Open the dog's mouth, insert pill at base of tongue, close dog mouth and hold, stratch under throat...don't let go until dog swallows.

Or wipe pill in lunch meat like roast beef.

Buy a jar of something YUMMY, like baby food - (pureed beef or chicken), or a jar of prepared gravy - beef, chicken, or pork.
Whatever you buy, you will not need much, a few tablespoons. Put the rest of it in a glass or plastic container and keep in the fridge. Each day, warm the needed amount in the microwave.

Instead of forcefully holding the dogs mouth shut like premier suggests you can try blowing on their face after you put the pill or liquid on the tongue.

'Powdered Pill' is that a capsule then? Don't open it! Just leave it in capsule form and pop it directly down her throat in capsule form, or into a piece of hot dog or rolled in cream cheese. I suspect by emptying the capsule the taste is more apparent.

Liverwurst is pretty irresistible.

D*mn! I'd eat a pill for liverwurst!

Why are you emptying the powder out of the capsule? Taste it yourself and see if it's really bitter. If it is, leave it in pill form and try putting it in a piece of hot dog. If the meds can be given before a meal, give her the pill(s) before she eats since her appetite will be better at that time.

My DS's dog usually takes his pill in peanut butter also, but he won't take it at my house! I have luck with cheese more than anything. Feed one or two pieces without meds, then slip in the piece with the pill. Usually, after the first two pieces, they're more eager to eat than to try and find the hidden pill.

Thanks for all the excellent suggestions. Will go to the grocery store today and buy some liverwurst and baby food. The only reason I am giving these pills opened up in powdered form is that is what the owner told me to do. These pills are huge (glucosamine) and she must have 2 a day. She is a small dog and I had thought she might have difficulty swallowing the entire pill, also.

Yes, I have been giving these before her regular meals.

Wish me luck!

I don't know how large the capsules or how tiny the dog is, but they sell these things in Pet Stores called "pill pockets Treats". I use them for cats. The trick for cats is, the med should be put into a capsule if it isn't in one already in case they bite though the treat. Dogs are less likely to do that, aren't they? I'm sure the dog model is much bigger...you wrap them around the pill (they are the texture of play dough)like an appetizer. My cat thinks she's geting a treat when she gets her meds...She gives it a couple licks then snarfs it right down...and cats are much pickier than dogs. I know you are taking care of a friend's pet, so you might want to call her vet to ask what size pill a Sheltie can handle.

When my old gal was taking 13 pills a day I started buying cans of wet food (brand she was eating was a prescription food). I mixed the wet in with her dry food and just dropped the pills in and put the bowl down. I stood watch to make sure all of the pills went down. Being the true labrador she was, she always licked the bowl clean:)). However, if you have a picky eater, it may not work so well.

One of our cats takes the Cosequin - we open the capsule and put it on his wet food. The Cosequin we are giving is flavored, I am not sure if that makes a big difference, but we don't even have to mix it in, he just eats it sprinkled right on top of the wet food. Wet food in our house is a treat, so that may be part of why the cat just scarfs it down.

Fortunatey, we don't have any picky four legged eaters.

All of the suggestions are good ones, best of luck to you.

lfnyc, thanks again. I had never heard of the pill pocket treats. They have really thought of everything. I will tell the owner about these. And yes, the Sheltie is a very picky eater. She is about 13 and sometimes goes off her feed totally, especially with the hot weather we have been having here recently. I wish the owner would use wet food rather than dry.

Woodnymph, did the liversausage work? That has always worked the best for me.

Actually, I ended up by not taking the powder out of the pills, but dipping them whole in peanut butter, sliding them down her throat and holding her mouth shut. The other pills, I wrapped in lunch meat. The coating of peanut butter had just enough slippery quality to slide down her gullet. I am trying different tactics, and will try the liverwurst next. (Did not see any in the grocery store). Thanks!

Hey friends! I'm back. Just wanted to you to know that the baby food mixed with the pills is the magic charm! The elderly Sheltie loves the beef or lamb flavored baby food and takes all her pills eagerly, when mixed up in this. Like a cocktail before her dinner! The owner complains about the expense of the baby food, but hey, its worth the lack of hassle. November is going much better than October. Anyway, thanks for all your good suggestions....

My cat takes two pills a day, for thyroid and liver. I hide them in a small pat of butter and she licks them up.Or should I say down?

I know you already have your answer, but in case it stops working.

I take some cheese (low fat, either mozarella or chedder) and melt it part way in the microwave, then knead the powder into the cheese and roll it into a ball. Ruby knows every trick in the book. But even the most awful tasting pill, crushed into powder and kneaded into real cheese - she will scarf it right up. She won't take a big piece though, I have to give it to her in smaller pieces.

Most medicines in pill form taste very bitter... it's best to get the pill in the dogs mouth past the first third of the tongue which is where most of the taste buds are. The makers of Greenies came out with a product called pill pockets. They are a doughy beef flavored product that is hollow in the center. You put the pill(s) in the center and close the dough around the pill. They work pretty decently.

Bob

hi woodnymph, glad to hear things are going better. My English mastiff isn't a picky eater but will detect pills in anything after about a week, so I have to alternate what I hide the pills in. I use a variety of foods:

peanut butter
cream cheese
hard cheese
hot dogs
liverwurst
bologna slices
cooked chicken livers

By alternating foods, I avoid wrestling with his jaws (and his slobber!)-- he scarfs those "hidden" pills right down.

Hope this helps.

Thanks for all the great suggestions. Right now, the beef or lamb flavored baby food is working like a charm. I will keep all the suggestions in mind, in case things change....

I'm not sure how much baby food you need, but if the cost is a worry, you can always freeze it in icecubes and thaw one per day. The jars only last 3 days in the fridge. But if an ice-cubes worth is enough for a day, you'll get atleast 12 days worth out of a jar. Even better, she could make her own to freeze.