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This topic may have been raised any number of times but, if so, it's probably not a bad idea to revisit the subject periodically.
Now, here goes ...it's physically IMPOSSIBLE for me to apply medication to my cat! If I COULD do so at least ONE TIME that would be the one and only time that I would be able to do so. From then on, having to first catch and hold and try to get that pill down my cat's throat would only alienate him toward me FOREVER. And THAT is just the way it is. He's just that kind of cat. It's not a matter of having to be cruel to be kind but rather a matter of saying goodbye to any trust that my cat has toward me ...and he DOES appear to trust me for the most part, albeit on his own terms.
Hide the pill or medication in his food? Nah, my cat is too smart to fall for that and that includes the Greenie's Pill Pockets which ARE a good idea. I DO try to be as nonchalant as I can be when attempting to do this, i.e. not letting him see what I'm up to, but I can't seem to fool him. This is not to mention - but I will anyway - that he's finicky about food at the best of times and there is no particular brand of cat food (or human food) that will guarantee a clean dish. It's a hit and miss situation with or without the addition of medication.
I've watched videos on YouTube of people giving medication to their cats and it looks oh, so simple. These animals are SO placid! Do they first tranquilize their cats before making these videos? Their cats are not MY cat! Who are these people? Who are these cats? I want one of those people to come around to my place and give medication to my cat and see how they fare! I want a cat like the ones in the videos!
Anyway, while i realize that there is NO fool-proof method of effectively giving medication to a stubborn and overly-smart cat who simply refuses to be a part of it, I DO encourage responses from others who might have a cat similar in temperament to my Scamp.
Oh, by the way ...Scamp has suffered both from arthritis and has also recovered from a serious spinal injury he sustained a couple of years ago. While he was originally prescribed Meloxicam (and, while this form of medication is frowned upon by many it DID work!) he is now on no medication at all, per se, but rather VitaRapid Joint Care daily treats (7 or 8) plus a couple of Feline Joint Support tablets which must taste pretty good since he takes them routinely. I don't even have to be sneaky . . .
My vet asked pill or liquid for Oliver's urinary track infection; chose the liquid. Ended up wearing the first few doses and my hands scratched up ( should've worn gloves ) until hiding it in the center of some wet food.
Are the joint care treats soft enough to hide a pill in? Otherwise, I do as suggested above and crush them and hide them in canned food or a bit of lunch meat. Or you could see if there's a cat sitter nearby or a vet tech who you could pay to come and do it.
My cat is just like yours, Romulus. The trick I have learned to do is to grind up the pill into a fine powder, then put it in some sort of liquid your cat finds to be really yummy. I use tuna fish juice, but I'm sure if you went to a pet store you could find some sort of gravy or something like that you can use. You have to really mix it up well, but if you do that really thoroughly the cat won't notice it's in there.
One of my issues is I have to sometimes give my cat prednisone (a steroid) for asthma. I've taken the same thing myself for allergies, and it had a very strong, bitter taste, which makes giving it to my cat all the more difficult. If I don't really mix it up well, she can smell and taste it a mile away and will avoid eating what I put it in.
So at the end you say he's on no medication but does get some joint support tablets he takes routinely. Is it the joint care daily treats he doesn't want to take?
Some of ours took pills in pill pockets, in food, one just ate it because it was some kind of food and he had the scarlet o'hara syndrome of I'll never go hungry again.
With some I got the knack of the fine balance of quickly giving the liquid med but not so quick that it splashes back out of the mouth.
Our littlest, sweetest one is also a live wire. She loves her twice a day med that comes in a powder sprinkled on her food. She loves that stuff like it's a treat.
But that tiny pill...well, she says she loves me but she's just so sorry she cannot take that pill.
I can't fool her. She will eat everything else and spit out the pill like 'w h a t is this'...but never angry at me.
With meds, ask the vet if there will be any other forms you can try if need be, so you know going in.
Ask the vet to show you how to give the medicine. And again. And again.
Then determine if the cat likes it first of all. If they do...great.
If not, then figure out if the cat likes it hidden/wrapped.
Figure out if the cat likes it in another form...crushed a little, crushed a lot, liquid...if it's okay to do that.
I have a thing where I will not disturb this little one when she goes into her two special quiet safe places. I don't pull her out to take her pill. She needs her special places away from everything else respected. Then she's a peaceful easier cat.
That pill...the pill...comes with foil wrapping that she can hear. When she hears this, she just does a double take and continues walking in the other direction. So what I do is set out the pill at one point. I give it to her later.
The only way to give it to this little one is to put it in her mouth. For this, I don't grab her up quickly, but firmly and evenly. I have a special area where it works best for me and her. Cushion behind me. I put her down at the edge of the cushion so she can't back out but it's still soft. When you go to open the mouth, remember how little they are and don't hurt them by bending the head straight up to you or back too far or being too rough. I place it in quickly and rub her throat gently. She naturally swallows.
She still walks away and then stops because she knows she gets a treat afterwards.
Cats are supreme predators by nature. You can take advantage of that to train them. This took us 2-3months to develop this routine. You must always be gentle and patient and consistent, never a tense voice, wild gesture, etc. Our big male Maine Coon was diagnosed with epilepsy about 2 years ago after a couple severe seizures. He has to have medication twice/day, every 12 hours, no skipping, no more than 30 minutes off each time. He’s strong and can be a handful if he’s alarmed and was never big on being picked up or held.
This is our routine now. My wife goes to the kitchen to prepare the pills (breaks them, puts them into small capsule, coats with butter and inserts into pill popper. When she starts that I say these words, “Bryer, time for your pill buddy.” He gets up from where ever he is and starts walking down the hallway to the front room. I follow about 2 yards behind him, telling him what a good boy he is. He jumps up on the bed there, I close the door (to keep the other cats from disturbing the routine) and he then flops over on his side, waiting for his first reward, a full body massage. After a couple of minutes of massage, by which time he’s purring loudly, my wife walks in, I pick him up and hold him while she opens his mouth and pops in the pill.
Now comes the other reward, after rubbing him briefly again and telling him how good he is..... pure freeze dried chicken muscle meat. He absolutely loves this stuff and it didn’t take him long to realize what he needs to do to get that treat. He gets 3-4 pieces. So, in his mind, he gets special attention (the other kitties have to sit outside)good rubbing, his favorite treat. What’s not to like?
Again, the keys are gentleness and affection, patience and consistency. If we are just a bit late, he will sometimes be sitting in the hall waiting expectantly for us.
Cats are supreme predators by nature. You can take advantage of that to train them. This took us 2-3months to develop this routine. You must always be gentle and patient and consistent, never a tense voice, wild gesture, etc. Our big male Maine Coon was diagnosed with epilepsy about 2 years ago after a couple severe seizures. He has to have medication twice/day, every 12 hours, no skipping, no more than 30 minutes off each time. He’s strong and can be a handful if he’s alarmed and was never big on being picked up or held.
This is our routine now. My wife goes to the kitchen to prepare the pills (breaks them, puts them into small capsule, coats with butter and inserts into pill popper. When she starts that I say these words, “Bryer, time for your pill buddy.” He gets up from where ever he is and starts walking down the hallway to the front room. I follow about 2 yards behind him, telling him what a good boy he is. He jumps up on the bed there, I close the door (to keep the other cats from disturbing the routine) and he then flops over on his side, waiting for his first reward, a full body massage. After a couple of minutes of massage, by which time he’s purring loudly, my wife walks in, I pick him up and hold him while she opens his mouth and pops in the pill.
Now comes the other reward, after rubbing him briefly again and telling him how good he is..... pure freeze dried chicken muscle meat. He absolutely loves this stuff and it didn’t take him long to realize what he needs to do to get that treat. He gets 3-4 pieces. So, in his mind, he gets special attention (the other kitties have to sit outside)good rubbing, his favorite treat. What’s not to like?
Again, the keys are gentleness and affection, patience and consistency. If we are just a bit late, he will sometimes be sitting in the hall waiting expectantly for us.
Love this.
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