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I like to use "pill pockets" made by Greenies. To make it extra appealing, I'll crumble up a Temptations treat (soft on inside crunchy on outside) and roll the pill-in-pocket (I just use a half pill pocket though, or they get too big) in the pile of crunch. It's like a truffle for cats, they have no idea its drugs. :-P That seems to be the only thing that has worked consistently for me. Especially when two cats with cancer had to take pills for a long time. It works as long as they have appetite, that is.I just had to google dongle.
We lost Mary (our next to youngest cat) to cancer this year. The last few months were pretty difficult. It's hard so I continue to hope things go well for Pingu.
Gertie wrote: "I just had to google dongle. "Good thing, too, or who knows what you would have been thinking...
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Gertie - Now we're even. I just had to google "pet pockets"! I'll definitely give those a try (although she doesn't usually go for those cat treats). Don't they try to chew them though?
Heh. Thank goodness for Google. I'm not sure if she'd go for it if she doesn't eat treats much then. Usually my cats "kind of" chew them but end up gulping the pill down in the process. I was thinking of these, but maybe you have a different brand there.
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In the meantime, I saw one of these in an industrial carpark today. The Northern Birdwing butterfly (Australia's largest). I actually thought it was a bat until I saw the spots of colour!
Ruby wrote: "In the meantime, I saw one of these in an industrial carpark today..."My wife tells me pictures should always have scales. How big is it? Wikipedia doesn't even tell me!
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I got one of these inside a Yowie a friend brought me! I had no idea they were so big (the one in the Yowie was about an inch :-)
What is a yowie?Butterflies.... hold your hand in front of the winged part so you can just see the body and legs. Not so cute anymore. Still I get a little interested every time one shows up fluttering about in the yard.
We use liquid wormer with our cats. We tried putting it in the food, it's supposed to be liver flavor...but they always refuse to eat the food. We use an eye dropper and usually end up wearing about as much as we get them to take. Well, except for the 2 toms. They ususlly reacts very calmly.
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Mike - The added complication is that Pingu's tablets have to be taken whole and can't be chewed or broken up. They're also cytotoxic, so have to be handled while wearing gloves, and you have to watch out for any residue, including when handling the litter tray afterwards.
I tried practicing today using a worming tablet, but I really do need three hands to manage it. At least she's not freaked out by my attempts. She seems to understand what's going on - but thinks it'd be more fun to play a game with me and make me chase her. She does love being chased. So far, I've refused to let it turn into one of her games. So far.
That's good. I have one that would be really hard to get pills down. Good luck. Hope it all goes well.
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I'm at my wits;///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////cxOisdddddddiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii
Sorry. Cat on keyboard. I was about to say, I'm at my wits' end. I cannot get her to take the damn pills. In all the attempts I've made with the practice pills, I've only ever gotten one into her mouth once, and she spat it out - which CANNOT happen with cytotoxic tablets. I can't at this point even imagine a scenario in which I could both get one into her mouth AND then get her to swallow it. I'm not coordinated or quick enough and I don't really understand the techniques for getting her mouth open.
The vet thinks I'm being soft, because I came in convinced I could get her to cooperate with me, given enough time and training and trust. She keeps lecturing me about it being life and death (as if I didn't know that) and that I have to be tough. The thing is, even being tough and pulling her head right back (I even tried "scruffing" her, which I swore I'd never do) she will NOT open her mouth. I don't know what I'm doing wrong.
The other thing is, the cat really IS co-operating with me up to a point. She hasn't scratched me, she's not struggling too much, she's not running off.... she just isn't opening her mouth. She's not holding a grudge either - she's snuggled up to me now, and even came to see what was wrong with me when she saw I was upset.
And next week I'll be in Normanton, and my partner will have to do it. In the 8 years we've been together, he still hasn't figured out how to pick her up.
There has to be something I can try.....
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I don't imagine I can offer anything more than your vet has shown you - I just squeeze his cheeks at the back of his jaw, forcing him to open up, drop the pill as far back in his mouth as I can, and then push it with my finger until I hit the back of his throat. It's not pretty, but I haven't been seriously injured yet. I also haven't very often had to do it with this cat, thankfully.
Oh, I should add - your partner is actually a better person to do it anyway: Pingu loves you. Sounds like they don't have much of a relationship to damage :-)
I used to have to sit behind the cat with my knees around either side of him, then pinch the sides of his face with one hand and then use the other hand to place the pill on the back of his tongue. Then you close the cat's mouth and hold it shut while rubbing the underside of their throat. It works very well really, it is just a little awkward at first because it feels more aggressive than most cat owners like to be.How did the vet show you to do it- like this?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSxjeA...
I hadn't known about blowing into their nose to get them to swallow the pill (from the video)- that's a new one on me. Storing away for future use..
Gertie wrote: "I hadn't known about blowing into their nose to get them to swallow the pill (from the video)- that's a new one on me. Storing away for future use.."Neither had I - even though I knew my horsey friends always used that trick (sticking your finger down a horse's throat doesn't seem intelligent).
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I'm sure the vet showed you the way, but just in case:
Load the pill shooter and try a couple dry runs to make sure the pill is popping out when you press the handle.
If Pingu won't hold still or has educated claws, come up and wrap a towel around her and hold her with your legs.
With your right hand, grab the top of her head with a grip on the 'cat handles', those little ridges on either side of her eyes.
Use you thumb and middle fingers to hinge her mouth open at the commissures (that place where the mouth 'starts').
Use the left hand to inset the piller down into her throat with thumb in firing position and press to release the pill. Hold her mouth closed, tilt her head up and stroke her throat. It's also not a bad idea to have a 3cc syringe of water ready to immediately follow the pill with, it forces them to swallow and reduces the chance of the pill hanging out in the esophagus, which is actually not that uncommon.
Which hand does what is of course dealer's choice, you may find it easier to hold her head with your left hand. Done right, the whole procedure can be completed in less than 15 seconds. Leaving the cat wondering what the heck just hit them, but minimizing the trauma of a lengthy struggle. With a second person as the holder, it should be even easier. You can practice finding the proper head grip and mouth opening when you're petting Pingu to further minimize trauma. A tasty treat following the pilling is also a good idea, for you and Pingu.
Hope this helps. Good luck, and remember that any cat pilling you can walk away from is a good cat pilling.
I wish I could help. Maybe the new vet will have a way or medicine in a different form.
So for a little levity, I tracked down a comedy sketch I heard last week. I'd mentioned these guys once before, but didn't actually know who they were at the time:Sharing the Olympic Blame
Apparently Australia's poor performance in some Olympic events they traditionally do well in can be blamed on the fact that some other countries actually sent people to compete...
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Sharing the Olympic Blame..."
This is hilarious!
And, Gertie - a Yowie is sort of the Australian version of Bigfoot, it was also a Cadbury chocolate egg with a little toy critter inside, mostly representing Australian or NZ fauna. Some of the Yowies contained Yowies!
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Also, I really did injure her leg (using a method similar to the one Gertie describes) when she tried to wriggle away. It just broke me, and it really crossed a line in our relationship too. I know when she really trusts me to back off, and this time I didn't.
During the worst migraine of my life the next day, I spent my time on the phone to various local vets and the clinic in Brisbane, and eventually heard about a "mobile vet" -and yes, you can hear the inverted commas when any of the other vets mention him, sometimes even italics, as in, "He calls himself Doctor Edward. Turns out he's quite the spiritual guy. Uses terms like "energy work" and "what I'm sensing your cat is telling me is...". At the end of the day he is very good with her, and I know he will never be too rough or cross any lines with her. He won't do anything that he really believes is against her best interests. So while I'm keeping the regular vet for the serious doctoring, Dr Edward is now helping me pill her twice a week. There are some risks to this, in terms of her feeling ambushed in her own home, or knowing he's just there to shove stuff down her throat, but it's a better idea than having the people she loves and trusts do it.
She really did try to cooperate with me, you know. She let me hold her, tilted her head back etc, didn't hold a grudge afterwards - even came to see why I was crying at one point! She just really doesn't like the mouth/throat stuff and can't bring herself to do it voluntarily. Poor kitten. I crossed a line when I wouldn't stop when things got seriously traumatic for her though, and I feel really ashamed of that.
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Ruby wrote: "She really did try to cooperate with me, you know. She let me hold her, tilted her head back etc, didn't hold a grudge afterwards - even came to see why I was crying at one point! She just really doesn't like the mouth/throat stuff and can't bring herself to do it voluntarily. Poor kitten. I crossed a line when I wouldn't stop when things got seriously traumatic for her though, and I feel really ashamed of that. "Poor kitty. I know exactly how she feels. I've completely stopped trying to swallow pills - I have to crunch them fine. I take half of a pill that can't weigh more than two grams, regularly, and I still can't get it down. If somebody tried to force that down my throat, I'd bear a grudge.
I'm now subscribed to Clarke & Dawe's YouTube channel.
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Some cats just won't do the pill things :-( Don't feel bad, you had her best interests at heart, but like taking an infant in for vaccines, it feels like a giant betrayal. Obviously someone willing to pay for a person to come pill their cat twice a week isn't likely to be a cat abuser...
Poor Pingu! And don't beat yourself up Ruby - you are trying to do what'sbest and as there was no one with you to take the responsibility over you had to keep trying. Her hurt leg was just an unfortunate accident. I hope the cat whisperer works out well.
I know how you feel to. I lost a cat last year who claimed me from the time she could crawl away from her mother. BUT she knew her mind and even if she trusted me if "it" was something she didn't want to do she wasn't doing it.It's good you've found someone who can help you give her the pill.
Hi there,maybe this is stupid but would you just grind the tablet up into powder and mix it into her absolute favourite food? My cat used to turn into a pitbull if I tried to "force-feed" her, but that one always worked. Hope things will get better, all the very best!!!
In case Ruby can't answer for a bit, she explained that the pill is time released cancer medicine so has to be given as is.
I always explain these things to my cat, but he just won't listen. And grinding it into his food? Forget about it! He has ultra-performant medicine detection capacities, no matter how much oily tuna fish is mixed in. Nope, the only solution is pppp: pry jaws open, pop pill in, pet kitty's throat, and pray it goes down. I have to try the pet-piller device suggested by Whitney, save my fingers from getting punctured. Unlike Pingu, Zanzibar can be a nasty little tommy with 0 qualms about biting the hand that not only feeds, but also tries to shove things down his throat!
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Thanks for the support everyone. I'm currently "out bush" and haven't had internet access for a few days, so apologies for my absence. I've been battling giant spiders, cane toads and mummified tree frogs. On the plus side, I did finally get to say the words, "Gotta go. There's a kangaroo at the door" the other night. As an Australian, I've always wanted the opportunity to say that!
So far, the cat whisperer has worked out very well. My partner is in Townsville looking after the Pingu while I'm here. He'll go back to Canberra in about a week's time I guess and finish getting the house packed and shipped before joining us full-time. He had his first experience with the cat whisperer today, and said it all went very well. Phew!
Everyone has their talents.... I'll admit I love the line. ""Gotta go. There's a kangaroo at the door"" LOL
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The night after that, some hunters frightened a mob of kangaroos and wallabies who panicked and hit the fence out the back. I actually saw a cartwheeling kangaroo.
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So if I still drop off the radar now and then, please forgive me!
It's funny, but when I saw the view from my accommodation in Normanton, I thought that with 2 mobile phones, 2 laptops and a Kindle something would be bound to get better reception!
No such luck.
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Ruby wrote: "By the way, I've been getting up at 6am to try and see a Morning Glory. The Gulf of Carpentaria, (specifically between Normanton & Burketown), is the only place in the world to get this phenomenon ..."Roll clouds! I've seen pictures of those but don't expect to ever get to see them in person.
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This is what it looks like from the ground. Apparently. Sigh.
My wife was an artist and those are a real challenge for artists. They are beautiful, but you can't really do a painting of them. The straight lines of clouds just don't look right in a painting. It's like old collapsing barn. In real life dangerous, in a painting nice...They are amazing.
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Zabardast!!!!!! Which in my language Urdu means "Awesome, Fantastic, Wonderful, Amazing" all rolled into one :))))
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They can't radiate that site again, so the only other treatment option is to remove the bulk of the tumour (but they can't get it with margins) and trial chemo drugs. They have no evidence to suggest that this will achieve anything, as it hasn't been tried on this sort of tumour in cats. And she refuses to let me give her the tablets.
Otherwise we have to watch a fit, active, happy cat become sick and die. I just don't know what to do. I wish I knew what she wanted for herself.
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Sorry, Ruby, that's rough after all you two have been through.
I will say that amputation of a rear leg in cats isn't really all that bad, as far as surgeries and recoveries go. And most cats do fine as tripods. Do they think that amputation would be valuable even if she didn't get the chemo? What kind of tumor does she have, if I may ask?
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I know, right? I blame exhaustion for not thinking of that until it was too late..."
There have been reports of clients appropriating their pet's patches, as well as vets giving themselves patches...
Next bit of advice, do you have a pill shooter? Makes pilling cats that much easier, especially with chemo when you can't compromise the outer coating. Pet Piller
Pingu obviously knew how to pick an owner that would go the distance :-)