Heroes for the Half Shell
It sounds like a joke: “What’s the difference between a tortoise with a respiratory infection and one without?” Answer: “A sick tortoise is lethargic!” But Potawatomi Zoo veterinarian Jennifer Boonstra, DVM, MPH, DIPL.ACVPM, knew that red-footed tortoise Nigel’s lethargy, combined with her runny nose and her blood tests, were no laughing matter.
Nigel needed an antibiotic, so Jennifer called Memorial Home Care’s Advanced Pharmacy Services. As a compounding pharmacy, they fill specialty orders for physicians, dentists and even veterinarians. “They’ll spend a lot of time working with me,” commends Jennifer.
“Flavorings are a major issue for animals,” explains Ann Ziegert, a compounding pharmacist at Advanced Pharmacy Services who’s worked with Potawatomi for years. Advanced Pharmacy Services adds banana flavoring for monkeys, sneaks a dose to a snake through his lunch of dead rat, or they’ll find a way to make an antibiotic injectable for a tortoise. After all, Jennifer could reach Nigel’s forelegs even when the tortoise hid in her shell. So Ann investigated “whether an antibiotic for
human IV use would be safe to use as a muscular injection in the tortoise.” Success!
Of course, tortoises don’t like being injected, so Jennifer ensures that she’s the “bad guy,” not the animal’s trusted keeper: “I never want the keepers involved in something that would be a negative event with the animal.” While Jennifer may never get a thank-you head nudge from Nigel, at least Nigel is healthy and active enough now to give one to her keeper.
