If you're a cat owner that's ever had to give your cat a pill, you know how impossible, and even traumatic, it can be. There is an assortment of ideas about how best to give him his medication, but there's really only one thing that will actually make it easy. It might even make it a little fun. You can use pill pockets.

How Greenies Pill Pockets transformed my cats' pill time.
Before I started using these, my cats would disappear under the bed as soon as they heard the pill bottles rattle. Now they associate that same sound with a treat, and come running into the kitchen, mewing loudly. They don't even seem to notice there's a pill stuck inside. On the rare occasion that they do drop the pill, all I have to do is give them a second treat.
There are some minor drawbacks, however. Greenies Pill Pockets only come in two flavors, however: Chicken and salmon. I have very, very finicky cats and I was hoping to get maybe four or five different flavors, in case they didn't like the first one (or three) that I tried. One of my two cats on meds gets tired of having the same flavor treats over and over. Also, the pockets have a greasy texture to them, so I always feel like I need a napkin or paper towel nearby to wipe my fingers off after I'm done. | |
| One other drawback seems to be their size. One of my cats has a little trouble with bigger treats, and usually drops pieces of the pockets on the floor. What I do, in her case, is take a knife and cut the pocket in half, from top to bottom. Then I roll her pill inside one-half of the pocket, turning it into a little ball that's easier for her to manage. This requires cutting her pills in half, too, though, so if you want to do this, investing in a pill cutter might be a good idea, too. |
But in general, these pill pockets are a great alternative to the more stressful, and ultimately more dangerous, methods of making sure your cat gets his medication.