Sourced from published veterinary references. Awaiting credentialed clinical reviewer — our editorial process.
Calcium (oral/injectable) is dosed at 50 mg/kg SC, IM once (no interval printed); repeat prn in rabbits, per Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 10.1 (Antimicrobial Agents Used in Rabbits.a). — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 10.1 (Antimicrobial Agents Used in Rabbits.a). Verify against current literature before clinical use.
Elemental calcium supplementation for hypocalcemia, egg-binding, metabolic bone disease, and eclampsia. Essential for bone, muscle, and nerve function.
Side effects & warnings
IV calcium must be administered slowly with cardiac monitoring. Oral calcium may reduce absorption of other oral drugs. Excess supplementation may cause soft tissue mineralization.
Species with Calcium (oral/injectable) dosing data (15 dose rules)
Each ExoticRx dose rule is graded by the strength of its primary evidence — see the editorial process.
Sample dosing (2 of 15 cited rules)
A dog/cat sample is shown here. Cited dosing for all 10 species — reptiles, birds, pocket pets, livestock, and equine — is free on the per-species pages above. Pro adds the weight-based calculator for every species.
Plumb's Veterinary Drug Handbook, 10th ed (2023) — Plumb's 10th ed printed p.177-178, Calcium, Oral (-Carbonate, -Gluconate, -Lactate) monograph, Dosages.Compilation only — we have not located an independent source that prints this figure.
· Avian Medicine: Principles and Application (Ritchie, Harrison & Harrison), p.833. Row as printed binds this dose to raptors on its own line: "Calcium lactate/calcium 5-10 mg/kg IM q7d prn Most species, including raptors/hypocalcemia".
· Beynon PH, Forbes NA, Lawton MP.C. Manual of Psittacine Birds, Iowa State University Press, Ames, IA; 1996. — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 5.11 (Nutritional/Mineral Support and Supplementation Used in Birds).
· Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th Ed, Table 5.11 p.475 - Calcium borogluconate (10%) 50-100 mg/kg IM, IV (Psittacines) and Calcium gluconate (10%) 50-100 mg/kg IM, SC (diluted), IV slow (Most species, including psittacines) — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 5.11 (Nutritional/Mineral Support and Supplementation Used in Birds).
· Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th Ed, Table 5.11 p.475 - Calcium borogluconate (10%), 10 mg/kg PO q24h, African grey parrots (ref 891: Stanford M, Vet Rec. 2007;161:456-457) — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 5.11 (Nutritional/Mineral Support and Supplementation Used in Birds).
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Compilation only — we have not located an independent source that prints this figure.
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Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 10.1 (Antimicrobial Agents Used in Rabbits.a). — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 10.1 (Antimicrobial Agents Used in Rabbits.a).
· Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th Ed — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 4.30 (Treatment of Metabolic Bone Diseases in Reptiles.241). — Carpenter's 6th ed, Table 4.9 (Nutritional/Mineral/Fluid Support Used in Reptiles.a).
· Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th ed, Table 4.9; superscript 63 resolves (refs PDF p.348) to Carpenter JW, Klaphake E, Gibbons PM, et al. Reptile formulary. In: Divers SJ, Stahl SJ, eds. Mader's Reptile and Amphibian Medicine and Surgery, 3rd ed. Elsevier; 2019:1191-1211 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 4.9 (Nutritional/Mineral/Fluid Support Used in Reptiles.a).
· Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th ed., Table 4.9 'Nutritional/Mineral/Fluid Support Used in Reptiles', p.263, calcium glubionate row, superscript 63 — Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary 6th ed, Table 4.9 (Nutritional/Mineral/Fluid Support Used in Reptiles.a).
· Plumb's Veterinary Drug Handbook, 10th ed (2023) — Plumb's 10th ed printed p.177-178, Calcium, Oral (-Carbonate, -Gluconate, -Lactate) monograph, Dosages.