Help with injections

[Mimis mom]

I’m torn about which injection site to use on Mimi.
I was using the scruff- tenting the skin and injecting which I found extremely easy for me to do. Then after she went DKA I started to get nervous that I wasn’t injecting it into the best spot. She also developed some hard lumps where I was injecting (only had diabetes for a month at that point)
(I think Mimi is just an extra sensitive kitty. Even when she was spayed as a kitten she developed a hard lump at the incision site.)
Also, size of needles - is shorter thinner better? When I injected Lantus into the stomach I made it bleed! (It was also with that extra long pen needle...)
I’m just so nervous she’ll go back DKA and I have a 8000$ vet bill from her being hospitalized for 6 days.
Sincerely,
Paranoid stressed out mommy

 

[Sue and Luci]

Is this your first post? If so, welcome to the forum!

As for your question, I can only tell you that I prefer Relion 31 guage (very thin) 15/64's (very short). I use the scruff for Luci and overall that seems to work...but some kitties develop what feels like a scar below the skin...perhaps some of them will come to your post to make other suggestions.

Do you have your Spreadsheet working? If not, please ask for help and someone will help you get that set up. If you haven't already, you will want to start reading the stickies at the top of this forum - there's info on there for how to set up your SS - and for selecting a dosing protocol (TR or SLGS)...we want to help you take care of Mimi...and help you not be paranoid or stressed out. We all started out that way...we're here to help!

 

[Marje and Gracie]

HERE is the link for how to do a spreadsheet. @Sue and Luci is correct that we do really need that to give you the best help in getting Mimi back on track. If you have any problems doing the SS, please send me a PM and I can help you or do it for you. To send me a PM, please click on “Marje and Gracie” to the left and then “start a conversation”

This post on Testing and Shooting Tips might give you some ideas on shooting as well as alternate shot sites. When Sue says, “develop a scar”, it’s typically more a pad of fat called a lipoma. If you’ve ever used larger gauge needles on her, like those used to give fluids, then that can certainly build up scar tissue and make getting the insulin in not only difficult but also ineffective.

It’s best to rotate sites so you don’t run into the issue with the lipoma. I would typically shoot left side in the morning, right side at night and rotate between scruff, side, and flank on each side. For example, one day, I’d be shooting left scruff in the morning and right scruff at night. Next day, left side in morning, right side at night, etc. Personally, I always preferred, like Sue, 31g syringes; for a while, a great company made syringes that were in between a short and long but then they stopped making them. If I couldn’t use those, I opted for short needles. Quite often, members can have issues giving fur shots with long needles until they become more experienced. Just be sure you are getting into the subq area.

Shooting directly into the stomach is not something we typically do here. It’s not uncommon, regardless of where you shoot, to accidentally nick a capillary and have it bleed but I think that happened to us once in 5.5 years. Also, we don’t use the needles that come with the pens. You can’t microdose with those like you can with syringes that we use to draw the insulin from the pen as you would a vial.

The best help we can give you to help keep her out of DKA is for you to do the SS and then post daily. This post will provide you with information on making your experience here the best for you both and, as Sue also suggested, reading the stickys at the top of the page is extremely important. It’s not as important that you decide whether you want to do TR or SLGS; you don’t need to rush into that. Just get your feet on the ground first.

 

[Margie and Jackson]

I give most shots in the flank. There’s so much real estate I haven’t had problems. Usually Jackson lays the way he is in the picture, to the left, and I just grab a little loose skin and aim slightly down. I’ve had a much easier time with the short syringes.