Elizabeth and Bertie
Member Since 2010
Hi, sorry for delayed reply...
I'm sorry that you're finding this so challenging, but, 'chances are' that it will soon get easier. Honestly!
The insulin shot 'typically' shouldn't hurt the cat. So, there must be some reason 'why' that's happening.
If it is the case that he really doesn't have any loose skin on the scruff then I can see that this could be an issue. It may mean that the needle is going too deep and pricking the flesh beneath.
If he has loose skin elsewhere on his body then you can try to inject there, side of chest, flank, etc. Some cats are fine with this, some aren't. It really is a 'try it and see' thing.
Before actually injecting it can be helpful to pull up skin (assuming there is skin!), and then gently press against the side of that 'tent' with the tip of your little finger. If it feels sort of 'hollow' there then that's where you need to inject, through the 'door' of that tent, into that hollow space.
Also, I wonder if you are injecting (inserting the needle) too slowly, creating some resistance and making it harder to get through the skin?
Any chance you are reusing syringes (this results in blunted needles...)
Or, maybe another injection technique could work better for you...
My first diabetic didn't actually get on well with the 'tenting' injection technique (pulling up skin and injecting into the side of that tent). He was a real fidget. In his case I had to use another method...
I'd grab some skin between the fingers and thumb of my non-dominant hand, (wherever I could find loose skin, but often the scruff or shoulder blade area), pull that up and sort of tip it up slightly, and then I injected almost directly downwards into the skin that I was holding in my hand, about mid way between fingers and thumb. Because the depth of skin in my hand was greater than the length of the needle there was no chance of my injecting too deeply. Also, if he suddenly moved (which he sometimes did) I could still give the shot as long as I was holding onto that skin... Mostly though he was fine with the shots as long as I crumbled a few treats to keep him distracted.
...Another alternative - but I'm slightly hesitant to suggest it because you're new to feline diabetes and injecting - is to use different syringes...
It is possible to use U100 syringes with U40 insulin, in conjunction with a conversion chart to ensure you measure the correct dose of insulin. There are a couple of reasons why this can sometimes be helpful, but one is that the needles themselves can be much finer and also shorter than those on the U40s... This can make some cats much easier to inject.
However, there's a few things that it's necessary to understand first...
Quick explanation about insulin concentrations:
The veterinary insulins, Caninsulin and Prozinc, are 'U40'. That means they have 40 units of insulin per ml. They are made to be used with corresponding U40 syringes. But, occasionally, some folks use U100 syringes with a conversion chart.
The human insulins, Lantus and Levemir, are 'U100'. They have 100 units per ml. They must be used with corresponding U100 syringes.
So, U100 insulins are 2.5 times as 'concentrated' or as 'strong' (neither seems quite the right word!) as U40 insulins.
This means that if you want to measure a unit of Prozinc or Caninsulin in a U100 syringe you'd draw up insulin to the 2.5 unit mark. If you want 2 units you'd draw the insulin to the 5 unit mark, etc.
Most folks in the UK who use U100 syringes use BD 'demi' syringes. These are widely available. Some folks prefer Sol-Vet U100s.
Something to be aware of, however, is that the U100s may not be quite as accurate as the U40s. They are made for human use, and human insulin doses are (usually) much bigger than the tiny doses we give to our cats.
There are methods that can be used to make sure the dosing is accurate and consistent.
Some people use digital callipers to measure the insulin dose on the syringe barrel. (Digital callipers are widely available, on Amazon, etc).
Or, there's a low tech method that a few of us use... I just keep a syringe with good markings and use this for comparison when drawing doses into fresh syringes. So, I pull the plunger to the dose I want on my 'template' syringe, then I draw insulin into a fresh syringe, hold the two side by side, then compare and adjust the insulin dose as necessary. (...My close vision isn't great, so I have a craft magnifier on a stand that I keep on the kitchen worktop next to my kitty's diabetic supplies
).
I don't know if any of this is helpful or not... But I'm sure we can think of something to help you....
Eliz
I'm sorry that you're finding this so challenging, but, 'chances are' that it will soon get easier. Honestly!
The insulin shot 'typically' shouldn't hurt the cat. So, there must be some reason 'why' that's happening.
If it is the case that he really doesn't have any loose skin on the scruff then I can see that this could be an issue. It may mean that the needle is going too deep and pricking the flesh beneath.
If he has loose skin elsewhere on his body then you can try to inject there, side of chest, flank, etc. Some cats are fine with this, some aren't. It really is a 'try it and see' thing.
Before actually injecting it can be helpful to pull up skin (assuming there is skin!), and then gently press against the side of that 'tent' with the tip of your little finger. If it feels sort of 'hollow' there then that's where you need to inject, through the 'door' of that tent, into that hollow space.
Also, I wonder if you are injecting (inserting the needle) too slowly, creating some resistance and making it harder to get through the skin?
Any chance you are reusing syringes (this results in blunted needles...)
Or, maybe another injection technique could work better for you...
My first diabetic didn't actually get on well with the 'tenting' injection technique (pulling up skin and injecting into the side of that tent). He was a real fidget. In his case I had to use another method...
I'd grab some skin between the fingers and thumb of my non-dominant hand, (wherever I could find loose skin, but often the scruff or shoulder blade area), pull that up and sort of tip it up slightly, and then I injected almost directly downwards into the skin that I was holding in my hand, about mid way between fingers and thumb. Because the depth of skin in my hand was greater than the length of the needle there was no chance of my injecting too deeply. Also, if he suddenly moved (which he sometimes did) I could still give the shot as long as I was holding onto that skin... Mostly though he was fine with the shots as long as I crumbled a few treats to keep him distracted.
...Another alternative - but I'm slightly hesitant to suggest it because you're new to feline diabetes and injecting - is to use different syringes...
It is possible to use U100 syringes with U40 insulin, in conjunction with a conversion chart to ensure you measure the correct dose of insulin. There are a couple of reasons why this can sometimes be helpful, but one is that the needles themselves can be much finer and also shorter than those on the U40s... This can make some cats much easier to inject.
However, there's a few things that it's necessary to understand first...
Quick explanation about insulin concentrations:
The veterinary insulins, Caninsulin and Prozinc, are 'U40'. That means they have 40 units of insulin per ml. They are made to be used with corresponding U40 syringes. But, occasionally, some folks use U100 syringes with a conversion chart.
The human insulins, Lantus and Levemir, are 'U100'. They have 100 units per ml. They must be used with corresponding U100 syringes.
So, U100 insulins are 2.5 times as 'concentrated' or as 'strong' (neither seems quite the right word!) as U40 insulins.
This means that if you want to measure a unit of Prozinc or Caninsulin in a U100 syringe you'd draw up insulin to the 2.5 unit mark. If you want 2 units you'd draw the insulin to the 5 unit mark, etc.
Most folks in the UK who use U100 syringes use BD 'demi' syringes. These are widely available. Some folks prefer Sol-Vet U100s.
Something to be aware of, however, is that the U100s may not be quite as accurate as the U40s. They are made for human use, and human insulin doses are (usually) much bigger than the tiny doses we give to our cats.
There are methods that can be used to make sure the dosing is accurate and consistent.
Some people use digital callipers to measure the insulin dose on the syringe barrel. (Digital callipers are widely available, on Amazon, etc).
Or, there's a low tech method that a few of us use... I just keep a syringe with good markings and use this for comparison when drawing doses into fresh syringes. So, I pull the plunger to the dose I want on my 'template' syringe, then I draw insulin into a fresh syringe, hold the two side by side, then compare and adjust the insulin dose as necessary. (...My close vision isn't great, so I have a craft magnifier on a stand that I keep on the kitchen worktop next to my kitty's diabetic supplies
).I don't know if any of this is helpful or not... But I'm sure we can think of something to help you....
Eliz
