Making injections easier

Well, after Max's visit to the vet hubby swore blind we would hometest because his little angel was completely stressed out and miserable. He doesn't want to put him through that anymore than he has too. I spoke to the other vet in the practise on Friday, and he is happy I hometest, the caveat is that I don't change any dosages without consulting him, which I'm fine about. We have gone from 1 unit of Lantus twice a day to 1.5 unit twice a day which I'm also very comfortable with.

Now, i have read everything I can find about injecting....but I still have a miserable cat on my hands. He eats and then hides under the bed expecting the injection in an hour. Most of the time he doesn't feel the actual needle, sometimes he momentarily flinches as it goes in, but to try to keep him still and calm and co operative to actually get a pinch of skin and get the needle in is exhausting, and that's when I can actually get a hold of him. We started out with treats and I would inject him when he was distracted eating them, but I think he associated the treats with the injection and now won't even come to eat them. We had one good moment on Saturday morning when he seemed very grateful to be home from the vet and was a sweetheart ;-) , but generally it's a drama......now that's just the insulin, how on earth am I going to cope with hometesting as well!!! I'm using the thinest needle I can find , it's the BD MicroFine Plus 30 gauge and 8mm. Any other tips, this is not eay!!

 

It is unusual for cats to dislike their shots...hmmmm

is the lantus cold when you are injecting it? Lantus has very specific handling instructions but cold insulin can sting. Also, where are you injecting?

 

Umm ... You said "a pinch of skin." You aren't actually pinching the cat, are you? That would hurt and would explain the cat's dislike of the procedure.

I think you can get the necessary tent of skin by pulling up on a clump of fur - a big enough clump that it doesn't feel like you're pulling the kitty's fur out, which would also hurt.

 

With only injecting 1 1/2 units of insulin the syringe itself would warm the insulin to prevent injecting cold insulin. Now if 30 units were injected then injecting cold insulin is possible.

 

There are short needles, what size needle are you using?

I use these with the 31 guage - 5/16" needle:

Insulin Syr U-100 31 Gauge 3/10cc 5/16 inch Needle 1/2 Unit Markings (GNP Brand) 100/box


http://hocks.com/Merchant5/merchant.mvc ... de=A982316


I also give shots when my cats get treats, they never even notice.

 

Are you nervous or in a rush? Kitty will pick up on that and react accordingly. I had lots of trouble with Tugger before I discovered I needed to go to my Zen place before I even approach him. Deep breaths, don't be all hyped up from coffee or whatever, talk sweet to him and give lots of petting and skritches and positive attention before, during and after.

You don't want to pinch his skin to pull up the tent, pinch a bit of fur and lift it up (I fold his fur back so I can see skin and make sure the needle is going in but not out the backside of the tented skin) poke and shoot. If you have to use both hands for shooting, I let go of the tent once the needle is in and use that hand for the plunger while my other hand is holing the syringe in place and I'm talking sweet to him the whole time, telling him what a good boy he is while I shoot. Then I check to be sure there's no wetness outside the skin and then he gets Freeze Dried Chicken treats, which my cats all seem to think is a special form of crack.

 

Just wanted to ask.. are you pulling the plunger a bit and doing the whole check to make sure there's no blood before injecting deal? I was taught like that.. what a total gong show and waste of time that adventure was.. I found it so difficult and Nova wasn't a big fan either... just stick it in there and give the insulin.. no fancy stuff .

I use 31 gauge short needles as well.. BD makes the ones I use. (31 is smaller than 30.. it seems weird..but that's how it works).

 

I get the 31ga Monoject brand syringes from www.hocks.com

Are you using a new syringe for every shot? The needle gets dull very quickly.

We just give the shot while they are eating their food (we now have two diabetics - Tiggy adopted 2/2009 and Rusty adopted 3/2010 through Venita's DCIN / FDMB)

 

I just wanted to say I understand what you are going through. When we first started shooting mocha, she fought us like there was no tomorrow. Had Sarah (sarah and velcro) actually drive over here from an hour away because we were just sooooooo frustrated with her at shot time. Sarah was able to show us a few different techniques, but mocha soon learned them all. She also fell for the treat trap and now hisses if she sees them. In the morning after we test her and she eats, and it's time for her shot, it's game on. She usually takes off through the house with me following her and peter waiting in the living room to block her when she runs back out. Most of the time we can catch her, but sometimes she slips through his hands and once she's under the table, alllllllllll the chairs have to come out, we both get on each side of it, and if we are lucky, she doesn't move and we catch her. If we aren't lucky, she darts out and the whole process starts over again! Once she is up in my arms, shes slapping her paws against my face, hissing at me, yelping ... it's a nightmare. I don't know how people can give their cat's shots when it's just one person doing it, but I sure am jealous of them! We are coming up one a year doing this, and I don't ever see things changing. I know, not much help right? But I want you to know I completely understand your frustration.

 

Thanks so much for this post, at least someone else is also trying give injections to "hellcat", although I take my hat off to you, your's sounds far worse than mine. I'm away on business today so DH gave the shot, feedback is that the am shot was a soap opera with a pissed off cat playing the lead, but then evening shot he was so good, he even purred!!! Go figure. I guess this is just about perserverance! I will trying to tent the skin by lifting the fur as opposed to "pinching it", I don't think I'm pinching him as such but I am holding skin between my fingers. I found some bonito flakes, can't find freezed dried chicken here, but he seems to love the bonito flakes, maybe that will help.......next hurdle...The Hometest (insert appropriatte horror movie sound effect)

 

I would definitely modify the technique...mine was pretty basic - grab a hunk of scruff with one hand and quickly inject with the other. No fuss, no muss. Squeak is a great cat but not into being restrained and we found the less of a big deal we made about injecting and testing, the better.

 

Devon-

I'm sorry :lol: , that was SO funny!!! :lol: She hisses at treats???? She's pretty smart.
I guess I've been lucky. I've had 2 diabetics and neither of them ever "noticed" the shot. Occasionally if I put it in the wrong way they jumped a little. My Mom's cat Francis seemed to be a little more sensitive to the shots - he meowed and "got mad" as mom said (I heard him over the phone) but I'm not sure that he hid. Some cats must be extra sensitive and you got one of them. Luckily she's gorgeous and sweet, right???? ;-)

My technique is grab fur, stick needle in. Very quick. 2 seconds. Done.

 

Tess is usually pretty good, but lately has been squirming a little and I worry about furshots. I have DH get hold of the scruff and apply a little pressure. Then I tent and shoot. It has a calming effect, like being picked up by momma cat. It is a variation of this technique http://www.felinecrf.org/giving_sub-qs_syringe.htm#clothes_peg_trick but it requires 3 hands. :razz: Using the clothes pins you can do it solo.

 

I use a different technique for shooting than most, and my cat doesn't notice.

Using a short needle, I shoot straight into the side behind the ribs and in front of the "meat" of the leg. No need to tent. My diabetics didn't like the neck tugging to shoot into the scruff or shoulder.

90 degree angle, straight in. I even shoot into the belly that way. Never had a fur shot because thre's no tent to go through.

 

We've been at it 6 weeks or so. In the beginning Kazi barely noticed, then she was okay so long as she was munching a treat while you did it. Now she twists her body around to give you the death glare and keep you from her scruff. I'll just pierce the skin and she'll pull away. ohmygod_smile Usually takes me finally saying ENOUGH and showing her the treats to get her on board and holding still. Checking her BG however is no issue...she has no issue being flipped on her back and having her toes rubbed.

 

So this morning I tented the skin by grabbing the fur instead of pinching the skin, and he didn't notice, was really good about it....if all of them could be this way then I'm happy. I'm taking them one day at a time

 

Is there a reason you shoot an hour after eating? We used to feed Basil up on a desk, with his dish in a flour pot so he didn't bend his head all the way down while eating. We gave the shot while he was eating and he never even noticed 99% of the time. The reason for preventing the head bend was it just made it a little bit easier and quicker to tent his skin.

Hope you get it all straightened out!

 

We are new to this, our 8 year old rescue cat, Macy, was diagnosed about a month ago. We've been giving her 3 units of Lantus, twice a day using a 31 gauge 5/16" syringe. The first few weeks she didn't mind the injections, but the past week shes been getting more and more rebellious when it comes shot time for me and not my wife. She does make some noise for my wife's turn(due to work schedules she gives the morning shot, I give the evening one). Macy watches me measure the dose, we do the injection on our bed with the doors closed so the other kitties leave her alone, and she hops on the bed of her own accord and then head buts the treat jar, purring very loudly. But once I move her into position to inject she begins to cry, tries to roll onto her back, and has even hissed at me. A few times I've had her try to run away while I'm injecting.

We've watched videos online, went to training at the vets office, read everything we can get our hands and eyes on. But for some reason she hates when I give the shots. The worst part is I'm the one of us that has some medical training from my days in the Army and giving each other IV's. I've had my wife critique me and says I'm too gentle with her but can't see any "flaws" in my techniques other than speed.

I guess I'm at my wits end hoping for some sort of suggestions as to what it could possibly be or what I can try different.

 

Hi FrednkimG

I alerted one of the moderators to your post as it's at the bottom of an active thread rather than posted on its own. If you'd like to repost it, select New Topic from top of board and copy/paste your text from here. Otherwise the moderator will separate it out for you, so look for it reposted toward the top of the board.

Quickly, if you're reading here - 3U of Lantus is way too high for a beginning dose! The reaction you're seeing from Macy could be because she equates the shot with feeling bad due to near or actual hypoglycemia (blood glucose below 40mg/dl.) So there is probably nothing wrong with your technique.

We recommend hometesting with a human blood glucose monitor - there are many types available, but the most cost effective is Wal-Mart's Reli-On brand meter. Veterinarians now have one for pets available, but strips are expensive and vets do not have convenient hours in case you run out during a crisis at 2AM.

Others will be along to offer other suggestions. Lantus is an excellent insulin if properly managed. The best advice on using Lantus is here: http://www.tillydiabetes.net/en_6_protocol2.htm

 

I gave Nova's shot pretty successfully with no fussing for many months once I got the hang of it.. and then she started getting really uptight about it.. I hadn't changed my technique at all.. so I actually started trying different rooms in the house.. it sounds so silly.. but I was desperate.. eventually I tried the upstairs bathroom.. locked "the boys" out.. give her some fussing and private 1 on 1 time.. give her treats for showing up.. maybe some brushes.. and the shot is again, no problem.. anywhere else in the house and it's a total disaster (testing anywhere in the house is not a problem.. she actually prefers variety for that).. don't ask me.. she's a cat.