Doubts of all kinds

[AlyMcF]

I've been at this for a while now and realized I'm unclear on a few things.

1. Is the preshot number (AMPS and PMPS) also supposed to be pre-feeding?
Since my cat free feeds, sometimes he will have eaten something before I take his BG and sometimes not. I don't always know whether he's eaten or not.

2. How long after feeding is it recommended to give the shot?
I usually give it either right after he's done or up to 30 minutes later, but I don't know how much it matters.

3. How can I be sure I'm injecting Sketch under the skin and not into muscle or fat?
I'm basically doing what

is doing but I wonder about how the length of the needle affects it. We used to use a really short needle because that's what originally came with the Lantus Rx but now I've switched to Walgreens needles and they are longer.

 

[Larry and Kitties]

#1: the PS number is before eating. It is OK to do it 10 minutes or so after starting eating.
#2: With Lantus you can give shot right after eating. Witin 30 minutes should not really matter
#3: I like the shorter needles (5/16 inch/8 mm or the the even shorter 6 mm length needles. The instructions in your link are good. Just practice.

 

[Chris & China (GA)]

1. Is the preshot number (AMPS and PMPS) also supposed to be pre-feeding?
Since my cat free feeds, sometimes he will have eaten something before I take his BG and sometimes not. I don't always know whether he's eaten or not.

We really don't want them eating for the 2 hours before PS times so the PS numbers aren't influenced by food. If there's any food down after +10, I pick it up (but there's hardly ever anything left)

2. How long after feeding is it recommended to give the shot?

Most of us Test/Feed/Shoot, all within about 5-10 minutes...we Test to make sure they're high enough to give insulin, Feed to make sure they're eating "normally" and Shoot ...but it's fine to shoot a little later if you need to. With the earlier, harsher insulins, it was important to wait until they'd eaten a big meal and shoot 30 minutes to an hour later (so there were carbs "on board" when the insulin "hit") but with Lantus, it's not necessary to wait to shoot

3. How can I be sure I'm injecting Sketch under the skin and not into muscle or fat?

As long as you're pulling the skin up, you're going to get it in the right place. Some people "tent" the skin (like the video shows) and others grab some fur between the thumb and forefinger and "roll" their wrist to pull the skin up away from the muscle/fat layer. The new shorter needles make shooting into the muscle/fat layer pretty hard to do

 

[AlyMcF]

We really don't want them eating for the 2 hours before PS times so the PS numbers aren't influenced by food. If there's any food down after +10, I pick it up (but there's hardly ever anything left)

That's going to be tricky, especially in the morning, since it would require one of use humans get up two hours earlier than normal. And evenings would be a mess too. Sketch is the sort of cat who likes to eat food as soon as someone comes home from wherever, as if he doesn't when no one's around, for fear that his Food Source will never return to refill the bowl!

As long as you're pulling the skin up, you're going to get it in the right place. Some people "tent" the skin (like the video shows) and others grab some fur between the thumb and forefinger and "roll" their wrist to pull the skin up away from the muscle/fat layer. The new shorter needles make shooting into the muscle/fat layer pretty hard to do

What counts as a short needle? The one I have is 1/2" (12.7mm) which seems long to me. The old needles I used were probably 1/4" super short.

 

[Chris & China (GA)]

That's going to be tricky, especially in the morning, since it would require one of use humans get up two hours earlier than normal.

You might want to get an auto-feeder....you can set it to open whenever you want it to so he'd get used to looking to the feeder for food instead of the humans...LOL

What counts as a short needle? The one I have is 1/2" (12.7mm) which seems long to me. The old needles I used were probably 1/4" super short.

Those are fine....most of us use 8mm (5/16") needles, but the 1/2" ones are fine too

 

[AlyMcF]

You might want to get an auto-feeder....you can set it to open whenever you want it to so he'd get used to looking to the feeder for food instead of the humans...LOL

I have the sort of autofeeder which stays closed and then opens after a selected number of hours. It sounds like what I need in my situation is an autofeeder that will close up at a designated time. Is there such a feeder on the market? What happens if your cat is eating and it tries to close?

 

[Shiloh & Rhonda (GA)]

You can always set the last timer of the day for two hours before the shot, but leave the last compartment empty.