# Critical care formula dose for a leopard gecko



## Hoppergrass (Jul 31, 2010)

Hi my gecko has recently undergone surgery which has resulted in complications and a long course of anti biotics.
This has led to her stopping eating and now I am hand feeding her critical care formula to boost her weight back up.
I am seeing a vet on a regular basis for advice but I would like to chrck I am on the right track with the critical care dosing please.
Currently I am giving about 1 ml to 1.5 ml of critical care a day and she is 33 grams.
I am not forcing her as she won't open her mouth easily and she is very old so we have an arrangement. 
I fill the syringe with the critical care and dip the end in crested gecko food (Pangea) I the put some on the end of her chin which she starts licking off. I then present the syring which she then drinks from.
I have also put the reptoboost in her water and some dilute ccf in another bowl of water.
Her hot end is on a stat heat Nat between 30-33 and she has a uv light on 9-5.
Am I on the right track? I would appreciate any tips to make her better. She should be 40 grams normally.


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## DannyDee (Nov 5, 2008)

Hi, 

I have just finished treating one on my lizards with critical care. The lizards in question sustained a broken arm. He was only 10g and still young. I decided not to go to the vet to prevent extra stress. I'm pretty sure the vet would have only prescribed anti-inflammatories anyway. 

I am not advocating people not seeking veterinary advice, in most cases it's definitely advisable.

Anyway back to the lizard. I wasn't sure on dosage, but I did want to give him a good fill. I decided on 0.75ml, which was slightly diluted and contained extra multi vitamins and calcium. I *****istered this three times over ten days, and I also included a force fed cockroach. 

During this period I raised the temperature inside the viv, and kept disturbance to only treatment time. The lizard made a full recovery. 

I think what your doing sounds great, but I'd add some multi vits and calcium to the food, and maybe a gutload roach every few days.


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## Hoppergrass (Jul 31, 2010)

Hi thank you for coming back to me. 
Millie my Leo is flat refusing live food  she normally likes crickets and I have also tried waxworms and mealworms.
Where do you normally get your roaches from?
I will add some calcium and nutrobol to the mix- great idea. I have noticed Millie has been licking up the calcium too 
The vet has said the same thing re handling/disturbance. She said to feed just once a day- should I increase?
The viv temp has gone up slightly with the addition of uvb bulb last week- what temperature would be ideal?
Thank you for your advice


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## DannyDee (Nov 5, 2008)

I wouldn't feed more than once a day, it's a pretty stressful experience for them, so best kept to the bare minimum. 
Regarding your leo refusing flat all live food, I would gently force feed a couple of big, fat crickets. Make sure they are gutloaded and dusted with your vits and calcium. 
I have my own colony of roaches, as I have quite a few things to feed. I would suggest having a small colony yourself, they're a great staple feeder insect and much better than crickets. However, variation is key. 
I'm not familiar with leopard gecko temperatures, but just increasing by a few degrees will undoubtedly help. 
I know you're aware of this, but keeping your lizard as stress free as possible will go a long way in its recovery. 
Good luck, I hope it pulls through for you.


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## Hoppergrass (Jul 31, 2010)

Thank you for coming back to me. 
I have managed to get her to take her food voluntarily in 10 mins (ie not force her mouth open). I don't really want to force the live food but the vet says that's ok for now- just keep offering as less stressful
She is making slow progress but getting there. She seems more like herself and is out and about much more.
I even think her seroma is starting to get smaller. If that's the case that's great news for her recovery. The vet said a seroma is is a bit like our version of a blister and should be re absorbed. 
I will look into getting cockroaches again - I had them years ago. I have 5 geckos and 8 tarantulas so they won't go to waste.
Thank you for your advice. I am sticking with one a day feeds and increased slightly to 1.5 ml with a bit of crestie diet as s bribe. 
I will keep you posted in progress- thank you for the get well wish.


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