2/4 Pumpkin: First shot

Thread in welcome forum: New member: Jacques

I gave Pumpkin her first shot today. Didn't get a pre-shot measurement (she's can be spicy and we're still negotiating access to her ears), she was at 393 around 11 am and I didn't want to keep stalling since it'll be harder to observe her after Monday. I'll only get so many tests in a day to start, so since I already had a measurement from this morning I wanted to save the remainder for tonight after the shot.

The injection itself seemed to go reasonably well. I spread a thin layer of canned food so that it would take her plenty of time to lap it up. Tented some skin, brushed some fur aside so I could view the skin, put in the needle (3/10 CC 31g 8 mm), plunged.

I noticed a little droplet of blood on the needle after. Is that a sign of incorrect injection technique, or pretty normal? Photo: (I couldn't figure out uploads on the forum so I attached it on my website: https://jacquesfortierart.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/IMG_7305.jpeg)

I'm also wondering how important the test-feed-shoot sequence is. Pumpkin has had a very strong appetite her entire life. If there's food in front of her, she'll eat it unless she's very sick. Even before diabetes she was very prone to hanger. It's much easier to test her if she isn't super hungry. Ideally I would do something like this in the morning:

1. Automatic feeder gives her some food 30-60 minutes before testing time
2. I wake up, give her a treat, test her, give her a treat
3. I feed her the rest of her food and give her the insulin while she's eating it

So far it seems like she doesn't mind being bothered for the shot while eating, but she does mind me messing with her ears while eating. So that sequence would keep her the most relaxed for the different things we need to do.

 

Whoops, got the title wrong. I'll go look for how to edit post titles....

 

Hello and welcome to this forum. POSTING GUIDELINES PLEASE READ You've got a good start with the kitty name.

Sometimes you can nick an artery and get a bit of blood, no worry. To add a picture to your text, you can either copy and paste it into the text box, or drag and drop from a computer.

As far as the test - feed - shoot routine goes, it's important to make sure the test number is not up higher due to feeding. So that's why we test before feeding. It does take 20-30 minutes for the carbs to go from the plate to the blood stream, so you could feed in that 10-15 minute range. The only down side to that is if you get a number that is low enough that you would normally stall the shot. When we stall or delay the shot, to see if the numbers will go higher to a number you feel comfy shooting, you don't want to feed as you want the numbers rise to be as a result of time (not food), showing that kitty is coming up on their own.

It's fine to give something like a few low or no carb treats before hand, if that helps the testing routine. My cat was also extremely interested in food, but she soon learned that if she stayed still for the test, yummy treats and then food was next.

 

while you are in your thread, or when you click on your thread, you will see on far right side of screen, opposite your current tiltle "Thread tools", hover over and a dropdown option appears "edit title".

 

How much fasting time do they need before the PS test? Pumpkin's used to a series of many controlled feedings over the course of the day (a total of eight between wet and dry food; we're in the process of moving her over to wet but it's a process because of her allergies). Hopefully it's "only two big meals a day". I don't think we could make it work if she had to go that long between big meals.

While Pumpkin is very food-motivated, that doesn't extend to letting me handle her. She's very cuddly on her own terms. When I need to poke or prod her, the only thing that works is total warfare. Unfortunately my current lancing technique requires three hands, so it's tough. I'm still working at it!

 

Two hours post-shot and I can't get in to do a test, which isn't a huge surprise. She seems a bit more jumpy and energetic than she has been of late. I know that's probably my imagination because Lantus takes a while to kick in, but I feel like I didn't get as much hissing when I handled her ears over the past couple days.

I'm giving her regular bits and food and seeing if she'll simmer down a little so I can get in with an ear poke.

 

When people are new, we suggest a 2 hour fast before PS test. Over time, and once you've gathered data, you'll get a better idea of how much her numbers will go up with food, and can use that to factor in whether the preshot is safe to shoot. Many people here have grazers, or do many mini meals, so that should work. It's just getting the timing right.

Good luck with the poking.