Measuring in MGs?

[hermeticcharm]

My vet gave me some Carnivore care powder and gave me instructions to use 16mgs of the powder every 24 hours. I picked up a digital scale from the kitchen section at walmart but it's units of measurements don't even come close to being low enough to accurately measure 16mgs. Any suggestions?

 

[sammer021486]

If the scale is unable to measure in milligrams, then I am not really sure how you could measure it out, other than getting a scale that can measure in milligrams.

 

[CapCitySteve]

Hold on a minute. mg is more of a concentration term in the medical world as in 3 mg of medication per gram of powder etc. Ask your vet what the concentration of the powder is and you should be able to calculate the dose that way. Or ask them to you did pay them for their knowledge.

 

[ElapidSVT]

sure. it's relatively simple.
dissolve 1.5g in 100mL of water then use 1mL of solution for each dose.
you'll probably be best off using a scale that measures to .1g for best accuracy.
hope this helps,
rob

 

[hermeticcharm]

The directions on the back of the package for reptiles reads mix 4g of powder per kg of body weight. 2 parts powder, 1 part warm water.

Thats a great and simple solution elapid, thank you. The only down side is you have to discard the mix after 24 hours so I will be wasting a bit but that should work very well.

Edit: I didn't realize how difficult this would be to measure until the doctor was already seeing another patient, so a nurse went back and got instructions from him. Any who, the compound pharmacy said they could measure it out but we didn't think to bring it with us and its far away. We called a local pharmacy and they said they couldn't do it and if I wanted to buy a scale that could measure something that small I would probably be spending $1000+ haha, just for anyone that might need to do mgs in the future. Apparently the scale from walmart is not accurate at all. When trying to weigh out a gram of the powder it jumps around. It will just sit at 0 until I have a big pile then I reset it measure it again and it will read 8 grams, reset it measure again and its 3 grams. I think I am just going to try and measure out a quarter teaspoon of the powder, and I should mix this in with 100ml of water? Is this right given the two part powder one part water formula?

 

[JordanAng420]

The package says to give 4 grams (1 tablespoon) of powder per 1 kilogram of body weight.
How much does the gecko weigh?

Lets say your gecko weighs 50 grams.
Convert grams to kilograms. 50 grams = 0.05 kilograms
Multiply the weight times the dose = 0.05 x 4 = 0.2 grams.
1 gram = 1 milliliter (mL or cc)
So, you can give 0.2 grams of this stuff, or 0.2cc if your gecko is 50 grams. Which is supposed to be divided into several feedings. Get yourself a 1cc syringe from your vet (who should have given it to you to begin with, but that's neither here nor there) and while you're at it, have him check my math. Ask exactly how much should be given and how often.

I wouldn't make up 100 ml's of this stuff. You'll waste the entire bag. Do something like, one teaspoon of powder to two teaspoons of water.

 

[hermeticcharm]

Thanks Jordan, my vet did give me a syringe as well as a syringe with a tube attached in case I end up having to force feed. It ranges from 0.1 ml to 1.0 ml.

It is a baby gecko (not a hatchling but very young) and is emaciated. It weighed in at about 3.5 grams at the vet.

When I did my math for it I came out with

3.5 g = .0035 kg
.0035 * 4 = .014 grams
.014 grams = .014 ml

There are very small lines between .1 ml and the 0 mark. I guess if I went to the first or second line that would be about .014 ml. And by eyeing the empty syringe that will probably be one drop.

This is just so difficult because of her size.

I think I am going to mix a 1tsp powder to 1/2 tsp warm water and giver her one drop to start. She just really needs something right now, if anyone can chime in and see if my math and what not makes sense it will be greatly appreciated. It just seems like such a small amount. I really appreciate all the help so far.

Edit: Just made the mix, this should be more of a paste consistency right? Not watery?

 

[JordanAng420]

You are very welcome. I would go ahead and mix a little bit more water. It's supposed to be about the consistancy of pancake batter, if that makes sense.

 

[hermeticcharm]

Yeah that's about what it looks like. I am trying to get her to eat some right now but she just lets it sit on her mouth unlike drops of water or liquids, she usually licks those right up. She doesn't seem to want to touch this stuff.

I tried pressing lightly on her jaw and she opened up with out a hassle but as soon as I got the syringe in and was about to push a little bit in she started flailing her head about.

Could I try diluting it a little more since she seems okay with licking up liquids?

She just needs to get something in her and we can work up to a suggested dosage.

 

[JordanAng420]

You can try diluting it a little bit more. Something is always better than nothing.

 

[hermeticcharm]

Good news, she licked some up. It took a while but once she started licking she was good. I really I hope I can get some weight back on her I really hate seeing an animal like this. There wasn't much more to her when I got her from the unnamed pet chain store.

How long before I might notice some effects from this?

 

[JordanAng420]

Give it a week to 10 days or so before you start seeing a change in attitude. It might be a couple weeks or so before you start seeing a change in body structure and weight.

 

[hermeticcharm]

Cool, ty so much, will keep forum updated. Once we get past the hunger strike I hope to find what the real problem is.

 

[hermeticcharm]

She licked up a bit more today than yesterday and it wasn't as diluted.

 

[hermeticcharm]

Unfortunately, she passed away tonight.