Giving Tablets

[SaddlePsych'D]

Any tips?!

Ivy is getting ever better at sifting and spitting out her flea and worming tablets. When I'd crushed one up into raw tripe last month and she barely went for that, I was done! Vets have given a spot on which does everything except tapeworm and so I still have three tablets to try to get down her every 6 months.

I've even contacted out old vets as couldn't remember the brand of chewable flavoured tablets we have through them. At this rate I'm going to have to weigh up cost of Pet Club vs. Prescription charge and sourcing it online instead.

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

Cheese?

 

[SaddlePsych'D]

Cheese?

Tried it. Smeared in primula and wodged in a block. She can smell the tablet and says nope.

If it gets as far as in her mouth, she'll spit the tablet back out.

 

[skinnydipper]

Tubidog liver sausage in a tube. Zooplus.

 

[Roxylola]

Peanut butter?
Also assuming you do a bit of treat training, have a quick "training" session do a few sits, downs, spins etc for treats - have it all pretty quick and involve the tablet treat in that maybe

 

[slimjim86]

I always used get a handful of blocks of cheese and throw them starting with ones rithout a pill in, dog would swallow without thinking and then just keep going on the next ones.

 

[SaddlePsych'D]

Peanut butter?
Also assuming you do a bit of treat training, have a quick "training" session do a few sits, downs, spins etc for treats - have it all pretty quick and involve the tablet treat in that maybe

I'm allergic to peanuts but OH can try that one out!

I'm liking the quickfire treats thing. Worth a shot!

 

[KittenInTheTree]

I tend to just hold their mouth open, fire the pill in, and then hold their mouth shut until they swallow. Then they get a treat afterwards. This is probably against some important rule or six of dog ownership that I don't care about.

 

[Highmileagecob]

You could try crushing the tablet and mixing with something like tuna or chopped liver. Needs to disguise the smell of the tablet but smell appetising. Small amount of tinned cat food might work too. Good luck!

 

[Jenko109]

I buy some really filthy cheap dog food. I then cut the tablets smaller and mould the meat around them.

It's a novelty to get filth box meat and it seems to do the trick.

 

[Hackback]

I put them in a roll of cold butter, then smear a bit of butter in the dog's lips and while they're busy thinking about that I quickly open their mouth and put the pill in its butter at the back of the throat. They're just thinking mmmmm more butter.

Probably really bad for them!

Our dogs are all greedy though and all will eat something quickly before any of their 'siblings' can get to it. Plus they're all big with long noses which is a definite advantage when it comes to pill giving!

 

[FinnishLapphund]

I've never really bothered using it with my bitches, if they didn't take a pill voluntarily, I just put it in their mouth, and waited for them to swallow, but when I've occasionally struggled to give my cats a pill, I go and get my Buster pill giver (which is made for both dogs, and cats), suck/draw up a little bit of water into it, place the pill at the top, and "shoot" the pill + water into the cats mouth. Difficult for them to spit out the pill, when the water sort of helps flush it down.

Buster Pill Giver

With proper finger bars, transparent barrel of the right length with reinforced tablet holder, piston with plunger. Fast and easy way of administering tablets to cats and dogs.

hyperdrug.co.uk

 

[HopOnTrot]

Microwave a tiny bit of cheddar and mould this round the tablet, let it dry a bit and then feed.

 

[SaddlePsych'D]

I've just had success with the quick fire treat thing. Mostly. I did have to hold the snoot for one of them but it was low drama. Not keen to do that too much.

I ballsed up doing the spot on and now she's got a big patch of it running down her side. What a faff!

I'm emailing the practice to ask if we can't get the stuff she used to have what their price is for consultation and prescription so that I can compare costs to stopping the Pet Club and doing it that way.

 

[Smitty]

Cake. My lad has 3 tablets a day and I find the squidgy ginger bar cake works well but he is having them squidged into cheap individual swiss rolls at the moment. Not whole ones, just enough to conceal tab.

 

[splashgirl45]

I have to shove them down my dogs throats so I smother it in butter so it slides down easily, open mouth put it as far back as poss , hold nose upwards and stroke throat. Works every time but I get in a mess

 

[tda]

Buster is currently on twice daily tablets, I wrap them in a piece of sliced ham, if he hesitates, he gets a couple of pieces of ham to get his juices flowing then the wrapped tablet goes down in a gulp. He is still quite greedy tho

 

[Christmascinnamoncookie]

I tend to just hold their mouth open, fire the pill in, and then hold their mouth shut until they swallow. Then they get a treat afterwards. This is probably against some important rule or six of dog ownership that I don't care about.

Used to have to work Zak like a cat in this manner!

Mitch is quite resistant to tablets, I’m very glad there’s only a small tablet and metacam left to give. I’ve been using salmon oil and natural yoghurt, the usual additions anyway, to disguise the tablets. If he spits one out, it’s @KittenInTheTree ’s method.

 

[I'm Dun]

I have a load of cheese cut into little bits. I hide the tablets in the cheese, but I feed them ordinary cheese first, and do it playing catch where I chuck it in the air. By the time the cheese and tablet combo is chucked they are into the game and just swallow it down. Then we do a few more no tablet cheeses, and then a cheese and tablet combo and repeat

 

[I'm Dun]

I always used get a handful of blocks of cheese and throw them starting with ones rithout a pill in, dog would swallow without thinking and then just keep going on the next ones.

Oops just saw this after I typed out my reply. It definitely works.

 

[SaddlePsych'D]

I have a load of cheese cut into little bits. I hide the tablets in the cheese, but I feed them ordinary cheese first, and do it playing catch where I chuck it in the air. By the time the cheese and tablet combo is chucked they are into the game and just swallow it down. Then we do a few more no tablet cheeses, and then a cheese and tablet combo and repeat

She is quite good at catch so I'll try that the next time!

 

[Archangel]

The only thing that worked when my dog was very ill and hardly eating was pate.
Not something I would normally allow her to have but it worked.

 

[SkylarkAscending]

I always just posted them down their throats - which can be fun when they have long jaws like greyhounds, I got “bitten” (not really, the dog simply closed its mouth to object!) many times. It was the only way to be sure some of them took their tablets though!

It doesn’t have to be forceful, once you have the knack the tablet slips down very easily.

I’m still intrigued by JRTs who voluntarily eat worming tablets and then sit there begging for another one

 

[lizziebell]

I tend to just hold their mouth open, fire the pill in, and then hold their mouth shut until they swallow. Then they get a treat afterwards. This is probably against some important rule or six of dog ownership that I don't care about.

Ditto. Never had problems pilling dogs this way. Quick and effective. Shame it’s not so easy with cats !

 

[CorvusCorax]

I tend to just hold their mouth open, fire the pill in, and then hold their mouth shut until they swallow. Then they get a treat afterwards. This is probably against some important rule or six of dog ownership that I don't care about.

This is what I do to. Hold their head up/hand over muzzle, stroke throat with other hand, wait until they gulp. I have had dogs who would hold it in their mouth for ages and then spit and others who just...ate the tablets.
My dogs are pretty used to me touching/holding their face, checking teeth/ears/eyes etc so it's not a massive ordeal.

 

[Ratface]

I'd love some ideas on how to get a worming tablet down RC! Covered in butter? Yum yum!! Lick the butter off and pat the pill round the saloon sole. Under the rug. Sit on the rug. Firmly. Make menacing faces at pathetic owner. Grin and walk off, tail upright. Hold wriggling cat under arm. Cat wriggles some more and jumps down. Wrestle cat into corner of the settle and prepare to open mouth. Cat opens mouth and bites the fingers holding the pill. Jumps down etc. Put pill into cat's favourite cheese. Cat delicately sucks cheese off pill and pats pill across the sole until it's behind dog cage and can't be reached without dog cage being dismantled. Cat sits in the middle of the saloon, yawns and strolls off to sit in the sun.
Cat 1++ Cat Slave 00.

 

[skinnydipper]

I'd love some ideas on how to get a worming tablet down RC!

If it isn't an enteric coated tablet, crush it and mix with a sachet of Lick-e-Lix, use your cat's favourite flavour. My cat loves the chicken but wouldn't thank you for liver flavour.

 

[millitiger]

My whippet is terribly greedy so my method may not work for all!

I rustle the bag and the tablet foil to get her attention, then I leave the tablets on the edge of the kitchen counter.
I then go off and do something else and 'forget' about the tablets.
At which point naughty whippet jumps up and 'steals' the tablets and wolfs them down before I can get to her in a slow mo Baywatch run

 

[scats]

When we were kids, my friends family were told to pop a tablet in the mouth of their German Shepherd, tilt his head back and tap nose 3 times. It worked every time.
Never tried it since though, we tend to go for cheese slices or ham.

 

[I'm Dun]

My whippet is terribly greedy so my method may not work for all!

I rustle the bag and the tablet foil to get her attention, then I leave the tablets on the edge of the kitchen counter.
I then go off and do something else and 'forget' about the tablets.
At which point naughty whippet jumps up and 'steals' the tablets and wolfs them down before I can get to her in a slow mo Baywatch run

That is genius!