In October of last year, my then 13 year old cat was diagnosed with primary hypertension. In other words, she has high blood pressure not linked to any other disease process. She comes to the vet twice yearly for her senior checkups, which include a blood pressure check. She's always been fine...up until October.
She was prescribed a medication to lower her blood pressure. Now, anyone who has attempted to give a cat a pill by hand knows how challenging it can be! And this little cat is certainly a challenge! No matter how small the pill (and this one was quartered, so it was small), it's a challenge. She eats dry food at will, so putting it in food wasn't an option. So I tried pill pockets. A hit! For about 3 weeks.....
This silly cat started eating the pill pocket around the pill and spitting the pill out. I tried giving her more of the pill pocket (I'd been using a tiny amount)....same problem. Then I began putting it in the pill pocket and smashing that to a treat. That only worked for a little while too. Plus now I was going through several treats trying to get her pill down her.
Between the aggravation of getting the medication in her, the holidays, and later, moving, I eventually stopped giving her the medication altogether. Not a good record for the technician or the cat!
Due to recent changes in my cat (although she is still healthy and has no other illnesses), I decided I need to try harder to get her on the blood pressure medication and keep her on it. So I elected to have it compounded into flavored treat form. So far, my cat thinks it's the best thing ever! As do I since it's so easy to give to her.
Compounding a medication means taking the original form of the medication (usually a pill) and changing it's form (most commonly into a liquid). This has to be done very carefully to protect the medication so it is stable and does what it's supposed to do.
Locally, SBH Medical in Worthington is a pharmacy that specializes in compounding medications. They can compound medications from pills to liquid, transdermal gels (to rub on the ear), or as a treat.
After some thought, I opted to try the treat form. This cat will eat anything, and lives for treats. I asked them to flavor it with tuna. It came in a small plastic case and is the consistency of soft fudge. I offered the first dose to my cat.....and she loved it! In fact, I had to be sure to put the medicine well out of her reach so she couldn't eat it all and make herself sick.
Medicating my cat just became so simple and stress free, for her and for me, the way it should be. Do you have a pet who's on a long-term medication? Maybe they eat the cheese or hot dog and spit out the pill. Or they stopped eating the pill crushed in food. Consider asking your veterinarian about having it compounded into a form simpler for you to give. It's more expensive to have this done, but I know for me, the cost is worth it to be able to medicate my cat in a stress free manner, and know for sure that she's getting her medication.
If you think you might want to try having your pet's medication compounded, please let us know. We'll look at your pet's records and talk with the pharmacists at SBH Medical and see what can be done. They'll ship it to your home (for a small fee), or you may pick it up at their location in Worthington (just minutes from I-270 & SR 23).
(Not all medications can be compounded into every form available)
Suburban Animal Clinic is located in
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