Serum Uptake and Excretion Rates for Orally Administered Ampicillin and Amoxicillin in Large Killer Whales (Orcinus orca)
Jay C. Sweeney, VMD
Serum uptake and excretion rates for some antibiotics are known for the
bottlenose dolphin, Tursiops truncatus. We have, until now, inferred from this
information for the proper therapeutic dose of the same antibiotics in larger species. In the
investigative trials presented here, utilizing two Killer whales, Orcinus orca, one a
female weighing approximately 10,000 pounds and the other a male weighing approximately 12,000
to 14,000 pounds, serum concentrations of orally administered Ampicillin at 5 mg/lb and
Amoxicillin at 5 mg/lb were measured at 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, and 24 hours. Results show good
absorption of both antibiotics with therapeutic levels remaining for up to 12 hours for
Ampicillin and 24 hours for Amoxicillin at these dosages.