Baytril

Baytril (chemical name enrofloxacin), is normally dispensed as a 2.27% concentration liquid.

Baytril is a broad-spectrum antibiotic. It is the most commonly used antibiotic for a wide range of rat ailments, including respiratory problems, cystisis and abscesses.

It is not recommended that Baytril be injected - some rats can develop painful blistering at the injection site, resulting in a large hard scab, which is often pulled off, leaving an open wound. Baldness can occur at the injection site though the wound will heal and the fur will grow back eventually. However, there are rare occurrences of rats bleeding to death where the ulcer erodes a major blood vessel.

It is also not recommended to administer Baytril through drinking water for several reasons:
1. In a group cage of several individuals, only one may require Baytril and there are no guarantees that it would be this rat that drinks the water!

2. It is difficult to assess what dose the rat is getting over what period time.

3. Baytril tastes vile so, more often than not, rats will not drink water with Baytril added, or they will drink less and dehydration will not aid recovery.

Administering Baytril:
The least stressful way to give your rat its Baytril dose is to hide it in a small amount of something yummy- noted favourites include....

• chocolate baby pudding
• apple and oat baby cereal (powder in box, made up with boiling water)
• sugar (enough to soak up the Baytril) mixed into a little butter or margerine.
• mayonnaise
• jam on toast
• cream cheese
• fruit yoghurt

Dosing Baytril:
The lowest recommended dosage of liquid oral Baytril is 0.2ml per lb (or 0.5ml per kg) twice daily for 14 to 30 days but this dose can be increased by up to 4 times, depending on the ailment. Baytril works best when dosed regularly and splitting the daily dose into 2, one given in the morning the other at night, works well. This means your 'typical' 300g doe would get 0.15ml x 2 and your 'typical' 600g buck would get 0.3ml x 2. (Please bear in mind that 'typical' is a basic average - it is highly recommended you weigh your rats).

Antibiotic combinations:
Though Baytril can work extremely well on certain ailments with certain rats, for more severe problems (e.g. mycoplasma respiratory problems, head tilt) it oftens works better with other antibiotics, particularly doxycycline (trade names include Ronaxan, Vibramycin). Administer different antibiotics 2 hours apart.

Warnings:
It is not recommended to give Baytril to rat kittens under the age of 3 months* as Baytril has been shown to affect the development of cartilage. It should not be given to pregnant or nursing does either and it can be passed through breast milk. Adversely (but rarely), Baytril can cause restlessness, seizures, itching and diarrhea. I have seen some evidence of anorexia too. If any of these severe reactions occur, dosing should be stopped and an alternative antibiotic used instead.

Dosing should continue for at least a week after all symptoms have gone. Feeding a good probiotic after dosing can help to replenish gut flora.

Additional info:
As already said, Baytril works best when in combination with another antibiotic. But, sometimes, another course of treatment is needed or other antibiotics can be more effective for certain ailments.

It is also worth remembering that if a treatment works, there is no need to change it! Baytril and doxycycline combined produces very satisfactory results, particularly against respiratory problems, if dosed correctly for at least 14 days. As with humans, the use of antibiotics should be monitored and not administered for the slightest sneeze or snuffle or for short bursts as a 'medicinal boost'.

*Please note that there is some contention over whether Baytril should be administered to rat kittens under 3 months old. There is a popular understanding that it can effect the development of cartilage in a growing rat but there is some recent evidence to suggest that this could be incorrect.