Giving my cat oral med.-dosen't want it!!!!

I have to give my cat a syruppy medicine by mouth every 4-6 hours. Of course the syringe doesn't work so I started to mix it in with a little bit of her favorite canned food. She did eat it but wasn't real happy with the idea. Now she has figured out that I'm putting the medicine in her food and now she won't eat that too!!!! Are there any other ideas that you have? I can't pick her up or hold her in my lap because some of her ribs a bruised, so if she moves a certain way or is touched in the wrong spot she starts to cry in pain.

Best advice I can give is what I did for one of my cats after he was mauled.
kneel on the floor and cross your ankles behind you, then basically sit on your feet.
Put your cat between your legs (the crossed ankles will keep her from backing out from under you).
With your hand under her chin tilt her head back, you'll need to hold her gently, but firmly.

Take the syringe and gently push it into the corner of her mouth, this will force her to open up without hurting her.
Squirt just a little at a time from the syringe until dose is given.

Afterwards, be sure and give her lots of praise and a favorite treat.

Some medicines are good to follow with water so the taste lingers in their mouth less. But, I think you should use a syrine, definitely. Buy a new one if the one you have broke. I like arlyn's idea. Another is to use a blanket: put it our your cat and open her mouth with one hand, and syrine with the other. Quick. The faster you do it, the less chance your cat has to refuse.

I do mine on one end of the kitchen counter so they are right at arm level, and the corner really limits their movement. You just have to lightly cradle them, you don't need a death grip. Sometimes it is the holding they are objecting more than anything and if you can force yourself to relax and not communicate stress it really helps. You have to sound and appear calm no matter how frustrated you are feeling on the inside- this is vital!
And keep talking in a quiet soothing manner- recite the alphabet- it doesn't matter what you say as long as you sound calm.

Any vet tech can show you several ways to do it- the next time you are in ask for a demo.

I also agree with Arlyns way of doing it. It gives you the best angle and grip on the cat, and they cannot get anywhere easily. You cat of course is not going to like it. She will put up a fuss but with a syringe is the most effective way. Pry the mouth open and stick the syringe in pretty far and shoot it back there. Your cat may gag a couple times but it is most likely from the taste and not how you medicated her. Of course use your best judgment on how far back to go. But you gotta get it in there pretty far to be successful.

Have you considered using a prescription compounding pharmacy? My Nikki has to take Atenolol daily due to his heart disease. I, too, had extreme difficulty in getting the medication in him in the beginning. I tried everything before a friend told me about Prescription Specialties (a pharmacy in my area). They compounded the prescription into a liquid form that is flavored so he doesnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t mind it at all. Although you will still have to give it to your baby via syringe, they have so many flavors these days to choose from. Nikki loves the liver flavor and every once in a while I switch him to the tuna or salmon to mix it up a bit. They even make him an eggnog flavor around the holidays! Ask your vet about a pharmacy in your area and give it a shot. It just might do the trick. Good luck! I hope it works out well.

Does the medicine come in flavors also? When I first got Luna my vet gave her meds that was Butterscotch flavor. She LOVED taking it!

Arlyn's idea is the best. If for some reason though you can't hold her down, I do admit feeding Luna a little bit of Butterscotched mixed in (Organic sugar free).
(I know its bad please don't hurt me!)