Pill refusal - any tips?

[Lisa]

For the first time ever, Simba has refused to eat his dewormer pill that I put in with his food. Actually he ate the half pill that was part of the dose, but spat out the big one. So I cut it in half and put it in cheese...nope.
So, any suggestions? Should I try one of those pill pocket treats? I kinda feel like if he ate the cheese and spat out the pill he could do the same with those.

 

[Natalie]

You could try streaming kibble really quickly, mixed with some high value treats, getting him a little bit excited, them slip the pill in about 10 or 12 treats in, quickly followed by more kibble?

 

[Ashley]

When Quinn was rejecting pills when she was sick, I made a cream cheese ball around her pills and put it in her mouth toward the back (instead of giving it to her like a treat). I've also used pate wet food in the same way. Anything "pill pocket" like she was spitting out.

 

[Jelinga]

I used some pate, never refused!

 

[Atemas]

When desperate, F will open Red’s mouth and drop the pill in, then stroke her throat until it’s gone. It sounds cruel but he does it very gently and expertly so it’s all done in seconds. I know it‘s ok, ‘cos she will come and sit by him and let him do it. Sky used to be the same.

 

[SwampDonkey]

Butter balled around pill baby food. Wrap it n sliced ham or something similar. Stuffed in a sardine. All messy but all work. Oh yogurt dipped too.

 

[kateincornwall]

I use pate when Nelly needs a tablet , always works as long as the pill is well smeared , no need to disguise for Reubs

 

[Lisa]

Ok great! I have some pate, will try that!!

 

[Boogie]

Pate here too. I give a couple of non-pill balls of pate followed quickly by the one with the pill in.

That fools her nicely.

 

[Anne123]

Peanut butter

 

[Lisa]

Oo thanks @Anne123 I went looking for pate but forgot I didn’t have any more. Might try that. He loves peanut butter. Maybe I’ll shove it into a banana piece and coat that with peanut butter...he’ll like that. Good idea for a couple of teasers first @Boogie

 

[Granca]

Soft Brie!

 

[Lisa]

Pleased to report “banana bomb” worked perfectly. Thanks all!

 

[Cath]

Cream cheese works every time

 

[Oberon]

We sandwich pills between small slabs of butter.

 

[Jacqui-S]

My technique is a big wedge of cheese.
If that fails, Sophie does the back of the throat thing.

 

[Emily]

When Ella was sick earlier this year she went off her food so we had to resort to the "shove it down the throat" method.

However, we now find a blob of peanut butter does the trick. If it's a tablet she really doesn't like, I still push the blob towards the back of her tongue and she'll swallow before realising there's a tablet.

 

[Lab_adore]

Maxx happily eats pills of any shape or size. Maxx happily eats just about anything

 

[snowbunny]

Ginny can be a bit funny with pills sometimes. If she's not wanting to take it, I'll cover it with something and hold several tasty chasers to pop in immediately afterwards. This makes her salivate so it goes down more easily, and most of the time she doesn't even notice, whereas without the chasers, she'd suck the covering off and spit out the tablet.

 

[Lisa]

Hmm....He gobbled down the banana bombs but now has just thrown up, I assume from some combination of the pills/banana/peanut butter.
Weird. He’s never refused pills before and has never thrown up pills before.