Tinidazole - Safe??

[BeginnerChinLover]

Hey guys,

So I'm still battling giardia, and my vet put Lilo's case up on VIN. They came back with the suggestion of using Tinidazole, which is apparently 60% more effective than either Flagyl or Panacur (don't remember which one)...however, she didn't know for sure if there would be any side effects since she's only found research on dogs and cats.

Should I choose to go with the Tinidazole, I would have to sign a waiver that if Lilo experienced side effects, including death, that they wouldn't be responsible...so this has me extremely worried right from the get-go.

Any opinions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

 

[Stackie]

They probably made you sign the waiver because tinidazole has not been used very much in the veterinary field, so the effects of the medication are somewhat unknown. I am not sure of the side effects specific to rodents, but in dogs it can cause digestive upset, vomitting, and diarrhea. It has a very bitter taste so it is best to be given in a flavored suspension.

 

[BeginnerChinLover]

Yeah, she mentioned there's not much in terms of small animals, but if there's really no information I'm not sure if I want Lilo to be the veterinary field's guinea pig. But, on the other hand, I really can't seem to shake giardia with Panacur and Flagyl...

 

[lilchinchilla]

I've never heard of using it with chinchillas. All websites I have looked at in regards to it, all have warnings about the use of that medication. They say about metronidozle increases risk of carcinogenicity in both laboratory animals (rats or rodents) and humans, and that this is another similar type of medication like the metronidozle.

http://www.rxlist.com/tindamax-drug.htm
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/meds/a604036.html
http://www.drugs.com/cons/tinidazole.html

I probably wouldn't risk using it, if it is stronger than metronidozle.... That is just me though. Did tests show the chinchilla was still positive for giardia?

Sometimes they can still have side effects of diarrhea after being cured of parasites in the intestinal tract, because the intestinal tract is still irritated after treatment....

 

[BeginnerChinLover]

She's had numerous postive fecals back. Just over a month ago she had one, and her count was 1 in 3 highparfield(sp?), and last week she was 1 in 1 highparfield(sp?). She hasn't had any meds since April 3rd, partly because I just want to give the poor girl a break. This has been going on since mid-December. On a plus side, she has never had diarrhea.

First, she was on strictly Panacur for the first 3.5 months, then the last round in March we had her on Panacur and Flagyl.

I read on here that albendazole is another option. Maybe that would be another med to talk to my vet about??