How to Give a Cat Drugs

There are many medications that you sometimes have to give your cat, such as dewormers or antibiotics. However, most cats often spit up the medicine or refuse to take it. Even so, there are some supportive measures you can take to get your cat to take medication, but it’s less stressful for your pet and for yourself.

Table of Contents

Learn about medicine

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Read the dosage instructions on the prescription carefully. You need to follow the instructions printed on the prescription that comes in the medicine box. Note the amount of medicine taken at one time, the number of times taken, and how long it takes to take.

Ask your veterinarian if you have questions about dosage or how to give the medication.

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Keep the status of the pill for the drug that takes time to take effect. Some tablets are formulated to release the active ingredient slowly over several hours, and crushing destroys this process. You need to follow your veterinarian’s instructions when prescribing medication.

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Check for medications that should not be taken with food. Some medications need to be absorbed on an empty stomach, so mixing them with food may decrease their effectiveness. In these cases, you should only give your cat the medicine without food.

Hold the cat still

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Prepare a towel or large cloth. There are different ways to secure a cat, depending on whether you do it yourself or have help. However, the best way is to use a towel or large cloth to wrap around the cat’s body or let them sit on it.

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Ask your friends for help. You can ask a friend to help keep the cat. Asking someone else to help makes it easier for you to handle the cat.

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Spread the towel on the table. You should choose a table of medium height to make it easier for your cat to take medicine. The cat will lie on the towel to feel comfortable and avoid slipping on the tabletop. ^{[1] X Research Source BSAVA Practical Animal Care Textbook. Cooper & Mullineaux. Publishing BSAVA.}

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Put the cat on the table. Gently pick up the cat and set it down on the table. Have the other person hold the cat’s shoulder, pointing the cat’s head toward you. ^{[2] X Research Source BSAVA Practical Animal Care Textbook. Cooper & Mullineaux. Publishing BSAVA.}

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Cover the cat’s body with a towel. If your cat is likely to scratch, it’s best to wrap them in a towel. Spread a towel or large cloth and have the cat sit on it. Wrap the towel around so that their body fits in the towel, the four legs are close to the body and the head is exposed. ^{[3] X Research Source BSAVA Practical Animal Care Textbook. Cooper & Mullineaux. Publishing BSAVA.} This wrap is called a burrito, and helps keep your cat’s paws and claws in place so they won’t scratch.

This is how to “wrap a burrito”, similar to wrapping a baby in a towel. The cat’s limbs are close to the body with the paws and claws out of the scratching range.

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Place the wrapped cat on the table. If you have a support person, you can put them on the table. Have the other person hold the cat firmly while you prepare to open its mouth and put the medicine in.

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Kneel to tame the cat. If there is no one to assist, you need to wrap the cat in a towel, kneel on the floor, hold the cat between your thighs and point the cat’s head towards the knee.

You must have both hands free to give the cat the medicine.

Open cat’s mouth

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Raise the cat’s head. Now that the cat has been tamed, the next step is to open its mouth.

If you are right-handed, hold the cat’s head with your left hand so that your dominant hand puts the medicine in the cat’s mouth.

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Place your index finger and thumb on the cat’s forehead. Use two fingers of your left hand to form an inverted U and place it on the cat’s head. Use two fingers of your left hand to make an inverted U and place it on the cat’s forehead.

Place two fingers on the sides of the cat’s face along the cheekbones.

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Place the tips of your index finger and thumb on the cat’s upper lip. You need to place the tip of your index finger and the tip of your thumb on the cat’s upper lip so that your two fingers rest on either side of the cat’s face. ^{[4] X Research Source BSAVA Practical Animal Care Textbook. Cooper & Mullineaux. Publishing BSAVA.}

When the cat’s head is raised with the nose pointing toward the ceiling, the cat’s jaw will open slightly.

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Use your thumb and forefinger to gently press the cat’s mouth. When the jaws open a little, you can press your thumb and index finger over the cat’s mouth. Use your fingers to separate the cat’s lips so that the cat’s teeth are open. The cat will feel the lips pressing against the teeth and will automatically open its mouth so as not to bite the lip. ^{[5] X Research Source BSAVA Practical Animal Care Textbook. Cooper & Mullineaux. Publishing BSAVA.}

If you’re using a tube to give your cat liquid medicine, simply open the cat’s mouth slightly. If you are giving pills, you should keep their mouths wide open.

Give the cat medicine

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Hold the pill with two fingers like a crab claw. Use the tip of the thumb and middle finger of the dominant hand to hold the tablet firmly.

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Press your index finger over the cat’s mouth to open it. Place the tip of your index finger on the cat’s chin, resting it between the two lower canines (the two large teeth). Gently press down and the cat’s mouth will open completely. ^{[6] X Research Source BSAVA Practical Animal Care Textbook. Cooper & Mullineaux. Publishing BSAVA.}

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Drop the pill into the cat’s mouth. You should drop the medicine on the end of the cat’s tongue. If you can drop the medicine deep enough, if the cat tries to spit it out, the tongue constriction reflex will push the medicine down the throat and the cat will swallow it. ^{[7] X Research Source BSAVA Practical Animal Care Textbook. Cooper & Mullineaux. Publishing BSAVA.}

If you drop the tablet on the tip of the tongue, continue to hold the cat’s mouth open and use the middle finger of your dominant hand to push the medicine deep in.

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Release the cat’s mouth. After you put the medicine in your cat’s mouth, make sure he swallows it. As soon as the pill is in place, you can release your hand from the cat’s mouth. Let the cat close its mouth and swallow by lowering its jaw.

If you’re not sure if the pill is deep in your cat’s mouth, you can close the cat’s mouth with your hand until the cat swallows it.

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Blow gently onto the cat’s nose. Some cats are quite stubborn and refuse to swallow pills. In that case, just blow gently on their nose to stimulate the swallowing reflex. When swallowing the medicine, the cat will make a gurgling sound. Release the cat’s mouth and check to make sure that the cat is not spitting out the medicine. ^{[8] X Research Source BSAVA Practical Animal Care Textbook. Cooper & Mullineaux. Publishing BSAVA.}

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Give your cat water to drink after taking the medicine. Once the cat has swallowed the medicine, you can give it water and food. This step helps the pill to slide down the esophagus into the stomach.

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Use a dosing device if necessary. If you don’t dare to put your finger in the cat’s mouth, you can use a cat litter device. This device is a kind of plastic tongs that hold the pill firmly.

Place the pill in the tongs.
Open the cat’s mouth.
Insert the end of the tongs gently into the cat’s mouth.
Push the plunger to push the pill out of the tongs. Then the pill will fall into the cat’s throat.

Give the cat water pills

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Open the cat’s mouth. You don’t need to open the cat’s mouth wide when giving the liquid medicine, just open it slightly enough to push the plunger into the cat’s mouth. ^{[9] X Source of Jones Animal Care Research . Jones & Lane. Publisher: Pergamon}

Do not tilt your cat’s head back. This position can cause the liquid medicine to flow into their windpipe. ^{[10] X Trusted Source Washington State University Cplege of Veterinary Medicine Go to source}

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Place the applicator in the “pocket” between the cheekbones and the teeth. Gently slide the piston head up over the teeth. Place the plunger in the “pocket” between your teeth and the cheekbone on one side of your mouth. ^{[11] X Trusted Source Washington State University Cplege of Veterinary Medicine Go to source}

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Push the plunger slowly to inject the liquid medicine. Allow the medicine to drain into the cat’s mouth. Stop frequently so your cat can take the medication comfortably and at regular intervals.

If using a potting plunger, squeeze gently and slowly to push the medicine into the cat’s mouth. Do it slowly and stop continuously.

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Do not put too much liquid in the cat’s mouth. The most important thing is to never pour all the medicine into the cat’s mouth at once, but let them swallow it little by little. If you pump too much medicine into your cat’s mouth, they run the risk of inhaling the medicine into their lungs. This can have serious consequences, such as pneumonia. ^{[12] X Jones Animal Care Research Source . Jones & Lane. Publisher: Pergamon}

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Remove the tube after the medication is gone. As soon as you have given the cat all the medicine, you can remove the tube from the cat’s mouth and let the cat close its mouth on its own.

If the cat tries to resist, you should give him the medicine twice.

Hide medicine in food

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Put the food away a few hours before giving the medicine to your cat. Some medications are made specifically for cats in small pill sizes, making it easier to hide the medication in food. You should keep the cat hungry by hiding food for a few hours before giving them medicine. ^{[13] X Jones Animal Care Research Source . Jones & Lane. Publisher: Pergamon}

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Hide medicine in wet food. Feed your cat a quarter of the normal amount of food and hide the medicine in it. After they finish eating, you continue to feed the rest of the food. ^{[14] X Jones Animal Care Research Source . Jones & Lane. Publisher: Pergamon}

To make sure your cat will eat the food, you can give them their favorite foods. Hide the medicine in the food and give it to the cat to enjoy.

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Use medicinal shell foods. Pill shells are attractive foods with holes in them to insert pills (like the jam in a fried cake). The outer shell has an appealing flavor that overwhelms the taste of the medicine and is easily swallowed by cats. ^{[15] X Jones Animal Care Research Source . Jones & Lane. Publisher: Pergamon}

Pill foods come in a variety of flavors and are sold at your local vet clinic or pet store.

Steps