Please help--cat won't take meds

Hi all,

My one y/o Jake was diagnosed with a possible respiratory infection (he has coughing fits) and given 50 mg minocycline 2x/day. The vet said to break open the capsule and  mix it into his food (he gave me 100mg capsules and said to use half). Jake will not touch it. I have tried his regular food, canned salmon, and cat milk. He takes a bite and backs away. So I tried dissolving it in salmon water and syringing it, and he hated that too--in fact it triggered his cough. I tried to put half into a gel cap and pill him but I can't handle him alone. I got one pill down and that was it--plus it seems to upset his stomach and then he doesn't eat.

I am at my wits' end, I think he hates me right now and his brother seems scared and upset too. He needs this med. Any suggestions?

Thanks.



Jeanne

They are a little pricey, but 'pill pockets' for cats worked for me. I could never pill my cats either, so on some things I had to resort to the antibiotic injection that lasts 10 days, it was 50.00 but well worth it to me! Call your vet and see what they recommend. Good luck!

Thanks--I forgot to mention that I tried pill pockets too and no luck!

My cat was stubborn too. He also was too smart for trying to mask the pill, he always knew it was there. And using a feeding syringe with liquid made him cough. I eventually just had to give him the pill manually. Just hold his head and put your fingers in the side of his mouth so he opens up. Put the pill in quick, hold his mouth closed until he swallows, pet his throat to coax him into swallowing. He should be fine. There's no liquid for him to aspirate. They aren't too happy but they usually get over that quick. I've done this with my other cats as well, and it works fine. Hope this helps. And hope your kitty does better.

Thanks, Brooke. I've had cats for years and have been able to pill the others with no major issues--just rolled it in butter and down it went. This guy is feisty though, and a little ball of muscle. I'm on my way to buy a pill shooter...wish me luck!

I use a pill shooter, you can buy one on Amazon for like 5 dollars.

You just sneak up on them, wedge your pointer finger and thumb in at the corners of the mouth and pop the mouth open. Have the popper loaded when you start and as the cat opened it's mouth wider to get away you just shoot it straight down the back of it's throat.

I'll be honest it is a little rough on the cats, but a simple less than 1 min stress (I can get a cat medicated in a few seconds) and cheap one time cost (Unless your cat hunts them down to destroy them like mine do ) is a lot nicer then paying an outrageous amount for those Pill Pocket treats that may cat eats then spits the pill back out.

Is he kibble/junky food oriented?  

My cats love kibble and Friskies canned.  They are medicated every other day.  I place halved/quartered pill in size #4 capsules.  I place the capsule in a snack size serving of Friskies mixed with a bit of water and topped by a handful of kibbles.  My cats usually lap up the capsule as they slurp the canned food and crunch the kibbles.  There is an occasional failure as they bite into the capsule.  That will definitely put them off.  That's when I pop a new capsule into their mouths and give them a few kibbles to ensure the capsule makes it all the way down.

Update...I got him to take it yesterday by mixing it  it with a calming gel...but it only worked once. Last night he wouldn't touch it, which might be a good thing because he as been really lethargic and sleepy since the first dose. He hasn't eaten in almost 24 hours.It may have sedated him too much. I am very worried and have a call in to the vet. Please keep your paws crossed for us!

I use a pill shooter, you can buy one on Amazon for like 5 dollars.

You just sneak up on them, wedge your pointer finger and thumb in at the corners of the mouth and pop the mouth open. Have the popper loaded when you start and as the cat opened it's mouth wider to get away you just shoot it straight down the back of it's throat.
 

Click to expand...

I thought of that, but since he has coughing issues and coughs/chokes easily,  I don't think shooting the pill down would be good for him.

Let us know what your vet says.
And, I can't pill Ritz, just can't. So I make sure the prescribed medication can be formulated into a flavored liquid. Ritz likes chicken/tuna fish flavored Prozac and bubblegum flavored antiobiotics.

Ya, the pill shooter might work. Hitting the back of the throat used to make my cat cough. I just always had better luck using my hands because i can get close to their mouth and just put it in. The calming stuff is ok. I've used it before too, but it can calm them down quite a bit.  He might start eating soon. Usually one day isn't that bad. You should worry after a few days.  But calling the vet is never a bad thing. Always better to be safe than sorry. I don't know it they can do this with that med, but my hyperthyroid med I used on my baby they were able to make into a lotion-like compound, and you just rubbed on the inside of their ear. This was so much better, because my baby also was really difficult about taking pills. Hope he feels better!

Jake got an antibiotic injection today so we'll see how that goes. The vet did not like the idea of the calming gel--it has chamomile and passion flower, and he said many flowers are toxic to cats and don't work the same in cats as in people. I wish I'd never given it to him but I was desperate to get his meds in!

Thanks for all the help and support. Paws crossed that he will be ok going forward--poor guy had has a very rough week (and so has mom)!