Tonight's adventure in trying to get a pill in Martini.

[MIButterfly]

I've been taking her into the bathroom for two reasons: 1. so she can't escape and 2. if she spits the pill out, I can see it better on the floor than on the carpet. I told her last night as we were wrestling around "I can stay in here all night."

Tonight, it was the usual squirming, clawing and clamping her jaw tightly, but then she BIT me! Yow! I really don't think she did it maliciously; I think she was just trying to clamp her jaw shut while my finger was in her mouth. She didn't draw any blood, although it did hurt a lot. I assume she swallowed the pill because I didn't see it anywhere on the floor, but who knows?

[pansypoo53219]

1. thank god for ear goo. even the vet, burly 200 guy couldn't open small female baby bitch's 7lb cat's mouth.

[MIButterfly]

3. The vet suggested the ear goo after she already had given me 90 pills.

As soon as the pills are gone, I'm going to switch to the ear stuff. I think it'll be so much easier on both of us.

[Midnight Writer]

2. Be careful. My sweet little girl put me in the hospital with a bite during a pill-giving session.

Tiny little puncture, out some Neosporin on it, noticed making dinner that evening that my hand was swelling, by bedtime it was really inflated. Went to ER, spent two days getting IV anti-biotics (the first one they tried did not work at all).

I have an old tomcat now who needs daily thyroid pills. I palm the pill, walk up to him while he is relaxed, pet him a bit (until he is purring), then gently open his mouth and quickly pop that pill in deep. Then I keep petting him like nothing happened. I've been getting away with it so far.

We both know it's not always that easy, but you may try a more relaxed approach.

When you take her into the bathroom and close the door, she is already on guard. And the worse the struggle, the more guarded she will be in the future.

Good luck. I know it's tough.

[MIButterfly]

5. OMG! What an awful experience. Thank you for telling me. I'll have to be more careful in the future.

She didn't break the skin, so I think I'm okay. I guess time will tell. 🤞

You're probably right about Martini being on her guard when I take her in the bathroom. Funny thing is, the first five days, she took her pill like a trouper. I called her over; she jumped in my lap; I opened her mouth; put it in; and she swallowed it. Took less than two minutes. That didn't last. Every so often, it's easy again. I get it in on the first try, but those times are few and far between.

[Midnight Writer]

7. I just started with him a few days ago, so I don't know how long the relaxed method will work.

He's always been very docile, and he's pretty feeble these days. I hope I can keep it up without a lot of fighting.

[tblue37]

10. Have you asked your vet if the meds can be turned into a liquid, & if so, which pharmacy can do it?

That's how I got meds into one of my cats some years ago.

[MIButterfly]

12. When I told the vet about my difficulty in getting the pills into Martini,

she suggested the kind of medication that gets dabbed on the cat's ear. Since I already paid for the bottle of 90 pills, I'm going to try to keep giving them to her as long as I can. Of course, if it becomes too difficult, I will order the ear application.

I hate to have it come down to money, but between the emergency vet and two visits to my regular vet, it's cost me well over $1,000. But then, I think, what price do I put on my cat's health? Right now, I'm just taking it one day at a time with my precious Martini.

I have used liquid meds for both my cats in the past and they worked very well.

[Enter stage left]

4. I once read that trying to give a pill to a cat...

Is just slightly more difficult than trying to wrestle a tornado into a submission hold.

[MIButterfly]

6. It is a struggle! A test of wills, as it were, with the cat usually winning.

[MLAA]

8. Sounds like both you and Martini need a martini after all that!

[SheltieLover]

9. Do you have a pill shooter?

Non-needle syringe you fill with a bit of water, put pill in end slip it in side of mouth &, ideally, the pill gets washed down. Ideally.

Maybe vet will take the 90 pills back or you could donate them to a shelter?

[Karadeniz]

11. You need a pill pusher gadget.....

[DeeDeeNY]

13. I have had great success with Greenie's pill pockets

I used the canine version, but there is also a cat version. They worked amazingly well for me.

https://www.greenies.com/collections/cat-pill-pockets?srsltid=AfmBOoqETn24saUSqYv6ko-fvcIvu6wwhN_QN36EU7T3euocVlWWqdRs

[MIButterfly]

15. I tried that. She wouldn't eat it, just sniffed at and walked away.

I even tried giving her one without a pill in it so she would get used to it. It could be she just doesn't like soft treats. My last cat didn't like soft treats at all.

Thanks for the suggestion, though!

[DeeDeeNY]

16. Ugh. Probably the ear stuff is the most workable then.

[bif]

14. Before I give my cat dinner

I put the pill in a tablespoon of her food. She gulps it down without knowing it. (It's a tiny pill). tonight I have to give here some liquid antibiotic, so that'll be another challenge. I may mix it into her food and hopefully she won't notice it.