Cat medication question

[bascar]

Please share your favorite way to shove a pill down your cat's throat. For. The. Rest. Of. Time.

[PaulaO]

The Old Man in A Christmas Story likes a screwdriver and a plumber's helper.

I take it you can't hide the pill in cheese or liver sausage?

[Paints]

I was shocked that my cats would eat these - but they worked wonderfully! Most vets around here carry them and some of the pet food stores.

https://www.greenies.com/cats/pill-pockets.aspx

[pawsplus]

Get a pill crusher (Walgreens). Crush pill. Mix into a SMALL amount of plain meat baby food (make sure there is no onion in it--very important). Feed to cat. 99.9% of cats in my experience love it. One jar will last several days.

[Fatcat]

We use this on our cat several times a day, he's been doing it for years, happily. The key is to follow the pilling with feeding him. He begs for his pilling now


http://smile.amazon.com/Mikki-Pill-Gun/ ... ill+popper

[Moutaineer]

Place cat on edge of kitchen island countertop, bum firmly scrunched against your front, held in place by elbow. Use one hand to open mouth, ("like a teakettle," as my old vet used to say,) tip cat's head back a little, drop pill as far as possible down back of throat, close mouth firmly with head still tilted up, massage throat until cat swallows.

If cat is a clawer, wrap up in towel before attempting this.

Alternatively, if ABX, ask vet to inject with long-acting antibiotic and call it good

[silk]

My experience is that even if you luck out and manage it once, the cat will see you coming a mile away and won't even let you catch it the following day.

Try a microwave.

[texsuze]

Going on 4 weeks now, of pill-giving, so still early days. My hyperthyroid boy gets a pill in a.m. and p.m. right before a stinky canned cat food meal. I tell him, "Sebastian, let's take your pill." Tilt his lower jaw down (he tilts his head up as a reaction), quickly, carefully shove pill into throat. Gently close his mouth as he swallows. Kiss him on head. Present him with his meal of stinky canned cat food. In the evening, rinse and repeat

[PNG_Pony]

I do what Mountaineer does. A few other tips--toss the pill into the back of the throat/back of the tongue. If you need to use the eraser end of a pencil to flick it further back (just don't shove it down too far!). Once you close the mouth with the head tilted up, if the cat is refusing to swallow, sprinkle a drop or two of water on his nose and let him lick it off...automatic swallow reflex.

Definitely burrito wrap cat in towel!

[amygdala]

i scoop a little butter up with the pill before i insert the pill as far back as possible in the cat's mouth.
makes it slide down the throat a bit easier.

or ask your vet re: liquid thyroid stuff!

[zevida]

I use the Greenies pill pockets, or smush between two soft treats, or crush and mix in with wet food.

[Srhorselady]

Vet compounding pharmacies can make most meds in a liquid which is easier to give. Get the med in a high enough strength so that the dose is a tiny amount ie 1/4 ml. However the BEST alternatives are transdermal gels! Not all meds are effective in this format, but if the one you need is GO FOR IT. You massage a tiny amount onto the hairless part of a cat's ear pinna and that is it. Methimazole, thyroid med, is very effective as a transdermal gel. I have had to medicate many reluctant cats, some okay cats, and a few good cats, but transdermal gels work the best as long as they will sit in your lap and let you rub their ears. PS I have the scars to prove it .

[bascar]

Vet compounding pharmacies can make most meds in a liquid which is easier to give. Get the med in a high enough strength so that the dose is a tiny amount ie 1/4 ml. However the BEST alternatives are transdermal gels! Not all meds are effective in this format, but if the one you need is GO FOR IT. You massage a tiny amount onto the hairless part of a cat's ear pinna and that is it. Methimazole, thyroid med, is very effective as a transdermal gel. I have had to medicate many reluctant cats, some okay cats, and a few good cats, but transdermal gels work the best as long as they will sit in your lap and let you rub their ears. PS I have the scars to prove it .

And this is why I love the DDBB! Yes, I think both my cats are going the thyroid route (waiting for blood test results, but behavior indicates it) and I was given the choice of surgery or pills, so finding out that there is a liquid and/or a transdermal gel available is just brilliant. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

[texsuze]

My hyperthyroid kitty gets a heavy-duty grooming by his little sister on a daily basis, with emphasis on the ears! Wondering if she would inadvertently ingest a dose of the transdermal rx thyroid stuff when grooming her HT big brother if I switch from pill to transdermal?

[Srhorselady]

Interesting question abt the grooming and the transdermal gel. I'll ask one of our pharmacists when I'm back at work next week. I'm off this week while my father is having surgery.

[awa]

I'll be the contrarian. I hate liquid meds. My boy shakes his head and opens his mouth and they they go on his fur, the floor and me. I have no idea how much, if any, he actually takes in. I give a daily capsule forever while he's eating some favorite treat: put the little bowl on the floor, stand behind him, lift his head slightly and open his mouth, then gently shove it back far enough for him to swallow. Give him a pat so he knows we're done and let him finish his goodies. Of course, this only works if the pill isn't bitter, if it is then go back to some of the other things above. When I'm desperate with a bad-tasting pill, I'll buy empty capsules from the compounding pharmacy and put the pill in there.

[fergusnc]

I have been very lucky and four out of four cats over the years do great with the method Mountaineer described. Height is crucial. I have also had two meds that had to be compounded, and they flavored them, and the cats ate just fine when mixed in wet food.

[heddylamar]

Giving vaccines to my grandmother's herd of partially feral cats made me a huge fan of towels or pillowcases ... with a second one to kneel on. Don't forget to cross your ankles so they can't scoot out backwards.

For the well handled cat, I always go with a variation of Mountaineer's technique. It's low key, and has won over several kitties who were uncertain about pills. If they're food oriented a follow up each time of a treat will help win them over. We had an insulin dependent cat who would come running for his shot and treat.

The same technique works with uncertain Guinea pigs too. Teeth are a bigger concern there!

[Srhorselady]

Texsuze I asked our managing pharmacist about kitty grooming and transdermal gels. She said that most of it is absorbed within the first hour so that if you separate them for an hour after applying and then wash off the ears another kitty grooming shouldn't be a problem.

[MaryC]

Having become a master of the "open wide and shove the pill down the throat" technique with previous kitties, I've now become a huge fan of Pill Pockets. Currently kitty gets 3 heart meds. She's convinced you're gonna kill her if you try to even hold her snuggly (she's a rescue, we make allowances!), so the "down the throat" method was not an option. Sometimes she'll eat the pill pocket from around the meds, which earns her a second one ! I'll have to see if any are available transdermal, that sounds brilliant!