Getting Denosyl into a difficult-to-pill kitty...

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Amy&TrixieCat

Amy&TrixieCat

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My senior civvie, Mario, needs to start taking denosyl. He's VERY difficult to pill the "traditional" way, and he can be a bit hit or miss with pill pockets, although I do use PPs for his BP meds (sometimes he refuses a PP, in which case we mix the BP med with a teaspoon of canned food). He seems to be a bit challenged with the "chewiness" of pill pockets, so rather than scarfing them down, he chews and chews and chews. This works OK with the amlodopine since it's so tiny - although he still manages to eat around the pill and spit the pill itself out at times. But, with the denosyl being considerably larger, do you guys know if it would be problematic if we cut the pill and gave it to him in several pill pockets? While I know it will fit in a pill pocket if we leave it whole, I just have a feeling he's going to have trouble with it.

He's 16 1/2 years old and while he's very sweet and happy, he's not a "cuddly" kitty...I know if we try to force this pill into him on a daily basis, it won't be long at all before he'll just run away as soon as he sees us. That's not how we want to live our lives with him...too stressful.

Or...if anyone has any other ideas on how to get this pill in him, keeping in mind that shoving it down is throat is really not an option, I'd appreciate it!

Over in LantusLand, Linda shared this link from the old board with me, which does really help answer my question, but I'm always one to dig as deeply as possible.
http://www.felinediabetes.com/phorum5/read.php?8,507390,508313

Thanks so much!

Amy
 
Yes, I saw that denosyl is supposed to be given intact due to the detrimental effect of stomach acids. However, the other link has posts which suggest there may be some benefit even if it is given with food, though it might be necessary to double the dose ... and thus, the cost.

So ...
How does he do with something in an oral syringe? If OK, you might see if the denosyl tab can be crushed finely and placed in an oral syringe, then some water (or maybe fish oil?) sucked into it. The pieces need to be small enough in the slurry they'll go through the syringe tip.
 
He does OK with syringing - better than actual pilling - but, since this is a lifetime thing, I'd like to try and avoid anything where we would have to "pin him down"...he's not super-easy going in that sense.

If we're OK with the crushing of the pill, knowing we'd have to double it, we may be able to go the route of mixing it with a little food...although sometimes he can detect a "tainted" food sample from miles away :lol: !

Also, with regards to crushing and therefore doubling the dose...would we be able to split the doubled dose between morning and evening, or would we have to give it to him all at once?

Thanks again!!!
 
Splitting the dose should be fine. Nutramax's documentation says that splitting the dose between morning and evening works with the whole pill, so it should work just as well with the crushed. If you give it in food, you might try sprinkling some Fortiflora, parmesan cheese, or freeze-dried chicken powder on it. That might change it from "tainted" to treat. :lol:
 
I would recommend getting the Denamarin version of denosyl. It is made by the same company, Nutramax, but the pill is much smaller, slick and contains an extra helpful ingredient, milk thistle. I found it much easier to give than the larger pill.
 
Amy,
When I was pilling Civvie Gumpy, one of her pills were huge. And this was only 1/2... I used a pill cutter and halfed again and gave it in two different pp. I would pinch a piece off the pp and just barely wrap it around the pill as Gumpy would chew and chew as well. Toward the end, she was chewing more and more and stopped taking the pp. The vet said there was some mouth problems going on (gum swelling)... Hope this is not happening with Mario.
Good luck w/ Mr. Mario
 
I wouldn't doubt that Mario has some gingivitis going on, but he's probably not a great candidate for a full-on dental, since he has some health issues (which are currenty well-controlled.) He's also never been a "scarfing" type of kitty...more of a nibbler. I will definitely mention that he does chew "thoroughly" to the vet, though.
 
For crushable pills, I smash it between two spoons. Then I buy extra thin sliced roast beef and turkey (I use hillshire farms) and tear off small pieces - less than an inch square, I then dab up a portion of the pill in the middle and fold the meat over and kitty begs for her pill (she just doesn't know it). Of course the other kitties all line up for their share also - so I have similar sizes ready for the whole crew (except for the foster kitty, who will only eat from his bowl - so he gets his there).
 
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