Animal welfare group's tips for ensuring your pet gets right medicine

Animal Aid says there is no foolproof trick to getting pets to take their medications but there are many helpful hints which might make the task a whole lot easier for pet owners.

There are a lot of different ways that medications need to be administered, and this varies greatly depending on the type of medication and the purpose for which it is intended.

"Your vet will advise you when, how and how often you will need to treat your pet and provide assistance if you become unstuck," Animal Aid general manager, Nell Thompson, said.

"For example, medications can come as injections (to generally be administered by a vet), as tablets or capsules, chews, liquids to be given orally, creams or ointments to be applied to the affected area and eye drops. Some medications need to be given on an empty stomach, others must be given with food."

It was fundamental pet owners followed their vet's instructions exactly, and sought advice when they were not sure.

Owners should never administer medication to animals without seeking advice first.

"Some commonly used human medications can be very dangerous or fatal to your pets and medications should never be used on any other pets unless approved by your vet," Ms Thompson said.

"What may look like the same or similar condition could in fact be very different and you may end up causing more harm than good."

Animal Aid has some handy hints when giving medication to pets:

WHEN giving tablets directly, putting the tablet on the back of the tongue, right in the middle as this will give the best chance of them being swallowed;

DOGS love cheese, ham, cat food and peanut butter, and these treats can be used to disguise the tablet. Cats love liverwurst paste or pate;

FRACTIOUS cats can be safely and comfortably bundled in a thick towel with only their heads poking out, to help control claws while administering medication;

VARIOUS devices such as pill poppers can make life easier but make sure that you are shown how to use them correctly.

"Like children, pets do not appreciate the fact that medicine will ultimately make them feel better so administration is often a challenge," Ms Thompson said.

"However, as responsible pet owners, like parents, medicine is the key in curing the ailment so patience and persistence is the order of the day!"