My dog has food allergies. What can I use to give him pills safely?

Hello there! Oh my goodness- I feel your pain. Medicating cats daily can be so frustrating! Luckily, food allergies are almost never to fats! Butter shouldn't interfere with the diet trial. I would be sure to use butter that doesn't have any traces of other food in it though. Some prescriptions can be compounded into different formulas that may be easier to try as well, but I would caution that most flavors would likely interfere with the diet trial. A popular pharmacy that compounds pet medications is called Wedgewood. Some medications in capsule form are relatively unflavored, and may be easily hidden by sprinkling on top of food. Your vet can consult with one of their pharmacists over your cat's disdain for pills and hypoallergenic needs, and they may be other, easier options! I hope this is helpful! Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Medicating pets can be very frustrating - particularly since Mattie is so picky! I never recommend dissolving medications in water to give via a syringe because in most cases, the medication falls out of the mouth so there is no way of knowing how much was actually ingested. Personally, my favorite way to medicate animals is simply to push the pills down the back of the throat, provided that Mattie is agreeable and unlikely to bite you. As you mention, hiding pills in peanut butter is often successful, but if you choose to continue using this, make sure your peanut butter does not contain xylitol, as it is highly toxic to dogs. I don't know if they are available in the UK, but Greenies makes a product called pill pockets which are basically highly palatable, doughy, pliable treats in which you can hide medications for pets.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Chloe. It sounds like you are giving her a small amount of the almond butter. The two concerns that I have is that it is high in calories and can lead to weight gain in such a small dog. Secondly, the high fat content can predispose dogs to gastrointestinal upset. If she has vomiting, diarrhea or weight gain, then I would stop feeding it. If she is tolerating it well, then the small amount is likey fine. You can also try Pill Pockets as an alternative. I hope this information helps!

Hello, and thanks for your question. There are a few different types of "allergy shots", and a few different types of "allergy pills" available, so that might be part of the confusion! Within each category (shot vs pill) there is both a steroid and a non-steroid option, or even multiple options. Here are the common medications used for allergies: Shots: Cytopoint (non-steroid), or depomedrol (steroid) Pills: Apoquel (non-steroid), Atopica (non-steroid immunosuppressant), or Temaril P (steroid), prednisone (steroid), medrol (steroid) All these options have their pro's and cons! Please let us know if there were specific medications you'd like further information on. If you were to ask my preferences for most dogs (and there are always exceptions, so this is where it's important for the vet to know all the details of Bell's medical history), I usually prefer Cytopoint and Apoquel. Hope this helps!

If she is not on dietary restricitons you can try hiding the pill in some soft cheese or peanut butter. Sometimes canned dog food works. . Some dogs just won't eat medications on food. If that is the case you may have to actually put the pill in the back of her mouth and get her to swallow. Here's a website with good instructions. https://www.vetmed.wsu.edu/outreach/Pet-Health-Topics/categories/procedures/dogs/giving-oral-medications-to-your-dog

Forti-Flora (made by Purina) is approved for use in pets with food allergies. Although it is beef-flavored, the flavoring is made from a hydrolyzed protein that cannot trigger any allergic response - so this is my usual "go-to" probiotic choice for a pet with allergies like this.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Unfortunately, Nikki's itching is more likely to be related to environmental allergies than food allergies. Environmental allergies are usually to things like grass, pollen, trees, etc - all the same stuff humans are allergic to. And these allergies can appear at any age. If benedryl helps, it is considered quite safe to use long term for most dogs (talk with your vet first). If you are trying to avoid medicaitons and side effects, talk with your vet about the cytopoint injection. It is not a medication or drug- it is actually just a protein that blocks the itch receptor and is considered very safe. It lasts 1-2 months in most dogs. If it works for Nikki, it also shows that her allergies are environmental in nature (that shot does not work well for food allergies). There are also many great sprays, mousses, and foot soaks that may help - talk to your vet about these options. Getting back to the food situation, if you have any concerns about the safety of the food, I definitely recommend switching. Though I will say I have several patients on Core Wellness doing fantastic as far as I can tell. For allergic dogs, I do like to avoid the common allergens which are chicken, pork, and beef (it's almost never grains). So sticking with fish or a more "novel" protein like lamb, kangaroo, or rabbit may help. hope this helps and best wishes to you and Nikki!