One of the most challenging aspects of owning a dog is staying on top of canine health. Like humans, dogs will eventually have to take medication. However, dogs might not fully understand why they need to eat this yucky-tasting pill. Finding ways to trick or teach your pet into taking their medicine not only reduces headaches for you but will limit the stress your dog feels, especially if taking pills or medication becomes a daily occurrence.
Hide The Pill Inside Yummy Food or Treats: The most common trick, which should be used in conjunction with the tips in this blog, is to hide the pill inside other foods. By masking the taste and smell of the medicine – or simply overcoming it with even more delicious sensations – your dog will be much more willing to take its medication without much fuss.
For chewable or crushable pills, break up their medication and mix it in with their ordinary wet dog food. Chewable tablets simplify the process because the flavors or smells will not be as potent, and your dog might not even realize there is a difference. If your dog needs daily medications, and you usually feed them dry dog food, you might need to employ different tricks to mix their medications.
In the case of uncrushable pills, simply placing a large, single piece of medicine in a bowl of dog food will not be sufficient. Luckily, there are many ways to use treats and delicious food to turn even daily pill time into an excellent experience for your dog. Common foods used to hide pills are peanut butter, yogurt, fish, and meats; anything that will help mask the flavor/scent and make your dog drool at the same time.
Expert Tip: Pill Pockets are soft treats designed with a hollow area on the inside, allowing a treat to be placed inconspicuously within a delicious piece of food. Using this method, your dog may not even notice that it ingested a pill.
Other Tips To Employ
When it comes to getting your dog to take its medicine, the most crucial part is disguising the pill as food or a treat. However, there are other precautions to keep in mind.
- When preparing any food or treats with medicine, do not allow your dog to see the preparation. An observant pup will understand that the delicious treat might have something else within.
- Introducing the medication with separate untampered treats will cause your dog to forget any weird tastes or smells quickly. During play, reward your pup with a normal treat, then the medication, then a normal treat once again. Before they have time to realize any differences, the third treat should bring them back around to happiness.
- If you still have trouble, reaching out to your veterinarian with any concerns may reveal other options. Failure of your dog to take the required medication can lead to disastrous outcomes, so make sure to find the method that works for you.
- Different types of medications, such as liquid or injectable versions, might be more tolerable for your pet. Depending on the frequency your dog needs to ingest the medicine, you might find that bringing your dog to the vet is the least stressful option for you and your pet. Your vet will always be willing to help ensure the medication is being taken effectively and can even check the recovery progress, depending on the ailment.
Canine health is an essential responsibility of a dog owner and can be easier when you learn to understand your dog’s preferences and behaviors. If you need help with obedience and training, call Gulf Coast K9 Dog Training. Our training experts are honored to work with hundreds of Sarasota and Bradenton area dogs.
