New and struggling with blood draw

We are doing the every two hour blood draw thing today and I’m not sure how I would ever do this without my son to help. We have not been able to get blood from his ear the entire day so we keep having to use a paw. It seems like by the time we get the blood And we are ready to use the AlphaTrak 3 it turns off or something. It’s just very frustrating. We do the warm compress, and the Vaseline, and we’ve been able to get blood from a paw but there’s no way one person would be able to do all of that.
Does anyone ever just use a lancet to get blood from an ear? When we try to use the little injector thing that came with our set it doesn’t do anything on the ear. Then I was thinking I should do the wearable glucose monitor but I’m seeing bad stories about that as well.
I’m lucky our cat has been sort of OK with this but he’s getting more irritable each time. This has been a horribly stressful day.

 

I know how stressful those first few days can be! We’ve been doing this for a month now, and I promise, it really does get easier. I’ve got a little routine now that works for me. At first I had a hard time getting Liberty to sit still, but now I prop him sideways against a pillow and that keeps him from squirming. If his ears are cold (warm ears definitely bleed better!), I rub them to get the blood flowing. Then I use a textured cosmetic round behind his ear (the texture helps stabilize the ear), and I use a hand held lancet (not the pen thing) to quickly prick in the “sweet spot”. I use a ReliOn meter and once the strip is inserted it stays on long enough for me to complete the procedure.

Those first few days are so overwhelming, but be patient with yourself- it gets easier! My husband didn’t feel confident at first to try, but now he does it no problem. Hang in there!

 

I know how stressful those first few days can be! We’ve been doing this for a month now, and I promise, it really does get easier.
I’ve got a little routine now that works for me. At first I had a hard time getting Liberty to sit still, but now I prop him sideways against a pillow and that keeps him from squirming. If his ears are cold (warm ears definitely bleed better!), I rub them to get the blood flowing. Then I use a textured cosmetic round behind his ear (the texture helps stabilize the ear), and I use a hand held lancet (not the pen thing) to quickly prick in the “sweet spot”. I use a ReliOn meter and once the strip is inserted it stays on long enough for me to complete the procedure.

Those first few days are so overwhelming, but be patient with yourself- it gets easier! My husband didn’t feel confident at first to try, but now he does it no problem. Hang in there!
(I think I duplicated my response…oops!)

 

The hometesting tips and videos are here: https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/hometesting-links-and-tips.287/

Testing approximately every 2 hours for a day is called a curve Make sure to log those number in somewhere. Paper is fine for now but an online spreadsheet is highly recommended so that FDMB can better help you and your vet can see how your cat is responding to the insulin and dose. Spreadsheet instructions are here: https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/how-to-create-a-spreadsheet.241706/

As you are new, read this: https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/new-how-you-can-help-us-help-you.216696/ The signature is important so that members can see your cat's info at a glance.

Tip: Insert the test strip only partially into the meter, just far enough in that the meter won't turn on. Warm the cat's ear and poke. Once you have a nice drop of blood, quickly push the test strip all the way into the meter to turn it on. When the meter flashes the blood drop icon (exact icon may vary depending on the meter) and is ready, touch the edge of the test strip to the blood drop to draw it in by capillary action.

I don't know about the lancet device that comes with the Alpha Track3. Does it have adjustable depth settings? If it does, try a higher setting. If not, try pressing the lancet device firmly on the ear. Hold the rice sock (if using) or a cotton ball on the underside of the ear so you have a firm-ish surface to press the lancet device on but not poke your finger at the same time. If the lancet device doesn't work (some just don't), you can either buy a new lancet device and matching lancets or just freehand the lancet without the device. I personally use the AccuChek Softclix lancet device.

How are you warming up the ear? The rice sock is popular and works well. Take a small old cotton sock, fill with uncooked rice or dried uncooked beans. Exact amount depends on how big the sock is but less than 1/8 cup is generally more than enough. Knot close. If you're a crafty person, take some scrap cotton fabric and make a little bag to fill with your choice of rice or beans. A 2 inch square bag is plenty big enough. Heat in microwave until just barely comfortably warm enough for you to hold in your hand for a minute. Wrap the sock around the edge of the cat's ear for a good minute if possible to get the blood flowing. Then poke. If the rice sock is too warm for your cat's ear, you'll know because the cat will flinch and try to move away. Some people do the hot damp washcloth in a baggie method but I could never get that to work. The washcloth would be cold by the time I got it on my cat plus my cat hated the crinkly sound of the baggie so close to his ear. I've heard of some people using a small prescription pill - type bottle filled with hot water. Try different things to see what works for you.

And just a FYI, you don't need to use the Alpha Track even if the vet says you do The test strips are expensive and you can't go out to a pharmacy to buy more if you forget to order more online. Many of the insulin specific tips here on FDMB are based on using Human blood glucose meters.

 

I never used the lancing device. I always "free handed" my ear poke -- I had a death grip on Gabby's ear (at least at the beginning, had her body propped against mine, poked her ear, got the drop of blood, and then gave her a treat. Like suggested, I had the test strip inserted part way into my glucometer. It may be easier at first to scrape the blood drop onto your fingernail and test from that droplet.

 

Always aim for the sweet spot warm the ears up first, you can put rice in a sock and put it in the microwave, test it on the inside of your wrist to be sure it's not to hot, like you would test a babies bottle. You can fill a pill bottle with warm water and roll it on the ears also.Just keep rubbing the ears with your fingers to warm them up

6. As the ears get used to bleeding and grow more capilares, it gets easier to get the amount of blood you need on the first try. If he won’t stand still, you can get the blood onto a clean finger nail and test from there.
When you do get some blood you can try milking the ear.
Get you finger and gently push up toward the blood , more will appear
You will put the cotton round behind his ear in case you poke your finger, after you are done testing you will fold the cotton round over his ear to stop the bleeding , press gently for about 10 or 20 seconds until it stops
Get 26 or 28 gauge lancets
A lot of us use the lancets to test freehand not the lancing device
I find it better to see where I'm aiming
Look at the lancet under a light and you will see one side is curved upward, that's the side you want to poke with
Here is a video one of our members made testing her kitty



VIDEO: How to test your cat's blood sugar