How To Give Your Dog Its Medicine
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There may be times during your dog’s life when he/she has to take medicine that you the owner administer at home. Depending on your dog’s health symptoms, this can be the result of an injury, a disease that has been discovered, or a simple illness that can be aided with some basic medical treatment.
The 3 basic ways to administer medicine to your dog are:
1) The “pouch method” using liquid dog medicine
2) Manually opening your dog’s mouth to insert medicine (prying open)
3) Administering pills or
The “Pouch Method” Using Liquid Medicine
The easiest medicine to administer to your dog is most certainly liquid dog medicine, because dropping the medicine into the dog’s food or water makes the medicine blend in seamlessly. If you’ve ever tried to give your dog a pill, you know that clever dogs often find a way to eat all the food and then spit out the pill! With liquid medicine you will not encounter this problem. Another way to administer liquid dog medicine is by using a dropper to drop the medicine directly into the dog’s mouth.
The “pouch method” involves using one of your hands to pull a corner of your dog’s lip open, specifically the back corner of the dog’s lower lip. Pulling the dog’s lip down forms a “pouch” shape where you can place the dropper, and while holding the dog’s head still administer the liquid medicine into the dog’s mouth via the pouch opening.
It may sound difficult to hold the dog’s head in place, form a pouch with the dog’s lip, and administer the liquid dog medicine all with just two hands. But feel free to have a second person help you with one of those actions to ease the process. One way to keep the dog from running away during the procedure is to sit the dog with his rear-end in a corner so he can’t back up to escape.
“Prying” The Dog’s Mouth Open
In the “pouch method” described above, we simply pulled down the corner of the dog’s lower lip. But with the “prying” method you will be lifting up the dog’s upper jaw to open the mouth. First you use your thumb on one side and your fingers on the other, placing them in the spaces behind the dog’s fangs. So you are holding just the dog’s upper jaw with one hand. With your hand in this position the dog will typically open its mouth a little to make room for your fingers and thumb, and this is your chance to pour the medicine inside, either with a spoon or a dropper. You pour the medicine in from the front, between your pooch’s front teeth. This is done as the hand placed over the dog’s upper jaw holds the jaw and hand back a little bit to keep the mouth open and accessible.
Non-Liquid Dog Medicine: Administering Dog Pills or Tablets
If you need to give your dog a pill or tablet, whether it be medicinal or just a simple vitamin or supplement, use a prying-the-mouth-open method similar to that described in the preceding paragraph. But rather than a spoon or dropper, you hold the dog pill, tablet, or capsule between your first finger and thumb (though another combination of thumb + finger would do); and while one hand is lifting up the dog’s upper jaw, you enter the dog’s mouth from the front with the hand holding the pill. Your free fingers on that hand can be used to push the lower jaw down.
Take the pill and hold it between your first finger and your thumb, or if easier for you, between the second fingers and the first finger. After you have the capsule or pill in place, use the rest of your fingers to push open the lower jaw at the front teeth. Then you have to insert the pill as far back into the dog’s mouth as you can, down into its throat to encourage swallowing. This may require a couple of tries and a little bit of careful maneuvering, but your dog’s swallowing reflex should take over at some point so that he or she consumes the pill.
I don’t think there’s a single dog out there that loves taking its medicine! And I don’t think there’s a single owner out there that enjoys administering it. But with a little bit of practice it becomes easier and not such a shock for your dog.
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