Spot-on when there's only one of you

[Dilbertian]

If you live alone, how do you apply the spot-ons to your cat?

MrCat is big and uncooperative, and I've got to get 3 pipettes onto him in one session. It's a 2-person job.

Can't give any advice as mine are extremely cooperative! But my parents cat is best done if he's asleep. Unfortunately cats are not daft and they know from
3 miles away, that you've got the stuff out of the drawer.

I get the tube ready with the top open. Get cat under my left arm. Sit on the sofa so wedging cat between me and the sofa back. Same position for pills.

I have 11 years of cat ownership/servitude under my belt. This is my technique:

Line up the open pipettes within reach.

Kneel on floor with feet under bottom and knees slightly apart.

Wedge cat in lap/between knees (cat faces forwards in the same direction as you)

Apply pipette(s) with one hand while holding cat firmly in place with the other.

Should add, as it's unclear, for best results the cat needs to be sitting on the floor, not in your lap. This is why feet under bottom is necessary, to stop them from backing out underneath you... 🤣

Can you wrap in a towel so their legs are inside? We did this with ours when he had a face injury that needed cleaning.

I've never found the perfect solution to this. I have the added complication of having two virtually identical cats so I have to keep track of who has had what.

Wedge cat in lap/between knees (cat faces forwards in the same direction as you)

🤣🤣🤣🤪

Not going to happen. He is such a nervous nellie that he'd be away before I got down. He's too big to scruff. The only way I get him into the basket to go to the vet is to burrito him, and my success rate is about 75%. I don't know if I could do a burrito that would expose the back of his neck and be secure enough for me to hold him with one hand or reposition him from the table to between my knees.

But if left arm is holding cat, and right arm is holding pipette, where's the third arm to part the fur?

Part the hair with the nozzle!

Yep, it's a skill to be learned but it's possible, took me a whole to purrfect. I just bury down with end of pippet into fur.

While not whole. Oh for the edit function. Purrfect was deliberate 🐈

🤦‍♀️

Sometimes things are just too obvious!

Sounds difficult !

I blow on the fur to make a gap to pipette my kits - one is ex feral and very uncoorperative so I need to really be ready with opened pipette and treats etc. He adores me so that makes it easier to be honest lol - the other two wouldn't give a hoot

I feed them then when they are eating straddle them and hold them with my legs and apply.

I lure mind onto my lap, scruff her firmly with my left hand then part the fur with my right thumb and squeeze as hard as possible.

Can you do it while he's asleep? Hold him down and just go for it?

I do mine while they are eating. Nothing distracts them from breakfast

We go to the vet for 3 monthly bravecto and worming struggle.

Cat in sphinx position on table, backed up to your chest so can't back out. One arm either side so can't get out at the sides. One finger and thumb encircles neck to keep head still and facing away. Use another finger on same hand to part fur. Other hand applies drops. I recommend you practice on a rolled up towel or similar as you need everything to be coordinated, but it does work. If you think he won't allow this then try to feed him some treats to get him used to the position.

Or maybe choose a medication with the same effect that's given orally?

Or ask at the vets for a vet nurse to help?

How is your cat with taking tablets? Having had the same single-handed ‘mission impossible’ for years with my two cats, I’ve recently discovered Credelio. Has to be prescribed, but a complete game changer at avoiding that monthly tussle!

Zip the cat up in a sports bag. If very dangerous, wrap a towel around the bag.

Then you can spot on by yourself!

Never tried giving him tablets, and never going to.

I never had any problems giving our dogs tablets, but never succeeded with our cat (who was much smaller and much more accepting of being picked up and held than this cat).

I crush tablets and hide them in treat food. But worming tablets make MrCat ill, which is why I switched to drop-ons.

However, my co-minion and main cat-wrangler has gone to university.

I'll try some of these techniques with the Felisecto (I think it's Felisecto), which only needs one pipette at a time, and of which I have a couple of spares. If I cannot manage alone then I will have to shift MrCat's 3-pipette treatment schedule to Xmas and summer holidays. Thank goodness he only needs that one twice a year.

Am on my own with long-haired cat. He gets a Program injection at the vets every six months. Much easier!