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Old February 22nd, 2011, 11:56 PM
lindapalm lindapalm is offline
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Giving liquid meds to a cat

I have always given my cats pills with a pill popper, or by putting the dropper in the side of the cats mouth, if it is a liquid. One of my cats had his teeth pulled out, and I have to give him liquid Hydrocodone. If I put the dropper in the side of his mouth while holding his head back, as soon as I let go he lets the liquid slide out of his mouth, and then starts foaming. If I put the dropper in the back of his throat and squirt, can't he choke and get the meds in his lungs? You can tell hes hurting and really needs the meds, but the way I'm doing it I know he's not getting enough.
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Old February 23rd, 2011, 06:58 AM
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I dont know if this will help or not linda, but I give liquid meds to one of my guys twice a day along with a capsule. The pill...no problem as long as I get it to the back of the throat.
With the liquid, I tilt the head slightly, open his mouth and point the syringe as far back as possible. 99.9% of the time the liquid (2cc) goes down without a hitch before he knows it. Just dont push the liquid out really fast, but quickly enough to ensure only one swallow.
Works for me and he has been getting this combination for almost 2 years. It does help to have a good working height for you. I prefer getting on the floor when he is in his bed, but some of the sitters I have used prefer to have him sitting on the counter at eye level.
Good luck.
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Old February 23rd, 2011, 08:29 AM
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Here's a video from Cornell University on how to give liquid meds to a cat: http://partnersah.vet.cornell.edu/pe...id_medications

If it's not too late, maybe you can ask the vet for a Fentanyl pain patch instead. Don't know why more vets don't use them after dental surgery. No messing with a painful mouth that way.
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Old February 23rd, 2011, 08:39 AM
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Originally Posted by sugarcatmom View Post

If it's not too late, maybe you can ask the vet for a Fentanyl pain patch instead. Don't know why more vets don't use them after dental surgery. No messing with a painful mouth that way.
I desperately tried to get that for Sweet Pea for her dental, but the vet refused stating it was a much to powerful pain killer for a dental . Ummmmm, this is a cat who is normally a chow hound and is not eating, don't you think she is in a tremendous amount of pain
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Old February 23rd, 2011, 12:35 PM
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I desperately tried to get that for Sweet Pea for her dental, but the vet refused stating it was a much to powerful pain killer for a dental
If teeth have been removed, post-dental recuperation can be VERY painful!! And then on top of that, trying to pry open the poor cat's mouth to force meds down them just adds more trauma to the whole situation. I'd like these vets to have a few teeth sawed out of their gums and then see how they do with inadequate pain meds given sporadically and invasively.
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Old February 23rd, 2011, 01:29 PM
lindapalm lindapalm is offline
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We had another cat that had his teeth pulled out, but he stayed at the vet for a week because we couldn't medicate him. This cat is a sweetie, and I feel so sorry for him cause he's hungry but is afraid to eat. He tries to swallow the canned food, then he chokes. This is why I really want to make sure he's getting enough pain meds. I'm going to try putting the dropper down further but slowly squirting it, and see what happens. Hes really hurting and swollen so he really needs it.
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Old February 23rd, 2011, 04:56 PM
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Originally Posted by lindapalm View Post
I'm going to try putting the dropper down further but slowly squirting it, and see what happens.
Try to squirt it at an angle, not straight down his throat, so as to decrease the risk of aspiration.
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Old February 23rd, 2011, 09:42 PM
lindapalm lindapalm is offline
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Harley has won, I think I'm just making him hurt more. The problem is that I don't want to force his mouth open, so I TRY to grab him by the scruff of the neck and tilt his head back. Thats where the problem is, he has no extra skin behind his neck to grab, even the vet commented about it. I put the dropper in the center, squirted, and he ran, letting the meds slide out, and foaming with his tongue hanging out. I think as long as I can get him to eat a little every hour or two, I'm going to leave him alone. His mouth looks so sore I have to be making it worse.
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Old February 23rd, 2011, 10:41 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sugarcatmom View Post
If teeth have been removed, post-dental recuperation can be VERY painful!! And then on top of that, trying to pry open the poor cat's mouth to force meds down them just adds more trauma to the whole situation. I'd like these vets to have a few teeth sawed out of their gums and then see how they do with inadequate pain meds given sporadically and invasively.
I will vouch for this. When I had my wisdom teeth out, my face was so swollen I could barely breath. I couldn't move my jaw properly for almost a month, and everything that could go wrong went wrong.. and when I kept trying to explain to the doctor I couldn't properly take the large pills he prescribed he didn't care, so I just sat in pain for several weeks as drool ran down my face.

I'm not quite sure what else to recommend... does your cat like canned food? You can try taking a teaspoon of canned food and put the medication in it.
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Old February 24th, 2011, 05:33 PM
lindapalm lindapalm is offline
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I'm going to try the meds in some cat food, I've got nothing to lose. My guess is that if the meds make him foam at the mouth when I give them to him, they must be really nasty, and he'll probably walk away from them mixed with food. I thought it was really silly, the girl at the vets said the meds were cherry flavored. Why bother making cherry flavored for a cat?
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Old February 24th, 2011, 06:03 PM
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Originally Posted by lindapalm View Post
I'm going to try the meds in some cat food, I've got nothing to lose.
Instead of regular cat food, maybe try mixing them in with something really stinky and tasty, like sardines or tuna. But you're right, the foaming thing means they taste nasty. Make sure he doesn't go off his food if you put the meds in it, very important that he keep eating at this point.

Quote:
Originally Posted by lindapalm View Post
I thought it was really silly, the girl at the vets said the meds were cherry flavored. Why bother making cherry flavored for a cat?
That's because it's actually a human med, not made specifically for cats. It's possible to get some medications compounded at a pharmacy which are flavoured with tuna or chicken. Maybe you can ask your vet about that. It will cost more though.
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Old February 24th, 2011, 09:09 PM
lindapalm lindapalm is offline
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Wouldn't you think that the vet, knowing its for a cat, would get it in a flavor they can handle? I probably should have gotten pills, but I also think they might have been tough cause you would have to stick your finger or a pill popper in an already sore mouth. I tried a fourth of a dropper of meds in two tablespoons of Fancy Feast, Harley took two licks and walked away. One of my other cats came up behind him and wolfed the food down. It never fails, if I wanted that cat to take the meds, he wouldn't have. Harley is playing a little, so I hope that is a good sign he's feeling a little better. He's still really swollen, though.
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Old March 6th, 2011, 07:53 AM
TrichC TrichC is offline
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Poor Harley

What an awful predicament for him, and you, to have to go through. I have to give my cat liquid medicine twice a day - and she HATES it. She got aspirated once so now I'm twice as careful, I do the same as you "syringe at the side of their mouth", but I do a little bit at a time. It takes longer, wrestling the whole time, but she gets the whole dose. I put her in my lap facing me, hold the back of her head/neck (I've never had to hold onto her scruff), slide the tip of the syringe into her mouth and push in about a quarter or third of the liquid, then wait for her to lick/swallow. Then she gets treats right after to get the taste out of her mouth. If you need to wrap him in a thick towel so he's easier to hang onto. My Darla's only 3kgs but 'squirrely' as the vet says. Good luck, hope Harley feels better soon.
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Old March 7th, 2011, 01:03 AM
lindapalm lindapalm is offline
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Harley seems to be doing well, I'm going to try to peek in his mouth this week to see anything looks infected, I don't think it will cause he is eating really good. His breath is a lot better, and I'm hoping that maybe an eye problem he always gets might clear up now that his bad teeth are gone. Probably not, but I'm hoping.
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