Any canine caretaker who has attempted to give his or her pet medicine may have experienced through a resistant or even a picky, pet. Giving your dog a pill or capsule can be a challenge. Giving medication in the right way is crucial for your dog’s health. Some dogs accept everything including medicines without any fuss. However, most dogs simply spit the medicines hidden with the food by sensing the bad smell. So, let’s discuss some of the easiest ways of giving medication to your pet.
Put the medicine in food
The easiest method of all to get a dog to eat pills is to disguise them within your dog’s favorite foods. Choose a food that is tasty and binds the pill easily such as peanut butter, cheese, canned dog food, yogurt or a piece of a hot dog. Whatever food you choose, be ready with 3 samples of it. First, offer your dog a small piece of tasty food without the pill in it. This is done to get it more engaged with the food. Then give him the second treatment with the medication disguised within it, immediately show him the third sample that is very large. Your pet will easily accept the food with medicine to get the large treat. Appreciate your pet once the medicine is successfully administered.
Using the medicine in liquid form
Few dogs refuse to take pills in any disguise. In such cases, request your vet pharmacy to offer the medicine in a flavored liquid form. Choose a flavor that inspires your dog. Before injecting the liquid medicine, you need to hold your dog in place. Fill the syringe with the recommended dosage of liquefied medicine; slowly place the tip of the syringe into your dog’s mouth. Ensure that its jaws do not get closed. Release the liquid medicine slowly so that your dog is given time to swallow and also lick the medicine before injecting more. Finally, run your hands gently over your pet’s throat.
Once you are successful with this process, giving medication to your dog will no longer be a problem. But you need to be patient and caring throughout the process. Also, reward your dog for accepting the medicine.
If your pet refuses to take liquefied medicines in any disguise, ask your vet whether the medicines can be made into a transdermal form which can be rubbed all over the dog’s skin.
Never try to mix the medicines directly with your pet’s daily food. The dog senses the medicine and may refuse to eat so both the food and medicines go to waste.
Give the pill in crushed form
Some dog medicines such as Enteric-coated aspirin and SAMe should be given as a whole without being crushed. As these medicines appear to be coated they pass down the intestine and get dissolved there. Some medicines that lack a coating are safe to crush and infuse with food. Seek advice from your vet about the medication which can be crushed or not.
Giving medications without treats
Train your dog from an early age to sit before each meal. Carefully open your dog’s mouth and place the medicine on the dog’s tongue as far back as you can reach easily and then gently push it back over the tongue using your finger. Close your dog’s mouth; gently rub your pet’s throat to get it to swallow. You can also blow over its nose to encourage swallowing. Keep the dog’s nose facing upwards unless you‘ve confirmed that the dog has swallowed the medicine. Then allow it to feed on its regular meal. This technique helps you to medicate your pet easily at every meal. If your pet is not used to this technique, make it learn now. Use soft praises and cheerful voice during the training.
If you don’t have enough time to train your pet but still want to give medicine, then don’t become anxious. Don’t get stressed, be happy and positive. For some breeds, it’s good to stand facing your pet during medication, but for others, it would work when both of you are standing in the same direction.
Side-by-side technique
The side-by-side technique makes the dog feel more secure as you’re very close to it and watching at it. In this process, one of your arms goes around your dog’s head while the other hand goes around its mouth. The arm that supports the head should not allow it to move backward. The hand around the mouth should be used to separate both the jaws of your pet. Now, drop the medicine at the back of the tongue. Close the jaws, keep the dog’s nose facing down. Use soft praises so that your pet doesn’t spit out. Release your arms once the pet has swallowed the medicine.
These are some of the easy ways to give medicine to your dogs. You need to be patient and relaxed throughout the process. By incorporating fun with the technique it will be much easier for you to medicate your dogs in the future.
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