Pet Expressway for Dogs

Tips To Give Your Dog A Pill

Tips To Give Your Dog A Pill

In this article we will discuss issues and tips involved in giving your pet dog a pill whether it is a vitamin or medication.

Normally you may just wrap a pill in a piece of food. No problem but for some dog owners and their pets, it can be a problem. Some dogs will skillfully spit out the pill and eat the cheese it was wrapped in!

Even if you have no problems with giving your dog a pill there could be occasions where the normal method of pill taking has to change.

What would you do if  your dog lost his appetite and his/her medication was required?
Or perhaps the pill has to be taken strictly without food?
How can you give your dog this required medical attention in a pleasant way without creating distrust? 

 

The Answer!

The answer is, you make the unusual act of manually giving a pill a routine occurrence.

To make this more clear, let’s review the steps how to give a pill without food.

Tips To Give Your Dog A Pill Without Food

  1. Place your dog in a sit position.
  2. Tilt up his/her head so the dog’s nose points towards the ceiling.
  3. Then put the pill as far back as possible down the dog’s throat, close mouth, and rub neck.
  4. Keep his/her nose pointed towards the ceiling.
  5. The dog will engage is a swallow reflex and consume the pill.

 

YouTube video

‘Make the Novel Normal!

‘Making the Novel Normal’  is achieved by rehearsing how to give your pet a pill and remember to make it fun and rewarding.

The Steps include

  • Have plenty of treats (small ones that the dog will consume quickly) & praise on hand.
  • Give both of these positive re-enforcers at prescribed times and also whenever you think appropriate during this exercise.
  • We are also using the positive re-enforcer of “being pet “.
  • Stand by your dog’s side and begin to pet his/her head while whispering encouraging, friendly words.
  • Once your dog is enjoying this, give the sit command, praise and continue to pet & happily encourage him/her.
  • Start to move your petting towards the side of the head, moving eventually to under the neck area.
  • Continue to praise and pet and give a treat.
  • At this point, while you pet under the neck, slowly tilt the dog’s muzzle upward with his/her nose pointed towards the ceiling.
  • Maintaining this position for the amount of time it may take to actually administer a pill. (10 to 20 seconds).

This exercise should only take a few to 30 seconds maximum if you do this a few times a day at first. Then you can cut down to once a day. Even eventually only several times a week.

You have now made the novel event of giving a pill normal!
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Keith Byrne

Keith Byrne

From an early age Keith has been around dogs. He has been involved in dog grooming, dog walking, dog sitting and dog showing as well as voluntary work in animal shelters. His aim is to help all dog owners especially newbies learn about dogs and care for them in a loving, caring and fun way.

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