Pre-surgical gaba

[zoes]

Hi all, one of my cats is going to the vet tomorrow for a dental cleaning.

She is supposed to take gaba tonight and tomorrow morning, but I don’t know what dosages she should get (my husband was the one who brought her for her pre-surgical exam… sigh… so I have neither the gaba nor the dosing info, and the vet is now closed for the day). I have loads of gaba in tablet form for my ancient cat but I don’t know what the pre-surgical dose is supposed to be. I found some guidelines online but am a bit nervous about following them and was hoping to substantiate them with some personal experiences.

 

[sivyaleah]

I don't think anyone here can give you dosing information. All cats are different and require different amounts.
I just know my girl got what's considered the normal, usual dose. But we gave it that morning around 6am and by the time the vet opened she was good and woozy.

 

[zoes]

I don't think anyone here can give you dosing information. All cats are different and require different amounts.
I just know my girl got what's considered the normal, usual dose. But we gave it that morning around 6am and by the time the vet opened she was good and woozy.

Haha yeah I know what you mean. It’s not exactly an “answerable” question! I did find the standard pre-surgical dosing by weight online and don’t see why I wouldn’t just go with that, it’s not even much more than what I give my ancient cat so it’s not a concerning amount.I guess I was hoping for some hive mind implied approval to do so since it “feels” wrong to be willy nilly about it. But it feels worse to not dose her at all.

 

[FeebysOwner]

I agree - there is no way to know without further information. Did your husband NOT receive any information/documentation? Did they give him a prescription that you are not filling because you have gaba already at home?

If you feel comfortable with what you find online, then OK, but your vet is remiss (or your husband) in not giving additional guidance. That, alone, would bother me.

 

[zoes]

I agree - there is no way to know without further information. Did your husband NOT receive any information/documentation? Did they give him a prescription that you are not filling because you have gaba already at home?

If you feel comfortable with what you find online, then OK, but your vet is remiss (or your husband) in not giving additional guidance. That, alone, would bother me.

It’s not the vet’s fault at all. My husband brought her and I told him we had gaba, I have a standing prescription there - in my head I meant “tell the vet that so she doesn’t have to fill a new prescription for two doses.” And then I wrote the date wrong for the surgery and thought I had the week to tie up any loose ends which would have caught the gaba issue with time to spare. When I finally put all the pieces together tonight, the clinic was already closed and the appt is tomorrow. The email records do note to give her gaba but not how much (it’s probably pre-portioned into two tidy syringes in a drawer at the vet clinic!)

I’ll give her a conservative standard dose tonight and see if I can get them on the phone tomorrow morning (I don’t think the lines are open before drop-off time though) and if not give her a similar dose tomorrow and explain to the clinic; if they need to re-dose her then it will be close enough to the right time to do so. Thankfully it’s a relatively low-impact mistake but still, aggravating.