Can you get the chewable tabs that come in different flavors? Cat seemed ok with the methimazole as long as we changed up flavors every once in a while.

Yes, I keep his mouth closed, gently and stroke his throat. When he licks his nose, I know that it went down. I also feed him his kitty-crack or other favourite food afterwards.

I haven't seen chewable flavours, Oaktown. Smudge is one the other brand, starts with a T I think, not methimazole.

If the pills are a problem, or he has side effects, there is a cream that can be rubbed on the inside of his ear. Apparently it's a little harder to give the correct dose, and hyper-T is critical to get the correct dosage. Too much and he can get HyPO-thyroid.

I guess he's not too mad at me right now. I was out, and came home to a pillow off the couch right at the door. :-)

A family member relies on Pill Pockets, another vote for that approach. Or, burying the pill in a pinch of tuna.

A BPA suit for canned pet food? Maybe a suit for human food producers should come first. BPA is really bad for living things, too many studies have had consistent results. In the face of a PROVEN risk, I don't understand why so many people continue to eat anything out of a can. Is it because they don't know or is it perhaps a hope that the problem goes away if ignored? A good alternative for many products is the increased availability of glass and aseptic packaging, both BPA free.

Best wishes for you and your cat, Jasdip.

I had to give several of my cats pills as they got older I got the long pill pusher from the vet and used it for quick painless pill administration. It was the most humane because it's very fast and easy very little struggling. Make them show you several times how to use it, once you get a good grasp on the proper technique it's a breeze, I would snug the cat up under my left arm in the armpit and hold down on the cat with my elbow and use that hand to hold open the mouth, the right hand had the loaded pill pusher, insert in the mouth to the throat push the plunger shut and hold the mouth rub throat. I bet if you search you tube you can find lots of methods including that one. I currently have to give my little dog a pill every day, she is great, I grab the pill bottle and shake and she comes and sits on my lap mouth facing up ready to get the pill. I don't know how it happened, at first she would hide from me and one day I gave her a good stern talking to about it and after that we had the major transformation! It makes it much easier on both of us.
I don't feed her anything canned, I cook all her food she eats chicken breast with supplements. She is so small she doesn't eat that much. By the way I always did the cat with the cats back legs on a counter for some support. The front half was held up under my arm.

Jasdip - there is also a liquid methimazole that is easy to administer. I wasn't aware of the salve but that probably would have been even easier. Probably more expensive, though???

What Raven said. Animals are extremely resilient. Use the pill pusher. It's quick, it works and there is less stress on an animal when the pill simply goes down and the owner is not fighting it or trying to trick it. I once had a cat who had FLV and I had to pill him occasionally. My pill pusher was my finger. Pilling animals requires the pill be placed far enough back on the tongue so the only way for it to go is down. My cat also had to be force fed a nutritional supplement with a syringe. some cats will eat it on there own. He didn't. He disliked it a lot (hated it) at first but once he knew fighting wasn't going to help he settled in and he lived for an extra five years.

My last dog had diabetes and needed insulin shots twice a day. He learned to come and get them after his meal. The blood draws ((inside lip) were hard on him because of MY nervousness. Once I calmed myself down and took the matter of fact approach he would just lay there during a blood draw.

I guess what I am saying is if you are calm then the animal will be. Newe puppy needed pills for a UTI. Caught my DH trying to hide it in food. No No No. Bad DH. LOL I told him to just pill her. You never know what she may need in future years. May as well learn to accept it now.

my cat had hyperthyroidism and what I used to do was use a pill crusher. I would crush her morning pill and mix it with a bit of food, once she finished I would give her more food. I would do this for morning and night doses so about a teaspoon of food with a crushed pill mixed in which I could usually be sure she would eat all of. afaik, the thyroid pills are flavourless so they don't really notice it in their food. much easier than trying to get her to swallow a pill, but if you only give a bit of food with the pill then they are more likely to eat it all up (and consume the pill), after that you can give them more food to finish off their meal. i never even used to mix it fully in the food, just sort of bury the crushed pill under a layer of food and it worked.

Latest science on BPA. http://www.science20.com/steve_hentges/exposure_to_bpa_its_not_what_some_people_think-152717

Trance, the thyroid pill is very bitter. That's why I like to get it down the first time. I hid it in his food this morning, and like you, just gave a little bit to make sure it was all eaten. He also gets a larger pill (Prednisone) for IBS. That's a larger pill and the one that he left in his food. I think crushing the pills would make the food as a whole taste bitter, but it seemed to work fine for your cat.

My guys can smell in an instant if something is different with their food. When I add coconut oil, mineral oil, they won't touch it.

Some places maybe able to compound it for you. I'm not sure if that particualar med can be but if it can you can have it compounded into a flavored liquid which maybe easier to get administered. I have also been known to make home made broth and mix the meds in that to get them down.

Snidely I try to limit my exposure to canned food, but some things I can't avoid.

We use a lot of canned tomatoes (and a few cans of Ro-Tel :-)), a few cans of French style green beans, tomato sauces. I buy black beans dried instead of canned. Creamed corn, canned pineapple, coconut milk, but overall I think we do pretty good. We never buy bottled water, our tap water tastes great.

jasdip, I think she was on methimazole? (the same as the human med) for hyperthyroid but it was supposedly tasteless, and I don't think she noticed it was in the food or at least she never seemed to notice (and she was a very fussy eater). are you sure they are bitter? I would try a little bit of pill to see what it tastes like to you to be sure (I know it sounds weird, but I actually do this with store bought dog treats to see if they are salty since I Iost two dogs very quickly to kidney failure after introducing dogs treats into their diet which I believe caused their sudden onset kidney probs). I think there is a different med that is used for thyroid too so maybe we are talking different meds? I think one is converted in the body, and one is in the form that it's converted to, but I remember the vet one time gave me a prescription to take to the pharmacy since they carry the same pills for people. If the pills are flavourless, then crushing them is ideal, my cat was a total pain to give meds too so the pill crusher made things so easy for her twice daily hyper t meds. (she is gone now, but was on hyper t meds for a number of years before that)

The liquid methimazole our cat is on is fish flavored. The vet suggested it is better tasting if refrigerated. He doesn't mind it. On "difficult days", it can be mixed with a tablespoon of canned tuna and it's gulped right down.

Never, ever crush a pill unless your vet very explicitly says that it is safe to do so. The same rule applies for human pills.

My Shadow cat was given a pen that dispensed the salve, right into the inside of the ear shell. With each dose the ear was alternated, so no nasty pills to torture him with.

pkramer - do you remember the price of those meds? I'm wondering if it's comparable to the pills and liquid.

Smudge is on Tapizole. It's bitter and has side effects such as vomiting, diahrrea, depression, anorexia. He's lost weight which is an effect of the hyper-T so I don't want him to be anorexic. She said that if he vomited, or won't eat, to bring him in. His blood work follow-up is tomorrow.

Joe, our Garden Shop cat also lost a -lot- of weight. He loses weight every summer but I knew this was different as he has never lost that much weight in years past. I took him the end of August and can already see that he has begun putting on weight. Here he is in all his cuteness! :)

Edited to add that this is an older photo. He is really showing his age these days but still full of character!

Jasdip - that is the same thing as methimazole. Maybe you can ask about getting the liquid or the salve so it could be easier on Smudge.

You may find you need to use multiple approaches. I medicate three cats every night, each with a different med. The Greenie pill pockets worked great for a few weeks, but they all got sick of them at some point. I have used liquids, but eventually the tolerance for taking them decreases. I have used thyroid meds compounded into a gel for a cat, but eventally the inside of her ears were too irritated crom the gel so we had to go to the pills. I am currently using a pill plunger that works really well and I always treat everyone afterward, so if I'm not right there at 8pm to medicate and treat, they will come get me. They don't like the pill being plunged, but they don't have a choice. You can also skip the plunger and just use your hands - once you figure out the best way to do it, it's really quite easy and not so intimidating. Be sure to give a treat and/or a syringe of water after so they don't have issues with being "dry pilled." Sometimes the dry pill can get stuck in the throat; the treat or water will help it go down. By the way, I use Tapazole for one of my cats and buy it at Costco. It's about $16 for a bottle of 100 pills. Much cheaper than getting it directly from the vet. I also buy Prednisone and Prozac there for my other two cats. Both those prices are less than at the vet, too. If you don't have Costco or Sam's Club, Walmart has prices that are almost as good.

Bluebell, you get vet medications at Costco??? Wow. She also prescribed vet cat food so that he can gain some weight. It's very palatable. He likes the wet, but not the dry food at all. Of course, Bud likes the dry, and he's overweight! ;~/

I do the syringe of water, and he also gets yummy food afterwards. When the vets were treating him, they said he's very intelligent, and took the syringe of water very well, he didn't fight it. He doesn't really fight it here either, but he's getting the pills more often with me than he did at the vet.

I firmly believe that animals can reason, and I'm hoping over time, he'll equate the pills with feeling better.

Raven, that's just too darned funny about your dog running over eagerly wanting his pill. I'm giving Smudge a stern talking-to tonite.

TranceGemini, I just tasted his pill, man it's bitter!

I had elderly cats who both needed meds. One took them no problem, just gently pried open her mouth and placed them back of her tongue and that was that. The other was a much larger, stronger cat who would fight it. I swear his tongue turned into the size of a cow tongue when I tried to pill him. The answer for me (although it can be a bit messy until you get the hang of it) was to smother the pill in a bit of soft butter. Once I got it onto the back of his tongue, it was too slippery to spit out and he almost always swallowed it. And he seemed to enjoy the clean up of the butter on his whiskers and chin, afterwards.

A prescription from a vet is just like a prescription from your doctor and any pharmacy should fill it no problem the medications are the same in most cases but the dose may vary depending on the size of the animal. I always got my meds for the Great Danes from walmart pharmacy because it was much cheaper and they take people doses most of the time. I get my little dogs medication at the pharmacy too. You just have to ask the vet for a prescription instead of them filling it for you and charging you their price. Or you can order it from an online vet supply with a valid prescription, some of those places will contact your vet for the prescription so you don't have to do it.

I just tried using the pill-pusher and he immediately threw the pill out of his mouth. I picked it up and dropped it in his mouth; down the hatch. Gave him some water from the syringe, as usual and now he's eating some wet food. So all is well until tomorrow morning.

I second the compounding if you can get it. Monkey had his steroids done in this chicken flavored chewable thing that he thought was a snack. He loved them! It made it sooooo much easier on everyone.

Otherwise with pills, I tilt their head back, open their mouth, drop the pill in and then rub their throat till I'm confident they swallowed.

I worry about the water in the syringe. Cats can aspirate on the water and it's very dangerous. Are you squirting it or just dribbling it?

Oh Chi, I'm just dribbling it, and not even the whole thing. Very slowly, and he laps it. I don't do it all the time, because he usually eats food afterwards.

I read where sometimes it's best not to give the pills with food, so that they don't associate the food with pills. But these are hard on their stomach, so I like him to eat before and after.

jasdip i made a mistake when I said my cat was on methimazole, after thinking some more I seem to remember it was actually carbimazole (my memory is not what it used to be!). and this one is converted by the body into methimazole.

I just googled the carbimazole and found a site that said this "Carbimazole is often touted as having a lower incidence of adverse
reactions such as vomiting and anorexia (6,15). This may be because it
is tasteless whereas methimazole has a bitter taste" http://www.animalendocrine.info/2011/10/treating-cats-with-hyperthyroidism.html

This would be why my cat didn't have a problem with it and yes if the pill is bitter then adding to food will not likely work too well. If the taste of the pill is causing too many issues which it sounds like it might be, I wonder if you could discuss switching over with the vet since they both end up as the same thing in the body anyway? Just another option to consider if having a flavoured med compounded ends up being too expensive etc .

The meds never made my cat sick or off her food and the last thing you need is for the meds to make him lose more weight if there are other options. It does sound like the bitterness is the issue so somehow I think you need to try and fix that one way or another so he will tolerate taking them.

Trancegemini, thanks so much for the updated info. I know that Tapizole and Meth are bitter. I have also read the Carbimazole is a good substitute. The side effects are fewer and if it has no taste, that's definitely worth looking into. I'll ask them this morning.

Moonie, first of all Joe is so handsome! As for the price on the tube, I don't recall, but if you like I can call my vet and get it for you. They offered the pills, but the tube was so much easier on hi and on me.

As for vet meds at Costco, call them first if they carry it. They do not carry a complete line of vet prescriptions, but what they have is so much cheaper than the vets office.

We just got back and the vet is happy with his improvements. He's gained 1/2 lb and his coat is shiny again. She's going to order the cream, she thinks it's a better/easier meds to administer. I have the rest of the pills though, that I'll still give him.

oh that's great jasdip, fantastic to hear he has gained weight. anything that makes it easier to medicate him will be a godsend because you could be doing this for years.

Trance, I mentioned the Carbimazole to her, and she had never heard of it. I had seen it, in my research on hyper-t, so I knew that it was a possible option. She had suggested the medicated cream as an alternative to pilling him.

oh that's a shame jasdip, I guess if you wanted to pursue it you could ask if your pharmacy stocks it and then you could get a prescription from your vet. but as long as you find an easier solution to getting him his meds I thinks it's a win for you whether it is the cream or carbimazole or whatever. At least you won't be dealing with the frustration of him spitting up the pills :). Thanks for the update and glad he is doing well! (it's not that easy to get a hypert cat to gain weight!)

Trance, it was a piece of cake pilling him this morning. He was outside our door on the landing (apt bldg) lying in the sun. I sat on the floor beside him cradled him with his back feet on the floor. He was the perfect height and angle. Afterwards I held him and petted him and he was so relaxed and purring. It seems to be more of a struggle when I hold him in my lap.

I too wonder how difficult it is for hyper-t cats to gain weight. She said that if he could gain 1-2 lbs over a year she'd be thrilled. She and I butted heads on the raw diet. My cats are on a partial raw diet.......they're not 100% transitioned over, but get it regularly. She, and many vets are against it. But I know people personally, friends etc whose pets have improved so much on it. Anyway, he's not getting it (for now) but I am going to give him some a little later down the road.

The good news is, he won't touch the dry food that she sold us, but he does eat the canned. Science Diet, vet food, of course. ALL vets push the SD and Royal Canin because of profits. Anyway, they'll exchange the bag of dry for canned. That's a real bonus!

I went in to exchange the dry food for canned and the receptionist was just about to call me with Smudge's blood results from yesterday. His dosage is reduced to 1/2 pill 2x day now! Yay. He's definitely improving.

So glad to hear Smudge is on the way back to good health....But, do have a funny to tell you.....

I have a grand son who's nickname is Smudge....In fact, all through school, from kindergarten to college, most of the people who knew him didn't know his real name was Ryan...He got his name from his sitter because he smudged the window waiting for his Mom to pick him up.....So, when I saw, giving Smudge a pill, had to laugh.....He's 22 now and better know how to take his own pills if he needs them.....

That is cute, Sunnydj!!! I can see that the title would catch your eye :-D

Yeah, I feel for ya friend. It's not fun. My one cat had the thyroid issues. How does Smudge react to catnip? A bit of that makes some very amenable to anything. or it can be a reward afterward. Best wishes to you both.

Cynic, catnip is a great idea. He is definitely zoned out by that. He rolls and rolls and then lays in it, in hog-heaven.

I pilled him on the landing in the sun again this morning. He likes that, gets petted and petted in the sun and he's totally relaxed and purring.

Being able to hold him for any length of time is quite unusual. He's a twitchy cat.....his front paws are always moving. But now he's 'holdable', I don't know if the meds are calming him, or if he instinctively knows that what I'm doing makes him feel better.

The 1/2 pill is a catch-22. It's easy to go down in the morning with the larger prednisone pill, but the 1/2 pill at nite is bitter right off the bat because it's broken.

I also made a mistake in his weight gain, I typed that he gained 1 lb, but it's actually 1/2 lb. Regardless, it's a gain, which he needs. Getting Bud to lose weight is a whole other ball-game.

If you can master the pills vs a salve, you're much better off. It sounds like Smudge is feeling better and more cooperative. Yes, a change in kitty's position can make things easier. Be sure to tilt his chin way up like a coyote howling. For the first few times, a coating of butter will help slide it right down his throat. In this position you can drop it right to the back of the throat. If the men's are pricey, absolutely price them out at human pharmacies. I've bought them at Costco and Walgeens for tremendous savings. The vet office can call in the ex just like your dr would. There's actually an online ex pricer for Walgreens Rx savings card plan. Our cat was enrolled in it to get the best prices on the med.

Hi Jasdip, what I did with the catnip was just left it in the glass jar it was in. A friend grew it and it was good potent stuff. He gave me a institutional size pickle jar with it and I just open the lid and let the cats have a snort. (It also worked well for "recharging" catnip toys.) Sunny, (my little guy who had the thyroid issues) would try to grab himself a fistful. KC was more ladylike, prim and proper and just jam her face into the jar. Her face had to be bruised afterward, she'd slam it so hard! There was more than once I was wondering if she'd hurt herself or break the jar! But, after a couple years (and maybe remembering a sore face?) she started trying to grab some too. They both liked to eat it. And with the heavy breathing I noticed it got moisture into the jar so I had to leave it open a bit to dry out occasionally. So catnip was no expense at all for me and entertainment for us all.

As for the bitter pill, just like a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down, maybe a little dab of chicken broth or butter would mask the taste while going down. Just something to cover the cut end, and it probably would lube the sharp edges too so it wouldn't scrape or something which would make them happier too.

I always felt sorry for pets needing medications and stuff. They don't know what's going on, but they're still usually so loyal they take it and sometimes forgive. My best to the furlines, give them a snort of the 'nip for me.

I have such an open raw emotional spot having gone through this with my over-the-rainbow-bridge cat that I haven't been up to contributing to this thread. But...I am such a huge fan of Smudge [and his Mom] that I must add my best thoughts and wishes for his rapid stabilization/recovery.

I'm also a huge supporter of the cat nip therapy. My cat hated...with a very loud passion...anything to do with riding in the car. Of course...there was no way to get her to the vet without the aid of a vehicle...and it broke my heart every time I had to bundle her up and take her. But...it became a little more tolerable for her with the use of cat nip. Her loudly voiced opinions of the entire procedure became farther spaced although they never did cease entirely. She wasn't as susceptible to the over all effects of cat nip as some cats are...but it did help [both of us] in the end.

And...yes...I agree cynic. They do forgive. The night before her last trip...while laying in my lap...she sat up...outstretched her paw and patted my face several times. Then went back to sleep. I would never consider declawing an animal so when she reached out her paw to my face...it took all my trust of her not to pull back. I wasn't sure whether her claws were extended or not. They were not...and her paw felt softer than I'd ever remembered. I choose to believe that it was her way of forgiving...and of saying goodbye. We'd been through a lot together. I don't think she wanted to leave but she'd contracted pancreatic cancer...and like my deceased husband who died of the same malady...she'd reached the end of her days.

Oh Anne, I`m sitting here with a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes. I feel so much, for your loss. I'm making phone calls, via my work, and I can hardly talk. :-(

Our pets just "know" and they want to comfort us, as much as we comfort them. My heart is breaking for you. As someone who's been there too many times, I know what you're going through. Wish Smudge being 15, his day is going to come sooner than we would like too.

Thanks so, so much for sharing on this thread.

Try Pill Pockets. They are specially made to hide a pill in. They mask the taste and are soft - covers ragged edges of cut tablets. Finnigan chews it right up and doesn't notice the pill. I pill Snickers by dropping the soft ball down the back of his throat. Very easy. Two flavors - chicken and salmon. Available at Petco, PetSmart, Amazon. They are labeled for Cats and for Dogs, but the cats can eat either. The dog ones are just bigger and come in more flavors:

Greenies Pill Pockets

ETA: Transdermal meds are not the best - absorption through the skin may lessen the effect, and dosage is hard to regulate. Better than nothing if its the only way one can manage, but I'd try everything else first.

Tally, I'd rather do the pills. That way I know that they're inside him (when they're not being spit out on his mane). I agree about the salve dosage. It can also cause irritation on his ear, and they scratch at their ears. This morning Smudge didn't like the 1/2 pill at all.

I drugged them all last nite and they were in hog-heaven on their catnip. We have wild catnip growing and I have some in a bag drying.

Jasdip, try the Pill Pockets.

It seems like the last three dogs have all needed long-term meds for one reason or another. This little girl had a stroke 4 years ago and has a weakening bladder; so, she gets blood pressure and bladder control in the morning and just bladder control in the evening. We use a slice of kraft American cheese. We divide it into 9 sections, so 1 slice is good for a few days. We make sure the pills are completely engulfed in the cheese square and give it to her as a "treat". The minute she hears the wrapper sound, she comes running. No problems whatsoever. Worked for the pup with epilepsy, as well as the pup with congestive heart failure.

No. We're not making them sick. lol We rescue dogs that would otherwise be put down because of their health issues.

anne_ct, I SO know and understand what you went through and I understand how hard it can be to talk about it. Thanks for sharing. My best wishes and condolences to you.