Medications

Warning: Please check with your vet before trying the following suggestion as some medications should not be mixed with others. Two months before we lost...See more » Warning: Please check with your vet before trying the following suggestion as some medications should not be mixed with others. Two months before we lost Avatar, we found that administering his meds in gelcaps worked very well. Since we had to give Avatar three pills twice a day, we were now able to give him one gelcap twice a day instead. Not only was it easier on us, the important thing was that it seemed to be much easier and less stressful on him. We noticed an immediate change in him. He seemed to feel better, was more active and alert and vomited less. We tried to figure out what could be responsible for this incredible change. The best explanation we came up with was this: When we gave him his pills before we started packing them in gelcaps, one or more of them would inevitably end up partially dissolving in his mouth. We now believe that he was continually disgusted (and nauseated) by the medicine taste. Gelcaps come in different sizes. We used Lilly size #1 and these may be the smallest size available. It may be necessary to crush or break larger pills if you use this size. We were sure Avatar could handle a larger size, but the #1 just held all of one dose of his three meds. If you have more medication than would fit in a single capsule, you could use two small gelcaps if you don't want to use a larger capsule. The point is to put something between the medicine and the cat's mouth. The process of filling the capsules can be made easier by investing in a pill cutter or a mortar and pestle for crushing tablets. Some pills can be mashed with the back of a spoon. A small funnel can be used to pour the powdered meds into the gelcap. Since it's difficult to locate such a tiny funnel, you may find it easier to roll up a small piece of paper in the form of a funnel and use that when loading the gelcaps with multiple medications. We prepared a dozen or so gelcaps in advance each time we made them. For more detailed information about gelcaps and to find sources of gelcaps, visit About Gel Caps. For additional information on some of the drugs listed above, see our Links page under the category Drugs and Other Related Information.See less »