Hates testing, suggestions please

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TygerLilly

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Morphy had no problem with the injections, but has a real problem with the testing because he has to be restrained. I can't test on his ears because both have hematomias, I can't even touch them. I have yet to get a successful reading, even when I had a friend over willing to wrestle him into submission. I'm disabled and a physical wrestling match on a daily basis is beyond my capabilities. I don't have anyone to help me on a regular basis. It's the restraint he hates, not the needle.

I'm having a hard time with the lancet too. I read the directions, my friend read them too. So far it doesn't work even on me. The needle guard has an adjustable setting, but it doesn't seem to help. Seems like the needle doesn't go past the guard far enough. My monitor just gives me error messages. Too little blood (not the case) blood added after test, although it was all added at once. Really hard to get a reading on an angry struggling cat.

Food distracts him enough for the quickie insulin injection, but having to poke a paw requires a bit more. The usual trick of wrapping him in a towel really isn't feasible.

He wet on the floor tonight. Lake Morphy. Half of his body must be bladder. On the bright side, I've stuffed him with so much food today he didn't bother to come fetch me when the alarm went off. Although he was quite happy to devour the cat food soup while he got his injection. For once he wasn't even interested in his evening chicken. He had the same look on his furry face as my uncle gets after Thanksgiving dinner.
 
I can't use my cat's ears either.....but I don't actually use the paws....but rather, that one dew claw that's up higher (they don't walk on it). I found my cat freaks if I go for the pads, but lets me hit dew claw at any time. Here's what we do and it's become a routine (took some time...but it's textbook every time now).
We have a testing spot on the counter. I pull out his "red plastic mat" and his "testing bowl" (routine for him, so he sees it coming and starts purring). I set my supplies up, inserting test strip partially into the meter, I squirt a little big of Neosporin on the side of the testing bowl for easy access when I'm done, and I tear off thin strips of chicken and put them in his bowl. I pick up a piece of the chicken and I hand feed it to him (he waits for me to do this now...he won't go into that bowl himself!). As soon as he "bites", I pick up the front leg closest to me and gently bend it so that the dew claw is exposed. Sometimes he tenses up, and sometimes even tries to bite me (which is all an act by the way)...and when he does, I keep hold of it (because this reinforces that we are doing this). If this happens, I reach over and hand him another piece of chicken (while still holding). I then take my lancet (which by the way I NEVER use the device, I just free poke) and stick the dew claw. When I began, I needed a 28 gauge lancet....we've since graduated to 30 (they become better bleeders). At this point, push your set up test strip all the way into the meter so that you're ready. Now this is where your patience comes in. It takes a few seconds for the blood to happen and it will without squeezing or any pressure from you if you wait it out. While I"m waiting, I'm still holding the leg, and still hand feeding pieces of chicken. As soon as enough blood is present, I pick up the meter and test strip and get my sample. Once the meter beeps, I dab the Neosporin off of the bowl and apply it to the dew claw, holding with a small amount of pressure for about 10 seconds....still hand feeding as I do this (this helps to stop the bleeding and helps to keep the area from becoming soar). Any chicken left, I put back in the Tupperware and we go about our day.

My cat is a terror too and restrained he will not be ;-) . The key for us is the routine (same every time), that I hand feed the chicken (this keeps him focused on each feeding event vs. foraging in a bowl that he knows he controls), and lastly, but probably most importantly, is that he knows I'm in charge of this and that I am not going to be swayed by his biting attempts, etc...because I've learned...at the end of the day, it's an act and a bite isn't really a bite (he's just trying to show me he's boss).

It took us a bit of time to get here, but not too long and now, my Dracula cat purrs through the whole thing. He actually spends 95% of his time at the testing spot...just waiting for me to poke him!
 
Ms. tygerlilly & morphy -
So sorry to hear that you are having a difficult time. My sugar Bean is OTJ and we tried to test the other nite, we were a mess....we are out of the habit and she was figgeting and mommy bean was sweating like no other, nervous and just did not want to do this process. I was calm on the outside, talking to her, telling her she was such a good girl, and of course offering treats (petco tuna flakes). She still was not buying it, but she was 51! I guess she was telling me 'no need to test mommy' . I looked at the meter and realized it had been 1 month and 2 days since her last test, so I know that most of our problems is that we are out of routine.
Have you posted what area you are in? Perhaps someone could come help until the routine is well underway? You might have and I just dont remember. What kind of treats are you offering? How are you trying to restrain? Are there other furry family members around while you are trying? I know Bean does not like Civvie Lil Sista or Civvie Slappy around when we do pokey poke, so I have to shut them into another room for a few min. so Bean and I have our time alone. She seems less stressed, no one is trying to steal her treats, or be nosey as to why she is getting all of the love attention.
Wishing you luck as we all know, it is very important to test! and very frustrating at first as well....
Special note to Morphy:::: BEEEEE GOOOD FOR MOMMY! :smile:
 
I too have a cat that is hard to test. I have to chase her from under furniture and around the back of the couch and everything else. She hates it. I am by myself as well and do understand. I am just happy when I can get to test her. Even if someone would come over to help she would run and hide so thats no help.
I know its a real problem when you have a diabetic cat that does not want to be tested or given shots to, it very stressful and overwhelming.
My cat will not eat treats either, she has not interest in them. So that does not help. If I put treats out the two other fatties 22lbs and 15lbs scarf them up.
Terri
 
I live outside Salem Oregon.

Treats don't make him sit still long enough when it's a paw. It would work if it was an ear, sigh. Good point about the other cats, no they were not out, I was afraid they would interfere. Maybe he would be more calm if at least his big brother/father figure was out.

Restraints, well, from past experience I know the towel treatment doesn't work well on him. At the vets I just hold him and it's no problem, so I figured with two of us it would be the same. However without a man with 30 some odd years of vet practice, a adjustable table and a background chorus of yelping dogs, Morphy did not behave. I would even borrow my friend's dog if I thought it would help, but he doesn't bark. Morph isn't much of a lap cat any more, used to be he would zonk out and I could have been sneaky then.

LOL, maybe he's trying to tell me he doesn't need tested also. Oddly enough, I trust his word on that about as much as when I find him with an empty can of tuna and an innocent look on his face. And fish breath. :lol:

Morphy has changed his territory to the kitchen since this began. Particularly the top of the washer, which is my spot for testing. I use a special mat for my serval, when he sees that he knows he's in a good spot, but hadn't thought of it for Morphy. I just checked, he's not sensitive to my fiddling with his dew claw if the clippers aren't out. An added avantage, it doesn't have the long tufts of fur like he has between his pads.
 
I was really skeptical of the treats advice as Pinky never ate any treats I gave (ie table scraps) in the past.

But I ordered Liv a LIttle Dried CHicken breast recommended here (thanks to whoever mentioned them) and she loves them. I always give some after testing--I think it helps as she comes when I shake the container. Do try those. Pinky also likes a spoonful of people tuna as a treat.

Unfortunately, though Pinky sits quietly -- the minute I try to hold her ear she shakes her head and I can't hold on long enough to poke properly. So there can be several unsuccessful pokes--the lancet can scrape across the ear as she moves her head (or twitches just her ear) constantly but no blood. Makes the whole process longer than necessary and more stressful.

As far as how easy it is at the vets: All my cats are TERRIFIED to be there and they have always been able to to do anything they want with ease but that never translate to me doing it at home.

Those really upset (biting, howling cats) wrapped in a towel are pathethic to watch --I feel sorry for the poor mommy (and kitty) and
would test as minimally as possible. But many seem to come around to it. If even that failed I guess I would go with more conventional protocols and let the vet do the testing.
 
Well, I am not anywhere near you - darn it!
I know what you mean about someone w/ experience.... I had to have Patricia come to my home and buritto Slappy as I tried over 4 times with up to 3 towels and she would not not not stay in that towel...mommy was doing it alll wrong. Patricia just took over and wowowowowow it was great. She taught me how to do that and finally, I was able to master the technique. Slappy was then dropper fed until she decided to eat! Now, when she chooses not to eat, mommmy just gets out the dropper and she stands there and lets me do this WITHOUT the buritto... I would have sworn my last breath that this would have never happened. We have been dropper feeding off and on for 2 wks now. I dont know why but I do know she will eat!

I know that innocent look....Sugar Bean does that every time she sneaks into Slappys hi carb a/d!!!! She looks at me like...WHAT????? :o

Bean gets 2 treats before we start testing while I am rubbing the ears, and then 2 after the test is done with lots of praise and we dicuss her numbers and how good she has been (all the while she is wiggling and mommy feels like I am trying to get blood from a fish out of water) :-D - we are out of practice~lol - we use the petco brand of tuna flakes.

I have not tried the dew claw, perhaps I will try that next week because we will do the testing more than once a month, just to stay in a routine.
 
Have you tried a basket/container of some sort in addition to the blanket (I prefer a blanket to a towel because it's more comfy for the kitty and you have more wrapping material)? That is what my vet told me to do when I started to test Bandit, because she said it helps curb the cat's tendency to try and bolt when they're enclosed. So I got a basket a little bigger than Bandit and lined it with fleece blankets. I'd put him in the basket, and then tuck him in tight with another blanket (from underneath, though, so that he was wrapped up 360 degrees like a burrito). I got a basket, but my vet said a plastic dishpan or any container just a little bigger than him would work too. A little neosporin + pain relief on his ear and a treat after also made him calm down a lot over time. Eventually, Bandit started jumping in the basket and sleeping there on his own, probably because he associated it with yummy things. EDIT: I just saw your comment about having to paw test. I always did the ear, so I don't know if you'll be able to adapt this for paw testing. I think you might be able to if you left a paw sticking out.

We don't need to use the basket anymore but I still test him there most the time because that's where he runs when he hears the glucose meter beep. It's now one of his favorite napping places, too.

Here's a picture of him in his basket (Please disregard the monkey on his back--my brother thought it was hilarious and I unfortunately don't have another photo of him in the basket handy). There's 3 blankets in there that he's lying on top of so you can't see how deep it is, but when I tested him I took some of them out so that it was deep enough where just his head stuck out over the top .

BanditMonkey.jpg
 
Julia,

Not to derail the thread but I love that picture of Bandit in the basket, that is SO cute. You could submit that for Cat Fancy calendar or something.

Terri
 
I removed the needle guard. Like you said, it barely extended out of the 'shooter'. I can't see any advantage to that guard anyway. Now, I just put the needle very close to his ear, so that it surely penetrates. I use a makeup sponge as the base under the ear.
 
When KT starts pulling his ear away, it means Mama's not paying attention and have a finger in his eye, in his ear, bending the other ear sideways, have the corner of the pad down inside tickling the hair - it's almost always something I am doing. I've learned to quit being so 'tuggy pully' trying to get it done. His left ear is sensitive, he feels the pokes and flinches. He also doesn't like to hold it still without flicking it. The right is fine.

I'm very lucky to have a wonderfully calm Maine Coon boy. He's taught ME patience...
 
I use the round makeup sponges, so no corners to stick him. I have a million of them - dh had a bad toe and we had to buy a whole pkg. of em to use as a toe separator.
 
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