How Do You Give Your Dog Tablets?

[giraffez]

My little dog needs to be given medication 3 times a day and its so painful getting him to swallow. Could anyone offer any tips? I've tried putting it inside tasty food, positive re-enforcement, hiding it inside a chunk of meat but he just refuse to eat it.

The only way we could get it down is by forcing it in the back of his tongue but it often takes a few go's and but then its melted away that its become bitter so my poor dog hates it even more.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks

[Teebs]

For my dogs, i put peanut butter on it - but mine are such pigs for food, if they think one is getting something,they will eat anything given to them! I went to sedate one dog, dropped the tablet and the other dived in and ate it Boring night with 2 dogs knocked out

I am pet sitting a standard poodle at the moment, he is on tablets 2 times a day, i just open his mouth and pop them in, no problems at all.

Can you crush them up and put in his food?

[Domestic Dreamer]

A tip from another DOLer that worked for me is to put it inside melted cream cheese. Having it melted makes it stick to the tablet. Nuke it in the microwave for a few secs then mold it around the tablet into a little ball.

[Baby Dragon]

You could try wrapping them up in a slice of cheese. My friend's dog has them this way.

Not very healthy if the dog is getting a lot of tablets though (too much cheese.)

Edited September 22, 2008 by Blossom

[laffi]

I put them inside a little mince balls and they just gobble them down.

[giraffez]

I put them inside a little mince balls and they just gobble them down.

i tried that. Initially it worked, then it figured something was suspicious and started to sniff all his food. From then it stopped working.

[persephone]

If the tablets are coated with a shiny coating, do NOT crush them, as they are meant to travel some way into the gut before being broken down.

feeding tablets in food , where the dog won't eat is counter productive... I usually just coat the pill in butter/marg, and quickly poke it down -OVER the back of the tongue,. so he can't taste it .

if the dog is small, use a little finger.. not your thumb or pointer !

[arawnhaus]

Well mine DETECT anything that is hidden.I put the tab at the start of the throat,close the mouth with the muzzle up and massage under the muzzle gently to comfort, then slide my hand down massaging the throat encouraging the reflex to swallow on the outer of the throat.

Edited September 22, 2008 by Delkerabo

[Ruftybear]

Well mine DETECT anything that is hidden.I put the tab at the start of the throat,close the mouth with the muzzle up and massage under the muzzle gently to comfort, then slide my hand down massaging the throat encouraging the reflex to swallow on the outer of the throat.

That's exactly what we do too. I think it's the best way because ours can detect a tablet about 10 miles away ...

[Guest Pandii]

Sorry have no ideas, mine just eat them from my hand

[Melissa4]

only one of my dogs would take tablets with food -

The pups I have atm, need it forced down. First thing I do is kneel on the ground. Back them into my legs and then I pop it at the back of the throat and then rub the neck

works a charm

goodluck

[lucknow]

The only way we could get it down is by forcing it in the back of his tongue but it often takes a few go's and but then its melted away that its become bitter so my poor dog hates it even more.

Keep persevering, it gets much easier with practice. All my dogs are taught to take tablets and work out pretty quick it is easier to get it over with. I think the little reward afterwards when they are still new to it helps too .

[squeak]

if you are going to use food you have to be a bit sneaky. i use mince have have about 4-5 bits about the same size. this is also easier if your dog can catch. I use raw chicken mince as they think it is a great treat.

pop tablet into one piece of mince and roll into a ball. roll other pieces into a ball of the same size. Throw the first two pieces, one at a time for the dog to catch. if dog is suspicious of things this should hopefully fool them into thinking that nothing is hidden. Throw the third piece, with tablet, followed immediately by the fourth piece - so they gobble down the third piece with tablet without thinking because the fourth piece is headed their way. works for me. let us know how you go.

[Staffyluv]

When Ollie first got cancer and needed many more tablets then he does now (he still takes 12 tablets a day over 4 times a day) we used to use BBQ and wrap it around the tablet.

He has been taking them for so long now that we just say open big and he sits and opens his mouth for us to put them down the back and he swallows, bless him.

If your dogs throat is getting sore, maybe get some manuka honey from the health food shop and smear it over the tablet. It is sweet and the honey has healing properties.

[Kavik]

I just open their mouth and pop them in. Diesel, who gets more tablets due to skin problems, will open his mouth for me to put them in

[Ons]

I use liverwurst, just a little and the cheap one. No problems with dogs taking tablets. And they can't get the tablet out of the liverwurst unlike sliced cheese. My old maltese RIP was a terror with taking tablets but this is the only thing that worked for her.

It's probably very bad for them but it works, it's only a little and it's only been when tablets have had to be used twice a day.

[Leema]

Okay, my experience...

Get something to hide them in - fritz or cheese is good. You need quite a few pieces,more than the number of tablets you have. Probably about 6 pieces for two tablets.

Squish the tablets in some how.

Wash you hands.

Have all the pieces of fritz/cheese/whatever in your hand. You are going to deliver them all in quick succession.

Give one piece without tab.

Give another piece without tab.

Give one with a tab.

Quickly follow by one without a tab.

Give the next tab.

Quickly follow with a without a tab.

I've found that dogs are so busy watching the next bit of fritz/cheese/whatever, they just woof it down to get the next bit.

I work in boarding kennels and haven't had a dog yet that would not consume tabs with this method, except for those that didn't want to eat in the first place.

[~Anne~]

I have an epileptic that requires 4 tablets per day..but I could just hand them to him and he would eat them. I give them Sentinel every month too and they all just eat them from my hands.

Having said that though, you need to make it a neccessary but rewarding process. Use whatever you can to entice them to swallow the tablet, be it hidden in food or given down the throat and then reward and praise. Give them somenthing even better as a reward. Think of something that your dog will die for.

To get past the 'I know what you're going to do' I would buy something that smells devine, like a bbq'd chook. Give him/her a little bit of skin and some meat. Hand him/her some a few times and let them eat it, but jsut a tiny amount each time. Then walk away for 5 minutes. Come back and repeat. Walk away, then come back and give some with the tablet in it. When they eat it reward, reward, reward. Go over and above telling them how fabulously wonderful they are.

Remove the negative, make it a positive.

[montall]

I'm another one who uses peanut butter. I have one that needs a tablet twice a day and the peanut butter works even though she isn't really all that food orientated. I have to really cover the tablet though, not just a little smear. I think maybe the fact that the peanut butter is so sticky makes it hard for them to spit it back out even if they do detect it. They used to call peanut butter peanut paste and paste is about right.

[cashew]

My dog is so greedy he thinks tablets/capsules are treats. Swallows them without thinking.

For my foster, I had to open her mouth, insert the tablets onto her cheeks nearer the back of tongue, then close her mouth and massage her neck. Vet taught me this...fed medicine to cats that way too. Works every time.