Dr Puna Kaurivi Kazapua
Welcome to another week of Talk to the Vet, where we will be expanding further from last week’s column, where we covered the importance and various preventative methods around vaccination.
Today, we will share with you, our esteemed farmers, what to do when your animals get sick, and how you should respond to various disease outbreaks.
Let me first start with what is commonly known as antibiotics.
Simply put, antibiotics are a group of medications used to help stop or sometimes prevent (prophylaxis use) an infection caused by bacteria, which are sometimes called antibacterials or antimicrobials.
They can kill or inhibit the bacteria.
Antibiotics are very ineffective against viral infection.
A large number of farmers that I interact with have shared their stories of how Penicillin has been helpful.
But it has since been stopped from being bought over the counter – and its title/role has now been moved over to Terramycin.
There are no one-drug-treat-all-diseases in animal healthcare. Bacteria are grouped into different classes. For example, gram – or gram +, aerobic and anaerobic bacteria, etc.
It is with these differences in mind that you should actively consult with your veterinarian, and seek to know which drug treats which disease.
It is extremely important to read the usage instructions as stipulated in the packet insert.
Rather spend 10 extra minutes to read and understand what, when and how often one should use the medication, as all drugs are different.
Most drugs require that it be repeated.For example, Terramycin is used at a dosage of 1ml per 10kg every day for five days, while Synulox is 1ml per 20kg every 48-72 hours on at least fourdifferent occasions.
Correct injection site and amount of medication should be used to avoid bacterial resistance developing, which results in the medication not being optimally effective again.
Not every limping animal warrants the use of antibiotics.
As previously mentioned, every antibiotic is different. Some are given orally, intra-muscular, intravenous, eye droplets or subcutaneously.
Some require that they be kept in the fridge and others do not.
It is important to note that antibiotics may result in negative impacts or side effects on the animals e.g. swelling, diarrhoea, vomiting, nephrotoxicity and hypersensitivity reaction.
The most important message in today’s article is that farmers should, at all times, make an effort to read the instructions packet inside, and strictly adhere to the set instructions, unless stated otherwise by a competent veterinarian.
*For further enquiry or suggestions on any topic that you would want covered, please e-mail me at punamuza22@gmail.com or WhatsApp me at +264 81 723 4553