-Ian Lind, Kaaawa, Hawaii

I have belatedly gotten pretty good at giving pills.

The lessons I've learned:

Go slow (contrary to instinct, which is to pry mouth open rapidly and
hope that shock and awe cover the approaching pill).

Now I go on the theory that if I'm anxious and upset and rushing,
this immediately translates to cat.

I want cat to get calm, determined vibe.

So I calmly catch cat. Put in spot at appropriate height and without
anything to grab on to or knock over.

Kind of cuddle cat in crook of elbow.

Show cat hand, approach from front, tilt head back, sort of hold in
place with left hand and only then pry mouth open with the right
hand, which is also gripping the pill. I usually try just get that
head back, mouth open, and then drop behind the tongue. Swallowing
happens naturally.

My success rate has improved from about 5% to probably 65% on the first try.

I don't think I've given up any time recently, as I used to quite frequently.

Keep practicing.

Two cat maneuvers sometimes defeat me.
One is the fall, roll, and "exorcist twist" technique.
The other is the hyper tongue technique, where tongue becomes a
conveyor belt going up and out.

Luckily, they haven't learned how much I fear these techniques.

The field test by a friend in Oregon

I tried the approach that you suggested, and it seems to be working. There were a few hitches today, day two of the new approach, but I got the pill down him on the third try. (How can a cat that's immobilized in a towel, with his head tilted back at a 45-degree angle still spit a pill all the way across the room? Also, Tiger quickly figured out that Pounce was being handed out when Fuzzy gets his pill. So, this left me simultaneously trying to keep a firm grip on one cat, while removing a second cat from the dining room table - a strictly forbidden area - and retrieving a spit-covered pill from the floor.)

Anyway, thanks for the suggestions, they are helping.

And the original inquiry from Oregon with a description of the problem

Fuzzy spent half of yesterday at the vet's, being
encouraged to pee so that the vet could test his urine. Vet says there were some white cells, but he's not convinced it's a urinary tract infection. He gave me antibiotics - the dreaded white pills - just to be safe.

This is my first time medicating Fuzzy. My first attempt - hide the pill in some salmon cat food was a dismal failure. He gobbled down the food then spit the pill out, carefully licking all the remaining cat food off before leaving the pill in the middle of the kitchen floor. I then tried crushing the pill and mixing it in with the food. Fuzzy, now on full alert, suspiciously sniffed the food and walked away - the first time he has ever walked away from canned cat food (I have to give Tiger his canned food on the couch, where I can sit next to him and beat back Fuzzy.)

I then balled up the cat food/pill mixture, chased him down and shoved it in his mouth, which I held shut until he swallowed. He walked around the family room making "ptui" noises until I gave him some Pounce to take the taste away.

This morning I tried a combination method: Take pill bottle and Pounce can to dining room table. Open both. Wrap cat in towel (all 17.5 lbs of him) and make sure he notices the Pounce can. Pry open cat's mouth and throw pill in as far as I can. Surprised cat swallows. Give cat two pieces of Pounce. The only problem is, I'm not sure this will work twice in a row since I will have lost the element of surprise.