# medication tantrums



## Cloud (Jan 16, 2011)

This is hard. We got a ratty with a burst abscess and the vet has put her on 0.16ml synulox and 0.26ml metacam x2 daily and it's quite a lot! Tillie hates it, with passion and there's over a week of this to go! I don't know how to make it any easier for her. When I administer via syringe she's learning how to spit it back out. She kicks. She struggles and she's making it so hard to make sure she gets the right dose!I've tried putting it in tastey foods like yogurt and baby food but she can taste it in there and refuses to eat it. I give her the same stuff without meds and she'll eat it no problem. If I wipe it on her mouth, she doesn't lick it off instead she wipes her mouth on anything near by - me, bedding, cage, floor!Is there any other methods for difficult rats?


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## Phantom (Apr 4, 2012)

I had the same problems with my V. It got to the point where I accidentally scraped the inside of his mouth with this syringe causing him to bleed all over the place.

I now mix my medications with baby food (chicken, turkey, or ham are great). I put half a teaspoon on a plate, mix the medications into it, put it in the microwave for 2-3 seconds, mix again so it's heated evenly, and they devour it.


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## Ergala (Jan 23, 2014)

I use yogurt with Polly. I gave up boxing her. 


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## Ergala (Jan 23, 2014)

oh also is it compounded and flavored? We had Polly's flavored as Apple. Helps BIG TIME.


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## Cloud (Jan 16, 2011)

It's the smooth liquidy type you can now buy in packets. I've tried her with the carrots, apples and parsnip and also the banana and Apple flavours. Tried it warmed up this morning. Didn't work. So then I tried beef in gravy cat food. She likes the chunks, but only if I give it to her individually, she won't take it from the bowl, neither will she eat the gravy. But better than nothing I suppose!I did have a Google last night and a lot of vet websites suggest soaking the meds in ginger biscuits, so might give that a go tonight!She's learnt now that taking something from a bowl now means it has nasty meds on it!


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## Phantom (Apr 4, 2012)

Hmmm... have you tried Nutella? Someone on here said their rats take Nutella without a second though. My Toast is really picky when it comes to baby food. He only eats the meat flavored kind.


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## Ratbag (Nov 30, 2013)

Same problem here - 2 of my boys are on anti inflammatory meds and it has been a nightmare getting it into them. I wrestled with them the first day - then got them to eventually take it in yoghurt. Second day they wouldn't touch the yoghurt so I rolled peas in the medicine. They ate them but I'm sure they didn't get the full dose.

The ginger biscuits are a good idea - got me thinking that cinnamon buns - which mine have tried and love - might be a good cover for the meds too.... I'll try that tonight. 

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## portkeytonowhere (Dec 24, 2007)

When my rat Templeton was taking Metacam after his neuter I would soak a gerber baby puff or two with the meds and he would eat it just fine

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## Ratbag (Nov 30, 2013)

The cinnamon buns worked wonderfully yesterday with my boys!!!!

Did you try the ginger biscuits? If so, how did it go?


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## Finnebon (Jul 15, 2013)

Can you get nutrical/ferretvite? I've been able to use that for all of my 5 rats and hide anything as long as I mix it with enough nutrical.

Our 2 older boys though are just like your girl. They throw tantrums and shreik and spit it out and then wipe their face and paws on everything to get the medicine away. It's so difficult.. For them, we just had to force it since even the nutrical didn't work for them..


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## Andyurgay (Jun 10, 2013)

Was it mixed in a sweet flavored suspension liquid? If not it could be pretty bitter and awful tasting and they will still pick that out no matter how you try to mask it. Getting it in a suspension really helps with picky rats and most vets do this or send you somewhere else that does it (like mine). They will ask if your rat has a favorite taste or fruit. Mine liked grapes so we had it suspended with a grape flavor, one loved it, the other took it if I let it soak into a piece of bread or mixed it with yogurt. Some rats are hard to trick though. Brody will only take his med when mixed with chocolate syrup, Jukka, strawberry yogurt. You just have to try a few things. If mixing, mix VERY well or they will lick around the medication. If putting it on something solid, make sure it can absorb fully and not rest on top. Also try to do like flavors. For example, if her meds are orange flavored, go for orange yogurt. That way they won't be able to tell as easily which part is medicine and which is a treat.


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## Cloud (Jan 16, 2011)

Never heard of suspension before. Don't even think they do that here in the UK. From what I can smell, both metacam and synulox are sweet. So far the ginger biscuit on its own was ok for the first few bites. Then I tried today soaking the ginger biscuit in warm peanut butter... That was better, but still touch and go :/Tonight I'm going to try mixing the softened ginger biscuit with warm, runny peanut butter and see if that makes a difference! Lol she's so picky!!!! >_


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## alexn (Sep 30, 2012)

I've been through this is the past, and currently going through it again. As others have said, usually nutella or yoghurt does the trick (especially munch bunch fromage frais), but I've found metacam is **** near impossible. Daisy won't touch it, even when mixed with something else. Something I'm trying at the moment is mixing the metcam into a little bit of cat food, but I'm still waiting to see if it works.

If you figure something out, please post it. Daisy is back on metacam now, and is proving a right fussy so and so.

Oh, and a tip- if you do use nutella, try warming it a little or mixing VERY well. I've noticed that they take it far easier if they can exclusively lick it up, rather than ending up with large lumps, even if they're soft.

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## Cloud (Jan 16, 2011)

Don't have any nutella at minute. Tried ginger biscuit soaked in the meds then ssoaked in peanut butter and warmed up. That was a no-go. Added warmed up raspberry jam for extra sweetness and she's now decided her best play is not to eat any thing I ooffer :/ so it's back to ratty wrestling  I wouldn't mind, but metacam is expensive, I've wasted loads and now ran out and won't be able to get more until after Wednesday! :/


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## alexn (Sep 30, 2012)

Cloud said:


> Don't have any nutella at minute. Tried ginger biscuit soaked in the meds then ssoaked in peanut butter and warmed up. That was a no-go. Added warmed up raspberry jam for extra sweetness and she's now decided her best play is not to eat any thing I ooffer :/ so it's back to ratty wrestling  I wouldn't mind, but metacam is expensive, I've wasted loads and now ran out and won't be able to get more until after Wednesday! :/


Metacam shouldn't be too expensive, unless it's injected. Then the price skyrockets. I think the latest batch I got was about £7? As Daisy refused it so vehemently last time, we've got quite a lot of it, but my wife didn't know at the time.


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## Cloud (Jan 16, 2011)

£7? Sure we're charged way more! Thinking of changing Vets anyway because they've been pputting a lot of prices up. Just consultation alone for one rat is now £32. Daylight robbery!! Forced to pay it at minute because it'd hard finding another vet just as experienced as they are


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## alexn (Sep 30, 2012)

Cloud said:


> £7? Sure we're charged way more! Thinking of changing Vets anyway because they've been pputting a lot of prices up. Just consultation alone for one rat is now £32. Daylight robbery!! Forced to pay it at minute because it'd hard finding another vet just as experienced as they are


My vet recently raised their prices, it's now about £35 for a consultation, but the meds aren't too expensive and I trust them with my girls. We''re getting a vet in-store where I work soon, and it'll be a lot cheaper, plus I get a discount, but I'm not sure if I'd change. 

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## alexn (Sep 30, 2012)

Just looked at my bill, and the injection wasn't actually too bad. 

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## Andyurgay (Jun 10, 2013)

A suspension is essentially taking a medication, usually in solid form, and mixing it in a sweet flavored syrup to a liquid form. That's what most children's liquid medications are. Some vets I've been to either give a pill or simply a watered down solid pill that you can mix on your own. Usually cheaper that way but harder to mask the bitter taste. Suspended medications are specially mixed to hide the bitter taste.


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## alexn (Sep 30, 2012)

Andyurgay said:


> A suspension is essentially taking a medication, usually in solid form, and mixing it in a sweet flavored syrup to a liquid form. That's what most children's liquid medications are. Some vets I've been to either give a pill or simply a watered down solid pill that you can mix on your own. Usually cheaper that way but harder to mask the bitter taste. Suspended medications are specially mixed to hide the bitter taste.


The problem you then face is if your rat doesn't like the suspension. I had that with Toki, her meds were banana flavour but it turns out she hated banana...

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## Andyurgay (Jun 10, 2013)

This is true. My vet asked what flavors or fruits my rats enjoyed before ordering the medication though so they took it rather easy. They just did not like taking it from a syringe lol but I would think if you know a fruit flavor your rats like, you could suggest a flavor. There are tons out there. I had to pick up my girls meds from a "peoples clinic" (yes, that's the name lol) so they had all kinds of flavors. I've heard sometimes the flavoring is a bit strong so some people mix the dose in a yogurt or water base to dilute it. I had to do that with one girl but the other took it fine.


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## Ratbag (Nov 30, 2013)

My boys are on the Metacam also (it costs a lot more here - the equivalent of £12 for a 10ml bottle).

We tried it with the cinnamon bun last night again and they were far more wary of it than they were the night before, but they ate most of it anyway.

Have to get even more crafty today and mix it with something else....I'm thinking of making some sort of pea pesto with it mixed in....my boys are suckers for peas.


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## alexn (Sep 30, 2012)

Ok, I just managed to get Daisy to have her Metacam, so thought I'd share how we did it. 

We tried forcing her, but she was having none of it, and we only got about a third (0.05) in her. The rest we managed to get in by smuggling a tiny amount (0.02 ish) into individual bits of sweet corn, which must evidently have masked the taste. 

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## threelittleratties (May 7, 2013)

I found there is actually a technique for this (I was lucky I got it in a snap my Mom has not) 
1. Measure the amount in the syringe 
2. Put the syringe in a easy to grab spot
3. Grab the rat holding him with thumb and index finger around neck and middle finger under arm of the side of the body you will be coming from. Rat usually will squirm out 1-3 times just let him wrestle out wait a few seconds then try again.
4. Stick syringe in mouth and squirt med's in. He may squirm out of your grip if he does repeat as you did the other times!
Hope that makes sense also I give him a treat afterwords so he's like Meds=Treats


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## Cloud (Jan 16, 2011)

Thanks for the tips guys! I'll give sweetcorn a try next. I've just had to simply pin her wrapped in an old jumper and force it in tbf :/ she cries like a wounded gazelle about it! I just have to ignore it best I can. Hard though!


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## alexn (Sep 30, 2012)

See, we tried just holding her down, but she wasn't having any of it. She never uttered a squeak, but made **** sure we weren't getting the syringe into her mouth.

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## threelittleratties (May 7, 2013)

I find It easier holding him in one hand then pinning him down


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## Ratbag (Nov 30, 2013)

We tried the first night every method of restraining them but to no avail - mine are still young and just retreated into their own loose skin! They sort of "concertinad" into themselves!!!!

We ended the 7 day treatment last night thankfully - the cinnamon buns were a godsend!! ;D


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## sachaaa (Mar 17, 2014)

Most human pharmacies offer suspensions, my dog is regularly on antibiotics which are in pill form that we break down and have to mix, often I'll put it in honey for him, but your local pharmacy may be able to give you a couple of syringes of something called OraSweet, and it basically does what it says it does. Sweetens oral medication, makes it easier to bear.

I used it for one of our rats, he would at least swallow it after leaving it hanging out in his mouth for a while. Still, your best bet might be something more overwhelming in flavour like Nutella.


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## Cloud (Jan 16, 2011)

I tried tinned salmon in sunflower oil mixed with tomato juice from a previous tin of mackerel! That worked! She lapped it all up! Every bit of it!


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## Kinsey (Jun 14, 2009)

I got here a bit late but for future reference, you can make a rat burrito with a towel. It helps to keep their little hands away.

Other things that help are mixing it with stuff. I have used everything. Stuff that works extremely well is Ensure (human kind), warm oatmeal, Yoghurt, warm Peanut butter, and wet cat food. I am thankful that my older female is good about meds. My younger one is an unknown still, but Marlena will eat them in oatmeal with no complaints. I sometimes make strange food concoctions, especially for my elderly ratties, with things like bananas, yoghurt, oats, PB, ensure and applesauce all mashed up. They all seem to adore it and in the past I had a very ill rat who could not chew and she ate that.

I had boys in the past who got so upset they bit their own tongues and covered me in blood. Sooo much easier now with Marlena.


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## Cloud (Jan 16, 2011)

I tried the towel wrap thing for the past week, she would wriggle so much she'd just disappear inside it :/ and when I did get the meds in, she would hold it in her mouth and spit it out! It just wasn't working


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## Leraine (Feb 21, 2014)

I'm not sure if you still need help anymore but I found that when medicating my baby, this method worked VERY well for me:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-_bFMkutKk

It stops them from using their arms to push you away, and if done properly, it also disables their ability to turn their head left/right/up/down to avoid the syringe, AND also removes the ability for them to back their head up away from the syringe.
It was much more effective than the towel burrito, where she would sometimes be able to free her arms and push my hand away. 
She would still struggle, but with the method in the video it would take me 10-20 seconds, whereas towel burrito would take me 5 minutes.

The funniest thing about my situation was that shortly after employing the method used in that video (where she would struggle) I found out that she actually LIKED the taste of the medicine, and would eagerly lap it up from the end of the syringe when I stuck the syringe into the cage bars. All that struggling, and she liked the taste the whole time! It makes me wonder if the main reason she struggled was fear of choking from the medicine being squirted into her mouth at a rate she couldn't control...


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