# Help getting puppy to swollow a pill



## Truxaw (Jun 7, 2011)

Hi everyone, 

I just want to start by saying I’m new to the forums and I think they are fantastic. It's been a rough day for my wife and I, one of our little ones Zelda has been acting real strange recently. We started to become convinced that she had Parvovirus. The Vet ran some test and we found out earlier today that she does not have the disease. What a relief! However, she does have worms and some digestion problems. We have worm medication and some pills labeled TMPS and she is to take a half a pill twice a day. 

Zelda is only 7 1/2 weeks old and I am finding it particularly hard to get her to take this half pill. its probably about the size of the home button on an iPhone (hehehehheeh). I tried putting it in a little bit of bread and she just chewed the bread until the pill fell out and left the pill alone. I was thinking about crumbling it up and putting it into water for her but i don't know how much of it she will actually get into her system. when i was growing up we had Saluki’s and i can remember my mom forcing them to take their pills but little Zelda is so tiny I just don't want to hurt her. 

Any suggestions would be appreciated by all of us. 

-Brian, Zelda and Eva


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

I gently blow on the nostrils which will cause the dog to open the mouth, then place the pill way back and hold the muzzle close while again gently blowing on the nostrils. It will cause the dog to swallow. 
If you and your pup are fighting this, then disguise it in some cheese(american molds to the pill) and toss a couple bites of cheese, then the one that is loaded, usually the dog will swallow it right down.


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## crisp (Jun 23, 2010)

Can you crush up the pill and mix it in with a teaspoon of cottage cheese or something yummy.


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## Mac's Mom (Jun 7, 2010)

Welcome to the forum. I'm so happy its not parvo. Have you tried the treats especially designed for this purpose? My vet sells them. I sneak pills into small pieces of hot dog. Can you crush it and mix it in with some hamburger? I'm not a medical professional so have no idea if its ok to feed this pill with food or whatever. Hope you get some good advice.


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## kiya (May 3, 2010)

My dogs wont touch bread. Try liverworst if you can't get the pill down her throat, it's much kinder.


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## jressler (Dec 1, 2010)

I coat mine with peanut butter and my pup just swallows them in one gulp.


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## Tbarrios333 (May 31, 2009)

Denali KNOWS when I've messed with her food and she won't have it! I usually have to open the mouth and stick the pill waaaay back in there. Far enough that they can only swallow it and not work it back up. 
This is why it's so important to teach them to let you mess with their mouth when they're little


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## clearcreekranch (Mar 18, 2010)

cut up wieners


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## 1sttimeforgsd (Jul 29, 2010)

I have used both hot dogs and cheese, they both work for mine.


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## Klamari (Aug 6, 2010)

Be sure to ask your vet if it's ok to crush the pill. It's a capsule (a plastic outer shell encasing granules/liquid), you probably don't want to crush it. 
If it's just a tablet, then most of the time it's ok. Crushing a capsule can change how the med is absorbed, which can decrease efficacy. 

Rayne swallows anything I hand to her  so I don't have advice there, sorry.


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## 1sttimeforgsd (Jul 29, 2010)

For that small of a puppy, probably about a 1/2 slice of hot dog and push the pill back into the meat just enough to conceal it. With the cheese you can make it into a little ball or just fold it around the pill enough that she can't smell it. Good luck and hope that she feels better soon.


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## RogueRed26 (Jul 15, 2010)

Definitely, peanut butter or cheese. Just make sure to coat the pill, encasing it with the treat.


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## Stosh (Jun 26, 2010)

I used Pill Pockets- Stosh isn't much on store bought treats but he likes them.


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## Truxaw (Jun 7, 2011)

Wow, such quick responses from everyone, thanks so much! Tonight when I get off work we are tackling the other half of that pill. The pill is a tablet so I think it would be ok to crush. But I will start with the nose blowing and move to food hiding options from there. I think part of the problem is that poor Zelda’s appetite has decreased greatly since she has been not feeling well. She gets the urge to eat in spurts and if I can catch her around that time I think we might be in business . Also when I was trying to give her the first half of the pill earlier today we had just put her through swallowing her dosage of the worm medication so it might not have been the best time for the little one. 

I will keep everyone updated. 

P.S. all of your Dogs are beautiful. I can’t wait to see my ladies grow. 
Thanks,
-Brian, Zelda and Eva


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## Ruthie (Aug 25, 2009)

As others have said, coat it with peanut butter. I have also use vienna sausages and slide the pill inside. If it isn't too smelling, sometimes you can just throw it in the kibble and they will gobble it with the rest.

Bison was not fooled by any of these methods when he was a puppy and HAD to have his pills, my vet showed me how to force the pill with minimum trama. You stand behind them and tilt the head gently back. Hold the bottom jaw with the skin wrapped over the teeth so they don't bite down and use on finger to put it far enough down the throat that they have to swallow. IF you do it gently and quickly (less than 3 seconds), it doesn't cause a lot of fuss. I followed this up with lots of praise and treats. We got through it.


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## Alyalanna (May 28, 2011)

jressler said:


> I coat mine with peanut butter and my pup just swallows them in one gulp.


Ditto for me. My dog actually looks forward to her nightly Omega 3 and Glucosomine because of the peanut butter. :shocked:


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

If a pup is sick, peanut butter may not be great on the digestive system. For routine supplements, fine, but a pup already going thru some compromised issues, PB, or hot dogs, even cheese can cause havoc on the sensitive system.
I'd rather just put it in the back of the mouth and gently blow on the snout causing the pup or dog to swallow it.


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## Germanshepherdlova (Apr 16, 2011)

Stosh said:


> I used Pill Pockets- Stosh isn't much on store bought treats but he likes them.


I have use Pill Pockets too, they work great and can be purchased at the local pet store.


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## Stevenzachsmom (Mar 3, 2008)

Jane could be right. I'm really not sure how your puppy's system would react to the peanut butter. On other hand. Peanut butter really, really works. And...you don't need much. It sticks to the pill. It sticks to the dogs mouth. GONE. Seems it would be worth a try since it is really important to get the meds. in.

My old dog decided she was no longer going to take her medicine. Ever try to open a GSDs mouth? LOL! She gets 2 RXs every day, plus supplements and monthly heartworm preventative. Peanut butter has saved my life - well at least my fingers.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

Lather it generously in peanut butter or cream cheese.


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## Good_Karma (Jun 28, 2009)

We make peanut butter sandwiches. Take a small dog cookie, coat with peanut butter. Do the same with a second cookie, stick the pill in the middle.

If peanut butter or cheese would be too hard on a sick puppy, would a bit of butter work?


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## Truxaw (Jun 7, 2011)

Thanks for all your advice everyone. This forum is the greatest resource/support system. When I got home last night we first tried to get Zelda to open for us but she was fighting it. So I went for a jar of peanut butter. The first attempt we just coated the pill very lightly, Zelda just put it in her mouth liked it and let it fall out . On attempt number two we covered it a little more thoroughly and she lapped it right up . I was getting more and more nervous last night as we could have put a blob of peanut butter on the floor and she would have just smelled it and moved on. Poor thing, but she woke up this morning acting a little more like her old self. My wife is going to try the peanut butter again for today’s pill hopefully we are past the worst part of her sickness and loss of appetite. 

Thanks to everyone! Before we purchased these puppies I found my way to this site and have been reading up for a couple months. Keep posting everyone! This site helps thousands of GSD owners. 

-Brian, Zelda and Eva


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## Truxaw (Jun 7, 2011)

I asked Zelda to show all of you how she felt about food and pills. The attached photo was her response.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

PB is wonderful! I put a full tablespoon on a vitamin for jax and the left over on my finger. She gulps the pill with PB down while she's concentrating on licking the rest off my finger.


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## Ares God Of War (Jan 13, 2011)

I use hot dogs or the wet eukanuba dog food and mix it in that... My dog loves it!!


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