27/01/2025
How do you feel when your vet says your cat needs tablets! 🤣😟
Medicating cats is tricky even for vets and vet nurses. Beautiful Tom in the basket below looks like butter wouldn't melt, but turned into a miniature tiger when confronted with a tablet.
This is partly because they are so discerning and so can detect tablets, even crushed ones very easily in their food, but also because they are wriggly when you are trying to hold them and have sharp teeth.
Here are our top tips.🐈⬛❤️. If you have any secret tricks, please share in the comments below. We would all like to know the secret!
Crush the tablet , either between two spoons or in a tablet crusher ( available on line) and mix it with something tasty/ smelly or new - for example lick-e -lix, cream cheese, meat pate , cat soup or tinned fish.
Use a pill popper - also available on line, they take a little mastery but we are happy to give instructions.
Below is further advice from Langford Vets at the University of Bristol with some helpful videos.
Medicating your Cat Advice Sheet
We appreciate that medicating cats can be very challenging. This information sheet includes our top tips and links to International Cat Care videos that may help you.
We find that sometimes we have to be ingenious and very patient to persuade a cat to take their medicine.
In this video Sprite is receiving her daily tablet. Her owner found that using cheese paste with the tablet hidden inside, was the route to success for her to happily take the medication.
https://youtu.be/Yy2bvqo-2vw
In this video Samson is receiving his pain-killer crushed in ‘Lick-e-Lix’ a liquid
treat that we commonly use to help disguise medications.
https://youtu.be/jLxELLgg2xg
Building a positive association with receiving oral medication is important so your cat does not think of it as a negative experience. Follow administration of medication with whatever your cat enjoys such as treats, fuss, a favourite toy or grooming. Please let
your vet know if administration of medication is problematic.
Using a pill popper
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkq_HKA7drA
1. Place the tablet into the end of the pill popper with the plunger drawn back
2. Place your thumb and forefinger behind your cat’s ‘fangs’
3. Tilt the head backwards gently so the lower jaw will drop and mouth will open
The Feline Centre @
Medicating your Cat
Advice Sheet
4. Gently and carefully insert the pill popper into the open mouth, aiming for the back of the mouth
5. Push plunger to release tablet into the back of the mouth, at the base of the tongue
6. Gently close the mouth and return your cat’s head to a normal position, allowing them to swallow
7. Follow with 2mls of water dribbled into the mouth via a 2.5ml syringe, or with several of
their favourite treats to ensure the tablet has been properly swallowed
Hiding a tablet in a treat
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Pqdcx0fQQU
1. Ideal treats for this method are soft and can mould around the tablet so it cannot be seen
2. Some treat ideas are pill pockets (e.g. Greenies), tasty sticks (e.g. Webbox), putty (e.g. EasyPill), meat or fish pâté, soft cheese, tinned fish, Yum-e-Yums etc. Lick-e-lix works well for tablets that can be crushed or liquid medication
3. Bury the tablet in the treat, ideally so that the tablet cannot be seen
4. Give the treat to your cat to eat. Some take it best from your fingers, some from your palm or their dish/bowl
5. Follow with another treat or food to ensure it has been properly swallowed
The Feline Centre
Medicating your Cat
Advice Sheet
Crushing a tablet and mixing with wet food
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWtnPyPQKaY
1. This method should be used at a time when your cat is hungry, ideally just before they
normally have a meal. If your cat has food ad lib, remove it an hour or so prior to giving
the medication
2. Place the pill in a pill grinder or between two spoons to crush until the tablet becomes
powder
3. Put the powdered tablet onto a dish (try to prepare this out of sight of your cat)
4. Cover with 1 teaspoon of tasty wet food and mix thoroughly. Suggestions of food
include wet food from pouches (which your cat may already have), pâté, cat soups or
strong smelling tinned fish such as tuna or sardines (check thoroughly for small bones)
5. Give this to your cat to eat then follow with their normal meal
Top Tips for all methods
• Giving oral medication should be done as slowly and calmly as possible. Try not to rush
and if your cat shows signs of stress, give them a break for a few minutes and allow
them time to relax
• If you’re using a method where your cat requires restraint (i.e., placing the tablet in the
mouth, using a pill popper etc.), we recommend having your cat on a table surface,
sat down and ideally held gently from behind by someone helping you, or alternatively
sit your cat between your knees on the ground or on your lap, facing away from you if
you are unassisted.
• Good restraint can be achieved by wrapping your cat in a towel or thick blanket. You
could spray this with a pheromone spray such as FeliwayTM for an additional calming
effect (15 minutes in advance to allow the smell of the spray to diffuse away)
• Always check with a vet that it is safe for you to crush the tablet before you choose this
method of administration
• Please seek veterinary advice if you are unable to deliver the prescribed medication
to your cat; there may be alternative formulas that would work better or they may be
able to troubleshoot issues.
Langford Vets thanks Emily Chapman VN for the initial preparation
of this document.
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E: [email protected]
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