? Could I be hitting a nerve? Harold is refusing his needle.

[Stephboomer]

could I be hitting a nerve or a vein? I give him his needle between his arm and ribs. Has been going good but the odd time he majorly jumps like I've got a nerve and now he's scared of his needle. I tried his scruff the other day and he jumped and went to scratch it. Help

 

[ozzysmom]

could I be hitting a nerve or a vein? I give him his needle between his arm and ribs. Has been going good but the odd time he majorly jumps like I've got a nerve and now he's scared of his needle. I tried his scruff the other day and he jumped and went to scratch it. Help

Hi! My Ozzy can be jumpy with his shots as well. I think he would get startled more than hurt. Now I shoot when he is eating. I put a few treats in his food and give him a good scratching on his scruff (which he loves) to kind of desensitize his skin , then I tent up a good amount of his scruff and shoot. I think the trick is to act like he is just getting a good rub and I find if I tent a larger amount he doesn't seem to notice as much.
It's hard when they get afraid. Try shooting at a different time and get a really yummy treat. Ozzy loves the freeze dried salmon and I only give it to him when it's insulin time.
Hope this helps

 

[Tuxedo Mom]

Some kitties are more sensitive to Lantus because it is more acidic than the normal body PH. I was using Lantus initially and have a higher dose kitty. Once I got up to over 3 units I found he flinched more and tried to pull away more. I switched to Levemir which is the same PH as the body and found less problems with that. I rotate my shots in the abdomen and flank and find that if I do not pull the skin up high enough that with my other kitty she will sometimes "quiver". So it could be from either cause.

Just a comment. I don't know if you are following the TR (Tight Regulation) od SLGS (start low go slow) approach for dose changes. If you are following SLGS the numbers you hit yesterday morning would have called for a dose reduction of 1/4 unit (reduce below 90 for SLGS) If you are following TR you would wait until the numbers dropped below 50.

 

[Kris & Teasel]

I try to pull up on the skin fairly strongly to make it more taut but also to create a sensation to counteract the poke of the needle. At the beginning my guy was on Lantus and reacted to its acidity even at a very low dose.

 

[jayla-n-Drevon]

I was so nervous to shoot in the belly but Dre doesn't even seem to notice that there is a needle? Might be worth a try?
I think it helps that Dre has chubbies
I do notice since switching to Lev there is no reaction anywhere tho.....

 

[Tuxedo Mom]

 

[jayla-n-Drevon]

That is a awesome diagram!