Those of you who have been following Toby’s saga know the problems I’ve had getting pills into him.

The problem is that he plays a mean game of defense, which I’ve described and bemoaned here previously.

There have been several suggestions of ways to disguise the pills so that he will eat them. None of the earlier ones have worked. Wrap in cream cheese? Nope. Liverwurst? Not interested. Sprinkle and mix into canned food? He spurns it. Pill pocket? He won’t even sniff them.

But the latest suggestion at least partially worked. The idea–smash up a couple of Temptation cat treats, Toby’s favorites. Then put pill in a Pill Pocket, and roll it in the Temptation dust.

First up–an anti-nausea med, needed because kidney failure causes chemical changes that upset his system.

First I tried to see if he would eat the pill after the attempts to disguise it. He was interested, but went into his “due diligence” investigation of everything I offer. He smelled, then nudged it. The little package started to fall apart. Toby stepped away. It didn’t pass inspection. Another no go.

So I had to return to manual insertion of pill into cat. But now, with a twist. As in the first attempt, I wrapped the pill in a small piece of a Pill Pocket, and coated it in the yummy Temptation bits. Then I proceeded with my direct, full frontal pill insertion routine. And it worked. When Toby opened his mouth to yowl in protect, in went the pill. With a proper insertion, towards the back of his tongue, it went right down. I immediately rewarded him with a few Temptations.

I think what made it successful was that the pill didn’t leave a bad taste in Toby’s mouth. I’m dealing with pills cut into quarters, so they are quick to start dissolving. That’s the worst for the cat. But after being wrapped and coated, it apparently didn’t leave a bad taste.

After succeeding once, I decided to try again, this time with the appetite stimulant. My luck held. Pill #2 also went down, and Toby was happy to get the Temptations that followed.

It’s too soon to think that I’ve have solved the problem. But this is my first successful back to back pilling of Toby. I have to just hope that this proves to be the long sought solution.

In the meantime, Toby’s left eye has been irritated for at least 24 hours. With all his troubles, I’m hoping it will clear up on its own and another vet visit (and all the associated stress) won’t be necessary. For now, it goes on my worry list for close observation.