General Care Discussion :: Cant keep my turtles eyes open for eye drops! Any tips?

[cc_matt]

Ok, so I got some eyedrops for my turtle's eyes....the problem is, I cant seem to keeps his eyes open long enough for the drops to be put in. Any tips on keep my turtle's eyes open for the drops? Or would I be able to dilute the drops with water and allow him to soak in the mixture, because he keeps his eyes open in the water. Here are the ingrediants for the eye drops, hope they arent harmful if swallowed.

GENTAMICIN SUFLATE- ophthalmic solution, USP 0.3%

ingrediants---ACTIVE -gentamicin sulfate equivalent to 0.3% gentamicin base, PRESERVE-benzalkonium chloride, INACTIVE-edetate disodium, polyvinyl alcohol 1.4%, purified water, sodium chloride, sodium phosphate, dibasic and hydrochloric acid and/or sodium hydroxide to adjust pH.

[grey goose]

Is that stuff for turtles? I'm treating two of my guys now, and the ingredients are nowhere near what you describe.

[steve]

What kind is it?

If it is turtle eye drops (I'm only aware of the Zoo Med version), you can apply the drops on the eyelids. When I first started to use it I thought it might only be used on they eyelid, not open eyes. I was a bit paranoid, but had help

[cc_matt]

I got the eyedrops from my vet but forgot to ask her about possibley soaking the turtle in the eyedrops or if dropping it on the eyelids would work. She only works a few days so its hard to get a hold of her sometime.

[kikicool]

I wouldn't risk the soakng in eyedrops. I know that for humans, getting eye drops in your system any other way can make you very ill. The same is true for dogs and cats. Which is weird, isn't it?


You know, I use those drops on my dogs. Your vet said they can be used on turts, too? Intersting...

[marisa]

cc_matt, what I do to get drops into my turts eyes if they need them is to hold the turtle in one hand, and the dropper with the solution just about to drop out just above the eye. When the turtle opens his eyes (usually to see what the heck I'm doing), I quickly just let the drop fall on the eye. He'll quickly close it, but this will just help the solution get into the eye better.

I've done this with some of my painteds who are smaller and can easily be held in one hand, at least for a while. So far, I've never used drops on my RES, who is much bigger.