There will certainly be varied opinions among veterinarians regarding the antibiotic issue, and here's why:
The problem with prophylactic antibiotics is that the best culture is taken at the beginning of the season because the cervix is partially open. There is no point in testing for mycoplasma in the vagina, because it is normal flora in the vagina -- you are looking for mycoplasma (or E Coli or whatever) in the uterus. A culture done prior to the season is probably going to show nothing, or show vaginal flora, but tell you very little about the what's in the uterus, because the cervix is closed when the bitch is not in season. And suppose we do wait until the onset of the season to get the culture? Well, we have established that pelvic disease may take 2-3 weeks to treat. Since you are probably not going to get the culture results until well into the season, and conception takes place prior to 14 days into the season, well, you see the dilemma. I know some people give Baytril to pregnant bitches, but you gotta wonder about its effect on cartilage development. If the infection is E Coli, then that may be sensitive to ampicillin, which is safe in pregnancy. If the infection requires Baytril, I guess you could treat that season and wait to breed until the following season. Al(Myra, maybe you could answer this one? Why does your vet choose Baytril? I know it's broad-spectrum, but if you are only worried about one bug -- mycoplasma --how about erythromycin? Next time you go in, ask if erythromycin would be sufficient? Cindy, are you here?) As Barb mentioned, Baytril is not innocuous. It is hard on the stomach, and can cause mental disorientation. Vets call it "Baythrill", for the mental effects it has (Vets and breeders sometimes take their dog's meds........) My own personal opinion, for what it is worth, is that I would not mess with the cervix of a healthy bitch (there is an important protective factor in the cervical mucus -- see abstract below), and I wouldn't put her on prophylactic antibiotics because I wouldn't want to mess with the normal flora, which is also protective. As a stud dog owner myself (different breed), I understand the stud dog owner wanting to protect their dog. I guess if I wanted to use Myra's dog bad enough, I might consider an AI. Interesting topic. Leanne Am J Obstet Gynecol 2001 Sep;185(3):586-92 An in vitro study of antibacterial properties of the cervical mucus plug in pregnancy. Hein M, Helmig RB, Schonheyder HC, Ganz T, Uldbjerg N. Cervical mucus plugs from 56 healthy women in labor were studied by 2 different antimicrobial assays: Analysis was done by overlaying the cervical mucus plug onto an agar plate with imbedded bacteria, and by radial diffusion assay with group B Streptococcus and Escherichia coli. RESULTS: In the agar overlay assay, there was complete inhibition of clinical isolates of Staphylococcus saprophyticus, E coli, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa and patient-variable partial-to-complete inhibition of Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pyogenes, and Streptococcus agalactiae. In the radial diffusion assay, cervical mucus plugs had activity toward group B Streptococcus equivalent to 0.075 microg/mL of gentamicin and toward E coli equivalent to 0.5 microg/mL of gentamicin. CONCLUSION: A low-molecular substance with antibacterial activity in the cervical mucus plug may protect the fetus against ascending infections. ========================================================= "Magic Commands": to stop receiving mail for awhile, click here and send the email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?body=SET%20CKCS-L%20NOMAIL to start it up gain click here: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?body=SET%20CKCS-L%20MAIL E-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED] for assistance. Search the Archives... http://apple.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ckcs-l.html All e-mail sent through CKCS-L is Copyright 1999 by its original author.
