There are many medicines for humans that can (with your veterinarian’s approval) be given to your dog or cat. However, the doses we humans take are often times WAY bigger than your pet needs.
The easiest thing to do is find your medication in a liquid form. With an eyedropper or measuring spoon, you can easily get the right dose for your dog or cat. Pills can be a lot trickier!
If your pet only needs a half of a pill, you can use a pill cutter to divide the dose. Your local pet supply store might carry pill cutters, but your best bet might be your regular family pharmacy! Pill cutters aren’t too expensive — but you do have other alternatives. If your balance and hand-eye coordination is good you can try to cut the pill with a knife and some carefully applied pressure. This works best if the pill is already scored in the middle. You can also use your dog’s toenail clippers! Just slip the pill into the opening for the nail and squeeze.
If you need less than half a pill, your best bet is probably to crush the pill and divide the powder into doses. Have a mortar and pestle in your kitchen? You’re ready for pill powdering. Otherwise, you can place the pill between two pieces of foil and crush it with a rolling pin, the back of a spoon, or even a meat mallet!
Another benefit to crushing a pill is that you can easily mix it into some sort of treat for easy dosing! My brother’s dogs get their morning medicine in a spoonful of Frosty Paws dog ice cream and lap it right up without any complaints. On the other hand, Moose gets an allergy pill (Benadryl, to be exact!) in his breakfast and routinely eats around the pill. Maybe I’d have better luck crushing the pill for him.