Oscar, being a 15 year old gentleman, has developed a touch of arthritis, and the vet has given him some medicine for it. Tramadol, to be specific. Turns out this is a pretty good medicine for dogs because it's supposed to relieve his discomfort but it doesn't have all the side effects that Rimadyl and some of the other drugs have. Plus, it's cheap, which my pocketbook loves.
The major drawback of Tramadol, however, is that it is incredibly bitter. As such, Oscar doesn't like to take it. Can't blame him really, but there's no reasoning with him as you would a child, and no promising him a toy (as my parents used to do when I got dragged to the allergist in Atlanta every few months... and I always knew that was going to involve needles and lots of them).
So the trick has been to hide the quarter pills in something yummy and hope he gets it down before he tastes the pill. Unfortunately this has been easier said than done.
Our usual weapon of choice in this has been Velveeta cheese. Nope. We went to peanut butter, cream cheese, yogurt, ice cream, even the terribly expensive Greenies Pill Pockets, which Vicky's shih tzus gobble up like Doggie Crack. Nope.
While Judy was here, she held him and I tried to force the pills into his mouth for him to swallow. This only resulted in me getting bitten several times and Oscar literally frothing at the mouth.
Later that weekend we hit on Omaha Steaks hamburgers. If we cooked one, then carefully sliced it so that we could put the quarter pills into an end piece; he would snarf them down before he realized it.
Until this morning. The jig is up.
I went to Chick-Fil-A to get his favorite chicken nuggets, concealed the pill quarters in two pieces of nugget, then nonchalantly put them down for him to eat. This was the result:
Note the carnage of chicken nugget pieces above the plate, where he has deftly de-pilled the nuggets.
See the close-up of the small white quarter of a pill that's causing this problem??? Seriously, I'm only trying to get two of those down the dog in the morning and in the evening. You'd think this wouldn't be that hard.
I have a B.A, a B.S, an M.B.A. and a CPA license, and evidently I'm being outsmarted by a 14 lb dachshund. Anybody else got any ideas?? I'm open to suggestions.
Friday, August 1, 2008
In which I am outsmarted by a 14 lb dachshund
Posted by Jean in Georgia at 2:39 PM
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5 comments:
Sounds like you may need to roll the pill in batter and deep fry itself. I'm so sorry...if only Oscar knew how good it was for him.
Bailey has the same issues about pills. I put them as far back in her mouth as I can, then hold her muzzle shut, then rub her throat. Usually works.
Also, I learned how to knit with four needles yesterday!
I can totally relate! My dogs are the same--I had to laugh, only because I know how it is! Have you tried liver sausage? My Scottie is wise to liver sausage, but my doxie loves it. Nothing works with my scottie--I just have to shove her pills down her throat, close her mouth, stroke her neck and blow in her face so she is forced to swallow. Sometimes I get bitten, but it works most of the time!
Caroline
This just might be the job for a compounding pharmacy. They can put it into liquid, pills, etc, all at his favorite taste. If it is beef, chicken, liver, goose, whatever, they can formulate this into a pill or liquid that almost all tolerate! They also do something to help with the bitterness, I am sure it is extra flavor. Check one out.
I have a Sheltie who I give 2 baby aspirins(he's about 45lbs)twice a day which really helps him with his aches and pains. What has finally worked for me is to take some liver sausage and a dog cookie. I put the pills on the liver sausage, lay that side on the cookie and press it on top of the cookie thickly enough to cover the pills. Works like a charm.
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