Pierre: Did someone say give the cat a pill?
He even looks skeptical at the thought of getting a pill, doesn’t he? I had that same look on my face last week when the vet told me she was prescribing Pierre a ten-day course of pills.
I have given thousands of pills to cats. It was so easy that I once gave a thyroid pill to the wrong cat because he was so placid about it. (Yes, that was pretty mortifying afterward, but no harm was done from one errant pill.) So it’s pretty embarrassing to admit that I now share a home with cats who I dread having to give pills. I have become that veterinary client who vets assume won’t comply with the prescribed course of treatment.
The main problem is that Pierre doesn’t like to be restrained in any way, and he starts growling immediately when you do. It escalates from there. His idea of being held or carried is to climb up onto your shoulders when you pick him up.
It’s really cute to walk around with a cat on your shoulders, but you can’t give him a pill up there.
Ways to Pill a Cat
So what are your options for pilling a reluctant cat? I turned to YouTube, the treasure trove of how-to videos, for suggestions.
Just Give The Pill
The vets and technicians in videos always make it look easy. I liked this demonstration because the cat didn’t look quite as compliant about the whole process as some of the other videos, even though it was demonstrated by a veterinarian. She even drops the pill the first time. Just goes to show that it isn’t entirely easy for the professionals, either.
Make a Kitty Burrito with a Towel
You can use a towel to create a tidy kitty burrito that helps hold your cat in place. This video shows you to make a burrito where the open ends of the towel all end up in the same place so you can hold it with one hand while pilling your cat with the other.
I tried to give Pierre a pill the old-fashioned way, and I couldn’t do it. The growling, hissing, spitting, and struggling left me bleeding and frustrated, but after he walked into the next room and spit the pill out, I decided that wasn’t going to work.
There’s actually a bag you can use to serve as as a kitty burrito, too, which is a lot more sturdy and doesn’t require a hand to hold it shut. I was pressed for time and didn’t want to put Pierre in the bag without having a little longer to ease him in, so I reserved that as a fallback for later in the day if all else failed.
Use a Pill Popper
If you think you can hold your cat, but you are afraid of putting your fingers inbetween kitty’s teeth, they make pill poppers (also called pill guns), that help put the pill in the right place in the cat’s mouth without endangering your fingers.
This might have solved the problem with my not getting the pill in the right spot for Pierre to swallow it. I ransacked my house and couldn’t find my pill popper when I needed it, so my bonus tip for this is to not just make a cat health kit, but actually put your relevant gadgets and things in it. I did find my pill popper, five days after I needed it, so this was a fail on my part, not Pierre’s!
Hide the Pill in Food
Mashing up a pill and hiding it in food is an option if you know you can get your cat to eat the whole thing. As Dr. Susan Little said, “Yes, you can put the meds into the food if you don’t mind the meds getting into the cat.” Pierre isn’t a very food-motivated cat at the best of times, and he had gone to the vet for poor appetite, which made this a bad option for him.
This video includes an interesting method in which you administer the meds and food directly to the cat.
I actually like this idea a lot, but as soon as I pick up Pierre, he climbs up onto my shoulders, so that won’t let me administer the food the way the video demonstrates.
Hide the Pill in a Treat
You can get special treats that are the consistency of cookie dough but are apparently full of some kind of cat crack. This works if your cat is food-motivated enough for the treats or if whatever they put in them is enticing enough. Especially bitter pills may be hard to hide even in these purpose-made pill treats or pastes.
The nice, peaceful music in this video made me smile, because that’s exactly how I hoped this method would work as opposed to the struggling, growling, and scratching that happened when I tried earlier.
Pierre’s favorite flavor of anything is fish flavor, and luckily, they make salmon-flavored pill pockets. The pills he needed to take were mostly coated, so I thought it would keep the pill flavor contained so he would eat it.
How Did It Work?
I three pill pockets from the package and hid the pill inside one of them, being sure to mash the pill around it so that it was thoroughly surrounded by the soft treat. I gave Pierre the first one empty and he ate it right up. Then I gave him the second one and held my breath. He ate that, too. I’m pretty sure I heard the Hallejuah Chorus playing in the distance at that moment, the relief was so strong that it worked! Pierre got one more treat without a pill to be sure that he swallowed everything, and pill time was over.
I know that there are other options for us, including getting the medication compounded into a liquid form, getting it compounded into treats itself, or for some medications, purchasing transdermal gel that gives the medication through the skin. But I thankfully don’t have to go any of those routes to get medication into Pierre. For now, at least, he is eating his daily pills and is happy about it. Hopefully he won’t be in on this secret for a long, long time.
Mark's Mews says
We have to say that, as few times anny of US have ever had to take a pill, the best way was fer TBT ta crush it up between 2 spoons an mix it with some cream cheese. Then smear the pilly-paste into our moufs.
We hope we arent betraying out brofurs an sisfurs by saying it worked pretty well. WE got a good taste, and we dint notice the pill meds.
Summer says
Binga is really hard to pill, and she doesn’t even have to carry on to make it difficult – no matter what the humans do, she is always able to spit it out. Including hiding the pill in a treat. The humans haven’t tried a pill popper on her – they probably should next time she needs to be dosed.
Charles Huss says
The professionals always make it look easy. I just try to avoid giving my cats drugs unless it is life or death. I had one cat die, I believe, from the long term effects of taking antibiotics for a recurring mouth infection. I have a cat now that is almost bald from over-grooming but after visiting two vets for the problem, I realized that vets have two solutions for every problem: steroids and antibiotics. I don’t want to start him down that road.
The Island Cats says
Wally and Zoey are fairly easy to pill, but Ernie is a real pain! I’ve tried using pill pockets with them being a hit or miss. Now, for any long term medication I have to give (Ernie gets a potassium supplement), I have it made into a flavored treat and he usually eats them right up.
Seville at Nerissa's Life says
I, myself, am extremely easy to pill. Peep #1 will confirm that, I am sure. My sister, Connie, though is an entirely different matter. First pill is okay but for the second one? Fact is, peeps will never catch her! She reads the minds of pill-giving peeps, you see. MOUSES!
Purrs,
Seville
Melissa & Mudpie says
My compounding pharmacist and I are on a first name basis. Tara was the last cat I had to medicate and after the first round of antibiotics for a recurring UTI I said never again with the pills. Then came all of her heart meds and every single one was compounded for me.
Random Felines says
mom lives in fear of having to medicate some of us. She knows she could get a few of us, but Junior and Spud would give her a run for her money. There is also a paste that can be wrapped around pills as well….though we haven’t tried it.
Ellen Pilch says
I am glad you found a way that works for him. I have to pill 3 cats twice a day which is s chore.
Camille says
Love the pic of Pierre on your shoulders! 🙂 Jasper was on Fluconazole twice a day for most of his life after contracting Valley Fever when he was young. Since it’s so bitter, I had it compounded into a liquid (Triple-Fish flavor), which I mixed into a small amount of his wet food at breakfast and dinner. Once I knew he had consumed the whole dose, I gave him the rest of his food portion. He loved it and never seemed to know anything was there… much easier than pilling!
Although I have to say the pungent fish smell of that liquid was pretty ghastly… you never wanted to get it on you or you’d smell it for hours, even after washing your hands!
Marg says
Wow, lots of good ideas for giving pills. It is hard to do around here too. I like the idea of surrounding the pill with paste. My cats don’t eat treats that much so that wouldn’t work here. Great post and very interesting.
Three Chatty Cats says
I have yet to have to pill any of my cats (and hopefully never will), but I would think it’s definitely a two person job in my household.
Madi says
Boy did the Vet make that look easy. This is a great post
Hugs madi and mom
Sue says
When my tortie Spicy got COPD, I had to give her prednisone twice a day. She got so used to it, I didn’t have any problems unless she got a steroid shot. Then she would try to run when she saw the pills.
Around the same time my tuxie TC got a punctured eardrum. She took her pills with no problems but when I had to give antibiotics when she was younger, she would lead me on a chase around the house!
Punkin was the sneak. I always got on the floor and got all my cats between my thighs. Punkin would take the pill, then spit it out when I wasn’t looking!
da tabbies o trout towne says
dood…yea…that hole… just give de cat de pill roo teenz… been round enuff for everee cat who haz ever lived in de entire hiss tree oh cats sinze de dawn oh time & bee fore ta say…aint….happenin !!!
we hope ya get wise { hint hint } ta this latest trix oh yur momz
{ like toona did }
and figure out ya can chew AROUND de pil pocket kinda stuff N leeve de pill ina sad sorree mezz on de floor ~~~~~~~ 🙂 ♥♥♥
Flynn says
Flynn used to be difficult to pill when he was younger, but now he has them twice a day he takes them like a champ. He has to make a show first though by running around the table, then I pick him up, pop it back and done. Eric was impossible to pill. Various vets had tried at different times and we tried different ways including the pill popper but no-one ever succeeded, so he always had to have any meds by injection.
Emma and Buster says
We have tried to give pill to Emma a long time ago, but it was tough. We had to hide it under a mound of tuna, then she wisened up and ate all the tuna but left the pill.
Cathy Keisha says
TW used to be able to pill Chizzy using the first method. Aunt Randy showed her how to do it. He did spit it out about half the time. TW gave me liquid meds once by Pop holding me and her opening my mouth and squirting said meds in. Pop usually had to change his shirt again before work. The swaddle method won’t work for me since I go into respiratory distress if I’m turned upside down and I don’t eat soft treats so that’s out. To get me to take the pred when I need it, she’ll give me just a little food with the pill in it and wait till I eat that before she’ll give me all my food. BTW, have to ever read the meme how to pill a cat that involves drinking a glass of wine between each step?
Brian Frum says
Most would find it hard to believe but we all don’t fuss at taking pills. We fuss about being caught, not much though, but one caught the pilling part is easy!
William says
Absolutely none of those tricks works on me. If it’s in food, I will eat around it. If it’s in a treat, I won’t eat it. Try to put me in a towel and someone will be using the towel to mop up wounds. It *might* get into my mouth but I will spit it out–even if it’s down the hall when I run away!
The Swiss Cats says
Pixie is like Pierre : no way to restrain her, she climbs on shoulders too. Mum has never had to pill her, but she used the burrito technique with Angel Céleste, and the pill in a treat with Angel Hercule. She’s afraid that the pill popper could throw the pill the wrong way. Very interesting post !
Kitties Blue says
When I was pilling Giulietta everyday, I used pill paste, and it worked fairly well. The burrito does not work for me as all the cats are stronger than I am. Now giving two to three pills a day to Fiona, it is a two person project. She won’t eat baby food so that method is out. She still spits out the pill paste hidden pills, and it gets really slimy after she spits it out three or four times. I’m going to buy one of those pill poppers. This was a great post. Thanks. XOCK, Lily Olivia, Mauricio, Misty May, Giulietta, Fiona, Astrid, Lisbeth and Calista Jo