How to Get a Cat to Take a Pill

Of the available forms of cat medication, pills are often preferred by owners over liquids, though they're not necessarily the easiest way to distribute medicine. Tablets can be unpleasant to your pet because it can taste them, and not all drugs are available or effective as transdermal formulas yet.

There are four common suggestions for how to get a cat to take a pill: directly place it in its mouth, use a pill plunger, hide it in its food, or use a pill pocket.

In theory, the simplest way to get a cat to swallow a pill is to put it directly in its mouth. In reality, though, it can get a little tricky, especially if you have to give a drug to an uncooperative cat.

Here are the steps and some pointers for this method:

• "Grease" the pill with something like canned cat food gravy. It will help the pill slide down your cat's throat smoothly and give the medicine a more pleasant taste. This step is optional.
• Also, you can wrap or swaddle your cat in a towel. Ensure their paws are tucked inside safely to protect you from scratches.
• From the back of your cat's head, place your thumb and forefinger on your cat's cheekbones and gently tilt its head back to open its mouth. You can then use the same hand's ring and little finger to coax its mouth wider.
• Remember never to place your fingers on your cat's sharp teeth. You may accidentally get punctured!
• With your other hand, quickly but carefully drop or place the pill as far back on your cat's tongue as possible to feed cat pill.
• Close your cat's mouth and bring its head back to the neutral position. You should pat your cat on the nose or throat and keep its jaw shut as you wait for it to swallow.
• After your cat has swallowed, give him some water, a little broth, or maybe even a little wet food. This can be counted as your feline's reward and also help wash the pill down.

Maybe you are feeling anxious about sticking your fingers into your cat's mouth full of sharp teeth. Thankfully, pill plungers are available on the market.

Also called pill guns or "pillers," these devices enable you to give your cat its pill with a syringe.

Preload the pill plunger first, then follow the above steps. This time, however, instead of using your fingers, gently insert the pill plunger into your cat's mouth to deposit the pill as far back on its tongue as possible.

Once the pill is in place, continue with the steps listed in the previous section.

If you can't get hold of your cat to administer the medicine with your fingers or a pill plunger, it may be time to trick a cat into taking a pill by hiding it in food.

The best food to hide cat pills in are its favorite soft treats. If it is tuna or moist canned cat food, you may roll it up into a bite-sized ball your cat can gobble up in one swallow.

If your pet likes something wetter such as cream cheese or yogurt, you can try hiding the full pill in the food or crushing the cat pill first to mix it better.

In case your cat sensed something suspicious about its food and refused to eat it, you may want to purchase pill pockets for cats available on the market.

Pill pockets are tasty treats with secret pockets in the middle where you can simply slip in and conceal the medicine. It is a sneaky way to get a stubborn cat to eat a pill.

Be careful, though: some kittens will spit the pill out after devouring the treat.