Help I need suggestions. My grandma had to be put in the hospital and now I'm stuck with her dog. He's a snappy poodle that is having severe anxiety. I got some pills from the vet to calm him down but I can't get him to take them. He is super spoiled and not even a hot dog will work to slip him the pill. What do I do?
Thank you so much for your suggestions. The trick that worked- I crushed it up and mixed it with a small amount of peanut butter. Who knew. The dog that turns his nose up at hot dogs and lunch meat likes peanut butter. Score one for the human. Yeah!
Peanut butter on a spoon; let him lick it off. Or, put peanut butter on a small piec of cracker w/the pill in the peanut butter. Works like a charm & they can't spit it out.
I second pill pockets. They're magic!
You have to hold the mouth open, put it down his throat with your finger. Hold his nose up while keeping it closed and massage the throat forcing him to swallow. Then, give him a little bit of water and a treat.
Sounds rough, but I have worked at a vet and many of the tactics don't work for all animals, and this is the only way to guarantee he gets it, aside form grinding it into a powder and sprinkling it on some food. My dog can eat any pill out of cheese/meat/treats....
wrap pill in cheese, liver sausage, chicken, tuna, or his favorite dog food. Grind it up and put it in his dog food. Take a long walk with him to wear him out and try it then.
Peanut butter for the pill? I've had dogs who love it and dogs who hate it, but it might be worth a try. Also, ask the vet about DAP or a calming scent that can be used. It comes in collars and room air freshener type devices. It didn't work with one of my dogs, but some people swear by it.
Force his mouth open and put your fingers in the back behind his teeth to keep his mouth open. With your other hand place the pill down his throat, dogs do not have a gag reflex. Then clamp his mouth shut with one hand and rub his throat with the other.
I don't mess around with food when I have to medicate my pets.
Not sure if it will work or not, but they make these treats called "Pill Pockets". I had to give my cats medicine recently. It's usually a nightmare. The vet gave us these "Pill Pockets" to try. One cat wasn't fooled, but the other one was. I was able to give him antibiotics for 14 days without a problem.
Here is the dog version:
http://www.greenies.com/en_US/products/dogpillpockets.aspx
Good luck :)
We have to give my dog Benadryl every day. Most of the time we can sneak it in his wet food in the morning, but on days we can't we use the Pill Pockets. We've also used cheese to sneak it in.
Have you tried crating the dog? Especially when you are not home? Perhaps that will help to calm his anxiety some, and make the transition to you caring for him easier.
As for the pills, if all else fails, try squishing some grated cheese around the pill. That works for my anxiety ridden dog.
Good luck.
Try Rescue Remedy for pets. You can put it on his skin (like on his nose or ear) and it might help calm him!
What about hiding it in cheese that you wrap and smoosh around it? That works for my dog, when other things won't.
I second PB for the pill. Use a spoon and scoop out something like 1 T unto the spoon, press the pill lightly into it. Then, open the dogs mouth gently (I do it the way it shows in this article: http://www.vetmed.wsu.edu/cliented/dog_meds.aspx.
You could also ask the vet to get a suspension of the med (basically convert it to liquid form instead of pill) and squirt that down the dogs throat.
