Your tips for getting pills into cats

[smearedinfood]

She went missing about 2 weeks ago. She wasn't enamoured with the house sitter while we were on holiday. I went door knocking and found her in a house two doors down ( they reluctantly gave her back). She's Abysinnian. She has allergies so I've turned off the sure flap and have just fed her her some James Well beloved she was originally on royal canin sensitivity but was turning her nose up at it all the time.
She came back really scabby and was grumpy with me when i applied Advocate. Usually big attention seeker.

She's had loads of rest since being back is a bit more lively.
She was pooing blood thursday night so I stayed home bank holiday weekend by myself to feed a her a concoction of pills the vet gave me. She is turning up her nose at the food I've mixed the antibiotics with the last day.
No more blood in poo but definitely diahoerra. She's got another vet appointment tomorrow night. Quite lively affectionate, but farting. The vet remarked that she definitely was not dehydrated but thought she had picked up a tummy bug.

Tips please on getting pills into cats? I've been in all weekend and now the DP's back I might be in more of a position to try and get her to swallow it directly.

Sorry that was long...

i saw a really good youtube about this, and that technique worked for me - give me a sec and I'll see if I can find it.

Put it in a ball of cheese, always worked with ours :)

it does take a bit of practice, but is definitely better than whatever I was doing before. hope she's better soon.

I was going to say cheese! or tuna!

Does your kitty like raw meats? I cut a cube of raw chicken, and push the pill into the middle. The chicken is soft so just gives way to the pill, and the cats can't see the pill inside. They swallow the chunk in one go, and therefore the pill.

OK, this works for us.
If the pills are large, break them in half.
Squat down with the cat between your knees, head facing away, body controlled by your thighs.
Wrap a small towel around the cat as if it was a hospital gown.
Hold the head up gently until the cat is glaring at you, insert a finger at the side of the mouth until it opens and aim the tablet to the back of the throat. Hold the mouth shut until you feel the cat swallow. Watch out for it walking around afterwards for a minute and then spitting out the tablet.
It's tricky at first, but after a week of daily tablets, the whole slick operation took seconds.

Mine refused tablets in any food whatsoever. Crushed, blended, hidden...NO!

Pill giver from vets. Like a little syringe. Put a drop of water in it and then pill.
Also fan of the wrap in a towel and sit on it approach!

My poor cat - I just tried out Maryz's hold on her for practice and she is now giving me the looking in the other direction treatment.

I once begged a friend who is a very experienced vet at a zoo to give my cat a pill - she said it's one of the hardest things she dreads being asked. At least at the zoo they can sedate the animals.

I wrap in a towel, open his mouth, flick it to the back of his throat, hold his jaws together and stroke his throat to make him swallow. He hates me after that so I usually have some th a ready for being such a good boy

Tuna even!

We put the pill into a bit of dairy lea - it's sticky so it stays in and cats love it. X

I wasn't trying to pill her - just figuring out what you meant. Not sure about bunching the paws together, she is very small and wriggly.

I've just bookmarked the thread for future reference though!

My old cat (RIP) I tried a similar technique to the above and it worked but she hated me too! When she got old and poorly she had to have more regular medication and I found cooked prawns were the ideal medium. I'd feed her a few so she got into a bit of a feeding frenzy (prawns were her favourite treat) and when she got to the stage of just swallowing and not bothering to chew anymore I'd sneak in the medicated one (down it went) and then gave her a couple more to make sure it was all swallowed down.

Am currently shoving steroids into my wiley beast. Here's how:

Get a pill dispenser (looks like a syringe) and put pill in the end, with syringe plunged until it makes contact with the pill (so there isn't far to plunge).

Wrap cat quickly in a large towel swaddle style and flip it so you're cradling it. Make sure you've swaddled the paws.

Use one hand to open the jaw a little from behind. As soon as a gap appears ram the syringe in try and get the back of the tongue. Accuracy is not necessary just the depth. Stroke under the chin and feed a treat.

Takes about 10 seconds, 20 including prep.

Our old mog needs pills twice a day. We wrap them in cheapo meat paste (Sainsbury's value) and he scoffs them down.

Fish paste doesn't work because it falls to bits.

Do I need to confess again?
So I am a vet, I also own the worlds most evil cat. So the techniques I have developed some of which have already been listed
In a ball of cheddar
In a teaspoon of philidelphia
Inside a prawn
And oh the shame inside a cheesy wot sit.
I can tablet anything in the clinic I current bear war wounds from putting new Seresto collar on the evil one.

Thank you! I'm about to go into battle this morning armed with these techniques!

Our cat has to have daily tablets. To start with he was evil & ran away. We use a tablet giver followed by treats. He now sits & waits patiently for his tablet every day

I second the Tablet giver , it was my last hops for giving my Cats worming Tablets & it worked a treat