Help! I need a foolproof way to get my dog to take a tablet

[Deadnettle]

Its taken 1.5 hours to get her to take 1 half tablet. She's supposed to take 2 half tablets twice a day. I couldn't find the other one so have no idea if she's had any of it but I did find the painkiller.

We hid it in her breakfast, in chedder, in cream cheese, in peanut butter, in bread, and finally in some butter. By the time she took the tablet she was in pain which is, I think, the only reason she took the butter/tablet mix. I highly doubt it will work again.

She either ate around the tablet or smelt it and refused to eat it or anything it had touched.

Any ideas? Our last dog needed 6-10 tablets a day and I had no trouble getting him to take them but this dog is a nightmare!

[Violetcharlotte]

I have this with my dog, it's very, very frustrating! Vets say to put it right at the back of his mouth, hold his mouth shut and rub his throats til it goes down. Doesn't work when I do it though.

[Blackfellpony]

Easiest way is to open mouth, stick as far back as you can go, close mouth and rub throat until it's gone.

Another trick I sometimes use is to get something tasty (hot dog is good for this!) and make lots of small pieces. Hide tablet in one of the pieces. Throw a few at dog until it realises they are 'safe' and is eating happily then sneak in the tablet one followed immediately by lots of 'safe' ones so it has no idea what happened

Good luck!

[FatOldBag]

Cover it in peanut butter or marmite, then wrap it in ham, then make her sit and feed it to her as a treat. Do this before giving her dinner/breakfast so she's hungry.

[Umblubblub]

Our vet gave us this meaty putty type stuff to hide the pill in, i think it's called Easypill. It worked a treat, she wolfed the whole thing down and was after more!

[Wolfiefan]

Corned beef? Shoved in a babybel?
Give a "clean" piece. Give piece with pill in. Give another "clean" piece to take the taste away!

[Bubble2bubble]

If she will let you, put it at the back of her throat and follow with something tasty so she swallows.
Failing that, a tablet hidden in a small amount of cat food has never let me down!

[HyacinthsBucket]

My dog suffers from frequent bouts of colitis that he often needs tablets for - and he's a complete horror. The vet gave me a tin of hills science plan i/d (gastrointestinal) and it's like a gluey sticky paste you can roll into a ball - and sink a tablet into the middle of. It's the only way I can get mine to take tablets, and I always have a tin for that purpose. It's around £2 and easily available online and in certain pet shops.

[AverysillyoldHector]

Our vet suggested Mars Bar. Cut a sliver, trim off the chocolate and then squidge the filling round the table. It was the only thing that ever worked for our last dog. I know its not ideal from a sugar point of view, but you only need the tiniest bit.

[chipsandpeas]

i wrap a tablet up in a slice of ham and my dog happily swallows it

[Floralnomad]

My dog has to take six tablets a day , I wrap them in wafer thin turkey 3 pills per slice .

[Deadnettle]

Thanks everyone.

I'll try putting it at the back of her throat later if all else fails.

Give a "clean" piece. Give piece with pill in. Give another "clean" piece to take the taste away!

This is what I did with the chedder, cream cheese, peanut butter and bread and it didn't work. It worked last night

I've had threads about feeding this dog before because she is so fussy. She will only eat if she's hungry (but not too hungry) and if she is not bored of whatever you are giving her. She can get bored of something after eating and enjoying it once! She will happily starve herself until she is ill.

FatOldBag that has never worked with this dog sadly.

We sadly don't have any ham, or corned beef, or even a mars bar.

[TondelayaDellaVentamiglia]

i pretend it's secret and special and Not At All For Puppies, I sneak about the kitchen making toast (or whatever) and act all shifty, and then share a few bits and bobs with the tablet somewhere in the mix....making sure the tablet comes off my plate.

to be fair the dogfaces are pretty good at taking pills just chucked in their food bowl, but one of them can be a bit ninnyish about food, so he gets the Secret Squirrel treatment

[fuzzyllama]

I grind tablets to a powder and then mix in with sardines in tomato sauce. I use sardines because they are smelly and he can't tell the difference. Getting tablets in to him is other wise a nightmare.

[Deadnettle]

I might try that TondelayaDellaVentamiglia.

[CatWithKittens]

Paté - soft liver is best - wrapped round the pill has always worked with ours but it may depend on the size of the dog whetehr they detect it before swallowing. Otherwise the throat rubbing trick works but I've always felt must be less pleasant for the dog.

[YouveCatToBeKittenMe]

similar to Tondelay only I drop them on the floor 'accidently' and they usually gobble them up
The placing on the back of the tongue technique usually works. A small amount of water squirted in immediately after makes them swallow but you need a syringe or something similar

[Deadnettle]

fuzzyllama she doesn't like fish (unless its those dried fish skins). What kind of dog doesn't like fish!

CatWithKittens she's a miniature poodle with a teeny tiny mouth so notices every thing she eats.

I drop them on the floor 'accidently' and they usually gobble them up

I don't think she's ever gobbled anything up ever!

[delawar]

I coat the tablet in butter open the jaw , push it to back of tongue and close jaw , rub the throat whilst talking random rubbish,(optional) It works for me lol

[TondelayaDellaVentamiglia]

cattobe...i've done that too in the past, but current dogs were supposed to be guide dogs, so they are ideally trained against scavenging type naughtiness.

but it's a good tactic nevertheless. :o

[GinIsIn]

Chocolate is highly toxic to dogs - please, please don't give them Mars bar!!!!

I cut the tablet into smaller pieces, encase them in cheese and then wrap the cheese in ham. Works every time!

[AverysillyoldHector]

Did you miss the bit about cutting off the chocolate?

[ruthsmumkath]

The only fail safe way for us is in the Arden's liver paste - still doesn't get that there is a tablet in - anything else and the tablet gets spat out but this stuff is gold.

I get it from Amazon after our local pet shop stopped selling it.

[GinIsIn]

Avery the filling of a mars bar is also made with chocolate, cocoa and cocoa solids.

[MrsJayy]

Can you crush it and put it in yoghurt we had to do it with last dog

[MrsJayy]

New dog will take a tablet smothered in dairylea