Arggghhh. Tricks for pills?

Hey everyone...
I am having a heck of a time getting Kitty to take her meds. She is on Baytril for a possible UTI. she does not like to be picked up and will scratch if she feels threatened - so force feeding is almost out of the question.
I have also tried crushing up in tuna with cat nip on top- she won't touch it.
I have tried the pill pockets, she just turns up her nose.
I have also tried her favourite treat mozz cheese- but she manages to eat the cheese and spit the pill out!
I have already wasted two pills and a lot of patience!!!
Anyone have any other tricks I try?

I coat the pills with butter then put them inside the kitties mouth as far back as I can the butter usually makes them swallow it.But sometimes it comes back out and I have to do it again. If you can not get them to swallow a pill usually the medicine comes in a liquid form which is easier to squirt into their mouth.

Crushing up the pill into the food means she will be able to smell it more. If Chuckie isn't in the mood to take a pill, i hide it near the top of the food to ensure he eats it, but leave it whole. If it's something chunky like casserole or fish i make a little cut into one of the chunks and push the pill in

Try this site - they have a method for giving pills. http://www.felinevideos.vet.cornell....le/index.shtml

I just finished a round of Clavmox with Lucy. I coated the pill in butter then wrapped her up in a towel. I leaned her head back, popped in the pill, closed her mouth, rubbed a little butter on her nose and rubbed her throat.

Thanks guys!
I will start with the butter trick and try the others!

I wisecrack that I could pill a hyena. But, seriously:

Put kitty on a countertop or somethign else high enough to do the following comfortably. They feel safer with 4 feet planted. Throw your left arm (if you're rt handed) over kitty so she is firmly held in your armpit. Grab kitty's jaw in left hand to stabilize head and neck. Do all of this swiftly, and with great assurance ... practice without a pill in hand, several times, even.

With pill between rt forefinger and thumb, (keep in mind you are holding her jaw, gently but firmly in left hand), open the jaw and shove that pill as far back as you can. Close the jaw and poof in kitty's face to induce swallowing reflex.

If you get fast at this, they never even notice they are uncomfortable. Plus they know what to expect. Sound rough? Not once you get them -- and yourself -- used to it!

You might also start out wrapping kitty in a towel, to help keep those point parts DOWN ... but the faster you move and the more minimally you restrict a feisty one, the better!

I, too like the butter trick if you do not have digestive issues ... but I have successfully used my technique with LARGE, DRY capsules (my vet likes to use custom compoundment from a "people" pharmacy).

In the worst case scenario (i.e. your cat will reject all the alternatives suggested above), then maybe you can find a compound pharmacist to make the pill into a liquified form with natural flavorings. My cat, for example, takes Cisapride, which is a liquid flavored with real tuna. He would struggle with the capsule form but he *loves* the tuna and does not realize there is crushed medication in the tuna juice (thank you Abbott Pharmacy!).

I'd crush the pills good and put them in food you know she will eat right down. Luckily my cats will eat almost anything you give them so if they need to take medicine, I shouldn't have a problem.

Most of my cats I could hold them still enough, pry open their mouths and take my finger to push the pill to their throats (my fingers are little) and then hold their mouth shut till they swallow. Sometimes they would spit it out, but most times not

I've done something similar to the video above. However, I was always successful placing Scotty on the floor, with his butt in a corner (they back up, so this prevents it). I grab his head like a baseball and pull it back (index and middle fingers on each side of the nose, rest of the fingers around the head). When the nose is pointed at the ceiling, the mouth will open slightly, and you use your middle finger of your other hand to pry open the mouth, and drop the pill in from between your index finger and thumb. Gently rub the throat and bingo!

Always worked for me.

The only way I've been able to pill Swanie (and I've tried most of the methods) is to crush it into a small amount of food he likes. Once he eats what he wants of that, I smoosh what's left together in the dish. He eats some more. Then what's left, I put on my fingers and he licks it off. That method got me through 3 weeks of antibiotics earlier this month with no stress involved for either of us.

I don't worm mine regularly as they are indoor-only, but I did do them a couple of months back (mice in our block) and found that just acting like you mean business and getting it over and done with quickly is the best approach. Sat cat on chair, left arm over body, left thumb goes in behind the fangs to open mouth, right hand puts pill on back of tongue and then holds mouth closed until they swallow (gentle throat rub to assist if necessary) then treat to make sure it's not going to be spat back up instantly.

2 cats done in approximately 10 seconds. They didn't know what hit them tbh, no time to react or get worked up about it.

I have had better luck with Baytril than most pills due to the fact they crumble, are small, and not bitter.

After wasting a few pills, I found that by holding my cat, wrapped in a towell, on my lap with one arm while putting the pill as far back into his mouth with the other hand works well. I make sure his paws are wrapped in a towell to minimize scratching. I have been giving him liquid this week and have been scratched to pieces though. I have an easier time with the pills.

I was giving my cat a half a pill twice a day and found if I crumbled the half in half and gave him two smaller pieces, I had better luck.

My cat will not eat anything crumbled in his food either. He KNOWS. It can be difficult and stressful. Hope you find a resolution soon.

I use canned cat food. I "wrap" the pill in what every ground food the cat likes. He got used to getting a small treat of food before he got his actual dish of food. Also, I made sure he was hungrier around pill time so the little "treat" went down quickly.