Masking meds for those stubborn ones.

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I have had some success with crushed up cereal.

I have been using this organic cereal that looks like cheerios. I used about 8-10 of them and grind them up into a powder. Then I added the medicine, spring water, and a small dab of peanut butter (about the size of a drop to help mask the taste and smell).

It has been working.
 
My rats go crazy for baby food - so I just put the baby food on a spoon and add the baytril to that and mix it a little. It is gone in no time! As yet I havent found a type of baby food they dont like!
 
I ONCE got away with sticking it through the bars.

now I don't normally feed treats through the bars, but Scamp, who it wasn't for, grabbed at it for a bit, so when I pointed it at Sam, who it was for, he briefly thought it might be exciting so he grabbed it in his mouth and I got him.

never got away with that one again, funnily enough.
 
had to resort to burrito rat today.

if only he was more food orientated. so far everything I've tried hiding it in, he decides it's just not worth the effort.
 
Rather than starting a new thread I figured I'd ask here. I have been using diluted chocolate syrup to mix up their Doxycycline capsules. I throw it out after two weeks and make up a new batch if it isn't gone. What other things can I use instead? They aren't liking the syrup anymore. Is there something tasty that contains no calcium that I could make a suspension with? (Is suspension the right word?)
 
RattusNorvegicus said:
Rather than starting a new thread I figured I'd ask here. I have been using diluted chocolate syrup to mix up their Doxycycline capsules. I throw it out after two weeks and make up a new batch if it isn't gone. What other things can I use instead? They aren't liking the syrup anymore. Is there something tasty that contains no calcium that I could make a suspension with? (Is suspension the right word?)
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Once I used Grenadine. It's like a liquid sugar used in some drinks.
 
Hm..Could I mix it in watered down maple syrup? I don't know if they'd like that any better though. Would that be okay for 2 weeks refrigerated? Or maybe just sugar and water? I will look for Grenadine next time I go to the store.
 
chocolate syrup/Quik, Strawberry Quik, butterscotch ice cream topping, International Delight coffee creamers - those have been my best bets with trial & error cause our kids have individual tastes too (my last medicated kid refused it with chocolate 3 days in and would only take it with a mix of chocolate & strawberry after :gaah: )
The pluses with these are that whatever the kid doesn't go for I can use! (except Strawberry Quik Yuk! need to try something else strawberry next time - maybe Strawberry jam?)
*Read the International Delight label to check ingredients against meds - milk is mentioned minimally but shouldn't be a problem with most meds.
 
I once had someone come over and they made "s*x in a pan" it's a layered dessert that includes cool whip and cream cheese. Well low and behold, that mixed with the meds worked so I ended up getting more cool whip and cream cheese (yes I know it's dairy but there comes a point where getting the meds in is more important. Other than that, mushed up bananas with a few drops of vanilla extract tended to be sufficient to mask the medicine and get him to take them.

Diluting the dose in an spoon of the banana mush also helped. It's a bit of a gamble, the more you dilute it the more you risk losing through spillage or if the rat just loses interest and you don't know how much they've eaten but sometimes you can get them to eat it all and they think it was some big treat
 
RKEM said:
I once had someone come over and they made "s*x in a pan" it's a layered dessert that includes cool whip and cream cheese. Well low and behold, that mixed with the meds worked so I ended up getting more cool whip and cream cheese (yes I know it's dairy but there comes a point where getting the meds in is more important. Other than that, mushed up bananas with a few drops of vanilla extract tended to be sufficient to mask the medicine and get him to take them.

Diluting the dose in an spoon of the banana mush also helped. It's a bit of a gamble, the more you dilute it the more you risk losing through spillage or if the rat just loses interest and you don't know how much they've eaten but sometimes you can get them to eat it all and they think it was some big treat
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Exactly how I've felt lately. Eddy loses interest in her meds+concoction so I need to mix them in something else each time. Lately it's been a lot of dairy products but there is no other way she will take them. Even if the dose is .01, if I were to shove the syringe in the very back of her throat, she'll drool it out and rub it everywhere. I don't know how she does it!
 
After trying some yogurt training paste (for dogs) which seemed to work on one of the meds, but not on the Baytril, I tried putting it in a small chunk of bread and dipping that in olive oil and viola! He ate it all and never knew.

Of course, the first time I tried it, I gave him one and the other two boys pieces (so they wouldn't steal the medicated one) but he wouldn't eat it cuz he could smell the baytril and just snubbed it. So I put some olive oil over it and gave it back and he snatched it up, but then the other two kept trying to steal it from him. xD

So now, I either will do it alone, or make sure the other two have their own little olive oil dipped pieces. xD; But yay! No more forcing it down his throat or struggling with it! Woot! (hopefully I don't have to keep rotating lol).
 
Cinderwolf said:
I just made a video of how I mask my meds if any one is interested. This method has always worked for me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fo34VVQ_siI

Acctually my one rat that was really stubborn, I soaked her cheerios in the meds adn jsut kep soaking them until all the meds ahd been soake dup sicne she woudl eat all the hceerios I gav eher
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We usually don't recommend peanut butter but the way you do it, that's a great idea. Love the video! Very helpful for some.
 
jorats said:
Cinderwolf said:
I just made a video of how I mask my meds if any one is interested. This method has always worked for me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fo34VVQ_siI

Acctually my one rat that was really stubborn, I soaked her cheerios in the meds adn jsut kep soaking them until all the meds ahd been soake dup sicne she woudl eat all the hceerios I gav eher
Click to expand...

We usually don't recommend peanut butter but the way you do it, that's a great idea. Love the video! Very helpful for some.
Click to expand...

Yea thats why I made a video, casue whenever I recommend it people ask me about choking haha thats why you gotta make sure it is super liquidy.
 
Is "Whole grains and rice puffed cereal with real apple" "strawberrry apple flavour" ok to mask Baytril in?
Nestle Gerber Puffs for those who are like "what is she talking about?"
 
Beef stew made with beer on spoon. Med plop in stew. Little chunk of white bread used to mix it in and soak it all up, hand to rat, watch the others try and steal it away!

I also make a pasta sauce involving marinara, cream, basil, bacon, and romano cheese, similar to what you'll find with penne ala vodka. That's also a great medicine-hiding goop.

I only have one problem rat; he sits down and very slowly inspects and nibbles anything suspicious, and he tends to rip little bits off and place the rest by his feet while the others inhale things. It's very stressful having to juggle stuffing the other two with treats back and forth to stop them from ripping his meds away. I have to keep using small pieces too, or they'll become disinterested and go for his meds anyway. Or worse, he'll abandon his meds on occasion to see what the others are fussing about if it's TOO interesting.
 
A couple drops of watered down peanut butter on a spoon, add meds, then sprinkle crushed banana gerber puffs until thick enough to roll into a ball. Yum!

I usually mix it on the spoon with the stick part of a syringe with the rubber thing off. If that makes any sense.
 

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