Suggestions on giving meds???

My Rupert is soooo stuborn at taking meds. He has a cold and must take liquid antibiotics two times a day. I squeeze it in the side of his mouth and he just sits perfetly still and lets is run out the sides of his mouth!! He refuses to swallow. I even hold his nose and he still doesn't swallow. This morning, my daughter held his mouth open, I put in the meds and then held his nose.....I was affraid he was going to choke, but he STILL didn't swallow. I waited until I saw the liquid go mostly down his through before I let him go and then he finally swallowed.

Does anyone have a better way of getting him to take his meds? I don't want to choke him!!!

I honestly don't have any advice for you. My Lola is on Clavamox liquid for her UTI and she's doing the same thing....except when she gets a mouthful, instead of just sitting there, she shakes her head and all the medicine goes flying. I guess she's getting some of the medicine down her, because she's been on it since Wednesday and now I'm seeing diarrhea in the litterbox. My vet told me that Clavamox might cause diarrhea, and it looks like it is.

I don't think there's any best way that works for everyone. Some people find it's easier to give medicine as liquids, some (me included) find it's easier to give as pills. Mostly it depends on your cats, I think.

For Rupert, I'd suggest holding his head up with neck stretched out, if you can, so when you squirt it in it immediately runs to the back of his throat and he has to swallow. And you might need to open his mouth partially to get him to unclench his teeth so that you're squirting in onto the toungue, and not between the lips and gums.

You might also try this:

After squeezing the medicine in his mouth, hold his mouth closed, and stroke his throat. This can induce swallowing.

Good luck - at least he isn't foaming at the mouth, which can happen when cats taste something they don't like. That's the reaction Lilly gives me to Clavamox; talk about a mess!

I think pills are much, much easier. My Vet taught me a trick (which works with all but ONE stubborn chooch in my house!) -- gently puff in their face and it makes them swallow! Failing that stroking the throat will do it.

I use one hand to open the jaw at the corner as wide as possible, then if you can push the pill or liquid very far back on the tongue, that helps too.

Good luck. I claim I could pill a hyena if I had to ... but I seriously doubt it!

I can't get mine to take the liquid either. It might be easier if the vet will give you pills that you can mix with food. That can be a challenge too, and it's been trial and error to figure out what I can mix it with that he will eat. This current round of antibiotics I have to give Swanie, I've been mashing it into a fine powder, mixing it into a small amount of a food he likes, putting the food on my finger, he licks it off. This involves some following him around, occasionally dropping a bit on the floor for him to lick (not my favorite way to do it), accidentally smearing some on his paw, etc. Last night I finally got the right amount of food and he ate it all off my fingers. The first two nights I mixed it with a bit of cheese from Macaroni and Cheese box.

Good luck. Medicating a cat can be a huge pain.

Originally Posted by Misty8723

I can't get mine to take the liquid either. It might be easier if the vet will give you pills that you can mix with food. That can be a challenge too, and it's been trial and error to figure out what I can mix it with that he will eat.

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Have you tried pill pockets? You can buy them at the pet store. I finally tried them after Leo had surgery, and the thought of pilling a cat wearing an e-collar was more than I could bear. Those pill pockets were worth every darn penny! He gobbled them up, and never knew the difference! I always gave him one with the pill (he spit it out twice, b/c they are pretty big) and then one without as a treat. On the days he didn't get the pill down with the first one, I stuck it in the second treat, and then he got it. I am totally sold on these things, and will use them every time I need to give pills from now on. It's worth not being seen as the "bad guy"!

Originally Posted by CurlyQ629

Have you tried pill pockets? You can buy them at the pet store. I finally tried them after Leo had surgery, and the thought of pilling a cat wearing an e-collar was more than I could bear. Those pill pockets were worth every darn penny! He gobbled them up, and never knew the difference! I always gave him one with the pill (he spit it out twice, b/c they are pretty big) and then one without as a treat. On the days he didn't get the pill down with the first one, I stuck it in the second treat, and then he got it. I am totally sold on these things, and will use them every time I need to give pills from now on. It's worth not being seen as the "bad guy"!

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Yes, and he won't touch them (even without pills). Neither will Cindy. I wish they would.