How to Feed Pills to Your Dog

Intro: How to Feed Pills to Your Dog

My dog knows the difference between cheese and a pill. One is for eating and one is for spitting out. This is a short instructable that shows a technique I've developed to quickly and easily feed my dog multiple pills at the scheduled times without muss or fuss.

After many dogs and many tricks I've discovered what others also know, whatever you wrap the pill in the dog will find the pill, separate it from the food, swallow the food and spit out the pill. Or the struggle of forcing the dog's mouth open, shoving in the pill and holding it shut hoping the dog will swallow the pill.

Sucks for me, sucks for the dawg....

On the following pages I'll show you a simple, foolproof method to get medicine into your dog using a common decorative kitchen item and a household staple that dogs love.

STEP 1: Bill of Materials

What you'll need

STEP 2: About the Mortar and Pestle

A mortar and pestle are different from a bowl and a spoon. If you look closely at the bottom of both pieces you'll see they have been carefully roughened to provide a uniform surface for fine grinding of powders.

Other techniques can be used such as a bowl and a spoon, this can work well for soft chewable tablets but hard coated tablets can be more difficult.

STEP 3: Mix Powdered Pills With Peanut Butter

Once you've ground the pills up mix it with about 1 tbsp of peanut butter ( more or less as needed to get a smooth paste depending on the size of the pills ).

Spread the peanut butter out on the cutting board or other smooth surface such as an extra piece of kitchen tile.

Use the flat back edge of the knife to scrape up the peanut butter and blend the powder in. The technique is demonstrated in the video on the introductory page.

Any straight edge and flat surface can be used, however care should be taken that no foreign material (such as cutting board plastic) gets scraped into the medication.

I found the cutting board useful since I occassionally scraped the knife clean on the edge. The ability to rotate and move the material makes it easier to blend.

STEP 4: Now Find Fido for a Tasty Treat...

Once you've got a nice smooth blend use the back edge of the knife to scrape up the mixture and load it onto a spoon. Try to keep the bottom of the bowl clean since you may need to sit this down while you scoop some off on your finger.

Now in 70 to 80% of the cases your dog will just love the peanut butter and will lick it off the spoon or your finger/hand.

In some cases your dog will refuse to participate and will clamp their mouth shut in a familiar and tried technique.

Now it's Fido's turn for a surprise.

Your first option is a variation of the old "pry the jaws open and force the pill in" trick. This time you have an advantage. The peanut butter will stick to your dog's mouth and it ain't coming out. Get the dogs jaws open, stick a big glob on the roof of the mouth and the party is over. The dog is going to eat the peanut butter and with it the ground up pills.

Not to mention providing vast quantities of amusement as they lick at the gooey mess stuck to the roof of the mouth.

If you're dog manages to get a glob out use smaller globs.

On the next page I provide some information on a simple, but slightly messy technique for getting even the most difficult dog with poweful jaws to take their medicine...

STEP 5: The Premolar Gap

In your dogs jaw there are several different kinds of teeth. Due to their nature these teeth have certain natural characteristics.

Located behind the familiar canine teeth are a group of teeth known as the premolars. I'm sure these teeth have some useful purpose but for us it is convenient that these provide a gap when the jaw is completely closed.

There is a similar, smaller gap located between the fine teeth in the front when the jaw is clamped shut.

So here's what you do. Grab Fido and hold the jaw closed. Using your forefinger scoop some peanut butter off the spoon. Scrape the peanut butter off your fingers into the gap formed by the premolars or between the fine teeth in front. Now the dog has peanut butter stuck in its mouth and will lick it off providing once again a natural source of amusement.

Now for my dog the first glob is often enough to convince her that she's not being poisoned and she will readily lick the rest of the peanut butter off my finger in convenient globs.

If not repeat the above process until all the medicated peanut butter has been introduced to your dog without pain or much trauma, at least for me.

Comments

[Boldorg]

This is what the company says. Also my daughter's goofball Boomer

[KathleenD34]

I tried everything to get my dog to take her pill with no luck. I first checked if the pill could be crushed then mixed it in the peanut butter. Step 5 was messy but did the trick. Hopefully it will work for her next dose.

[GustavoC28]

This is a very, very dangerous and potentially misleading DIY.

You can't simply grind pills. They are made into pills or capsules for a reason: in many cases, the capsule or pill coat are materials designed to go undigested through the stomach so the actual medicine is only delivered on the intestines. When you grind the pill you are potentially exposing the actual contents to stomach acids, which can destroy them.

So please be advised: ask your veterinary and read the leaflet to make sure you can grind it before you do.

[ikestarm17]

Why go through all that instead of just putting it in the back of their throat and holding their mouth closed while rubbing their neck until they swallow it? That's what I do, but you guys always have to do it the hard way, huh?

[egbertfitzwilly]

It seems to me that  holding the dog down to force a pill into its mouth and holding the jaws shut while the pet chokes down the pill isn't easier (for either party) than feeding it peanut butter.

I don't know what breed you have but Casey can hold the pill in her mouth while swallowing repeatedly.

Over the last 40 years I have about a half dozen dogs, some would swallow pills in cheese or meat, some would not. All dogs eat the peanut butter...

[thedodgeman]

I have a pit bull with parvo & haveing. Trouble getting 2 antibotocs in him . will the peanut butter trick still work or make him sicker

[egbertfitzwilly]

If your dog likes peanut butter it will probably work. Check with your vet regarding dietary restrictions or drug interactions.

[ikestarm17]

yeah, my last dog would eat the cheese and spit out the pill but we don't give our dog peanut butter because it isn't really healthy. Our neighbor gives their dog peanut butter and her poop is always liquid.

[egbertfitzwilly]

I have seen sites on the net also recommend pill in yogurt which is adaptable to this technique as well.

[fweber1]

I would like to see you try that technique with a Boston Terrier or other breed with a short snout. It ain't gonna happen.

[belsey]

 That's what I do too... Hold the dog in my lap, tickle his tummy and ears for a while, hold his face up, drop the pill in and it usually falls right down his throat. Quick, easy, and enjoyable for all -- but I've got a beagle, and I'm not sure how easy it is to hold a bigger dog belly up in your lap...

[jsholloman]

Grind the pills and mix them in with Vanilla Ice cream, works better than all the suggestions. A pill crusher can be purchased at any pharmacy.

[rdhtemt]

Great idea for most dogs, but my dog hates peanut butter. lol

[egbertfitzwilly]

You might check out the BBQ sauce trick somebody posted above....

[egbertfitzwilly]

That actually doesn't matter as much as one might think. Assuming you have a difficult dog (many folks don't).

For chewable pills just crush them up and mix with the peanut butter. In the front of your dogs mouth behind the canine teeth there is a gap formed by the pre-molars. Hold the snout closed and use your index finger to put a glob of peanut butter ( or other spreadable substance such as cheese food in a can ) in your dogs mouth. They can't help but slurp it down and, of course, peanut butter at least isn't going anywhere unless its licked off.

[oceanem]

Easiest way I've found with my German Shepherd (who's jaws are like a crocodile's and impossible to pry open)...put some BBQ sauce in a spoon, let said dog get a whiff of BBQ sauce, roll pill in BBQ sauce, make dog sit so he thinks it's really tasty treat, let eat and he will gobble it down so fast he doesn't take time to chew and presto-chango...pill gone! The strong flavor of the BBQ sauce more than covers any pill smell and the smokiness makes it irresistable. Just don't choose a spicy kind that will upset his/her stomach.

[egbertfitzwilly]

I like it, thanks for sharing this tip.

[egbertfitzwilly]

That's a really good tip. Tried it with my setter, she licked up the sauce and left the pill. Can also be used with the crushed pills as that worked flawlessly...the sauce is even more enticing than peanut butter!

[russian lumpy]

i have a cairrn terrier and he hates pills but i put his pill in a treatball and he thinks its a treat cause hes not very bright one time he tried to run under a short table and hit his head and knocked himself out for a few hours

[ezasfission]

..roll the pill into a ball of cheese.Roll up another ball of cheese about the same size(or larger). Show the dog the second (non-pill)ball of cheese while feeding him the one with the pill in it. Works every time........