How to give your cat the pill: here are some useful tips


Very often it is necessary to give our pets medicines for their health. Do you know how to give the cat the pill? Here’s what to know about it!

When our cat is sick, very often we have to give him drugs ourselves. Most of the time these are pills, but not all owners know exactly how to get their cat to take them. Here is a short guide on tips and little tricks to… get your cat’s cooperation.


The cat is unlikely to cooperate

Most likely, if you are reading this, this is your first time giving your cat a pill. It is good to immediately specify that you will not find much cooperation in your cat, and that it is very difficult to deceive him. As we know, the cat has an excellent nose that allows him to easily find if there is something wrong.

We also know that the cat is very demanding when it comes to food, which is why it is even more difficult than giving the pill to the dog. In short, you will need to have even more patience, if possible. Let’s see some stratagems together!


Camouflage the pill in food

It is most likely the most popular method. On the other hand, baby food is always a moment of joy for the cat, even if it has very specific tastes. In short, you will have to choose the food in which to hide the pill based on certain parameters.

First of all, it must be a food that he loves, and possibly his favorite. But at the same time it must be a food that can be broken, in such a way as to be able to insert the pill inside; the classic example is the piece of sausage.

Cat snack time is always ideal. In fact, if it is a habit, he could have his guard down and not notice your little deception.


Crush the pill

If our cat is too smart for the first method, then we need to raise the difficulty level. Another widely used method is to crush the pill into a thousand pieces and disguise them in supplements for the cat or amalgamate it into the malt paste.

There is a though. It must be pills that lend themselves to being crushed, without losing even the slightest part of the properties underlying the drug. Another sore point is the flavor. Many pills, broken, tend to be very bitter, and it is difficult for the cat to eat them.


Dilute the pill in the water

If this method is also unsuccessful, you will have to raise the bar of difficulty further, and try another trick: that of diluting the pill in water. Also in this case the considerations made previously apply. It must be a drug that can be diluted without losing any of its properties.

In short, in order not to have doubts even at the last moment, it is always better to ask the vet as soon as he has visited the cat, when he has prescribed the pill. The diluted drug is administered directly into the cat’s mouth, using a syringe without a needle.


Put the pill in your mouth

If you’ve made it to the end of this paragraph, your cat is obviously tough. And as they say, to extreme evils, extreme remedies! All that remains is to put the whole pill directly into the cat’s mouth. This method is the most invasive, and probably the least pleasant for the cat.

But if you have not succeeded with the previous methods, you will necessarily have to resort to this. Before proceeding, it is best to play with the cat for a few minutes, cuddle him and calm him down.

After that, you can take action. Choose the right position. The ideal is to place the cat on a table, perpendicularly and with its back facing your body. Have the cat tilt the head, gently lifting it with the non-dominant hand (the one in which you do not have the pill).

With the other hand, always press gently on the corner of the cat’s mouth, which will tend to open it. At this time you will put the pill in, trying to place it as close to your throat as possible. Keep his mouth shut and wait for him to swallow.

This is not an easy maneuver, but with the right practice and the right amount of calm you can learn. If you really can’t, contact your vet, both to make the cat swallow the pill and to teach you the correct technique.


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