Home Testing

Hello everyone - I have finally worked up the courage to try home testing again. We tried 3 times last week. The only thing I got were tears and a headache. We tried twice in the ear and once on his paw. I just haven't been able to get enough blood. I'm heading to Wal-mart now to get a Relion meter. We used a meter we had a home. I looked it up and it needs quite a bit of blood to test. Once I get that down, I'm changing him over to all wet food. Is there any particular reason most people on here use FF instead of Friskies or 9-Lives? I'm having to do all of this on a fairly tight budget. I know I'm rambling...sorry. I'm just ready to be able to check his BG at home so I can feel a little more in control of this. The last vet visit, he was stil above 400. The vet pushed him up to 3 units AM & PM. He just doesn't seem to act like himself at that dose.

 

Wonderful that you are determined to hometest, Denise. Yes, a meter that takes a smaller sample should make it easier. For Oliver, it was important that his ears be very warm, so the rice sack was invaluable to us.) Have you sure found the sweet spot? (Put a flashlight behind his ear and look for the little capillaries that come off the vein and go to the outer edge of the ear. If you put a drop of vaseline on the spot you want to hit, it will help you aim and will make the blood bead up.) Angle the lancet; don't go straight in. Have something to push the lancet against. Some people use the rice sack or a folded kleenix. We found a small make up sponge was just right.

Don't get discouraged. We spent a whole weekend poking before we got a drop. If you have problems, come on and ask for more tips. We all have things that worked for us. We will be cheering you on, because we know how important testing is. Can't wait until you join the Vampire Club - secret handshake included!

Friskies is fine - just stay between 8-10% carbs with fish only one a week or so. http://www.felinediabetes.com/diabetic-cat-diets.htm

 

A couple of reasons for using FF. One it it comers in many, many varieties and cats can be picky and not eat one variety after you have opened the can. Another is that some cats do not like leftovers so if you have a single kitty you have to throw out a lot of a 5.5 oz can. One 3 oz FF can is about right for most kitties. Just keep trying the home testing. As you fund uot, it can take awhile.

 

We did it!!! It was a high reading, but we got one. Next step, start a ss. Thank you so much for the support. It really helped a lot. I was ready to give up. Now that I know he still loves me, I don't think I will have such a hard time anymore. He sat there purring! The hardest part was getting him not to flick his ear. Hopefully, we are now on our way to getting him, if not normal, as close as we can.

 

congratulations!!

fwiw, i use friskies low carb varieties. feeding usually 18-20 mouths twice a day makes those little fancy feast cans bizarrely out of the question for me. :shock: agree if you have one or two cats though that you will waste less than if you use the bigger friskies, 9-lives cans. fortunately in my house if one doesn't eat a crumb, someone else will

 

:RAHCAT :RAHCAT :RAHCAT

Fantastic! If he ever flicks his ear or moves away, just get a drop of blood on your fingernail. You can test it there. Welcome to the Vampire Club!

The directions for the spreadsheet are here: http://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=16

 

I used FF until I saw it was too high in phosphorous, then I switched to Friskies SD (this is for my kidney kitty). I also buy Nature's Logic and I make homemade raw food.

Every day my girls get a buffet to choose from.

Congrats on getting your home test done successfully.

 

I find that if I massage the ear for a minute or two before testing, that also helps to get the blood to flow. Plus Ricky loves the head scritches. :lol:

 

Their ears really DO learn to bleed better over time, at least mine have.
I poke Oliver on the inside of the ear, and Shadoe on the outside. for some reason, I found that's where they test better.
I do use the lancet device because I think a quick poke is easier on the ears, but others just poke freehand with the lancet.
Both of mine pretty much sleep through their pokes, but Oliver shakes his head when poked sometimes, so I hold his ear firm to prevent the shake and droplets flying.

I think we just project how we think that we would feel; we think our cats will feel the same.
Poking yourself will let you experience how it feels.

 

Getting the ear really really warm will also help get the blood flowing. Many people here use a "rice sock". There are instructions on how to make one here: http://www.felinediabetes.com/phorum5/r ... ?8,1817358 (I think there is a similar sticky here but I can't find it). Warm the ear for a good minute if you can. Give treats to keep your cat still if needed. Then prick with the lancet device and watch a good drop of blood form :smile:

 

Warming the ear really helps. However, in the warm weather I do not have to even worm the ear and very frequently get too much blood even with the lancet pen at its lowest setting.

 

Thank goodness this board is here. I think I must be extremely wimpy and dh is not as understanding as everyone here. We haven't been able to get a good reading today. I get a good drop but by the time I get the strip to his ear, he's flicked it off. I'm going to try again tonight and see if I can get it on my fingernail at least.

 

I use the Vulcan grip on the ear to prevent the flicking except for my Twigie. Twigie is a Scottish Fold and does not have mch of an ear to grab on to. At first she was the hardest to test since she would flick it off. Now she just puts up with it.