A Spoonful of Sugar…
Helps the medicine go down! While that may not be true for dogs, it does help to put the pill in something so they’ll gobble it down instead of wrestling with the dog and a pill gun.
Giving pills to my big Newfy mix Nova is actually pretty easy – toss her about five liver snaps and cheese cubes, then the pill in a cheese cube, then quickly another liver snap or three. She’s so eager to catch them all, she doesn’t even notice that there was a pill in that cheese cube!
For dogs who aren’t as catch-happy, a pill in a cheese cube, or peanut butter can work just as well. Once you get past that stage however, medicating dogs can be dicey! Ask your veterinarian if there is any way to get the pill in a treat form – like heartworm medicine, almost! – or if you can open the capsule and mix it into something else. Make sure you ask your vet before opening any capsules. Often medication is on a ‘timed release’, so the capsule is an important part of the process.
What’s your trick for pills?
Peanutbutter on a spoon with the pill stuck in. I also will give a spoon of canned dog food or cream cheese works too. Key is to use it now as a big reward and then when pill is needed it wont be noticed.