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Samantha&Dio

Samantha&Dio

Member Since 2023
Hi! My little Dio was diagnosed November 9th and we've been through the ringer since then. Before I could even start his insulin at home he developed DKA and spent a few nights in ER. Thankfully he made it out mostly unscathed! He is on Lantus 2x day at 2U.
Now that he's home and more energetic he is seeming to rebel against his injections. On top of that, in the last couple days I have had 2 fur shots (one yesterday morning where he bolted when I started pressing the plunger, and then this morning I mistakenly put the needle at least partially through the other side of his fur. I saw a few drops squirt out). I am feeling very anxious and defeated because I feel like I am failing him. It would cripple me to see him lose the progress he's made over the last week.
I guess I'm looking for tips/tricks and maybe some confirmation that he is not going to immediately go downhill from 2 missed shots in 2 days!
This morning I set up his blood glucose meter and am planning to test later today. He had his breakfast at about 9 a.m. What would be an ideal time to do the test? Thank you so much for reading my rambling post and any advice. I just feel like I'm turning into a ball of anxiety, especially over the fur shots.
 
Hi Samantha. Don't feel bad about the fur shots, we've all done it. The most important thing is to never try and fix that one mistake with another shot.
Have you tried "tenting" the skin before injection? You just do a slight pinch to gather up enough skin to slide the needle in. I used to sing to our sugar cats, never surprise them (they know it's going to hurt, they trust you), anything to get into a study rhythm. I had ours lay on their sides and inject just above what the pic below calls the flank.
If you've gotten this far don't feel defeated. I was born in Alberta.
0000FDMB_inject.jpg
 

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Samantha&Dio said:
Hi! My little Dio was diagnosed November 9th and we've been through the ringer since then. Before I could even start his insulin at home he developed DKA and spent a few nights in ER. Thankfully he made it out mostly unscathed! He is on Lantus 2x day at 2U.
Now that he's home and more energetic he is seeming to rebel against his injections. On top of that, in the last couple days I have had 2 fur shots (one yesterday morning where he bolted when I started pressing the plunger, and then this morning I mistakenly put the needle at least partially through the other side of his fur. I saw a few drops squirt out). I am feeling very anxious and defeated because I feel like I am failing him. It would cripple me to see him lose the progress he's made over the last week.
I guess I'm looking for tips/tricks and maybe some confirmation that he is not going to immediately go downhill from 2 missed shots in 2 days!
This morning I set up his blood glucose meter and am planning to test later today. He had his breakfast at about 9 a.m. What would be an ideal time to do the test? Thank you so much for reading my rambling post and any advice. I just feel like I'm turning into a ball of anxiety, especially over the fur shots.
Click to expand...
Tagging
@Bron and Sheba (GA) since Dio had DKA
Samantha since you have a meter now you can add that to your signature , whether it's a human meter or a pet meter and remove Not monitoring at home yet .
Tagging Bhooma
@Bandit's Mom to set up our spreadsheet for you so you can enter Dio's BG numbers .
Here is the link for the spreadsheet so you can see how it works
https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/how-to-create-a-spreadsheet.241706/
 
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Samantha&Dio said:
Now that he's home and more energetic he is seeming to rebel against his injections.
Click to expand...
Hi Samantha , try bring Dio to the same spot to inject him. With Lantus you can first test him, and then put his wet food down and start letting him eat it, while he's eating you can inject the insulin. Or if you have any freeze dried treats give him a few while injecting him
I always injected the insulin in Tyler's scruff
When you pull up on the scruff you will feel an indentation with your finger that's where you want to inject it. Like Noah said try singing to him.
This is from you tube , DON'T do what she did with the syringe NO need to pull back on the syringe to see if there's blood
 
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Noah & me (GA) said:
Hi Samantha. Don't feel bad about the fur shots, we've all done it. The most important thing is to never try and fix that one mistake with another shot.
Have you tried "tenting" the skin before injection? You just do a slight pinch to gather up enough skin to slide the needle in. I used to sing to our sugar cats, never surprise them (they know it's going to hurt, they trust you), anything to get into a study rhythm. I had ours lay on their sides and inject just above what the pic below calls the flank.
If you've gotten this far don't feel defeated. I was born in Alberta.
View attachment 68041
Click to expand...

Thank you for the reassurance! I am trying to tent properly but I think I'm worried about being too rough with him. That leads to me not having a good grip and also not having much loose skin to work with. Tonight I think I'm going to really take my time to grip properly, see where the needle is going, and make sure we don't go through the other side. I do think his flank would be easier because he has more loose skin there. However he doesn't tolerate his back half being touched very well, so I'm not sure I'd have much success that way.
Whatever happens tonight, we do have a checkup with the vet tomorrow. I was thinking of having them shave a spot or two for me so I can really see what's going on.
I like the idea of singing to him! Definitely going to try that out. I really appreciate your suggestions, thanks so much.
 
Hi and welcome Samantha and Dio.
I am glad you we going to home test the blood glucose. And once we get the spreadsheet set up that will be great.
Because Dio has had DKA it is really important he eats plenty of food and gets his doses of insulin.
Here is a list of the things that you need to be doing to help Dio after the DKA

  • you need to give one and a half times as many calories as he normally eats. Offer snacks every couple of hours during the day and evening as well as the 2 main meals. Food is like a medicine and helps keep ketones away. If your kitty won’t eat the low carb food, feed him whatever he will eat as eating any food is better than not eating,
  • Don’t skip any doses of insulin as insulin helps keep ketones away. If the BG is not high enough to give the dose…stall, dont feed and test again in 20 minutes and post and ask for help.
  • Test daily for ketones. Put the results of the tests into the remarks column of the SS so we can see. Please report any trace ketones at all. If you have not been testing the urine for ketones and do not have a bottle of Ketostix, please go out and buy a bottle of Ketostix today from Walmart or a pharmacy and test for ketones
  • Give antinausea medication if needed…cerenia or ondansetron. A lot do DKA cats have nausea for a while as they are recovering.
  • Give appetite stimulant if needed after the antinausea medication
  • Give extra fluids. If kitty will tolerate warm water in the food, put a teaspoon into each snack..
  • Ask the vet about subQ fluids
  • Set up a spreadsheet and test the BG frequently
  • Post daily with updates and ask for help as often as needed.
 
Diane Tyler's Mom said:
Tagging
@Bron and Sheba (GA) since Dio had DKA
Samantha since you have a meter now you can add that to your signature , whether it's a human meter or a pet meter and remove Not monitoring at home yet .
Tagging Bhooma
@Bandit's Mom to set up our spreadsheet for you so you can enter Dio's BG numbers .
Here is the link for the spreadsheet so you can see how it works
https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/how-to-create-a-spreadsheet.241706/
Click to expand...

Thanks, I will update my signature right away!
 
How is his appetite? Is he eating plenty for you? You need to be giving the two main meals as well as lots of snacks during the two cycles to make sure he gets enough food. It is the food and the insulin that keeps the ketones at bay. And testing the urine each day will confirm that you are giving enough insulin and enough food. Fluids are also important so try adding a teaspoon of warm water into each snack and meal.
 
Diane Tyler's Mom said:
Hi Samantha , try bring Dip to the same spot to inject him. With Lantus you can first test him, and then put his wet food down and start letting him eat it, while he's eating you can inject the insulin. Or if you have any freeze dried treats give him a few while injecting him
I always injected the insulin in Tyler's scruff
When you pull up on the scruff you will feel an indentation with your finger that's where you want to inject it. Like Noah said try singing to him.
This is from you tube , DON'T do what she did with the syringe NO need to pull back on the syringe to see if there's blood
Click to expand...

Thank you, that video was really informative! I don't think Dio would sit long enough for me to pull back first anyway so that's great it's not necessary. I will make sure we are in the same place for the injections from now on. He is too smart for me to do it while he's eating, I've tried and he just stops eating and starts to walk away!
The tip about feeling for the indent is helpful. A lot of my anxiety comes from not having a clear visual of his skin.
 
Bron and Sheba (GA) said:
How is his appetite? Is he eating plenty for you? You need to be giving the two main meals as well as lots of snacks during the two cycles to make sure he gets enough food. It is the food and the insulin that keeps the ketones at bay. And testing the urine each day will confirm that you are giving enough insulin and enough food. Fluids are also important so try adding a teaspoon of warm water into each snack and meal.
Click to expand...
His appetite has been great the last couple days! I had no idea about the snacks, I'll be incorporating more asap. At the clinic they told me he should only be having meals/snacks around insulin time. Even with my limited knowledge I felt that was wrong and have been giving him little bits of wet food when he seems hungry between meals. So I'm glad to hear I haven't been doing him any harm in that regard.
I did order some ketone test strips, they should be arriving today or tomorrow. Is it ok to test from the litter box or do I need to try and collect a sample while he's actually going?
 
You need to try and collect a bit of urine. Try a long handled spoon or if he’s cooperative you can put the strip under him as he goes. Make sure you read it at exactly 15 seconds after dipping into the urine against the colours on the side of the bottle. After 15 seconds the reading is inaccurate.
Yes!! Feed him lots of food. Food and insulin and fluids are your tools to ensure Dio manages to keep the ketones away. keep posting.
 
Bron and Sheba (GA) said:
You need to try and collect a bit of urine. Try a long handled spoon or if he’s cooperative you can put the strip under him as he goes. Make sure you read it at exactly 15 seconds after dipping into the urine against the colours on the side of the bottle. After 15 seconds the reading is inaccurate.
Yes!! Feed him lots of food. Food and insulin and fluids are your tools to ensure Dio manages to keep the ketones away. keep posting.
Click to expand...
Alright I'll try and collect using the spoon method I think.
I'm so happy tonight I'm 99.9% sure we got all of his insulin in! I got a firm grip on his scruff, put a little bit of tuna in front of him and put the needle right into the tent. No wetness on the fur, and maybe a whiff of insulin with my nose pressed right against his fur. He didn't even twitch with the tuna distracting him! I will be attempting to start his home testing in the morning because I think we both just need a chill night after the last few. Truly thank you for all the help from everyone. This group is great!
 
Congratulations on the shot.

And yes we have all had our share of fur shots. Why not put a loonie or a twoonie in a jar every time you do. At some far distance time, you'll leave enough for a decent bottle of wine or take-out pizza or some serious chocolate.

If you run into difficulty in the future, there is another method that @Chris & China (GA) initially posted:

There's another method other than the "tent" method that a lot of people have better luck with.....I'll call it the "roll your wrist" method and try to explain it.

Instead of making a "tent", just grab some fur between your thumb and forefinger and then "roll" your wrist to pull the skin away from the muscle....there will be a "break" in the hair and you just aim for that (while continuing to pull the fur "up" with your other hand)​

Here's a picture that might help
china-skin-roll-method-jpg.26122

​
 
Just posting a small update. I've been trying to get the ear poke down pat but it's been a challenge. The first couple tries we got no blood, the last few we've had small drops but not enough to test. The plan is to keep trying before every shot until his ears learn to bleed! Or we'll try out the Libre device if I can't get the hang of it within the week.
On a positive note, he's responding really well to the insulin so far. Much more energetic and even wants to play again! I've had success with putting ketone test strips underneath him while he uses the litter box and so far no trace of them. The ones I purchased also test glucose and he seems to be above 100 but under 250 according to the depth of the green shade.
 
If it’s any consolation, I was terrible at testing in the beginning too! And most of us were!
Are you milking the ear before you try and test?
I’ll post a photo below best places to get the blood when I can find it…it’s not in my favourites for some reason.
I can promise you, you will get the hang of it…it can just take time.
Do you have the size 26 or 28 lancets?
Well done getting the urine ketone tests done! Keep those up! And it’s good you can see the glucose as well. If there is no glucose in the urine and you still are not testing, you might have to reduce the dose just until you can see the BGs.
 
Samantha&Dio said:
Just posting a small update. I've been trying to get the ear poke down pat but it's been a challenge. The first couple tries we got no blood, the last few we've had small drops but not enough to test.
Click to expand...

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
c2b8079a-b471-4fa6-ac36-9ac1c8d6dcca-jpeg.57072
fec17d29-5ab4-44a8-912b-3a91944c3954-jpeg.57073

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
 
Bron and Sheba (GA) said:
If it’s any consolation, I was terrible at testing in the beginning too! And most of us were!
Are you milking the ear before you try and test?
I’ll post a photo below best places to get the blood when I can find it…it’s not in my favourites for some reason.
I can promise you, you will get the hang of it…it can just take time.
Do you have the size 26 or 28 lancets?
Well done getting the urine ketone tests done! Keep those up! And it’s good you can see the glucose as well. If there is no glucose in the urine and you still are not testing, you might have to reduce the dose just until you can see the BGs.
Click to expand...

I'm trying to milk but Dio's very squirmy (understandably). I'll be picking up some 28g lancets after work today, the ones that came with my meter are 30g. Hopefully that will make things a little easier!
 
Diane Tyler's Mom said:
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
c2b8079a-b471-4fa6-ac36-9ac1c8d6dcca-jpeg.57072
fec17d29-5ab4-44a8-912b-3a91944c3954-jpeg.57073

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
Click to expand...
Thanks for all the tips! :) I'll try the rice in a sock to warm his ear first tonight. I try to do it with my fingers but my hands are always cold, so I'm not sure how effective that's been.
 
Woohoo! We finally managed to get a good poke and did his first at home test tonight! Feeling much better about giving his doses knowing he's not too low. His PMPS was 331. Thank you everyone for all the awesome tips. Looking forward to putting a spreadsheet together :bighug:
 
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