Get blood from my cat!!!
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Sue and Oliver (GA)
Member Since 2009
Sometimes it helps to slowly start the process. PIck a place where you want to test. Some people use the kitchen counter, a blanket on the floor, between your legs while sitting – whatever works for you. Take the kitty there and give him/her lots of praise while you play with his/her ears. Give a treat and release. Next time, add the rice sack (thin sock filled with raw rice, heated in the microwave until very warm but not hot) or a prescription pill bottle filled with very warm water. Lots of praise, treat and release. Finally add the lancet so he/she will get used to the noise. This could take several days or more with a couple times a day on each step. Always add the treat and make sure it is something she really likes - and that you use only for testing.
Here are some low carb treats: Lo carb treats
A kitty burrito worked for us. We wrapped Oliver in a towel with only his head showing. He couldn't get away and we could stay out of the way of claws and teeth. We only had to use it for a few weeks.
If it is a complete issue and nothing else works, some people use the clothespin trick. They put clothespins along the nape of the neck of the cat (2 people would be handy for this) It sort of freezes them - like a mother cat that picks up the kitten in that same spot. I would use this as a last resort, but some people have used it and then could gradually back off as the cat realized a treat was part of the process every time. (This is really the secret to hometesting. They will put up with it as long as their favorite treat is involved.)
Others will have ideas if you check back periodically. Yours is not the first difficult cat to test and won't be the last. :mrgreen: But people have found ways around it.
Here are some low carb treats: Lo carb treats
A kitty burrito worked for us. We wrapped Oliver in a towel with only his head showing. He couldn't get away and we could stay out of the way of claws and teeth. We only had to use it for a few weeks.
If it is a complete issue and nothing else works, some people use the clothespin trick. They put clothespins along the nape of the neck of the cat (2 people would be handy for this) It sort of freezes them - like a mother cat that picks up the kitten in that same spot. I would use this as a last resort, but some people have used it and then could gradually back off as the cat realized a treat was part of the process every time. (This is really the secret to hometesting. They will put up with it as long as their favorite treat is involved.)
Others will have ideas if you check back periodically. Yours is not the first difficult cat to test and won't be the last. :mrgreen: But people have found ways around it.
Rachel
Member Since 2013
Sue has great suggestions (as always). I used the kitty burrito for about a week til Gypsy calmed down.
Honestly, I think what worked best for us was having a test spot. A towel on the kitchen floor. She never liked testing but she knew in that spot she had to hold still and a treat would immediately follow. She also figured out that meals followed morning and evening test and she wanted those!
I'd always test in one place, always treat even if the test doesn't work. And just stay super calm. They can feel your stress and react to it. If you're calm, they usually are. And don't forget a treat for you after too!
Honestly, I think what worked best for us was having a test spot. A towel on the kitchen floor. She never liked testing but she knew in that spot she had to hold still and a treat would immediately follow. She also figured out that meals followed morning and evening test and she wanted those!
I'd always test in one place, always treat even if the test doesn't work. And just stay super calm. They can feel your stress and react to it. If you're calm, they usually are. And don't forget a treat for you after too!
KPassa
Member Since 2012
I had quite a difficult time when first learning how to test Michelangelo and it took me an entire week before I was able to even get one successful test in. Now a year and a half later, Mikey comes to me when he wants to be tested. That's right; he wants to be tested sometimes! 
Here's something I wrote up for difficult cats that you might find helpful and might give you a few more ideas to try. I also wrote this up about taking your time with the testing if you need to.
Here's something I wrote up for difficult cats that you might find helpful and might give you a few more ideas to try. I also wrote this up about taking your time with the testing if you need to.
KPassa
Member Since 2012
At first, it seems like a lot of work, but once you get the hang of it, it's just a matter of practicing it till it becomes easier and eventually automatic. There are times when I wake up in the morning and find out I somehow grabbed a test in the middle of the night with no recollection of it except for a scrawl of numbers on a pad of paper next to my bed. ohmygod_smile
Or, stop trying so hard. ;-) Sometimes you can overcompensate by doing too much and stressing both you and the kitty out. Remember, three pokes and then a treat for both your cat and yourself! Here are some more testing tips that you might find helpful (if you're not overwhelmed yet :lol: ).goopsy123 said:
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