i would

I was debating not getting anyone tested as well. No one is off feed all urinate EVERYDAY (I change paper towels twice a day) and poo is an every week thing. Never runny, I mean there are the poo looking things that come out with the uriates. But when they actually unload there mess it's pretty solid.

[Dianna]

24$ is a very fair price (I've been charged over double in the past). Combining fecal tests is a really smart idea.. IMO, 24$ is a small price to pay for the peace of mind.


Just this thread alone is what convinced me to have my snake tested for parasites lol ----> http://www.ball-pythons.net/forums/s...ad.php?t=53025

[MitsuMike]

24$ is a very fair price (I've been charged over double in the past). Combining fecal tests is a really smart idea.. IMO, 24$ is a small price to pay for the peace of mind.


Just this thread alone is what convinced me to have my snake tested for parasites lol ----> http://www.ball-pythons.net/forums/s...ad.php?t=53025

Damn. Wow yea might be looking into this. I might do 1 a week, need to add it into the bills. Next week I'm gonna do my first BP. I need to double check if I need to do a Visit and a fecal test or can I just do a fecal test.

[MitsuMike]

Well I'm doing my Pastels fecal test done tom.
They said that they can do test without a Vet Visit but if it comes back positive I have to make one so the Vet can write a prescription.