How To Give Medicines To Pets
When our dog or cat has a disease or health problem, the vet prescribes a specific treatment, either in pills or drops. In any case, giving medications to pets is not an easy task. In this article we will tell you how to achieve it.
Tips for giving medications to pets
Has it ever happened to you that your dog or cat had to take a medicine, but it was impossible for him to swallow it? It is somewhat difficult to ‘fool’ him if the pill is very large or if the drops taste bitter, but with certain techniques we can give medicines to pets and be victorious in the mission. Let’s follow the following steps:
1. Calm down
This first step is very important, since animals have the ability to read our body language and detect our emotions. Therefore, if we are nervous or anxious, the animal will notice it right away.
When you have to give him a medicine of any kind, we recommend that first of all you relax and calm down. Be gentle if, for example, you have to open his mouth to put a pill in or slowly lift his muzzle to swallow the medicine.
2. Disguise with food
In most cases, the animal tablets can be cut in half or quarters ; This is great, as it is easier to hide the pieces in the food.
You can choose to assemble a small ball of cheese and introduce the remedy, wrap it in a slice of ham, mix it with the pate or place it inside a piece of meat. In any case, it should be a small portion that does not require too much chewing and is easier to swallow.
3. Play
Another way to give your pets medicine is to turn the moment into something fun, like a game. Before administering the medicine, we suggest that you take a few minutes to be with your dog or cat.
If you stick with the idea of food balls with the pill inside, you can make several empty ones and throw them at him to catch them. In the midst of all the entertainment, the animal will not realize in which of them the remedy is hidden.
Remember that this practice can be carried out at different times, not only when the dog or cat must take a medication; in this way he will take it as something natural and ‘go with the flow’.
4. Take advantage of your pet’s characteristics
If your dog is very gluttonous or desperate for food, you can take advantage of this personality trait to give him the medication. An interesting technique is to have two food balls: one with the pill and one without it.
Get him to sit down and show him both, then give him the first – with a pill – while showing him another one is waiting. He will devour the one in his mouth so he can enjoy more food!
5. Consult flavored medications
Since it is sometimes difficult to give medicines to pets, laboratories have been making some remedies with pleasant flavors for some time.
Consult with the veterinarian if these medicines are available for the treatment that your dog or cat needs. It will be much easier to mix the medication with the food and even give it in the mouth without spitting it out.
6. Ask for help
To administer a syrup or medicine in drops, it must be placed in a syringe without a needle, placed on one of the sides of the animal’s mouth, close the jaws and inject the content. In the case of powders, it is simpler: dilute with food or drink.
The idea of having another person is so that while one supports the animal, so that it does not escape or move, the other applies the remedy. Remember that everyone must be calm to avoid problems.
