Cats
- When giving a medication in pill form first try wrapping it in deli meat, tuna fish or any treat your cat will enjoy. If that does not work, try the options below:
- Capsules are easy to break open and sprinkle over wet food or tuna fish
- Tablets: hide in wet food. Be sure to ask your veterinarian before crushing any medication. Some medications may become TOXIC when crushed.
- If the above do not work you will have to force your cat to take the medication. Place the pill on the inside of the back corner of the mouth – as far back as you can get it. Then hold the mouth closed while they swallow. Dipping the tablet in a small amount of butter will help it slide down easier.
- Liquid medications: you can sprinkle over food or tuna
- If you free feed your cat you will need to give the liquid directly. Draw the medication up with the syringe/dropper provided. Insert the tip of the syringe in the pouch between the cheek and the teeth and slowly squirt the medication in while you cat swallows. If this does not work you can open the jaw by placing your fingers on each side of the jaw and pinching behind the canines. Once you have the mouth open slowly squirt the medication so as not to gag the cat but quickly enough they don’t have time to pull away. You can also hold the scruff and tilt the head back to squirt into the side of the mouth.
Dogs
- When giving a pill simply wrap it in any kind of human food or dog treat. Follow the medicated treat with a second, larger treat to encourage them to gobble up the first.
- If for any reason this doesn’t work you can follow the above mentioned step for cats.
- When giving liquid – let your dog smell it first then open the cheek pouch and slowly squirt it in while they swallow. Remember to hold the mouth closed until you see a good swallow – about 3-5 seconds. If you are having trouble you can open the mouth described above or try mixing it with wet food or chicken broth.
- Foods such as marshmallows, liverwurst, peanut butter and other house hold foods work great for giving medications
We can flavor medications at The Scottsdale Veterinary Clinic with our FlavoRx system to make them more palatable. We are able to mix both pills and liquid into a variety of flavored liquids your pets will love including: MANDARIN ORANGE, CHOPPED LIVER, GRILLED TUNA, CRISPY BACON & MOM’S BANANA BREAD just to name a few.
Please call us if you are unsure what to give your pet.
