Pill Carriers

Pill carriers from leftovers

Here’s an idea for cheap, easy pill carriers that uses up leftovers and can be frozen for easy use.

Like many other pet owners, I’ve tried wrapping pills in soft substances like pate and once or twice had a go with the bait and switch technique. Another recommended trick is to wrap pills in peanut butter, but that was too easy for a smart dog to detect. Because with the peanut butter being so soft, the only ‘chewable’ part was a hard pill in the centre, simplifying the detection and rejection process? Maybe. Or maybe it’s just a game we play ….

Nor have I had much joy with commercial pill pockets. The taste didn’t seem to be very appealing, at least not the pockets that I had bought. There again, that’s probably no surprise, if they’re compared with the palatability of fresh, daily fare.

Then one day when I was cooking some pasta tubes, an idea presented itself in a moment of inspiration. Keeping a couple aside to fill with a chicken paste and pushing the pill into the filling worked a treat. Nowadays, there are always cooked pasta tubes in the freezer, empty leftover tubes or pre-filled if some topping is left over. This solution involves minimum effort – and you know that the pill carrier isn’t just tasty but also healthy!

Benefits:

• No need to cook pasta especially, just add a handful to your normal cook and put them to one side
• Uses leftovers to make a filling. Or a puree made from a topping
• Filling is healthy in its own right
• Alternatively whip up a quick filling with cottage cheese (see idea below)
• The tubes can be frozen pre-filled or empty if you don’t have a filling immediately to hand.

Pasta:

The pasta I have used here are Mezzi Rigatoni. I use them because they’re a shorter version of the normal rigatoni so you have the same circumference, which is wide enough to take the pill, without making an unnecessarily large treat.

Method

Bring a pan of water to the boil (no salt) and cook the pasta following the instructions on the package.

Drain and separate the tubes. At this stage, they can be frozen empty. Stand on a plastic tray, making sure they’re not touching, and open freeze.

EMPTY TUBES

Take empty tubes out of the freezer to thaw slightly before filling, then use immediately.

Tip  
The tubes are easier to fill before they thaw completely!

FILLED TUBES

Alternatively, if you have some leftover topping or chicken paste (for example), you can fill the tubes before freezing.

Tip  
You will find the tubes easier to fill if you freeze them for 10 minutes before filling!

USING

Remove from the freezer about 15 minutes before use and they will have thawed out perfectly.

FILLINGS

When I am posting topping recipes, I often recommend blitzing some of the topping, to be frozen in small portions for use in baked and other treats. That sort of puree is also ideal to grab and use in these pill tubes.

COTTAGE CHEESE

One great basis for filling is cottage cheese: you can mix anything into it and it’s soft enough to push a pill into.

For example here I’ve blitzed equal amounts of spinach, cottage cheese, and salmon scraps (poached): about 35 g each will fill enough tubes. I also added a bit of hemp protein for good measure. And don’t forget, these pass the palatibility test: if you don’t need to use them all for ‘pill persuasion’, you can give them as a straightforward treat.

THE TEST

…..

The ingredients and their benefits at a glance:

Cottage cheese: With its high protein and calcium content, cottage cheese is a valuable addition to the Well Dog Pantry, offering a variety of nutrients that promote overall health. And – good to know – it is easily digestible and can be given, for example, with a bit of chicken or rice to alleviate an upset stomach. Alternatively, it can just be given as a healthy treat!

Hemp seeds are tiny nutritional powerhouses, packed with complete plant-based protein containing all essential amino acids for muscle maintenance and repair. They are rich in omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, which promote healthy skin, reduce inflammation, and support heart health. Hemp seeds are also rich in dietary fibre for digestion and essential minerals like magnesium and iron to boost overall wellness.

Important Considerations:

• Always consult your veterinarian before making any significant dietary changes, particularly where there are pre-existing health conditions or dietary restrictions.
• If you are feeding commercial food, check the label for ingredients before giving more. Excessive intake of any foods can have adverse effects.
• Ensure (where possible) that you use high-quality, organic products specifically formulated for pets (or better still, human grade ingredients) to avoid any potential adverse effects.
• Introduce new foods gradually to avoid adverse effects such as gastrointestinal upset or diarrhoea.
• I provide nutritional information purely as a helpful guide. Nutritional information on ingredients is obtained from the US Department of Agriculture’s FoodData Central site (https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/index.html) and any nutritional information provided in recipes is based on an online calculator: calories and other information will vary based on brands, ingredients and other factors.
• Check nutrient levels and recommendations for your dog’s weight, age and activity. For example this nutritional guideline produced by FEDIAF.
• I am not a professional nutritionist. I am sharing recipes that I have created and tested in my kitchen and that have been tasted and approved by our doggy friends.