My picky dog won't take pills. Can I dissolve them for a syringe?

Question

Hi, my wife & I have to give our dog denosyl, proin & apoquel to our 15 year old female dog daily. She's already a picky eater & we've tried everything. We essentially have to force feed her with peanut butter. Can these be dissolved in water & then injected down her throat with a syringe? Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Small (up to 22lb) | Female | spayed | 15 years and 3 months old | 15 lbs

Lauren Jones VMD · Accepted Answer

Medicating pets can be very frustrating - particularly since Mattie is so picky! I never recommend dissolving medications in water to give via a syringe because in most cases, the medication falls out of the mouth so there is no way of knowing how much was actually ingested. Personally, my favorite way to medicate animals is simply to push the pills down the back of the throat, provided that Mattie is agreeable and unlikely to bite you. As you mention, hiding pills in peanut butter is often successful, but if you choose to continue using this, make sure your peanut butter does not contain xylitol, as it is highly toxic to dogs. I don't know if they are available in the UK, but Greenies makes a product called pill pockets which are basically highly palatable, doughy, pliable treats in which you can hide medications for pets.

My picky dog won't take pills. Can I dissolve them for a syringe?

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