There comes a point in an owner's life that he/she would need to administer medication to one's furry friend. Some dogs enjoy drinking medicine and eating pills, while others just plain hate it.
One of my dogs used to jerk her head the moment the syringe or pill approaches her mouth. Heck, she almost bit the vet who was trying to give it to her.
Anyway, here are just some tricks I've used in administering medication.
1. Burying the pill/capsule in cheese spread or peanut butter.
2. Placing it inside meat or wrapping it with their favorite treats.
3. Using the a syringe (without the needle) to slowly inject it in the corner of their mouth where a small pocket is located.
What tricks have you used to make them drink their meds?
Giving meds to animals can't possibility be harder than giving it to a child.
I would think the best method to feed meds to an animal would be putting it in the food. They might not notice with all the flavor in their mouths. Even if they smell the meds in their food, they will have two choices,
1. eat it...or
2. leave it and go hungry.
If the medication is in liquid form, it can be a good idea to put it in their water or maybe milk.
Fortunately, I haven't given my dog any medication myself but my boyfriend was thinking that we should so that we wouldn't have to visit the physician's office all the time. I was thinking of ways to trick my dog into taking the medication because like your dog, she doesn't like medicine. She prance around and sometimes she barks at the vet for walking in the room. Something about a white coat irritates her--it's so cute seeing her go crazy like this. I think I will try burrying the pill in her food because when she eats, I don't think she pays attention to it. It'll be alot easier to get her to take the pill this way.
I have used some of the techniques you outlined when giving medicine to one of my dogs. However, sometimes dogs aren't stupid. They start to catch on to the fact that you are slipping something in the food that you are giving them. Toward the end of one of my dogs name Rocky's life he was in a whole lot of pain due to bad leg problems. My brother was giving him hot dogs with a little pain killer in them that the Vet had prescribed. However, Rocky stopped eating the hot dogs because he suspected they were laced with something. Even though the medicine seem to help with his pain.
01-27-2013, 01:24 AM, (This post was last modified: 01-27-2013, 01:26 AM by amberra824.)
My apologies if this doesn't belong here, but on the topic of pills and trying to get animals to take them, it reminded me of this joke I read awhile back. I'd obviously never do this to a pet, but it made me laugh when reading it:
How to Give Your Cat a Pill
Pick cat up and cradle it in the crook of your left arm as if holding a baby. Position right fore finger and thumb on either of side of cat’s mouth and gently apply pressure to cheek while holding pill in right hand. As cat opens mouth, pop pill into mouth. Allow cat to close mouth and swallow.
Retrieve pill from floor and cat from behind sofa. Cradle cat in left arm and repeat process.
Retrieve cat from bedroom, and throw soggy pill away.
Take new pill from foil wrapper, cradle cat in left arm holding rear paws tightly with left hand. Force jaws open and push pill to back of mouth with right fore finger. Hold mouth shut for a count of ten.
Retrieve pill from goldfish bowl and cat from top of wardrobe. Pull spouse from garden.
Kneel on floor with cat wedged firmly between knees, holding front and rear paws. Ignore low growl emitted by cat. Get spouse to hold cat’s head firmly with one hand while forcing wooden ruler into mouth. Drop pill down ruler and rub cats throat vigorously.
Retrieve cat from curtain rail, get another pill from foil wrapper. Make note to buy new ruler and repair curtains. Carefully sweep shattered figures from hearth and set to one side for gluing later.
Wrap cat in large towel and get spouse to lie on cat with its head just visible from below spouse’s armpit. Put pill in end of drinking straw; force cat’s mouth open with pencil and blow down drinking straw
Check label to make sure pill not harmful to humans, drink glass of water to take taste away. Apply bandage to spouses forearm and remove blood from carpet with cold water and soap.
Retrieve cat from neighbor's shed. Get another pill. Place cat in cupboard and close door on to neck to leave head showing. Force mouth open with dessert spoon. Flick pill down throat with elastic band.
Fetch screwdriver from garage and put door back on hinges. Apply cold compress to cheek and check records for date of last tetanus shot. Throw T-shirt away and fetch new one from bedroom.
Ring fire brigade to retrieve cat from tree across the road. Apologize to neighbor who crashed into fence whilst swerving to avoid cat. Take last pill from foil wrap.
Tie cat’s front paws to rear paws with garden twine and bind tightly to leg of dining table. Find heavy duty pruning gloves from shed. Force cat’s mouth open with small spanner. Push pill into mouth followed by large piece of fillet steak. Hold head vertically and pour pint of water down throat to wash pill down.
Get spouse to drive you to hospital; sit quietly while doctor stitches finger and forearm and removes pill remnants from right eye. Stop by furniture shop on way home to order new table.
(01-25-2013, 08:37 AM)mz_angie1987 Wrote: Something about a white coat irritates her--it's so cute seeing her go crazy like this. I think I will try burrying the pill in her food because when she eats, I don't think she pays attention to it. It'll be alot easier to get her to take the pill this way.
Yes, you should definitely practice giving them their pills. It's quite expensive to have to go to the vet just to have deworming done. Back when my Shih Tzu was still a pup, the vet prescribed us with an anti-oxidant med for his severe mange condition. It was a small pill and we had to split it in 4. Then we had to figure out how to give it to him.
At first, I tried crushing it, mixing it in water and using a syringe to administer it. Unfortunately, the pill didn't dissolve in water which meant that the residue was left on the syringe. If I had known that cheese spread worked well with him, I would've done that trick.
(01-26-2013, 02:08 AM)pafjlh Wrote: I have used some of the techniques you outlined when giving medicine to one of my dogs. However, sometimes dogs aren't stupid. They start to catch on to the fact that you are slipping something in the food that you are giving them. Toward the end of one of my dogs name Rocky's life he was in a whole lot of pain due to bad leg problems. My brother was giving him hot dogs with a little pain killer in them that the Vet had prescribed. However, Rocky stopped eating the hot dogs because he suspected they were laced with something. Even though the medicine seem to help with his pain.
Wow, Rocky must be too smart for his own good. Perhaps changing the food it was being concealed in would work- something with a stronger smell like cheese or peanut butter. I have a friend who occasionally places the pill inside a small portion of cheeseburger.
My dog, the one who jerks her head, ended up losing one of her baby teeth during that deworming session.
02-24-2013, 12:22 PM, (This post was last modified: 02-24-2013, 12:24 PM by 4sweed.)
When I got my dog Goodboy, he was very sick and needed pills everyday. We tried putting the medication in his food and on his food, and covered in raw hamburger or peanut butter, but upon getting the pill he would spit it out.
So I made taking pills fun. I would gently grasp his lower jar from both sides, toward the back of his jaw, and press gently on both sides and say "Open wide for mama."
After a few times of refusing he learned if he opened his mouth and a pill was popped in, and then I would release his jaw. Holding his mouth shut with one hand and stroking his neck with the other hand, he learned that swallowing pills was not such a bad thing to do. And he got a good treat for doing it.
From then on all I needed to do was touch his lower jar and say "Open wide for mama," and he would open his mouth and I popped the pill in at the back of his throat and with mouth held closed and neck stroked he would swallow the pill.
It was very humorous sometimes when he wanted a special treat he would come and sit at my feet and look at me and open his mouth wide, then close it and whine. He would get his treat. lol
I have always used the pill stuck in something method. Peanut butter or maybe inside a piece of cheese has always worked for us.It seems to work great. At one point we had to give our dog medicine regularly and I think he got to realize we were up to something.
At times he would simply spit it out and walk away. So, then I had to do a scrambled egg and trick him that way. Although it was fairly easy I am glad I dont have to do this all the time.
There are many ways to put a pill in something. I have even put the pill right in his dinner bowl and he never even noticed it in there. He took the pill without even knowing it!
If you can get the medication in liquid form its easier. I usually ask the VET for a syringe without the needle. I just put some in it and when my dog is calm I squirt it into the side of his mouth. I've tried grinding tablets and mixing it with her food or water but my dog ends up not touching eating the food or drinking the water. My husband sometimes places the tablet way into the back of our dogs mouth but that's not always easy to do.
