Giving pills?

I really need some help giving my cat pills. He desperately needs these pain meds or else we'll be forced to euthanize him.

It's a capsule, so the medicine can be mixed with food, water, etc.

We've tried rolling it in butter, hiding the powder and pill in ice cream/milk/turkey/pork, mixing it with his food, doing the scruff method, wrapping him in a towel...literally everything. He tastes it everytime and spits it out if we even get that far. The problem is usually that he whips his head around so fast that we can't even get the pill near his mouth, let alone get him to open his mouth for a second to pop it in. He's also horrible about syringes, and most of it ends up on him, so we can't really do it that way.

Please help!

Here you go: Pilling Cats (and Dogs).

Hope that helps!!!

AC\

It can be a huge problem with some cats, but there are a few tricks. TCS has an article on it: How Can I Give a Pill to My Cat

One of our members uses a Cat Bag, and has made a how-to video: Why I love my cat bag - video

I "collected" ideas not so long ago: Ideas for "hiding" pills? and many of them were quite helpful. Here's another suggesting pill pockets or a pill popper: How do you give a bengal medication?

This one has a link to a video showing how to use a pill popper: How to pill a cat

:cross: that something there works out for you!

xthoroughbred said:

I really need some help giving my cat pills. He desperately needs these pain meds or else we'll be forced to euthanize him.

It's a capsule, so the medicine can be mixed with food, water, etc.

We've tried rolling it in butter, hiding the powder and pill in ice cream/milk/turkey/pork, mixing it with his food, doing the scruff method, wrapping him in a towel...literally everything. He tastes it everytime and spits it out if we even get that far. The problem is usually that he whips his head around so fast that we can't even get the pill near his mouth, let alone get him to open his mouth for a second to pop it in. He's also horrible about syringes, and most of it ends up on him, so we can't really do it that way.

Please help!

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Crush the pill and then mix it with water.  Feed by syringe.

Or put kitty on your lap and squeeze his mouth so he opens.  Place the pill on the back of his tongue and close his mouth then blow gently on his nose which forces him to swallow. 

Also, have seen pain medicine available in liquid form that can be syringe fed.

I know it's mentioned in one or more of the threads above, but there are compounding pharmacies who can flavor prescriptions and make them into different textures (liquid, chewable, pill, powder) to make them more pallatable for our cats.  Or, many prescriptions can be given in shot form, which might be easier for you.

I use a cat piller! It is a great device that looks like a syringe with a rubber end on it. You place the pill in the rubber end and push the pill towards the back of the throat and depress. It works great!!!!

petguy78 said:

I use a cat piller! It is a great device that looks like a syringe with a rubber end on it. You place the pill in the rubber end and push the pill towards the back of the throat and depress. It works great!!!!

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I second that! Great device!

I was really nervous about having to pill my cat, but it turned out to be the easiest thing in the world. Lol, I just texted my son this morning telling him that the cat is either a pro or an addict. She even comes to me when I get the piller ready, maybe because she quickly realized that pilling is followed by feeding?

Do it in a quiet area of your house. Remain calm but firm yourself. Put the cat on the floor and basically 'sit' on top of her, bringing your feet together behind her butt. Grab her head from above (grab by the corners of her mouth) and gently pull it back. She will open her mouth, you stick the piller in and release the pill. Voila. Just make sure you go in far enough, to the very back of her mouth.