Failed again with Junior

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kay&junior

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We had no success last night with either blood from ear or blood from pad... so very frustrated, I sat down and cried.
2 attempt on the ear, and no blood, tried left ear, warmed it, vaselined it, poked it, no blood, he ran ( yes, he ran ) and hid, had to coax him out to get him to eat, gave him big hugs and tried the pad, he almost screamed, maybe it was me, but he cried out loud, and I couldn't stick him again. so he got food and shot.
This am, we got up early to do the pad, had everything ready last night so he wouldn't be wondering this morning, he is very smart, got him stuck twice, no blood, he wouldn't let me milk it, and then I put some anti-biotic on it, which he promptly rubbed off, so he got food and shot.
His Urine Glucose still shows a slow drop, down to about 750 this morning, so it is still going down slowly.
this weekend we are alone, DH had to go out of town for work, so me & Junior are going to bond.
so, once again, wish me luck!
thank-you!
 
Ugh... SO frustrating. Have you tried the larger lancets (26g?) My cat didn't seem to mind those, and it was far easier to get blood from her ear using them. With the 33g I had to poke and poke, and sometimes never got a blood drop, even with warming the ear and all that stuff.
 
I used a 26 g lancet, and I got a needle from work, sterile, and that was a 27 ga, 1/2" , tried the lancet punch thing, and free hand, just have to keep trying, and I know he is getting mad at me, the look in his eyes, why? I keep telling him it is for his own good I am doing this, or trying to.
 
No - you didn't fail! You are gaining experience, really! He didn't run this morning, so that is success. Keep warming the ear, and give him a treat after each poke - even with no blood.

The ears "learn" to bleed. It used to take multiple pokes with Rambo- sweet, patient boy- but after a couple of years, I could almost just point at the ear and say "Bleed!" ;-)

Patience and perseverance. You can do it.
 
kay&junior said:
I used a 26 g lancet, and I got a needle from work, sterile, and that was a 27 ga, 1/2"
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Just so you know, the larger the gauge number the smaller the needle. So, you want to use 26 gauge or LESS. Keep going, it will happen eventually!
 
I did forget that with the needle, smaller number, bigger needle, and I work in a doctors office!
Will get a 25 g and maybe a 23 ga, this is going to be a long weekend!

and I won't forget the treats, even with no blood!!!!
 
It also can be a technique issue. I learned when free handing, to hold it in an upward 45 degree ish angle and poke that way - not straight into the ear (like piercing). Here is a pic:

101_0669.jpg


Also, try to be relaxed when you are ready to do this. If you relax, so will the cat. I got good a poking Maui, but I did make her cry out on occasion. It just happens. I didn't feel bad about it, I did apologize and she got extra brushes (that was her treat).
 
Thanks Hilary!
I will add that to my bag of tricks, and hope with everything that has been passed on to me, we will get it done!
and I won't cry when he does, he will adjust, and it doesn't hurt him, right?
and always treats after!
 
kay&junior said:
Thanks Hilary!
I will add that to my bag of tricks, and hope with everything that has been passed on to me, we will get it done!
and I won't cry when he does, he will adjust, and it doesn't hurt him, right?
and always treats after!
Click to expand...

Believe me, he's not hurting. Cats have a very high tolerance for pain. They're more upset that you're restraining them/doing this weird thing to their ears than they care about the pokes. And eventually if you're calm and in control, and giving lots of treats after each test, they don't care about that anymore.
 
Ms. Kay & Junior!

Yea you!!!! I think I tried 5ish or more times before my sugar Bean and I got it down. Lots of treats, love and rubbing those ears. I am sure all of us are very proud of you for your efforts and the advantage you are giving Junior...you will get this done.

Now that my Bean is in remission, we are not testing as much and mommy & sugar girl have fallen out of habit....took 3 pokes just the other nite for a 60 reading! Almost gave up and decided to wait til the next day... I am going for smaller and larger size lancets this week end too.

Good luck on the bonding and home testing! ;-)
 
I'll tell you my story - when I first heard I needed to test the ears, I didn't see any pictures or video, and had no clue where on the ears to poke. So, I poked the center of her ear! Maui cried - loudly! and surprise no blood came out.

It was only after I did that, that I saw or was told where to poke - and it wasn't the center of the ear! It was the edge! Well, duh who knew! I didn't.

Think of the poking like a bee sting. And if you pierce the ear (I've done that to Maui several times) it's like getting your own ears pierced. It stings and hurts for a moment and then is gone. I also promised Maui her very own set of earrings for all the times I pierced her. She told me to pierce myself and wear it. So, I got another hole poked and told her it was in honor of her and the earring is a kitty.
 
Hillary & Maui said:
She told me to pierce myself and wear it. So, I got another hole poked and told her it was in honor of her and the earring is a kitty.
Click to expand...

You know, I never thought of this before. I may just have to go out and do it in honor of Trixie's ears.

I understand your frustrations, Kay. It's definitely all very challenging in the beginning, but you're doing a great job! Junior's ears WILL learn to bleed, and it will get easier!

Have a wonderful bonding weekend with Junior!

Amy
 
And a good ear-flapping head shake helps too. (That's the cat shaking it's head not you.)

It does get better/easier/quicker. Sometimes I swear Buddha's ear bleeds before I even poke it.
 
I had a lot of trouble getting blood early. What finally made it work for me were 2 things:

1. Lots of pokes. I realized that S'mores could not care less about the poke (using the Lancet Pen), just hated having his ears touched. So I just poked repeatedly until a good droplet of blood popped out on it's own without milking. Sometimes it took 10 tries :sad: but he really did not care, so long as I got it overwith quickly. One member here suggested multiple pokes in the same spot can "ooze" enough blood to get a reading.

2. I switched to the clear "alternate site" tip on the Relion pen, and put my finger directly behind it and made sure the the ear got a good solid poking. With just a rice sock, or something soft, I think the lancet just bounced off half the time. With my finger behind, I can feel if it was a good poke.

It get's easier, really!
 
Maybe have a glass of wine before poking and then treat yourself with a little chocolate for your efforts. It'll be ok. In no time you'll be writing that you've joined the "vampire" club!
 
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