? Adequan sub-q or intramuscular?

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Alicia2022

Alicia2022

Member Since 2022
Bella is scheduled for her first Adequan injection tomorrow, and I just remembered that when we're discussing this with our vet she wasn't sure if this injection should be subcutaneous or intramuscular o_O
I hope she did double-check this in the meantime... but I would also like to be sure, so I figured I ask here!
And what would be the right dose for a 7.5 lbs cat? Thanks :cat:
 
You would have to ask your vet about dosing, Chewie gets 0.23mL and she is about 11 pounds.
I always give it to her subcutaneously in the scruff. From what my vet told me, IM is used for dogs, but cats do better with subQ.

[edited to correct dose]
 
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I've always given it sub-q in the flank area using an insulin syringe and the dose for cats is 1 mg to 2.5 mg per pound. The loading dose is given every 4 days for a total of 7 doses. My cat had pretty bad arthritis in his spine and got weekly doses after that but most cats can go longer between shots.

It's a rather expensive drug and having to bring the cat in twice a week makes it even more costly. It's less expensive to administer the injections at home if you're comfortable with that. I got it from Chewy - they called my vet for the script.

https://www.chewy.com/adequan-canine-injectable-dogs/dp/176383
 
Thanks everyone, this is really helpful! :cat:

Deborah & Muffy(GA) & Wendall said:
I've always given it sub-q in the flank area using an insulin syringe and the dose for cats is 1 mg to 2.5 mg per pound. The loading dose is given every 4 days for a total of 7 doses. My cat had pretty bad arthritis in his spine and got weekly doses after that but most cats can go longer between shots.

It's a rather expensive drug and having to bring the cat in twice a week makes it even more costly. It's less expensive to administer the injections at home if you're comfortable with that. I got it from Chewy - they called my vet for the script.
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We're told that the initial regimen is going to be twice a week for 4 weeks, then once weekly for 4 weeks, then once monthly. We already bought the medication at the vet. I sure hope we'll be able to give it at home but the doses seem so huge compared to insulin... we'll see.
 
Larry and Kitties said:
Are you sure it is 2.3mL? That is a large dose. My Moxie and Mia, who weighted 9 and 10 lbs or so got 0.22 and 0.25 mL. My 18 lb dog gets 0.33 mL. The cat got it SubQ while the dog is IM.
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Whoops I absolutely messed up the decimal… I blame lack of sleep :p
I will go edit my post so no one ever gets the notion of giving their poor cat 10x the dose!!
 
Alicia2022 said:
Thanks everyone, this is really helpful! :cat:



We're told that the initial regimen is going to be twice a week for 4 weeks, then once weekly for 4 weeks, then once monthly. We already bought the medication at the vet. I sure hope we'll be able to give it at home but the doses seem so huge compared to insulin... we'll see.
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That’s the same regimen we got. Only the first injection was at the vet. I actually find it easier than insulin because you can inject in the scruff where the skin is less sensitive. I give the cats a couple of treats and they barely notice the shot.
 
So, Bella's first injection at the clinic went well and we were sent back with a package of Adequan and a bag of syringes because they told us we have to use not our U-40 syringes but bigger TB syringes. But I don't like the huge needles these syringes have! Sure enough, a vet tech gave Bella a shot without any problems but I would much prefer using our U-40 syringes with thin short needles for Adequan shots as well.
You guys are using insulin syringes for Adequan, is that correct? I understand U-40s are not standard size syringes and I have to figure out how much Bella's dose of Adequan (0.2) would be in units. Besides this conversion, is there anything I should worry about? Like, Adequan liquid being too thick for a tiny insulin needle, for example? Or should it be injected deeper under the skin than insulin?
 
Alicia2022 said:
So, Bella's first injection at the clinic went well and we were sent back with a package of Adequan and a bag of syringes because they told us we have to use not our U-40 syringes but bigger TB syringes. But I don't like the huge needles these syringes have! Sure enough, a vet tech gave Bella a shot without any problems but I would much prefer using our U-40 syringes with thin short needles for Adequan shots as well.
You guys are using insulin syringes for Adequan, is that correct? I understand U-40s are not standard size syringes and I have to figure out how much Bella's dose of Adequan (0.2) would be in units. Besides this conversion, is there anything I should worry about? Like, Adequan liquid being too thick for a tiny insulin needle, for example? Or should it be injected deeper under the skin than insulin?
Click to expand...
@Larry and Kitties

@Wendy&Neko
 
I did the adequan shots myself... Got the perscription from chewy. Sub q just like an insulin shot.
 
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Alicia2022 said:
I found a bunch of human insulin syringes at home, they are U-100 and have 30 gauge 8 mm needles, I think we're going to try one of these for Bella's next Adequan shot. Thanks y'all for comments!
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Adequan gave my cat a much better quality of life for several years. I hope it works well for you. My cat had severe arthritis from acromegaly.... So she would get a shot every two weeks in the summer and almost every week in the winter.
 
@Alicia2022 I gave my tomcat Adequan with u-100 syringes. Someone here helped me with the calculations to dosing with them and I do not remember how they did it unfortunately. I believe it ended up being I'd give twice the numbers of his weight in units. So I'd weigh him before every shot and if he was 11 lbs, I'd give 22 units in a u-100.
 
Panic said:
@Alicia2022 I gave my tomcat Adequan with u-100 syringes. Someone here helped me with the calculations to dosing with them and I do not remember how they did it unfortunately. I believe it ended up being I'd give twice the numbers of his weight in units. So I'd weigh him before every shot and if he was 11 lbs, I'd give 22 units in a u-100.
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This is my very question! My girl is supposed to get 0.22cc....she's 8 lbs. I drew up 0.2cc, squirted it into a spoon and sucked it up with a u100 syringe.
 
Kahluasmom said:
This is my very question! My girl is supposed to get 0.22cc....she's 8 lbs. I drew up 0.2cc, squirted it into a spoon and sucked it up with a u100 syringe.
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I did some digging and found my old post when it was being explained to me but since I can't math and it's late I can't make heads or tails of it.

Edit: Sorry for the tag you two, didn't realize you were already tagged earlier
 
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Kahluasmom said:
This is my very question! My girl is supposed to get 0.22cc....she's 8 lbs. I drew up 0.2cc, squirted it into a spoon and sucked it up with a u100 syringe.
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Although this is no longer relevant for us because I decided to use human syringes (which basically are u-100), I see that this topic is getting some traffic, so in case anyone wants to use u-40 syringes to administer Adequan, here is a conversion chart: https://www.raymed.co.uk/blogs/news/converting-u40-insulin-units-to-u100-insulin-syringes
Orignially, we did exactly that "squirting into a spoon" trick and measured the amount of liquid in two different syringe types , so I can confirm that the conversion chart is accurate.
For example, Bella's dose of Adequan (calculated for 7.3 lbs weight) is 0.2 ml which was 8 on a u-40 syringe.
 
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