Cat Refuses To Take Pills!

[Softmeows]

My cat has been recently experiencing some kind of allergy, itches, and grooms a lot, which is very new and was never there before. While we are investigating the cause, I was advised to give her antihistamines to relieve the symptoms. I have tried everything but she sniffs it out and refuses to take it and continues to itch. Not sure what else to try, or if there are other antihistamines that might be more natural and easier to give her?

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi!
Can you try pill pockets, butter, baby food - ham is often an accepted flavor, cheddar cheese or ask the vet about something in powder or liquid form?

Or something mentioned in this post?
Need To Give Cat Pills But Worried She'll End Up Hating Me

Can you also obtain some chamomile tea from your grocery store (commercially made chamomile is safe for cats), brew it, cool it and apply it to the itchy and overgroomed areas with a cotton ball or similar?

It is anti fungal, anti bacterial, eases itchiness and if she licks it, it is safe.

Also try some music for the stress - there is low volume classical harp music, there's an app called Relax My Cat, and there is MusicForCats . com.

 

[neely]

I've found it's much easier for me to give my cat liquid medicine through a syringe as opposed to a pill. Here is a thread with lots of tips and ideas for medicating a cat that may be helpful:
Getting Cat To Take Pills... Post Tips Here.

 

[war&wisdom]

I pick up the cat, put the pill in his/her mouth, then syringe a bit of water in there so that the swallowing action kicks in. If necessary, I put my hand over the kitty's mouth until I'm sure the pill went down.

Then the kitty gets a treat! (This also ensures more swallowing.)

 

[stephanietx]

We crush pills and mix into wet food. We also hide in cheese.

 

[MizLizzie]

We sometimes resort to grinding pills in a pill grinder and putting it in tuna water. Not the kind packed in oil. One of our vets recommends squirt cheese — Easy Cheese? If it is going to be a regular medication, we get it compounded into liver flavored cat treats at BCP Pet Pharmacy in Houston. Excellent product but they are a little expensive. They overnight via FedEx.

In pilling cats, is essential to get the pill fairly far back in the mouth, way on the back of the tongue. I generally use a pill popper, the thin kind with the blue rubber tip. You can usually get them at Amazon. They are very gentle. If I don’t have any help, and the cat is squirmy, I sometimes get on my shins on a rug, and tuck the cat between my legs with my feet tight under my butt so he cannot squirm out backwards. No weight on the cat, of course. Then hand gently over the face, lift the jaw, and pop the pill with the other hand. I am sure there are videos.

I know it can be really frustrating! Good luck.

 

[di and bob]

i gave my Burt heart pills for years using just a piece torn off of a Pill Pocket for cats and using it to 'cement' the pill to a little piece of bacon. They usually gulp bacon down. Sometimes he would spit the pill out, but usually swallowed it down with another piece of bacon. Give him one piece first without the pill to get him started. Sticking it in the middle of cheese worked well too. For liquids or big pills I crush or open a capsule and mix it in tuna juice. forcing them is just too stressfull!

 

[LTS3]

i gave my Burt heart pills for years using just a piece torn off of a Pill Pocket for cats and using it to 'cement' the pill to a little piece of bacon. They usually gulp bacon down.

If cats like bacon, there is a bacon flavored pill dough Pill Paste for Cats - Bacon Flavored Amazon and other online stores sell it. The bacon flavored pill dough does dry out after time so don't stock up on it unless you know you're going to be using it daily for long term medication.

 

[Faikey]

Here is my aggressive approach. I've had cats refuse to even eat the pill part if mixed. But this has worked for me every time and I've rescued dozens of cats. But its not for the meek..

Wrap cat in towel to avoid scrambling. Open the mouth with a little force. Dont injure the cat. This isn't as hard as it looks like it'll be.

Now get that pill and use two fingers to shove it down the throat. Immediaey close the cats mouth and blow in her nose until she has to swallow. Follow it up with f/d cat food in a syringe to ensure it goes down.

I had to give a few cats tablets for months. One was completely feral and wanted to kill me once he was getting better after nearly dying from liver failure. This worked. Always.