Even if your pet is perfectly healthy, procedures such as dehelmintization (parasite control) or vaccination require some veterinary knowledge.
It must be stressed that medication can only be given to your dog after a vet has carried out the necessary tests and made a diagnosis. Otherwise, not only can the animal be harmed, but its life can be endangered.
How to feed pills, dragees, capsules to a dog?
Medicines can be given to a dog by mixing them with food. But before doing so, the vet should be consulted to see if the medicine is compatible with a particular food.
If the tablet (dragee, capsule) needs to be swallowed whole, without crushing, open the dog’s jaws and quickly place the tablet on the root of the tongue. Such medicines can be moistened with sterile liquid paraffin (petroleum jelly) beforehand to prevent the tablet from sticking to the tongue or lips.
The mouth should then be closed and the dog’s head should be held in a horizontal position with the jaw clenched and thepush the animal’s neck towards the oesophagus – this makes it easier to swallow the medication. After the dog has swallowed the medicine, water can be given through a syringe without a needle. Once the animal has calmed down, it can be released. If the dog starts to lick its lips and nose, it can be seen to have swallowed the medicine.
How do I give liquid medication to a dog?
Liquid medicines should be given to the dog through a syringe without a needle.
This should be done by lifting the animal’s head and pulling the edge of the lip at the corner of the mouth with a finger. There is a toothless space between the canine teeth and the first and second molars. The tip of a syringe should be inserted into this gap and the medication should be administered by gently depressing the plunger.
As with the administration of tablets, the dog’s neck should be stroked towards the oesophagus to encourage the animal to swallow. It should be noted that liquid medication should be administered in increments of approximately one sip, i.e. approximately 5 ml.
Injections. How to inject the medication?
Injections are administered differently depending on the type (subcutaneous, intramuscular or intravenous). But the first two can be betterThe last one requires special knowledge and skills.
You will need a helper to control the dog and, above all, to fix it in the right position. Before doing so, the dog should be muzzled or taped.
Only sterile syringes and needles should be used when giving the injection. After the medication has been injected into the syringe, it is necessary to remove the air bubble in the syringe by turning the needle upwards and pressing the plunger until a small jet of air escapes.
Subcutaneous injections are made in the ridge area, between the shoulder blades. The neck area should not be injected, as a collar worn in that area may cause irritation. The coat of the animal shall be cut where the injection is to be given. It is not necessary to apply alcohol or iodine to the skin. It is necessary to grasp a fold of skin, insert the needle under the skin at an angle of 45 degree and inject the contents of the syringe.
Intramuscular injections are usually given into the hamstring muscle of the back leg on the outer thigh pin Thistle. To do this, the dog is placed on its side with the hind limb locked. The needle should be inserted parallel to the skin layer. 2/3 of the length of the needle is inserted into the muscle midway between the hip and knee joint, between the femur and the posterior edge of the thigh.
The plunger of the syringe is then retracted slightly. If blood appears in the syringe, the needle has entered a blood vessel or gone deep enough to hit a bone, so it should be withdrawn and the medicine injected elsewhere. It should be noted that needle penetration into a large blood vessel or the sciatic nerve can cause serious complications.
After the injection, the needle should be removed quickly and the injection site massaged with a cotton ball.
How to apply creams and medicated ointments to your dog?
Ointments and creams should only be applied to naked areas of the body. To apply the ointment to the skin, the coat should be clipped beforehand to remove any dirt from the skin. Ointments should be applied in a thin layer using a designated spatula or simply with a gloved finger.