8/6 Salem +6 569 I fail at blood samples.

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phedre

Member Since 2012
Yesterday

After failing this morning to get a sample, I managed to get one at +6 after about 15 minutes of trying. He was NOT happy. I'm worried that it's stressing him out and making his numbers higher.

It took a while to get a sample from his ear, I ended up switching to his left ear after poking his right ear repeatedly and coming up dry. The poor thing was cranky and squirming for most of it.

He's definitely perky first thing in the morning, and dives into his food, but then as the day goes on he becomes more and more withdrawn. I'm not sure if it's the eating that's upsetting his stomach, or if it's something else. I'm syringe feeding him still, which he doesn't seem to mind. I got 40ccs into him at about 10 AM, so 2h before the blood test, and I'll give him another 40ccs now.

When he dove into his food this morning I got very excited, but after about five minutes he left it. He also ate a bunch of treats during his shot which was great, but again, not interested in them now.

On a positive note, he's using the litter box normally, drinking some water, and not vomiting at all. I just wish he'd stay in his perky morning attitude all day. We also had another negative ketone test this morning.

I'm going to stick with the MD to avoid stomach upset for now, and wait to hear from his vet.

Edit: I managed about 25ccs and then he started getting extra cranky. I let him down and we'll try again in a couple of hours.
 
FWIW, with many of our cats, one ear seems to bleed better than the other.

What I would suggest, is to try poking no more than 3 times and then take a break. No matter whether you're successful or not, Salem gets a treat. It's important to create the association between testing and treats. Also, you need to be relaxed about the process. Salem is your kitty. If you're stressed, he's going to sense it and become stressed as well. Gabby gets all kinds of hugs, chin and ear scratches, and told what a good girl she is at test time. It's an opportunity for you and Salem to bond. This is the process that allows you to make sure Salem is safe -- you're taking care of him and at some level, he will understand this.

Testing more, rather than less, will give you an opportunity to spend that time with Salem. I think a lot of people who are new to managing their cat's diabetes make the same error that vets do -- they think that testing their cat will cause their cat to "hate" them. I test a fair amount. Marje tests her Gracie more than I test Gabby and Jasper's caregiver has become addicted to his green numbers. Take a look at anyone's SS. The amount that people test varies but most, if not all of us will tell you it is not an aversive experience. Even the squirmiest of cats learns to settle down and at the minimum, put up with our testing. They get it. Some of our cats will run to their test spot and wait, and even purr.

From the looks of your SS, Salem really needs more insulin.
 
Sienne and Gabby said:
From the looks of your SS, Salem really needs more insulin.
Click to expand...

I definitely agree, and it's one of the things I'm talking to his vet about.

Thanks for the heads up on ears. I'm definitely doing lots of petting, though he won't eat treats right now.
 
Ooo, testing-addiction, yup, that's me, too! :mrgreen: But like Sienne says - Karre soon realized he always got lots of extra cuddles, and a few treats, at test-time, and now when we show up with the lancet pen he starts purring!

Jane
 
Hi,
You might need to explore and find him another treat.

I would say some of our cats can go thru a phase of resentment. That's why the association of a really good treat
has such a positive effect. The treats should only come at testing time.
That grumpiness comes from not liking this kind of attention but he will figure out it's helping over time.
My cat lets me know ( it's been a month) she's not liking it but she does cooperate now because she's figured out
I am still going to check her, with or without her cooperation.
She eagerly anticipates her favorite treat but she doesnt come running for the beep.
Instead , she hears the beep and looks up , like, "that again?" , "you have a treat for me , right?"

Do you have a special location where you do the testing?
Someone had said that her cat knows he is safe everywhere else in the house the rest of the time. They always went to
this one chair to do everything.

When you test, are the ears cool to the touch or warm? Cool ears don't bleed very well.
Rubbing and heat help get that circulation going and give you a higher chance of success.
It really takes practice and time.
You will get there. Try to relax and remind yourself how much you are helping your cat.
 
I want to tweek some of the information that Rhiannon noted. She's right that cool ears don't necessarily bleed well. This is especially the case in the beginning. The more you poke, the more you build up the capillary bed. The more capillaries there are, the greater the likelihood that you will get blood when you poke. It is easier if your cat's ears are warm. They will bleed much more easily, regardless of their temperature, once the capillary bed has expanded. You had mentioned previously that you were getting too much blood. The is likely due to poking the vein.

If your cat "tolerates" testing, using one location in the house may be helpful. I can pretty much test my cat anywhere. I go to where she is with the exception of the times that I'm testing and feeding.

Special treats that are associated with testing may be fine. If Salem tends to be picky, finding treats that he'll eat may be more important than a treat that's solely associated with testing. From the standpoint of behavior modification, as long as the reward for the behavior you want is a positive reinforcement, it will work. None of this is written in stone. You have to do what works for your cat and every cat is different.
 
I've been warming and massaging his ears, and we have one spot (the top of my dining table) where we're doing all his testing, injections, and feedings. The treats i'm using are his favourite, freeze dried chicken breast, and he devoured some this morning, but right now he's not interested in food AT ALL. I'll keep offering those and extra pettings while poking his poor ears though.

I think something's upsetting his stomach or making him feel off after eating. I'll know more after I hear from his vet.
 
Test addict here :lol: trying to cut back...

Hang in there and try not to get too discouraged. I have noticed that warmer ear does help to get a sample, you may want to try the flashlight method someone posted about. The light will warm the ear, make the vein eaiser to see, and is a firm surface to poke against. I did and often enough still do have to stick Jasper's ear more than once to get a decent blood drop, and sometimes I hit the gusher. Sometimes I don't get enough blood on the strip and have to get out another strip without letting him go. Despite those glitches we still manage to get useful data. Keep at testing and after a while you and Salem will get comfortable with it.

Re treats, in the early weeks we tested Jasper without treats because he wont eat the cat treats we had. He likes yogurt but is no longer allowed finish mine because of the sugar. Last week I got him plain greek yogurt and give him a little bit ~1/8 tsp as a test treat. Now he is starting to come to test central when he hears the plastic lid or sees the little spoon, even on testmania days. And if he bites me, I get a treat :smile: . Good luck and hang in there!
Leslie
 
Lots of good points I agree with.
Bob never really gave me a hard time with testing. He put up with the early failures on my part very well. ;-)
HIs left ear always bled better than his right ear, no matter how many times I tried the right ear.
The more you poke, the better the ears bleed. The warmer the ear, the easier the blood flows.
The bigger the lancet, the easier it is when you start out. I failed miserably with 33g lancets, but 26g worked perfectly at first.
Treats worked wonders for Bob. Apparently "Beep" from the meter translate to "Shrimp" for Bob. He's been OTJ a little over a year. He gets tested at most once a month. If I go right now and get out the meter, and he hears the beep when I turn it on, he will run from wherever he is in the house and sit at my feet and purr. It's like a magic word or something!
BUT, treats aren't the only motivation, like Sienne said. I've read other people say that pokey time means extra loving and brushing, for instance, and that is enough motivation to some cats. Just "something special" that equates to a reward for putting up with being tested is all you need. I can't recall hearing (reading) anyone say that a very difficult kitty was still very difficult after two or three weeks of testing.

Carl
 
Maverick's ear bled better at the tips, off to the outer sides.

Your vet has a copy of the RAND protocol - I gave it to her when she was debating whether to take Maverick on as a patient. I was looking for a vet that would be okay with the protocol. She did read it and agreed to take Maverick on. Maverick was a micro dose kitty with a spreadsheet with many months of information though.
 
Trix's ears bleed better at the tips, too. But I also remember the early days...it was challenging and required many pokes sometimes.

I hope Salem's tummy is feeling better. Could it actually be the MD that is causing the upset? Hopefully you've got some answers by now. Hang in there!!!
 
Hi,
I don't think I've visited your condo yet, so just wanted to say welcome. When learning to do the ear prick I found out that the blood flows from the tip down. Therefore, if you put some pressure below the spot where you plan to prick and then do the ear prick, the blood will have "pooled" a little and it is easier to get a blood drop. Do you use a lancet device? I have found that using the device makes the whole process quicker and less painful (but this is a personal observation and many people prefer to do the ear prick free-hand).

Good luck. I hope that Salem will settle down for you, begin to eat better, and that you both can start enjoying life. It all really does get easier and better.

Hang in there!

Ella & Rusty
 
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