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Old cat hates being medicated!!

1K views 9 replies 4 participants last post by  coaster 
#1 ·
My 13 year old cat acts like getting his steroid and metronidazole (for IBD) is the most horrific experience a cat could endure, like getting neutered without anesthesia. The problem is, his appetite is so erratic that we can't get him to eat his "medicine food" reliably. Sometimes he likes a regular cat food flavor, other times he doesn't. Sometimes he likes tuna when we mix it into that, but other times he doesn't.

If I medicate him directly, he panics and hates me. If it's in his food, it's a big hassle to convince him to eat when he doesn't feel like it.

Any ideas??? I love the little guy but I'm frustrated with the medicine situation. :(

Thanks,

Brian
 
#2 ·
I had a cat with IBD and I know this is tough. Is the metronidazole in tablet form? I found giving it that way was awful....it tastes horrid and would cause foaming after administering it. Instead, I had a compounding pharmacy put it in gel capsules. I'm assuming the steroid is prednisone...that can also be put in the same capsule so you only have to give one pill. At one point I also had the pred made into a chicken flavored liquid (but you don't want to do that with the metronidazole...it won't mask the flavor)...that wasn't bad to give. But the combination in the one capsule was the best.

For pilling...I would wrap her in towel, give the pill using a pill shooter and then feed her so she knew something good was coming afterwards and would behave better.

I'd be happy to share the knowledge I gained regarding diet and supplements for IBD if you'd like...PM me.
 
#6 ·
Metronidazole has such a bitter taste that the pill pocket can't mask it. I tried them...Callie ate the first one, but drooled all over. The next time she took it...bit into it...managed to get the pocket part separated from the pill, ate that and spit out the pill. After that she wouldn't take them...and I think they can smell the pill as well, because I offered her an empty pill pocket and she took it (trying to fake her out), but when I put the pill in it she wouldn't.

I also had the compounding pharmacy make a treat with the med in it. She went crazy trying to get to me when I was opening the package and getting it out...took it right out of my hand...chewed 3 times and spit it out.

I tried putting it in baby food, putting it in tuna...I don't know...just about everything. The capsules were the easiest for me. Not all that expensive either. I think it was $40 for a month supply (twice a day) and $60 when it was the 2 meds together.

Brianz...has your cat been on the metronidazole for a while? One thing to watch out for is a neurological side effect. Callie had this after 4 months and had to be taken off of it. She started stumbling and falling over.
 
#8 ·
He's been on metronidazole for exactly one year. He gets .90cc per day if I remember my units correctly. The problem with medicating really began when we gave the whole day's dose at once in his food. We broke it into two doses and it seems a little more palatable, so that's the plan for now... only issue is with these two new kittens we have, we have to make sure he's isolated while he eats his "medicine food". So, he eats it at night in our bedroom and we keep the door shut.
 
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