Idea Exchange: Easy-to-use antiseptic in exotics

A children's antiseptic mouthwash in fruit or berry flavor applied on a cotton swab is better tolerated by rabbits, ferrets, rodents, birds, and reptiles to swab tooth extraction sites and clean oral abscesses and wounds. The children's brands don't contain alcohol and don't sting. They make it easy for clients to treat gingivitis or other oral problems and are effective in keeping oral suture sites clean. I have also found that they don't stain teeth or cause loss of appetite in these species as chlorhexidine oral washes designed for dogs or people can.

Dr. Cathy Johnson-Delaney

Kirkland, Wash.