Here are a few of our favourite tricks:
1) Good old fashioned 'Pop the pill in their mouth'. Now this takes a knack and your cat will often hide it in their mouth until you let them go. To get the best chance of this working try sitting on your knees on the floor, allow your cat to back into you and stand or sit between your knees. Now position your hand with your thumb and middle finger on either side of his mouth and gently pull backwards. As your cats head tilts the jaw should naturally drop open you can then use your other hand to pull the lower jaw down with your middle finger and pop the pill into the mouth using your thumb and index finger. You should always offer food right after giving a pill in this manner (unless the instructions specifically say not to) and this method should not be used on cats that may be painful in the mouth or neck. I know it all sounds rather complicated so you could ask your vet nurse to demonstrate, or there are some helpful videos
2) Hide the pill in a treat
There are some excellent pliable jerky type treats out there (we prefer the ones by Natures Menu, but Webbox makes a jerky stick that you can find in most supermarkets). Take one of the treats (or about 1 cm off of a longer stick) and break in half, then place the tablet in one half, moulding the treat around the tablet so none of it can be seen. Be extra sneaky and use tweezers to insert the pill instead of your fingers, this avoids transferring the taste of the tablet onto the treat. Now give the cat the half of the treat that doesn’t have the tablet, once that is consumed offer them the half with the pill. To make them even less suspicious, follow this with another half of a plain one as an extra treat.
3) Hide the pill in food
Sounds simple enough, but a lot of cats will eat around a pill if they can. Try putting it in a small amount of wet food (approx 1 tablespoonful) on a plate and offering them this meal before their first meal of the day. Hopefully they will be will be hungry enough to ignore the fact there is a tablet and just eat it. If your medication can be crushed (some loose efficacy if crushed so check with your vet first), then crushing it and mixing it with the food may help disguise it further.
4) In ‘human’ food
I’m sure you know what your cat likes best whether it’s a prawn, bit of cheese maybe some butter? Hide that little nightmare inside one of these and your cat will not only love you for giving them their favourite foods but some even beg for their daily pill. Try not to use processed meats or anything with too much salt, if using cream cheese try a lactose free one. Everything in moderation! Sometimes coating the pill in something sticky then rolling it in catnip can be enough of a motivation to eat the tablet!
5) Freeze it
It is believed that freezing, removes the taste. Make little squares of butter with the crushed medication in and freeze them. When it’s time for the tablet just take the butter pill out and pop it in the food. Again check that your medication is not affected by temperature or being crushed.
6) Cats love to be clean
As fastidious cleaners cats will lick off whatever you put on their paws. Warning! This could get messy so I suggest doing it in a kitchen or bathroom where it’s all cleanable. Crush the pill and mix it into something tasty that’s like a paste so a pate food or a pea size amount of hairball paste. Then simply smear it on their paw or above their lip, they will lick it off.
7) Syringe
Mix the crushed tablet in something liquid and yummy, like Webbox lick-e-lix. Draw it up into a syringe and then using the floor position mentioned in point no.1, lift one side of your cats mouth pop the syringe in and express the mixture into their mouth.
8) Gel capsules
This is especially useful if you are giving more than one tablet. Empty gel caps can be opened and then the medication hidden inside. The capsule is tasteless and can then be given in any of the previously mentioned methods (except syringing). If you would like to try gel capsules, let us know and we will help you source them.
9) Wrapping them up
Some people find their cats are more cooperative if they are wrapped in a towel. Sometimes this works, sometimes they really object. Again information on how to do this safely and effectively can be found on the ISFM website. The benefits of this method are that the weapons (nails) are under wraps and can’t cause harm; it also has a calming effect on some cats.
Is there an alternative?
You may not be aware but some medications come in different formats liquids, gels, even giving half of a larger dose medication can be easier than giving two of a smaller dose. Ask us, don’t suffer in silence.
Don’t be disheartened, they may look at you like you have just poisoned them, but you know you’re doing it to help them and they will forgive you. If you run into trouble, give us a ring and we will do our best to come up with a plan B (or C or D…). Good luck!
Reproduced with kind permission of Shreen Haywood RVN and The Cat Doctor- At Home Veterinary Care