Frustrated

Status
Not open for further replies.
beausgrrl

beausgrrl

Member
Well, I've spent this day off and on shmoozing with my kitty Shadow and attempting to draw blood from either of his ears. I can't believe the other day when I had outdated test strips and didn't realize it I got blood on the second try. Today I must have pricked the poor guy 6 times and nothing! The problem is he isn't crazy about having me rub his ears to warm them up, or use the rice sock, or anything else around his ears so I'm trying to rub them all the time when I see him to get him used to it. But I have to try to prick his ears behind closed doors or else he'll panic because my rescue lab gets his prey drive going and is fascinated by kitty - and kitty doesn't like being stuck behind a closed door. He's been super good and I've given him some canned food but I just ordered some halo freeze dried chicken treats to appropriately reward him when I do this pricking business! I'm going to try again shortly and use vaseline this time, I had used neosporin and that didn't go over to well either. Another thing is trying to stay calm and breathe............ whew.
 
I was very nervous when I first tried testing Ollie. The meter I got came with that..thing that clicks the lancet out quickly.

So..I tried with the clicky thing and was awful with it. I tried it on several "depths". She hated it..she ran away. I didn't get blood. I tried the rice sock and like you, that didn't really work.

I watched several YouTube videos. In one of them, the guy stabs his cat's ear freehand with a lancet, without the weird device. Eventually I rolled up a paper towel and put it under very warm water. I put this on the inside of her ear and I freehand stabbed her. Success! Now its at the point where I can walk up to her wherever she is, get the stabbing done and walk away without her ever flinching.

I think you just need to try a lot of different things and styles and eventually you find what works for you and your cat. I know its frustrating, but keep at it. It is SO worth it.
 
Thanks Sue and Carribou, I def. need more practice and will try free hand again, of course I read to do that at an up angle and completely didn't do that when I tried it! I also need to condition him to having a folded papertowel on the inside of his ear too as he tries to back away when I rub his ear and when I try to hold him he gets a bit antsy. Gave him some tiny pieces of freeze dried liver and he seemed happy about that at least after.
 
I know EXACTLY what you are feeling, I just started home testing yesterday, and it has not gone well so far. I have gotten the blood, but at great struggle and hissing and growling. It does seem to go better when I am not nervous. Good Luck!
 
I know exactly how you feel, because we've only been at it for a few weeks ourselves. But, just as everyone says, it does get easier! The first test with our Trixie was stressful for all of us, and I felt awful doing it, but I knew it was vital for her safety. So we perservered. I free-handed it the first time, but started using the clickie thing right after; I do find I have more control with the clickie device. Until today, testing her was a two person job, but just for the heck of it I tried testing her by myself this afternoon. I was successful 4 times!

One little thing that I do while I'm waiting for the drop to form is I scratch both her cheeks, while holding her head from behind with both of my hands. It seems to be enough of a positive distraction that she doesn't feel inclined to shake her head or run before I can collect the drop. Like you've, there have been times that I've had to do many pricks to get the blood. If she starts getting restless, I'll give her one little treat, then try again.

You'll get there! Lots of scritches, praise, and low-carb treats will help along the way. Good luck!

Amy
 
My kitty doesn't like his ears messed with either. The trick that has worked for me is to give him a tiny bowl of tuna juice at test time - while he's slurping it down I can do pretty much anything to him. :lol: Or you could try any kind of treat or food that your cat particularly loves, just a little distraction.
 
Those both sound like great tips that I'll try when I do the prick tomorrow. I got blood a little while ago!!!! :) And amazingly enough it was a reading of 77 ! He is not on insulin, but I changed him to an all canned low carb high protein diet last week (mainly Wellness-yes I know about the recall ugh). SO, I'm hoping the number isn't way off and I'll see what the results are tomorrow a.m. :) I'm so excited to test again. I can't believe such a drastic change from the vet's results of 360!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top