Give a tablet

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Due to their small body size and wriggly nature it can be very difficult to medicate your cat. Often you will have to enlist help or deviously hide it in food.

In the mouth

Place your cat high up on a table so that it will be on its best behaviour. It is helpful if you have a second person to hold the cat firmly from behind. Grasp the head with the forefinger and thumb and open the cat's lower jaw. The main trick of giving the tablet is to place tablet as far down the throat as you can. Then close the mouth firmly and hold its chin up until it swallows.

If you don't direct the tablet to the back of your cat's mouth it will spit it out triumphantly. Pill poppers are available from your vet to help this - these remove the need to put your fingers down your cat's mouth.

If your cat is naughty and tries to struggle wrap it up like a papoose in large towel with just the head sticking out. Once your cat has taken the tablet always remember to give it lots of praise and even a food treat. That way it will learn to associate medication with reward.

In the food

If your cat is very naughty you may have to resort to hiding it in food. Ask your vet to prescribe a palatable tablet, which can be crushed and mixed with the food. Cats have a very acute sense of smell and will easily guess there is something strange in it' dinner. You have to be very subtle and crush the tablet into powder and mix it with something sticky like butter, cream or pate. Then mix this concoction with a tiny bit of your cat's favourite food. Only feed him the rest when he has eaten the tablet.

If you have a problem giving your cat its medication you must tell your vet. Cats are notoriously difficult to medicate so your vet might suggest a long acting injection every other day at your vets or even hospitalising your cat for the course of medication.

Warning

Never give your cat any home medication without prior consultation with your vet. Many drugs like Aspirin, Brufen and Paracetamol are all extremely toxic to cats and can cause bleeding of the gut. Paracetamol is particularly deadly for cats as it causes liver failure.

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