Highly Dangerous ?? Getting my cat to take a pill.

[1rovert]

Help needed!

I've tried opening her mouth, but having arthritis in my hands I cannot do it. My friend managed to giver one lot, but had his fingers nearly bitten through, and dose't want to try again.
I've tried crushing them, wrapping them in butter and cheese. She nearly died last Sunday, and was put on a drip. When I brought her home thursday, I was given the tablets to give her twice a day. I have to take her for a check up and give a blood sample. I am just hopeing someone might have an idea they can give me.

[chookie pie]

i have an 18 year old cat who has to take pills twice daily i wrap them in chicken or tuna or one of her favourite foods its so much easier than trying to open her mouth hope this helps

[copperascove]

dear 1 rovert.

I had to give my cat pills last year. i crushed them between two spoons and put them in her food. they went down a treat.
good luck.

[Schutzengel]

Suggestion for you 1rovert. The cat should be taken back to the vet as soon as possible. She should have been having the tablets twice a day since last Thursday (that already 6 or 7 tablets missed). If as you say she nearly died on the previous Sunday and was on a drip and brought home Thursday, then she really needs those tablets. You didn't say what was wrong with her, or what the tablets are for, but if you explain the situation to the vet they can often arrange a different method of getting the medication into the cat. Sometimes it can be an injection of the kind that lasts for the necessary number of days. There is obviously something going on that requires a blood test, and that would probably be to see how well the tablets are working, and if they are having the desired effect. Please don't delay, or your cat could become very ill again. Hope all goes well. I would be interested to know the age of your cat, and what progress she makes.

[wildwood]

Ever tried a pill popper ?

[Noweia]

What are the tablets? If they are antibiotics, you can get a 2 week-acting antibiotic called Convenia. It's not as good as other antibiotics, and is more expensive than tablets, but it saves you trying to get tablets into your cat!

Otherwise, does your cat eat dry food? Wait until she's hungry, then put one tablet in with a small amount of her dry food. Put tuna and the surrounding brine/oil it comes in over the lot. Hopefully she'll think the tablets are one of the dry biscuits and will scoff the lot.

Crushing tablets into a powder between two spoons, as copperascove mentioned, is also quite effective. The powder can be mixed with tuna to make sure she eats it! As it is a powder, there are no bits for her to leave out. As long as it's mixed well she shouldn't notice the stuff in it.

[Rosetta]

We have a similar problem with our cat who is on daily medication. She is normally the gentlest of creatures but kicks and scratches if you try and give her her pills. After much trial and error we now crush her tablets and put them in a third or half a tin of these gourmet tins of cat food. Take up her normal food so that she isn't snacking and is really hungry. When she has eaten her medicated food, and only then and ( believe me we have had some battles of wills) does she get her normal food.
Remember to vary the gourmet tins as cats are notoriosly fussy creatures or at least ours is.

Have a word with the vet in case there are alternatives to oral medication. The vet should be made aware that she has missed several doses anyway.

PS she has her own pestle and mortar for crushing her tablets lol

Best of luck.

[roxybabe]

your vet will be able to supply a pill pooper then just pop it in the side of its mouth and press and down it goes .

[1rovert]

Thanks for all your advice, I'll pop into the vets tomorrow and see if they have a pill popper.
JR.

[gelda]

If you think about crushing the pills check with your vet first as some pills are slow release and have to be taken whole. If this is the case crushing them could make the cat seriously ill or even kill it.

[luxury]

Hi 1rovert,

They are such difficult creatures aren't they???

http://www.nanceestar.com/CatPill.html

Good Luck.

L. :)

[Rosetta]

LOL @ Luxury.

However well disguised our cat would mange to spit the tablet out. The pill popper didn't work for us either

[Barmaid]

I either wrap mine in tuna or chicken or a prawn, or crush them (vet told me I was allowed to do this). The crushed powder I mix with a tiny bit of food and give to her separately. It's the only way of getting her to take them, if I try and put anything in her mouth, I lose blood and the pill ends up either on the ceiling or behind the washing machine.

[wildwood]

One would think that with cats so often refusing pills, the drug companies would flavour the medicine just like the treats.