Any tips for getting dog to eat 'chewable' tablets?

Better_Days

My much loved elderly doggie (at least 13 yo but not sure as she is a rescue) has been on Onsior for her joints for a few months now. Earlier this month the vet recommended a blood test which showed her liver function was not as good as it might be (although not awful).

The vet recomended Denamarin to support her liver with a further blood test in 3 months
http://www.animeddirect.co.uk/protexin-denamarin-chewable-tablets-pack-of-75.html

The stuff is horrendously expensive but I have bought some hoping the insurance will cover some of the cost. The dose I have purchased is not quite high enough for her weight but, I hope, better than nothing.

Having spent £89.99 on 75 'chewable tablets' (which are enormous) she won't eat them. Yesterday I managed to get the first one down her by hiding it in a bit of soft cat food. But today she was having none of it and in the end I had to prise open her jaws and get her to swallow it whole. I don't have a lot of strenght in my hands and my left arm and hand is now very painful from the effort.

I think she has some collie in her and she is certainly has a lot more brains than our other dog, and although going grey she is as sharp as ever and has very clear ideas on how the world should be arranged. It certainly doesn't include eating 'chewable' tablets.

So has anyone got any good tips or tricks for getting these 'chewable' tablets inside my dog with the least stress for both of us?



On holiday in Sussex earlier this year.

Raksha

Wrap it in a bit of butter? Only if shes not on a low fat diet ofcourse

MadDogWoman_2

For my greyhound hiding the tablet in a spoonful of peanut butter, or cottage cheese works.

Cook a sausage/chicken, chop the end off and stuff it in before feeding.

spacey2012

Sit down and pretend to eat them yourself and tell the dog its not getting one...Oh go on then

chris_n_tj

Has anyone told you about using milk thistle for helping to regenerate the liver. We used it on TJ and it worked wonders and his liver results got back to near normal. it was recommended and prescribed though our Vet and was paid for by our insurance.
Sorry I know this hasn't really helped your request better days, but I thought it might help. xxx

It was his kidneys that failed him in the end xx

minimad1970

When Truffle needs a tablet I smother it in pate, peanut butter works as well with him.

Better_Days

Many thanks for all the excellent suggestions. :beer:

We have some peanut butter in the fridge, I don't know why I didn't think of it :doh:She does like peanut butter - just gave her a little to try. We are vegetarians so don't have any sausage in the house, but it will be worth a try if she gets wise to the peanut butter. Or it may even be worth rotating the foods that I try and hide the tablets in. Problem is that these tablets are so dam big that it is hard to hide them. Mr BD has no trouble with the Onsior in a bit of cream cheese, but they are much smaller tablets.

chris n tj Sorry to hear about poor TJ I suggested milk thistle when I was chatting to the vet, but she said the denamarin would be better (apparently trainee vets have found it excellent to help recovery following hangovers ) However, I will probably have to explore other options if she needs to be on meds to support her liver long term as this medication is so expensive. Something like milk thistle may be an acceptable alternative.

spacey2012 actually I have Gilbert's syndrome so my liver function isn't optimal. If this battle continues perhaps I'll just have to take the bloomin' things myself so they don't go to waste :rotfl:

Gold_Dust_2

£89.99?! Ouch! I've been hit by some disgusting vet bills too, recently, and have recently learned about the wonders of getting the medication somewhere other than the vet. They will charge a prescription fee which is around a tenner, then you can get your meds somewhere cheaper. I have found that I pay 2 thirds less online than I would at the vet's office. What's the dosage that your doggy is taking?


As for the current problem....if they're chewable, then it shouldn't be a problem to break it up and feed it in smaller pieces. What's the difference between your hands breaking them up or her teeth?

meritaten

cut the tablets up into smaller bits to hide in 'treats'. no law that says they have to be taken 'whole'! ~Vary the treats so dog doesn't catch on!

Better_Days

Thanks Gold Dust but the £89.99 was the online price, I daren't think what the vets would have charged. You are right though there are considerable savings to be made on pet meds online. I am giving her the 225mg dose for dogs up to 15kg (she weighs about 24 kg). It's £47.99 for 30 tablets for dogs over 16kg so you can see why I bought the lower strength.

Breaking up the tablet into quarters may well be worth trying if I continue to have problems with the whole tablet. I think it is going to be a running battle of wits and I will have to keep changing tactics.

meritaten yes I will try varying the treats - I had wanted to keep the treats down as the meds are supposed to be taken on an empty stomach.

meritaten

Better_Days wrote: »

Thanks Gold Dust but the £89.99 was the online price, I daren't think what the vets would have charged. You are right though there are considerable savings to be made on pet meds online. I am giving her the 225mg dose for dogs up to 15kg (she weighs about 24 kg). It's £47.99 for 30 tablets for dogs over 16kg so you can see why I bought the lower strength.

Breaking up the tablet into quarters may well be worth trying if I continue to have problems with the whole tablet. I think it is going to be a running battle of wits and I will have to keep changing tactics.

meritaten yes I will try varying the treats - I had wanted to keep the treats down as the meds are supposed to be taken on an empty stomach.

yeah - well that's in an 'ideal' world - if the dog wont take them as is - then you have to resort to 'hiding' them!
and if the stomach is empty before the meds and treats????????? wont they work just as well?