Animals and medication

LCW · Post by **LCW** » Sat October 25th, 2008, 3:42 am

Thank you, Vanessa and CW for your well wishes! I know what you mean about everything else going out the window. These are my babies and I'm completely unapologetic about my devotion to them! The good news is that Lila is doing great and healing well after surgery although I still have to put the bitter spray around the area so she won't lick it. Zazu is doing remarkably well and has much more energy although he's not out of the woods yet. Luckily I found a treat he likes that I can hide his pills in so the three times daily pill ritual doesn't make me afraid he'll drop dead of a heart attack right there. He is NOT an easy cat to give medicine too! I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that he keeps liking these treats!!

cw gortner · Post by **cw gortner** » Sat October 25th, 2008, 4:19 am

Great news!! Poor babies. I know, when they're ill it just breaks your heart. You don't know whether you're coming and going, and you'd sell your soul for them. I'll send special offerings to the animal gods for a quick and complete recovery for both. And yes, I know how much cats hate pills. My cat used to spit them up at me no matter what I hid them in - sometimes, up to 10 minutes after I thought I'd gotten them down his gullet. He'd climb up on my chest, look at me, and - splat! - regurgitate them onto me. Then he'd narrow his green eyes, as if to say: See? You thought you fooled me, silly human.

God, I miss that cat.

LCW · Post by **LCW** » Sat October 25th, 2008, 4:36 am

LOL, CW! Cats are so like that, aren't they? Zazu just looks at me like I've betrayed him! Hopefully now with my new method he won't hate me three times a day anymore! Thanks for the offerings! They are very much appreciated!

SonjaMarie · Post by **SonjaMarie** » Sat October 25th, 2008, 4:41 am

It's easier with dogs. When Jasper had to take meds for a bad back I tried putting the pill in pieces of hot dog but he'd eat around them, so then I tried peanut butter and that did the trick. I don't think cats like PB though.

SM

boswellbaxter · Post by **boswellbaxter** » Sat October 25th, 2008, 4:59 am

I've never figured out why no one makes pet meds that taste good to them. My cat with toileting issues requires Prozac daily; she doesn't like taking it, but she doesn't seem to have grasped the concept of spitting it out. My dog, on the other hand, is a nightmare to give medicine to. He can detect the taste even when you try to hide it in a treat, and he'll spit it out, treat and all. Fortunately, the last time he needed medicine, he was able to get a shot for it.

LCW · Post by **LCW** » Sat October 25th, 2008, 5:03 am

I'm so lucky with my dog! She is a breeze to give pills to. I just place them at the back of her throat them massage the front of her neck and she swallows them easily. She has to take 2 glucosamine/chondroiten pills, 3 fish oil, and 2 allergy pills every day! These pills are huge and not easy to hide in anything. Plus she's on a raw diet so is very picky about what she'll accept as "food". Poor thing! She's so stoic about it too!

Telynor · Post by **Telynor** » Sat October 25th, 2008, 5:49 am

Medicating our pets is a torture session, on both sides. Pilling is awful, but what was worse was having to give our late Jake his twice-a-day insulin stick. I felt like an absolute monster giving it to him, knowing that he would have pain from the needle. On the plus side, it gave us many more years with him than we thought we would have.

That is so good that the pets are improving, that must have been torment for you for the last few days.

SonjaMarie · Post by **SonjaMarie** » Sat October 25th, 2008, 5:58 am

What we need is a cat or dog treat that has a place to put the pill in it already.

SM

Alaric · Post by **Alaric** » Sat October 25th, 2008, 6:11 am

When our rabbit was sick last year, I had to give her a daily injection of her antibiotics through the mouth. She naturally hated it. But she also wasn't drinking enough water, so I had the idea to do the same with water just so she was drinking something. After a couple of times doing it she just got used to the water syringe, she didn't really resist it any longer and calmed down. It made doing the antibiotics a lot easier, even if it ultimately didn't work.

diamondlil · Post by **diamondlil** » Sat October 25th, 2008, 8:56 am

[quote=""boswellbaxter""]I've never figured out why no one makes pet meds that taste good to them. My cat with toileting issues requires Prozac daily; she doesn't like taking it, but she doesn't seem to have grasped the concept of spitting it out. My dog, on the other hand, is a nightmare to give medicine to. He can detect the taste even when you try to hide it in a treat, and he'll spit it out, treat and all. Fortunately, the last time he needed medicine, he was able to get a shot for it.[/quote]

Same thing with medicine for kids. Why can't they make it easier for everyone by making it at least taste okay. the last lot my child had it was a complete hassle to get him to take it, and then a bit of drama as he needed a cup of water afterwards etc etc.