Fur shots

[Karin&Jesse]

I see many charts noting that a given injection may have been a fur shot. I'm new to diabetes in my own cats but with all my animals I'm an old hand at injecting. When I give Jesse her insulin I take a damp paper towel and moisten and part the hair around where I am going to give it. She is short haired, but has very thick hair with a fluffy undercoat. This way I can flatten the fluff so I can clearly see the skin. I give the injection along the side, which makes it easier to restrain her in my lap, and at the same time easily pick up the skin on her right side anyway, her left side is a bit trickier. This way I believe I am avoiding fur shots.

 

[KPassa]

That's a good tip to dampen the fur first. I know some of my fur shots are just due to my incompetence, impatience, or a struggling, stubborn kitty who is not in the mood to get a shot. :lol:

Another problem with fur shots (at least with Michelangelo) depends on the needle length. When I use short needles on him, I've noticed sometimes it'll "leak" back out a little bit and I'll suddenly smell insulin a while after I've given a shot. With long needles, there's sometimes the "sewing needle" issue where you accidentally poke through to the other side or it wasn't pushed in far enough.