# Not clear exact DAILY dosage of (dissolved in water) metronidazole



## nitamircela (Oct 28, 2008)

Hello, I have a young pigeon with canker and the metronidazole that I got from Foy is powder. It indicates one teaspoon for 1 quart of water, which does not help with the exact dosage per day that one pigeon with canker needs (as he would not drink a _quarter_ of water. Would you please tell me if you know of this specific _dissolved_ powder metronidazole, how much of this medicated water I should give this pigeon per day and at what intervales (humans usually take antibiotics at equal intervals per day). Thank you so much.


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

*1 CUP= 1/4th of a quart of water, so just put 1/4 teaspoon in a cup of water for correct dosage.

The powder form is meant for flock treatment and should be strong enough, based on above instructions, he doesn't have to drink the whole cup.

For individual pigeon treatment for canker, I usually use the Spartrix tablets, one per day.*


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## nitamircela (Oct 28, 2008)

Thank you, Skyeking. This is how I tried, but he still has yellow somewhat watery poops and the canker in his mouth is still there after 3 days of treatment (of 4 x 12.5mg/day drops).Both he and his brother (whom I couldn't separate from due to the traumatic cage new habitat for the time of treatment) are equally treated and eat with big apetite --especially his brother who does not have canker in his mouth--. Thanks again.


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

*How long is the treatment recommended for?

You should try the Spartrix also for individual treatment then.*


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## minimonkey (Apr 7, 2005)

For severe canker, it can often take 7 to 10 days of treatment or even longer. 3 days is more of a preventive dose, or for very mild cases of canker.

Like Skyeking, I've also had good results with Spartrix -- though some people find strains of canker that seem to be resistant to it. 

I believe it is Jay3 who often gives metronidazole and Spartrix together and gets good results with that.

It is also possible to order metronidazole tablets -- they are a bit easier than water dosing for an individual bird. Vita King has them:

http://www.vitakingproducts.com/canker.htm

These are 60 mgs each, which is a pretty high individual dose -- I generally give one day of the 60 mgs at the beginning of treatment, and then follow with half a tablet per day for the remainder of the course. 

Good luck with your little guy!


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## minimonkey (Apr 7, 2005)

I forgot to ask: is the canker showing any improvement after the initial 3 days on Metronidazole? Can you tell? 

Some strains of canker are extremely resistant to certain drugs. 

There are also conditions that can look like canker, but aren't -- so if it really doesn't respond to meds, you may need to consider that it might be something else ...


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## Bella_F (Nov 29, 2008)

nitamircela said:


> It indicates one teaspoon for 1 quart of water, which does not help with the exact dosage per day that one pigeon with canker needs (as he would not drink a _quarter_ of water.


Just so you know, the bird doesn't have to drink the full quart of water to get the right dose. When it suggests mixing the teaspoon of powder into a quart, this assumes that each pigeon will drink 30ml of it (the average amount of water consumed by an adult pigeon), not a full quart. So you can go ahead and mix the powder as it suggests, then pour whatever amount of the mixture into the pigeon's water dish.


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## John_D (Jan 24, 2002)

I'm not great at working these things out, but ... according to my calculations, this is 20grams per gallon, which equates to 3.79 litres.

Working down from that, it would seem that 1ml would contain 5.24 milligrams of the substance (can someone more competent at arithmetic check that  ).

IF that's right, then it seems to me to be a very low dose of Metronidazole (?)


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## Quazar (Jul 27, 2010)

John_D said:


> I'm not great at working these things out, but ... according to my calculations, this is 20grams per gallon, which equates to 3.79 litres.
> 
> Working down from that, it would seem that 1ml would contain 5.24 milligrams of the substance (can someone more competent at arithmetic check that  ).
> 
> IF that's right, then it seems to me to be a very low dose of Metronidazole (?)


would actually be less - 1 gallon = 4.55 litres not 3.79


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## John_D (Jan 24, 2002)

Quazar said:


> would actually be less - 1 gallon = 4.55 litres not 3.79


I'm using US to metric, Bob.

Anyway, going by this (from the resources section), the dose would be:



> METRONIDAZOLE (Flagyl, Torgyl, Stormogyl)
> 
> Dose 20-50 mgs *per kilo* BID or 40-100mgs per kilo OID (Once daily)- 14 days.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

I give 50 mg daily of Metronidazole (for adult pigeon) for 7 days, but if it's stubborn, it can take 2 weeks. I have better results with the Metronidazole than the Spartrix alone, but yes, together they work well. Better off treating with a tablet for individual treatment, and if treating one sibling, the other should be treated as well. If you use the Fishzole (Metronidazole) 250 mg, you can quarter it, and give that. So a 60 mg pill would also be fine daily. For a young one, I would cut the 1/4 pill in half, and a 60 mg pill would also be cut in half.


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## Msfreebird (Sep 23, 2007)

I have 250mg metronidazole tablets that is mainly used for dogs (and humans). I quarter it, and give once a day (62.5mg) for 7-10 days....depending on the severity of canker. 
If its a young bird or baby, I cut it in half (30mg) Does the trick.


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## nitamircela (Oct 28, 2008)

*GETTING BETTER, thanks God... and you...*

Thank you so much for your very precious advices and yes, he is getting better. As the huge canker seemed to lower into his mouth cavity (from his higher position), I helped him after I watched some videos and encouragement in the thread "f47/urgent-canker-treatment-advice" about how _carefully_to remove it. It just fell out without any problem or bleeding. He isso happy to be free to breath and eat.Thank you, I will continue with the treatment by following your advices. Have a splendid and healthy day.


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## minimonkey (Apr 7, 2005)

That's great news! 

Yes, with big lesions sometimes it is helpful to remove them very carefully once they've dried up -- sounds like you did a great job with that! 

Glad your bird is on the mend!!


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

*Glad he is doing better, yes, make sure he does the full course of treatment.

Thank you for the update.*


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## Msfreebird (Sep 23, 2007)

nitamircela said:


> Thank you so much for your very precious advices and yes, he is getting better. As the huge canker seemed to lower into his mouth cavity (from his higher position), I helped him after I watched some videos and encouragement in the thread "f47/urgent-canker-treatment-advice" about how _carefully_to remove it.* It just fell out without any problem or bleeding*. He isso happy to be free to breath and eat.Thank you, I will continue with the treatment by following your advices. Have a splendid and healthy day.


That's exactly what happen to one of mine years ago  I was afraid he was going to choke on it, so I gently removed it after it loosened. I would go a full 10 days with your meds. Good job!


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