i had to burrito wrap punkin for about 2 weeks before he gave up and let us test him. you can find videos on youtube on how to burrito a kitty. we thought the key was to wrap the towel tightly across his chest, pinning down his front legs. all of us hated it, but we were convinced that to keep him safe, we had to master the testing and he had to endure/accept it. wrapped tight, he was like a kitty-towel-shrimp and couldn't move.
have you had the tips on helping get blood? a warm ear bleeds better - people take a cotton sock, add 1/2 cup or so of raw rice, tie a knot to keep it in and nuke it just long enough to warm it up. hold that against the ear for a minute or so to warm it.
you can use a flashlight to shine through the ear and see where to poke.
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/download/file.php?id=4550&mode=view
get everything ready to go before you poke. make sure there is something hard under the ear so that the lancet device doesn't just bend the ear, but instead goes through it.
use a tiny bit of vaseline once a day to slick the hair a teeny bit so it doesn't absorb the blood into the hair.
if you get any blood, sorta wiggle/massage the ear to get the blood to flow. if you've got a drop and Char's still fighting you, use your fingernail to scrape off the blood and then you can test from your fingernail without so much stress.
every time you have a poke session, make certain you give a treat for her pain and suffering! ;-) it'll make all of you feel better. many people give it 3 tries and if they can't get blood, let it go and try again next time. don't forget the treat.
and remember, it takes a couple of weeks for the capillaries to grow - then you'll get blood every time.
you might try it on yourself first so you've gotten the hang of the lancet device and the glucometer.
be convinced that this is necessary for Char to be safe using insulin. and keep asking for help if you have trouble - everyone here has gone through it and come out the other side. we get it and different people have different tricks that have worked for them. you'll get there too!
