To Whom It May Concern:
Hello, my name is Ben Goldberg. As you have probably guessed, I am Carrie’s son, and Otis’s “Older Brother”. I am a junior at John Hersey High School, and incidentally, I maintain a living coral reef tank. Recently, I have been adding more hard corals, as my other hard corals have been experiencing explosive growth. Disappointingly, my tank has recently become infected with a common pest, “Red Bugs” (Tegastes acroporanus). These amphipods slowly kill hard corals of the Acropora genus by irritating and eating parts of the living tissue of the coral. This process may be slow, but eventually, the entire coral will die. Because I have multiple Acropora coral colonies in my tank, it is clearly important that I eliminate these pests. Unfortunately, the only known method of eradication is with the canine heartworm preventative medication, Interceptor. The active compound in Interceptor, Milbemycin oxime, is lethal to most marine crustaceans, including Red Bugs. As you more than likely know, this medication needs a prescription, and that is the very reason for which I am writing this letter. Ordinarily, the “Large, 51-100LBS” sized tablet is the size which is used, yet I am aware that due to a temporary break in production, there is a shortage of this medication. I have calculated that to successfully treat my tank, I would need to dose 5.75 milligrams of the “Active Compound” (Milbemycin oxime) three times. This then means that I need enough Interceptor for there to be at least 17.25 mg of Milbemycin oxime. Because I am unaware of the individual tablet sizes you may have in reserve, I humbly ask for as little Interceptor as you can allocate, but preferably at least enough to provide 17.25 mg of the active compound. I thank you for, at the very least, reading this longwinded letter, and I completely understand if you cannot sell me any of the medication. All the same, my coral reef needs to rid itself of the Red Bugs, and you are, more than likely, the only person who can help me. Thank you for your time, and hopefully the medication as well. Regardless, have a nice weekend!
- Ben Goldberg
Politeness and good grammer will get you far in this world....
