Hurrah! It's wonderful you are starting to home test. Here's a shopping list that might help:
A human glucometer. Any one that sips and takes a tiny sample is fine. We do stay away from any meter with True in the name and the Freestyle meters. They have proven to be very unreliable and read lower than other meters. The meters are often free at drug stores; it’s the strips that are expensive. You can, however, buy them on ebay at less than half the price of stores. Lots of people here also like the ReliOn from Walmart. It is an inexpensive meter and its strips are the cheapest around. Try the meter out on yourself or someone else before you try it on your cat. You want to be familiar with it before you poke the cat.
Lancets and a lancet device. Usually, until the ears “learn” to bleed, a 26-28 gauge is good. Any brand will work as long as the lancets match your device.
Ketone strips. (Ketostix) Just like human diabetics use. You will sometimes need to test urine if the numbers are high.
Rice sack. Make this out of thinnish sock, filled with raw rice or oatmeal and then knotted. You heat this in the microwave until very warm but not hot. Then heat the ears before poking. You can also use a prescription bottle filled with very warm water. It provides a good surface to poke against.
Also nice to have. Flashlight: so you can look at the ears and find the little capillaries that come off the vein running down the ear. Vaseline: Put a tiny smear where you want to poke. It will help the blood bead up.
And some lo carb treats to give your kitty, successful test or not
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=9172
