Help!! How do I give a Big Pill to Little Kitty??????

tinkrbl5

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We have been back to the vet and Babe has a urniary tract infection well and her blood test came back and she is not doing great there but we do have an anti biotic to kill both urinary tract infection and any blood infection she may have. I just don't know how to get Babe to take the BIG Pill
Please help.

Good news though on her health. She has not lost any weight in the last 3 weeks and she is becoming frisky again. She runs and talks to me now when I give her food. This vet is more positive compared to the last vet so maybe we can have more time with Babe then we thought considering our visit 3 weeks ago. So thank you to Everyone!!
for all of your great kitty vibes sent to babe. They are working so if we can keep it up we may get Babe back to a place that she is happy again.
 

aircraft

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I just brought one of my cats home from the hospital after a 2 day stay and a diagnosis of FIP. He came home with an antibiotic and an anti-inflamatory. They were both liquid. I am not sure if there is a reason why your vet gave you pills, but it seems like a dropper would be much easier. My vet also has treats that are made with pouches in them to hide pills. Maybe that would work.
Good luck and glad to hear your kitty is getting better.
 
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tinkrbl5

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I am sorry to hear about your kitty being diagnosed with FIP? How did they come up with the diagnosis? My vet said that FIP is extremely difficult to diagnose. There is a site for FIP kitties. If you haven't been there you may want to try it. A lot of support.

http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/FIPCatSupport/

Please let me know how your kitty is doing? I will send you many cat vibes your way
 

rone

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Originally Posted by tinkrbl5

I just don't know how to get Babe to take the BIG Pill.
Can you 'open' the pill & mix the powder with his favorite canned food or treat? It always work for us.
 

sierra_k

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I'm sorry your kitty is so sick. I have also had a very sick kitty for the last 3 weeks, and I've have to give him liquid in a syringe, pills, and powder! Not fun.
What has worked best for me and the pill is to wrap it in some soft cheese, and grease the cheese with butter.
I sit cross legged on the floor, put one hand over his head and gently squeeze his cheeks to open his mouth, and then poke the cheeseball toward the back of his mouth. Then I close his mouth for him and he swallows it.
My thoughts and prayers are with you and healing vibes for your kitty.
 

aircraft

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Thank you for the site and the vibes. From what I have learned from this forum, you are right. I am not certain if or what my cat has or had at this point.
 

natalie_ca

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I don't have much success in giving my cats pills.

Before Chynna had her dental surgery I had to give her Cipro antibiotic. She's a very docile cat and doesn't scratch, but she doesn't co-operate for pills either. I had to literally pin her to a piece of furniture with my body, while holding the pill in my right hand and using my left hand to hold her head, pry her mouth open with my right and throw the pill inside.

That was the easy part!!!


The hard part was getting her mouth closed and held closed before she used her very agile tongue to spit it out! That's where my head came in. I couldn't just hold her head with her mouth closed with both hands because she was moving her head all over the place. So in addition to holding her body down with my body, I put my head against hers to limit how much she could move her head.

A month before she needed anti-nausea medication, which was capsule form. Those were even worse to give. If she spat it out the capsule was sticky and hard to get back into her mouth because they stuck to my fingers. I tried dissolving the powder into water and using a syringe, but the powder didn't dissolve! It ended up just water and pill bits that clogged the syringe. I ended up mixing the powder up with a couple tablespoons of tuna juice and that helped even if the powder didn't dissolve. Because the powder settled, I would give it a quick mix as she was drinking it.

The morning I took her into the vet for her hydration pre surgery, I also took the bottle of Cipro with me and asked them to give her that day's pill!

After the surgery I asked for any medication that she would need to be dispensed as injections. They sent me home with 4 days supply of preloaded syringes of Hydromorphone and Ampicillin. Those were so much easier.

Chynna needs a blood pressure pill daily. Thankfully it's only 1/4 of a pill so it's small. I dissolve it in a couple tablespoons of tuna juice each morning, and she drinks it right up.

I remember many years ago that I had a cat that needed some kind of antibiotic. The vet dispensed it as a liquid and I gave it by eye dropper or syringe. I held her to me quite tightly and inserted the tip of the eye dropper or syringe into the corner of her mouth so that it went in behind her teeth. It wasn't easy, but it was certainly easier than trying to give pills.

If you can't get your kitty to take the pill, contact the vet and ask for injections. They will show you how to give them. It's very easy. You pull the scruff of their neck up high with one hand. That creates a "space" inside. Then you give the needle into that area. They don't even feel it.
 

mews2much

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Can your Cat have the Liquid Antibiotics? Coco gets those for her Bladder Infections. She was on Clvamox but it made her Sick. She would throw up so we switched to Cehalexin and it worked. Coco ha always spit pills out. I did get her to take Orbox and Pred Pills.
 

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When I need to give my cats big pills, I put them on my lap with their paws all facing out (kind of like a teddy bear). I'm right handed, so I put my left hand over their face and forehead so that I can pry open their upper jaw. I the first finger on my right hand to open the bottom jaw and to shove the pill toward the back of the throat. Then I gently but firmly close the kitty's mouth until they swallow and lick their nose. Sometimes it takes a couple of passes. When I'm done, I immediately feed the kitty, so that the food helps push the pill into the stomach and so they have a more positive association.

If your internet connection is fast enough (mine isn't), you can watch this video demonstration from Cornell University:

http://partnersah.vet.cornell.edu/pe...ill_or_capsule
 
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tinkrbl5

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Wow
Thank you to everyone for the help. Babe is a year old and we have a regular pill. It not a capsule and powder type. I have utilized your suggestions and she is still fighting me. I have call into the vet to see if I can get a liquid form. Again, Thank you to everyone with all of your suggestions. I was afraid I was going to have to get a sling shot and try to propell the pill into her mouth.
(just kidding) This can at times become frustrating and I try to find humor in situations to make it a little easier.
 

lilyluvscats

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I'm giving one of my cats prednisone right now. The vet had originally given us liquid but it was cherry flavored and freaked her out so much she drooled and foamed. We decided a pill was easier on her. I just grease it a little with butter.
 

gardenandcats

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I also cover the pill with cold butter right out of the fridge it slids down so much easier for them and covers any yucky taste..
 

smirkitty

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I crush pills, using either a pill crusher, or a bowl and a large spoon, then mix the crushed med into a SMALL amount of wet food. Be sure to use a small amount so that the entire (crushed) pill is actually consumed.
 

darlili

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Greenies makes a pill pocket (in various flavors). A friend tried them with her cat who'd become increasing reluctant to take her daily pill, no matter how disguised. So far, so good! Package says to be very careful to not seal the pocket with your 'pill' hand, to use the hand holding the pocket to seal it.

Good luck with your baby!
 

jen

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What Cloud Shade said is exactly what I was going to say also. You can also use a pill popper instead of your finger to push it down the cats throat. Then hold the mouth closed and firmly but gently rub under the chin/throat area in the direction the pill would be going down. Lightly blowing in the cats face helps too.
 

wildflower79

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Originally Posted by darlili

Greenies makes a pill pocket (in various flavors). A friend tried them with her cat who'd become increasing reluctant to take her daily pill, no matter how disguised. So far, so good! Package says to be very careful to not seal the pocket with your 'pill' hand, to use the hand holding the pocket to seal it.

Good luck with your baby!
I'd highly recommend the pill pockets. I used them a while back for Gizmo and was quite happy with how they worked. He ate them right up!
 
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