Pill Taking Suggestions?

[Guest lanielovesgreys]

Sol hates his pills. We've done well so far by disguising them in various items. Hot dogs (I know, bad) are the only things he'll take consistently. Well, he got wise to us and stopped eating those. He's clearly in pain and we'd like to get some pain meds in him. We've tried to just pop open his mouth and throw them in (and then keep his mouth closed). That was a total no go. He got so freaked out and started growling and barking. He was just freaked out by us holding him down. We've tried the Kong Liver Paste, tried putting them in yogurt, we've even tried crushing them.

 

I just don't know what else to do. I mean, at what point are we doing more damage than good? He's been here for two days and I would bet he's a little sad about the re-home.

 

Anyone have any suggestions on how to make our new little man feel better? His paw hurts.

 

 

[CaliforniaGreys]

Have you tried cream cheese? The good thing about it is it just slips down the throat. Good luck and Sol...feel better my boy

[Guest suzq]

I use chunky peanut butter. It's always worked for us. Good luck. I hope Sol feels better soon!

[Guest BlackandBrindle]

Well I don't hold Sadie down when I pill her. I just open her mouth and shove the pill to the back of her throat....

 

 

If that doesn't work, I'd try pill pockets.

[Guest ss556]

As messy as it is, what works for me and Alan twice a day - every day - is ricotta cheese. he loves it and gets many pills in it. An alternative is cream cheese.

[Guest greyvettech]

You could try a 'pill gun' -your Veterinarian should carry them...it makes the process a whole lot easier..Or you could try canned food and make a can food meatball out of it...hide the pill in the middle.I would try to stay away from people food unless you have no other alternative...good luck!!

 

 

[GeorgeofNE]

Same as BlackandBrindle here. With a dog that's hard to give pills too, I'd actually sort of straddle him, like a horse, then GENTLY but firmly tilt the head back a little, open up, shove the pill down the throat, then just gently stroke the front of the neck and down it goes.

 

If you're timid or act unsure, the dog will know they can get one over on you!

 

Nothing wrong with disguising the pill in a hot dog if that's what works. I use marshmallows too! Cram the pill right in the center and away you go!

[grey8greys]

I use liverwurst. The girls love it and don't even notice the pill. Good Luck!

[2hounds]

I coat pills in peanut butter here and nobody knows the difference

[Guest Ola]

I like the chunks of salami/pepperoni you can buy at the grocery store (usually in the section where they sell bacon). It probably has some of the same problems as hot dogs, but I like that I can cut off whatever size piece I need.

 

My method is to have 3 treats. First give one without the pill. Then, show the dog the other two pieces. Hand them the second piece (with pill) and at the same time wave the third (also pill-free) piece in their face. Most dogs just swallow the pilled piece so they can get the last one faster.

 

This works really well for Chaos, who likes to chew everything and spits pills out every time. After doing it a few times it's a pretty fast process and stress-free for the dog. I usually make them do a trick or at least a sit for the treat - it's like it convinces them that it's something worthwhile.

[Guest IrskasMom]

I take Liverwurst /Braunschweiger make a little Ball and put Pill inside. Works everytime.Hope Sol is feeling better.

Edited April 4, 2008 by IrskasMom

[krissn333]

I have crazed PB fans here...I don't even have to cover the pills with PB, I just get a scoop of PB on a spoon, set the pills on top and apply a little pressure to make sure they don't fall off, then offer the spoon to whoever is to receive the pills...works like a charm.

 

The 3 treats idea posted above sounds like a good plan of attack for a pill picky dog!

[Guest Hollys2hounds]

PEANUT BUTTER !!!!!!!! works like a charm in our house!

 

Good luck!

Edited April 4, 2008 by Hollys2hounds

[ShantisMom]

We have tried a bunch of things for Shanti. The only thing that keeps working is cream cheese.

[Guest lanielovesgreys]

Well, after several more attempts with pill free/pill stuffed hot dogs we finally had success with the first scoop of PB. Second scoop, not so much. We got one pain pill in him. We need another pain pill and the antibiotic. Then again in the morning. *sigh*

 

Momma needs to calm down to help doggy calm down. Anyone got any Valium?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(I'm kidding about the Valium, btw)

Edited April 4, 2008 by lanielovesgreys

[seeh2o]

I coat pills in peanut butter here and nobody knows the difference

 

I've gotten to the point all I have to do is dab a little peanut butter on the end and he thinks he's gone to heaven!

[gryhndsr4us]

Cream cheese finally stopped working with Clark. The only sure thing for him is raw ground chicken or turkey. He never notices the pill.

[Guest MrsDooLittle]

Sometimes I stick a pill in a spoonful of particularly yummy canned food. They always eat it with no problems.

 

I also put a pill in peanut butter once and smeared the peanut butter on Mr Green Jeans' paw. I learned that with cats and hairball remedy......they (cats AND dogs) just lick it off their paw.

 

Cindy

[onrushpam]

Okay, call me a mean dog mom...

 

We put pills in cream cheese and it usually works. But, at the fist little sign of refusal, we open the hatch and put it in! The doggies QUICKLY learn [Resistance is FUTILE!/i]

 

No arguements allowed. Dogs take their meds on time, PERIOD.

 

Here is one little hint: Offer the cream cheese encoated pills while the dog is eating the regular meal... there is something about the little meal interruption for a cream cheesie that usually works. If you wait until the dog is not eating other food, it is more likely to be suspected as something "yucky". You can even try encasing the pill in a big glob of cream cheese and sitting it atop the regular meal in the bowl.

 

But, if the dog refuses, you just pick it up and say, "OKIE DOKIE! DOWN THE HATCH!"

 

Just DO IT!

Edited April 4, 2008 by onrushpam

[sobesmom]

My current foster needs meds now....and I'm totally new to the med thing. I've tried several methods, but what works...and maybe only in a multiple-dog house - is - at feed time - pick up and fill the dog bowls - don't put them down. I have the dogs' attention then! Instead of putting the bowls down as usual....go to the counter. Grab some "whatever" out of the fridge. (cheese, hamburger, chicken, leftovers) and shove the pills into little pieces of "whatever". Put the loaded "bits" into the foster's bowl. ALL dogs are currently VERY IMPATIENT FOR THE FOOD ALREADY!!!! (They think I starve them).

 

Then - distribute bowls as usual. Foster (that's getting the meds) is chomping down like everybody else. A little "suspense" made ALL 3 dogs want their food MORE!!! ... and foster didn't even notice that he was chomping down food loaded with meds.

 

ETA: I generally agree with the "mean mom method" of opening the dog's mouth, tossing the pill in, closing the mouth, then rubbing the throat or blowing on the nose to cause a swallow. I'm only using the "sneaky method" because my vet didn't carry meds in a dose for a large dog. So - for an antibiotic and cough suppressant, instead of 2 pills 2x per day ...... we got 6 pills...2x per day. That's a LOT of pills to throw down. I'm not throwing 6 pills at a time down a dog. So - we do "sneaky".

Edited April 4, 2008 by sobesmom

[Guest lanielovesgreys]

I think I'm going to have to do the force it in his mouth method. Quick like a bandaid. He's officially refusing food at this point. No treat is good enough for him!

 

It just freaks me out because he's new to me. We've had him for three days now. Plus he's wounded. Plus he's hurting. Plus his new owners are holding him down and forcing something that tastes bad in his mouth ALL THE TIME.

 

I need to just do it, but my heart just breaks for him.

 

****SUCCESS*****

 

He took another one in peanut butter.

 

 

Edited April 4, 2008 by lanielovesgreys

[Guest adoptagreyhound]

Do you have any American Cheese slices? We used to use peanut butter but Sandy soon caught on to that and Ani doesn't like p-nut butter (??). But they will both take anything in American Cheese. I give one/half slice to each dog. The dog taking a pill has a pill in the middle of her cheese, the other doesn't. Ani will even take the "medicine" cheese in the middle of a full blown thunder phobia attack. Shaking and drooling but she still eats her cheese because she knows if she drops it, Sandy will get it and nothing is worse than that.

 

When you have time, go to the vet and see if they have any "pill pockets" - they are really soft, REALLY stinky hollow treats that dogs will kill for. They're pretty expensive but if the cheese doesn't work, this may do the trick. I've never seen them at a pet store but if your vet doesn't carry them maybe you could find them at PetSmart or somewhere. I use the "three treat trick" mentioned above with those and it never failed. Because the pockets are expensive, the first and third treat in the three-treat trick are regular soft treats - usually the small liver treats. They're about the same size.

 

I think if your dog is stressing from being new, stressing from pain, and then stressing from having his mouth forced open, you really need to figure out a way to get him to take his meds without stressing him further. Don't think of it as being soft or not strong enough. This boy is in an new environment and in pain and in my opinion, you can't spoil a dog in that situation. He needs his meds but he needs to feel safe too.

 

I used to use a big marble mortar & pestle and grind the pills down to powder and put them in something like yogurt or cottage cheese or even p-nut butter but Sandy got wise to that. The cheese is the only thing that has consistently worked. They don't even seem to notice the pills for some reason. But if I had the budget, my first choice would be the pill pockets from the vet. They are absolutely foolproof!!

 

I totally feel your pain and I pray something works so you don't have to stress him further. Good luck, prayers on the way!

 

Madeline

[Guest lanielovesgreys]

Morning update: No peanut butter, no cheese, no hotdog. I even got his mouth pried open, chucked the pill in and held his mouth closed for over a minute. I gently released it and he didn't open it right away so I thought I had done it. Not quite as he dropped the pill just as I got up. *sigh*

 

It seems that we're going to have to find a new treat almost everytime we give him the pills. This morning I found some canned chicken (I have no idea why I have that) in the pantry and that worked WONDERS. I have't seen him get out of bed for a while and as soon as he smelled it that boy (and our other boy) were right beside me in the kitchen.

 

 

Note to self: Now, don't get too excited Momma, you've got two more times today to weasel them in him.

 

(before I even got finished typing this, Sol has conked out from the pain meds. It's so sweet to see him with some relief)

 

 

Roaching! Omigosh I can't even describe how relieved I am. He's set until 5 tonight.

 

 

Edited April 4, 2008 by lanielovesgreys

[Guest shelbygirl07]

Well, after several more attempts with pill free/pill stuffed hot dogs we finally had success with the first scoop of PB. Second scoop, not so much. We got one pain pill in him. We need another pain pill and the antibiotic. Then again in the morning. *sigh*

 

Momma needs to calm down to help doggy calm down. Anyone got any Valium?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(I'm kidding about the Valium, btw)

 

Try making a game out of giving him the peanut butter. Make it seem that he is getting a treat for being a "good boy" and fuss about it.

All i have to say to shelby is "ohhh what a pretty girl! want a yummy for being so pretty?" and she trots to the kitchen and I give her the soloxine in some cheese.

 

The other thing you might want to try is buy a package of individually wrapped string cheese. Cut the cheese in 1 inch chunks and stuff the pill in one end until it is invisible. I have NOT met a dog who didn't like large quantities of cheese so giving this 2-3 times a day is ok to do. You can get the low fat variety if you think your dog may pork up...

 

 

I use this for Louie. One large package of string cheese will last a while depending on how many pills. UNless the pills are small, i'd do one per chunk. If they are on the smaller size like the soloxine, i would do 2 per chunk (if you have multiple pills to give). And make it a game and a fun thing. Both my dogs come running when i say "time for your pills" because they know they are getting cheese!

 

There is something about mozzerella cheese that the dogs love more than american....

 

edited to add picture...

Edited April 4, 2008 by shelbygirl07

[Guest adoptagreyhound]

SG07, I absolutely LOVE the string cheese idea and the low fat would definitely be better for the girls. THANKS!! I think we're ALL learning something from this thread!

 

Lanie, I am SO happy you have figured out a way to get the pills down your sweet boy. It seems like his stress is melting away in the light of your love.