Newbie - Advice requested for lancing

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Terri & Tisha

Member Since 2013
Hello,

My 9 year old kitty Tisha was recently diagnosed with FD, and was started on 1 unit of Lantus twice a day, along with testing her glucose beforehand. My concern is with the testing. Her poor little kitty ears look like they have track marks :sad: As she's a calico one of her ears is much lighter than the other one. I've been switching between ears, and using a flash light on the darker ear to see the vein. Our vet recommended manually lancing the ear instead of using a lancing device, due to the clicking noise the devices make. I use the small lance with a sterile cotton swab behind the ear. The first couple times I had to lance Tisha I pierced her ear right through. I then tried doing it at a 45 degree angle, but it seems if I do not poke right through her ear I don't get enough blood. Is it bad to pierce the kitty's ear right through? Today it look me three tries and on the third try I poked right through again. Tisha doesn't like it much.
Also, how long does it take for the bruising to go away? She still has marks from when we first starting testing on Thursday (March 14).
 
Are you aiming for the vein or the little capillaries that run off it to the edge of the ear? It's the capillaries you want.

What size lancet? We suggest the bigger ones at first (25-27gauge) rather than the 30-31 gauge that work for humans.

You can use some Neosporin with pain relief to help with the bruising. Holding the place you poked for a few seconds afterward helps too.

Good for you to start testing! Welcome to the Vampire Club. :mrgreen:
 
I'm right there with you Terri. Last night was my first attempt at home testing and I poked through the ear then and this morning too. I used the lancing device for both and the next time I'm going to try freehand. :shock: Needless to say, I'm a little nervous but I am trying to stay calm. I know others have luck with the large pad on the paw, but my little guy doesn't tolerate me touching his feet even when he's calm. You might want to give it a try though. Good luck, it will only get better. At least that's what I keep telling myself.
 
Hello there, here are some ear testing tips that might help : https://docs.google.com/document/d/13c_CPZVKz27fD_6aVbsguadJKvjSrSAkD7flgPPhEag/pub

A few thoughts on your technique though - things to try

1. it sounds like you arent getting the ear warm enough. The ear really does need to be warm
2. freehanding - it gives you so much more control
3. two small pricks beside each other
4. make sure you hit the sweet spot
5. hold the ear below the prick firmly to help dam the blood.
6. Wait a few seconds before trying again or stemming the blood, it could just be slow to well up (esp if the ear isnt warm enough)

Wendy
 
I have always used a lancing device and cats get used to the clicking noise. The higher you set it the deeper it goes and the blood goes down instead of pooling up to the top. Try a lower setting and make sure the device is flat on the ear. I also use a cosmetic pad underneath the ear for support and then I roll part of it over the top of the after after poking to minimize bruising and stop bleeding. Little tricky at first because you really don't want the vein.....just try using it on edge of ear. Ears do learn to bleed so after awhile you won't even need to warm the ear.
 
Thanks for the advice! Yes, I have been poking her in the vein D'oh! :o When our vet tech was showing us how to test it looked like that was where she was poking Tisha. It's good to know she doesn't need to be poked in the vein to produce blood, and that the ears will eventually bleed easier without being poked directly in the vein. I had tried warming up her ears by gently rubbing them, but I'll try one of the other methods which will no doubt work better (maybe my hands were too cold).
Thanks for the link Wendy&Tiggy! Great information!
Tisha was just playing with one of her toy mice, which she hasn't done in a while. Good to see :-D
 
Hello,

For those of you who use an ointment, do you apply it on the side of the ear you're going to prick, the other side, or both sides? I went to the pharmacy yesterday and picked up some Polysporin with pain relief, as they didn't have Neosporin. I put some on the outside of the ear before I pricked it, so hopefully it will help the bruising to clear up faster.
 
Hi there

I just wanted to followup with you in case you didnt notice my post on lrteachs profile.

I am concerned about your chicken and rice food being too high carb - see here http://www.catinfo.org/docs/FoodChartPublic9-22-12.pdf. If you want to better control Tishas BG and possibly get her into remission you want all foods to be under 10% - and even better if under 8%

Also since you are now testing do you want to set up a spreadsheet? It will give you a better idea of trends and you can share it with us and your vet to help with dosing. http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=18207

Wendy
 
Wendy&Tiggy said:
Hi there

I just wanted to followup with you in case you didnt notice my post on lrteachs profile.

I am concerned about your chicken and rice food being too high carb - see here http://www.catinfo.org/docs/FoodChartPublic9-22-12.pdf. If you want to better control Tishas BG and possibly get her into remission you want all foods to be under 10% - and even better if under 8%

Also since you are now testing do you want to set up a spreadsheet? It will give you a better idea of trends and you can share it with us and your vet to help with dosing. http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=18207

Wendy
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info!! Tisha is already starting to get tired of the Chicken and Rice (she is notorious of loving a particular food for a little while and then turning her nose up at it). Looks like the Whitefish & Salmon would be a good choice at only 2% carbs though!
I've been writing down her information but I haven't set up a spread sheet yet, although I do need to do that within in the next couple days to send to our vet.

Thanks again!
 
Let us know if you need help with the SS.. we can advise more if we see it.. Also keep a close watch on her BG now that you have thrown away the HC canned.. you might see a sudden drop! paws crossed! What kind of readings are you currently getting?
 
Wendy&Tiggy said:
Let us know if you need help with the SS.. we can advise more if we see it.. Also keep a close watch on her BG now that you have thrown away the HC canned.. you might see a sudden drop! paws crossed! What kind of readings are you currently getting?
Click to expand...

The readings are lower in the morning than in then evening. Yesterday morning the reading was 16.6 and 23.5 in the evening. This morning the reading was 20.1. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get a reading this evening. I tried 3 times but didn't get enough blood for the reading.
 
Thats very common because they dont tend to eat as much during the evening and so can drop low. We need to check how low she is dropping to see if she needs a dose adjustment or if she is bouncing. Can you get a midday test and a before bed test for the next few days?
 
Good to know! I'll be sending my info for the week to our vet tomorrow morning and see what they have to say. I think they're going to be asking me to do a soft curve within the next little bit as I seem to remember them saying something about that after the first 2 weeks of treatment.
 
What did the vet say? I find if you do a few tests during the day you get more info than a curve once every two weeks because that one day you do the curve could be a bounce day.

I always recommend preshot tests, a mid cycle test and a before bed. Every day until you learn your cats patterns.
 
I am so grateful to have this wonderful site to help me with my beloved cat, Beau. He was diagnosed two days ago and I am trying to learn all I can to help him. I am diabetic so that helps with the process but he is unique. He is a rescued cat who is very, very opposed to being held or restrained in any way. I have had him for eight years and never once has he gotten in my lap or let me pet him without his walking away. The vet prescribed 2 units of Lantus in the morning and 2 units at night. I can get the shots done but he WILL NOT allow any kind of testing. My vet says not to worry about testing for the weekend but I am nervous. Any suggestions?
 
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