Quarantine

[pamela]

Does anyone have an idea what a good quarantine period would be? Such as 30, 60, 90, or more days?

I have some C.o.'s that I have had in quarantine for almost a month. Have another 2 that I just acquired in a separate container. I have several tanks going, but will not put any "new" ones w/my tried, and true, healthy breeding pair. Also, I won't put everyone together, for fear if there ever was a problem, that I would lose everyone. Any opinions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[jesper]

Hi, I guess it depends on what the purpose of the quarantine is?

If they are unhealthy I quarantine until they look healthy plus another month or so.
New ones get to stay in quarantine until they eat well and behave normally then I add a couple of weeks of isolation. It's so much judgement, impossible to say more without seeing the animal in action. Hope that helped somewhat.

 

[edward]

At work for amphibians we use 30 days with no deaths and three clear fecal samples. If there are deaths then quarantine is extended for another 30 days.
Most people do not bother to get fecals checked on their animals so anything past that point is more or less up to you.

Ed

 

[pamela]

Thank you Jesper, and Ed, for your replies!

I quarantine all animals that are newly acquired. So with your input, I will now feel more comfortable w/the 30 day isolation, instead of 30+ days.

Never thought of getting fecal samples on the newts. Good idea. I wouldn't know where to begin - parasites to look for, etc., not to mention the tools to test. Think I'll call around and ask some local vets (they probably won't know either!).

Thanks again!

 

[edward]

If you want to check out the basics this covers reptiles but it will help get you on your way.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1882770218/qid=1106358745/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl14/002-7985185-0870420?v=glance&s=books&n=507846

Ed

 

[jesper]

Ed, so how often have newly arrived newts and sals parasitic or other infections that show up in fecal samples?
What would the average isolation time be? I mean is the average isolation time more like two times(i.e 60 days) due to the fact that most wild newts are infected?

 

[pamela]

Ed, thank you for the link. Looks like a book I should have (it's also affordable!)

 

[edward]

Hi Jesper,
I have yet to recieve a freshly wild caught amphibian (or even a long-term wc captive that has not been screened) that did not have at least one parasitic infestation.

If the animals are not being screened for parasites then increasing the length of the quarantine is not really any advantage. The 30 day minimum is a period in which you hope infectious viral and bacterial infections become apparent (hence the extension by 30 days from the last death). It also means that animals may be under closer scrutiny for maladaption issues.

Ed

 

[jesper]

Ah, I thought that an newt not continously exposed to parasites would eventually decrease their parasitic load or even eradicate them.

How about CB newts Ed? Are they often screened and found to carry parasites - surely they must be exposed to parasites too...

It's great to have an experienced zookeeper around Ed! Thanks for being you!

 

[edward]

Hi Jesper,
This is somewhat true if the parasite cannot do one or more of the following
1) complete its life cycle in the host (some nematodes for example, normally do not reinfect the host but if the host does not pass the eggs quickly enough then the larva hatch out in the host and either replace parasites that have died or been excreted or increase the level of the infection (some like nematodes in the Rhabditius genus can produce feeliving and infectious larva which then can produce free living and infectious larva).
2) The life span of the parasite is relatively short. This is often not the case.

With cb animals, you need to make sure that there is not a false positive from feeding live worms to the animal but yes I have seen many positive cb animals (probably due to feeding wild collected food items).

Ed

 

[ben]

Parasites aren't your only problem i know of at least two people who bought amphibians at the Hamm show in germany that had chytrid fungus it went on to wipe out a large proportion of there collection, so be warned captive bred animals may also harbour nasty suprises.
Ben

 

[edward]

Chytrid has been documented from at least one importer/exporter in the USA as well as several Zoo and Aquarium collections.

In my (humble) opinion, most amphibian collections should be managed with the attitude that chytrid is present with the occasional screening. The reason for this is that chytrid survives just fine in soils and probably other moistened organic substrates. As many amphibian enclosures include collected items such as pieces of wood/bark/live plants it is probably nearly impossible to exclude chytrid from all enclosures and collections.

Ed

 

[jesper]

Ah, never heard of chytrid fungus before(regarding amphibians that is).

Ed - I actually meant that when a wild newt is caught and exposed to less parasites and get more food maybe their immuno-defence would be able to fight back the parasites.

 

[edward]

Hi Jesper,
Most parasites are so well adapted that the animal (or even your body) does not recognize them regardless of the health status of the animal once the parasite is an adult. Most immune responses to parasites that I can think of off the top of my head all involve eggs or larva of the parasite triggering the immune respone.
This is why many animals (including amphibians) can harbor parasites for years (even decades) after being wild caught if they are not screened and treated.
Not all "parasites" may have a negative impact on the animal in question (some may be commensuals such as some pinworms in herbiverous reptiles) but this is still a very new idea.

Ed

 

[jesper]

I was primarily thinking of the IgE mediated parasite defence. Hmm, I have to say that our body seem to be quite efficient in repelling parasitic attacks...I mean we do get allergic reactions etc mainly due to the cross-reactivity of the IgE anitibodies(the reason behind this might be a lack of parasitic infections when growing up!)

I found a nice page explaining the basics of parasite infections:
http://users.rcn.com/jkimball.ma.ultranet/BiologyPages/G/Games.html

 

[edward]

Hi Jesper,
The problem with that site is most of it discusses bacterial and viral infections, which I guess under the strictest definition can be considered a parasite, but I don't think that this is what we have be discussing here.
As the site mentions (under blood flukes) snip "protects the host from infection by a fresh crop of invaders but are incapable of harming the already-established worms.", this indicates that the adult parasites do not clear over time as I mentioned above. It may just reduces the reinfection (which has not been my experience....) in longterm captives.

Ed

 

[jesper]

Yes, it was mainly about viruses and bacteria indeed. I think it was a nice introduction to the general area though.... Do you know of a site who has some basics on parasitic worm infestations in general?

Yes the site I referred to said "It appears that the resident worms coat themselves with host antigens" to explain how they avoid antibodies directed towards them.

You never give antiparasitic drugs to all animals, instead you screen for parasites by fecal samples right? But do you only screen newly arrived WC animals or all animals?
Maybe vaccination would be a good idea!


(Message edited by Jesper on January 25, 2005)

 

[edward]

Hi Jesper,
We screen all animals. All new arrivals have to pass three consecutive negative fecals before being released from quarantine. All of the other animals in the collection are checked twice a year (and I have yet to have a year pass without one or more animals coming up positive for one or more parasites).

Ed