Vet suggested antibiotics first visit

[skinkerbell]

Hi, I just got my skink on the 8th of this month. She's very active and digs all day long.
She squeaks and sneezes and my vet said that she should be injected with antibiotics every three days, 10 doses.
I was under the impression that skinks sneeze and squeak normally due to burrowing/digging and substrate getting into their nasal cavity.
There are times when she is resting in my arms and while being held that she doesn't squeak at all.

I turned down the antibiotics just because I wasn't sure if it was necessary to stab her with a needle for something that seems to considered normal for them?
Thoughts? I am willing to go back and get the antibiotics if it seems like a good idea I just wanted to consult here.

Breed- Merauke
Substrate - forest floor, jungle mix and sphagnum moss
Humidity - 50-90% depending on when sprayed. I just ordered a fogger so it should be more consistent
Temp - 77ish on the cool side, 89/90 on the hot side. she also has a uvb bulb on all day
Other symptoms - none that i can see? she has appetite, shes active in the afternoon and evening, she basks and digs like crazy

[IvanDanko]

Hi there,

Sneezes you would expect to hear maybe a handful of times a day at most - but squeaking is not normal and is typically a symptom of respiratory infection if I'm not mistaken - especially since Indonesians are almost always wild caught and often carry various ailments (hence the antibiotics). Unless our definitions of squeaking are different? Is there any mucus around the nose or eyes? How often does this happen throughout the day? Was the vet knowledgeable/experienced with treating reptiles?

[skinkerbell]

Hi there,

Sneezes you would expect to hear maybe a handful of times a day at most - but squeaking is not normal and is typically a symptom of respiratory infection if I'm not mistaken - especially since Indonesians are almost always wild caught and often carry various ailments (hence the antibiotics). Unless our definitions of squeaking are different? Is there any mucus around the nose or eyes? How often does this happen throughout the day? Was the vet knowledgeable/experienced with treating reptiles?

No mucus at all but she does squeak when she's active or stressed. When I'm holding her, she's quiet and relaxed. This vet doesn't seem to be the main reptile specialist there, there is another doctor that I was seeing for my leopard gecko who wasn't there yesterday. Also, they said they don't see very many skinks. It's not that I don't trust the vet, but I am just cautious about jabbing my new baby for something that I thought was genuinely pretty normal. Though I guess it's not very normal. I will probably call and get the antibiotics just to be safe.

[IvanDanko]

Totally understandable and I must admit I wasn't familiar with antibiotics being injected unless it was a very serious infection? As far as I was aware they could be administered orally but perhaps there's concerns with the coverage/metabolism being ineffective with that method. As long as it doesn't hurt your skink I guess trust the professional opinion here and play it safe.

[splashy07]

Antibiotics can be given orally. Have done this many times with perfect success. There is absolutely no reason for an inexperienced person to be giving injections. Was there cultures done? Were you shown the results stating bacterial infection?