Dog Treatment Conundrum

[Tarser]

Not for the first time, I've taken my dog to the Vet because he isn't eating. I come away with medicine that needs to be put into his food. When I ask for help in finding my way out of this logical puzzle, I'm told to give him something her really likes....At this point, I go home, put the medicine in his food and then bin it when it goes uneaten. What am I missing here?

[woofgang]

A better conversation with your vet? What medicine are you given and what does the vet say is wrong?

[Zacs-Master]

Tried him with different food?
Raw meat?
Dog treats?

[pastafreak]

Cheese? Hand feeding? This is what I had to do when my old girl wouldn't eat.

[Tarser]

He's managed to eat some small pieces of cheese now with the medicine sunk inside it. He's one very, very sick dog! It's an infection, resistant to the antibiotics he's been given. He's on steroids now as a final effort to save him..

[jakep]

Hills a/d prescription food comes in small cans.
It is like a pate. You can add water and make it mushy for him to lick.
Heating slightly may increase the appeal.
Your vet should be able to sell you a can to try.

[pastafreak]

Aww...good luck, Tarser. I hope he improves.

[Tarser]

My bill for treatment over a couple of days is about the same cost of a fairly decent used car. I have insurance which will save me from financial disaster, hopefully, but insurers go out of their way to find ways of not paying. And when they do, the premium on renewal is just their way of saying go away...

Here's a true story told to me when I was shocked by a vet's bill... If you are a farmer and you need a vet to help a sheep that's having a bad birth, a rural vet will come out in the middle the night and stay as long as it takes. When you finally get your bill, it's a fraction of what we are used to paying in towns, less than a simple 15 minute consultation.

Sadly, having an animal companion now is so expensive, with this financial collusion between vets and insurance companies, this will be my last dog. It is now something that only the rich can enjoy.

[woofgang]

That's very sad. I have been with the same vet and animal insurance company for over 30 years and have never had cause to complain about either. The vets aren't the cheapest around here, but they do all their own out of hours and are also a hospital so do all their own overnight stay work too.

[woofgang]

and no I am not rich.

[calmck]

Sorry to hear this. I always put pills in sliced cold meat like ham, chicken or turkey etc. or in cheese. It usually works. Also boil up some chicken to make a soup and see if he will drink it instead of water. Good luck