Pilling Phinney

I need your help.

Phinney is the love of my life. He's the leader of my trio of kitties, and has just been diagnosed with allergies which are giving him watery eyes and dandruff from hell right now. The vet has asked that I give him a supplement of essential fatty acids to get his coat back - they're fish oil tablets.

Trouble is.... you know how every cat has that ONE thing that they TOTALLY HATE..... Phinney's is having his mouth opened against his will. He's nearly impossible to pill.

To complicate things.... he's a super picky eater, and ONLY eats his dry crunchy food..... NO treats.... NO table scraps... NO exceptions. If it's not his crunchy food - he's not having it. He, Coco and Murray are all on a super premium - the other cats have gorgeous coats and are in excellent health.

Can anyone give me tips and tricks for how to pill the unpillable???

NOTE.... Phinneus is 23-lbs, has his claws, and will use them if need be. He's also got unusual head agility when it comes to trying to open his mouth. I'd like to do this without causing him trauma and me blood loss. HELP US PLEASE!!

thank you in advance for your advice.

-katherine and phinneus

What do you think the allergies are from?

What does Phinneus eat, what kind of dry food? (he's sure a big kitty! My Taco was that size about 6 yrs ago, then he developed diabetes and had to go onto a strict diet of only canned and he slowly went down to 18 lbs which he's maintained. I attribute his weight gain over the years to Vets telling me to give him Science Diet Lite and other prescription "weight management" type cat foods......while they're lower in fat, they're super super high in carbs.....and over time, all these carbs (sugar) put a great strain on a big kitty's pancreas and they're at such high risk for diabetes).

Taco used to get a lot of dandruff too, but his was mostly from being so big that he wasn't able to groom his back that well. I found that brushing him regularly did help somewhat.

Would your kitty be willing to lap up tuna juice or sardine juice? If so, you can buy the same type of essential fatty acids as you've got there in the capsule form, in a liquid......and maybe you could put some of it into the tuna or sardine juice......?

Do you have anyone to help you pill him; someone to wrap him in a big towel and hold him still while you'd pill him?

The one thing I never liked about the essential fatty acid capsules (or the type I've bought from the Vet) is that they were often very large and I always sorta worried about them going down the throat but I guess as long as you got yourself a syringe (could ask the vet for one or go to a local pharmacy and ask for a pediatric medication syringe) and be sure to give Phinneus about 3cc's of water (slowly!! - don't squirt fast or you risk the water going down into the lungs)...even if it's just 1 cc at a time.

Can you open the capsule( some use a knife or needle ) and put it over food??

I think the allergies may be something from the change of seasons. Phinney's not only had dandruff, but dry crusty spots, weird little scabs on his head, and an overactivity of wax in his ears. He's Frontlined monthly and an indoor-only cat (as is everyone else.) My team is on MAXIMUM Indoor Cat Formula. It's done wonders for Phinney's loose stool issues. Coco (7-lb calico) and Murray (28-lb Maine Coon) are both looking gorgeous and everyone has stable weight (though I do have two Catzillas.) Phinney's always been a big guy. They're all free feeders. He doesnt seem to eat any more or less than the others. Coco's actually the most aggressive eater!

It's just me, the cats and a dog at home, so I dont have help for pilling. I may try to put break the cap open and put it on his paw and hope that he licks it off. That just came to mind, but the idea of fish oil being rubbed on the furniture is a bit scary too. If I put it into the food, then it's being distributed amongst all 3 cats, which I doubt would hurt any of them. Do you think that might be the best solution?

Thank you for your responses. They're truly helpful.

cheers
katherine (and phinney)

Katherine, is it possible that Phinney's skin problems are a side effect of the Frontline? Unfortunately, treatments like Frontline can cause many side effects, skin reactions being one of them.

Just wondering, since all your kitties are indoor-only, wouldn't it be ok to just use Frontline on your dog?

Best of luck with Phinney.

Don't know if this would help but
http://partnersah.vet.cornell.edu/pe...ill_or_capsule

As far as your cat refusing to eat quality food. I think of it like this. If a kid refused to eat anything but mcdonalds hamburgers all the time and nothing else, would you let him?
it's not easy and it is alot harder breaking a cat then a kid but I do believe you have to keep trying
http://www.catinfo.org/#Transitionin...o_Canned_Food_
Best of luck to you and yours