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Any Tips On Giving Tablets?


jfw
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My beloved Tessa is a master at refusing to take tablets. She is currently needing to take twice daily antibiotics for the next 2 weeks and each time she runs away when it is medication time. Any suggestions?

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I have two suggestions, not sure if they will be helpful...

First one is to wrap the tablets in some food... eg, in a piece of cheese, chicken etc. But make sure it's wrapped securely or the little buggers will spit it out!!!

If that doesn't work, have a treat on hand, open jaws with head tilted back, put tablet on tongue as far back as possible (without choking) then immediately close jaws and hold until you think they have swallowed. Follow with that treat!!!

Good luck,

Kelly

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One of mine is just the same. My trick is to use those triangles of 'Laughing Cow' cheese (very 'gooey'). Pop pill in one bit - it's so sticky it's hard for them to pick off- & follow it up instantly with another bit of pure cheese. Normally they are so busy looking at the second bit they gulp down the first without thinking about it !

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Im glad I'm not the only one having trouble. Orson has a talent for spitting it out the worming tablet even if I put it between pieces of chicken, sardines, steak etc etc. It's a struggle every month!!! *sigh*

Putting it down her throat does work but you have to make sure it's low enough that she cant spit it out. Orson's done it a few times cos I didn't put it down far enough (I haven't choked him at all yet).

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I wrap in some buttered bread and vegemite - strong smell, taste. I cut the crust off and have two or three bits, one with the tablet in and, as above, get her focus on the second bit - she just swallows the first without noticing. It's good if the cat is around 'cause that makes her really greedy :rofl:

:rofl:

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I've always had great success with giving tablets hidden in small balls of raw mince (I use beef, but i don't think it matters.)

You make a number of small balls of raw mince, and throw one to the dog, then another one in quick succession. At some point in the sequence, you throw the tablet one, and immediately follow it with an untableted one.

You can start off by just throwing a few balls of mince with no tablet, to get the dog used to catching them.

A couple of problems I've found with this method. If you've got two dogs, you need to make sure the right dog gets the tablet one! On the other hand, the competition is good. :rofl:

The other problem, is that if your dog is like mine, you end up with dogs that come running whenever they hear a tablet bottle rattle! One of my previous dogs workked as a therapy dog in a palliative care ward, and he just loved to hear the meds trolley coming - couldn't understand why the patients didn't have mince with their tablets, though. :rofl:

Works for me - one of my previous dogs was on thyroid replacement therapy - 3 tablets morning and night for about 13 years.

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I sit the dog and then stand behind him. I open his mouth and hold on to the top of this mouth and just drop it down the back of his throat. Once I have the tablet down the back of the throat I then close their mouth but keep the head up and back - I give their throat a little rub until they swallow it.

If they decide to be difficult I threaten them with "do you want %%%% to give them to you"... to which they swallow the tablets quickly. %%%% = handlers name (they aren't so "nice" about giving tablets)

Edited by Tilly
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Split one slice of cheese into three. The pill goes in the middle one. Or use anything the dog likes.

Give the 1st. piece and even an extremely suspicious dog won't find anything hidden. Give the second piece with hidden pill but offer the third piece straight away. As most dogs are just plain greedy the pill goes down without a fuss.

Best.

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I am just :rofl: at the antics and motions that we go through to give our loved ones their medication, I am in :rofl: , it reminds me of trying to give my horse worming paste, would end up wearing most of it, he would throw his head up as high as he could. Couldnt give him meat but used to syringe it into apples and carrots and mix it into his feed and the bugger would still spit it out.

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You have to make it a positive experience... :rofl:

Ollie takes 6 tablets in the morning and another 4 at night (and that is when he doesn't have an infection)...

I stand over him, kiss the top of his head and say 'open for me, please' and he opens his mouth ever so slightly and I open it a bit wider and put the tablets down...

You see he gets a half an arrowroot biscuit (or any other type of plain bickie) every time he takes his tablets, so now he actually lets me give them...

He was not always like this, he could hack up a tablet 10 minutes after it was given to him in the beginning of his treatment...

Jodie

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Diesel gets Ester C and Fish oil every night. He actually opens his mouth for me! :rofl: I bring it out with his food, put his food on the ground, he comes to heel position and gives eye contact (without command), and he opens his mouth for me to give the tablets. I then put the tablets at the back of his throat, he swallows and then gets his dinner. Certainly makes it easier if he has to have medication!

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MY FATHERINLAWS DO WILL BITE YOUJUST FOR THINK ON IT.

I WOULD USCUT A FEW SLICES OF CHESSE MELT THEM IN MICROWAVE (JUST SO IT IS JUST SOFT) WRAP THE TABLET WITH CHEESE PUT IT INTO THE FRIDGE TO SET ..START GIVING AFEW WITH OUT TABLET, THEN THE CHEESE TABLET THEN ANOTHER PIECE OF CHEESE(JUST SO THEY DON'T CATCH ON THAT THERE WAS SOMETHING IN IT) AND OF COURSE LOTS OF PRAISE IF YOU HAVE ANY MORE DOGS GIVE THEM SOME CHEESE TOO SO THEY THINK THEY ARE ALL GETTING A TREAT.

OR CRUSH IT UP AND MIX WITH A TABLE SPOON OF CHOCOLATE CUSTARD .... GOOD LUCK

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