Help understanding correct injection technique

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Ozzysdad

Member Since 2019
Hi all! New member here my baby was diagnosed a few days ago. We were given lantus and changed his diet to strictly fancy feast wet foods
I have a few questions regarding the injections
I have cerebral palsy and limited range of motion in my hands making it difficult to have the dexterity needed to perform this daily.
I do have a fiance that handled his first injection at 11 am this morning EST my questions are as follows
1. How can you be sure you've penetrated under the skin correctly after injecting. I ask because the fur around the injection site was damp and smelled very distinctly is this normal or have we done something incorrectly? My fiance says she felt the needle go into his skin but I'm a worrywart
2. How soon will it take for the lantus to take effect? We noticed shortly after giving it to him he went back and got in his usual hiding spot and wouldnt come back out. He eventually fell back asleep. Maybe I'm just overthinking any response is always welcome and thank you all for the help - Jake
 
Hi Jake, thanks for posting in the Main Health forum for more information. It sounds like you got a fur shot this morning if you had damp fur and a strong insulin smell. It's very possible that some insulin got into the skin but you never want to repeat the injection to ensure there will not be a chance of an overdose. Please indicate the date of Ozzy's dx and what the dosage of Lantus you are injecting in your signature.
Lantus is a depot insulin and insulin is a hormone, not a medication. You are not going to see an immediate effect, it is cumulative. Please visit the Lantus forum HERE and read the yellow tagged stickies at the top of the page to learn about Lantus, how depot insulins work and the protocols used here.
Injections take practice and there are different methods that members use. In this Lantus forum sticky http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/...info-proper-handling-drawing-fine-dosing.151/
scroll down to a picture of injection sites and recommendations for how to inject.
All of the information on the Lantus forum is valuable and worth your time to read through.
We recommend home testing, just like human diabetics, so that you know it's safe to inject and you know how the insulin is affecting the cat's blood sugar throughout the 12 hour cycles. Home testing can help prevent hypoglycemic events that can be life threatening.
There is a lot of reading to do at first, I know. I spent many hours reading through the Lantus forum information as well as the FAQs forum too. But, it's like anything else you have accomplished in life, finding the information, understanding it and then putting it into practice. It's a steep learning curve, but I have no doubt that you are motivated to help Ozzy get to feeling better and keeping him safe.
 
Jake, I forgot to add there are lots of videos on YouTube about injecting insulin for cats, also home testing videos so you can get an idea of what that's all about.
 
I know in the past I have given "fur shots" and just skip the dose that morning or evening when i do but its always wise to pet the area where the injection site is to see if wet and if so, smell your hand as the insulin definitely has a distinct smell to it that if you got all the insulin in, you wont smell anything. I often miss when giving insulin so have my husband do it. GOOD LUCK!
 
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