This short video will empower caregivers of diabetic cats to feel confident when administering insulin using a syringe and needle, providing simple tricks and tips to make this crucial component of diabetes management as easy as possible.
To keep your diabetic pet happy and healthy giving insulin injections will become an important part of your daily routine insulin administration is an important piece of your pet’s diabetes treatment and is just another way to show how much you care initially giving your pet an insulin injection may seem intimidating or overwhelming but over time the process will
Become just another part of your day this short video will walk you through each step of the administration process your veterinary team will be able to give you advice specific to your pets needs let’s get started unless otherwise directed by your veterinarian feed your pet before giving insulin take your pet’s insulin out of the refrigerator and prepare it
According to your veterinarians instructions some types of insulin should be rolled between your hands to gently mix it while another type must be shaken until it appears milky clean the rubber stopper by wiping it with rubbing alcohol it’s very important to make sure you’re giving the correct amount of insulin with the correct syringe your veterinarian will let
You know how many units of insulin your pet should receive and which type of syringe to use while many people aren’t comfortable around needles and syringes remember that insulin needles are very small and very sharp so your pet will barely feel the injection never change your pet’s insulin dose or the type of syringe without speaking with your veterinary team to
Prepare the syringe first remove the cap draw a pair into the syringe to the number of units your pet will receive we will use five units as an example inject the air into the insulin bottle this helps keep the pressure in the bottle stable over time turn the insulin bottle upside down making sure the tip of the needle is covered by liquid this ensures that once
You start pulling back on the plunger you’re drying up liquid not just air draw up the prescribed amount of insulin in our case five units now it’s time to find our patient and give them some tlc you may need help from another person to keep your pet still but some will stand quietly if distracted with low carbohydrate treats find a good location for the injection
That works for you and your pet many pets tolerate injections well when given about one to two inches from the middle of the back near the shoulder blade or the hip bone be sure to alternate the location each time to avoid soreness pinch a fold of skin into a tent and gently insert the needle into the center of the fold for safety and to keep from losing any of
Your pets dose do not place your finger on the plunger until the needle is in the skin once the needle is through the skin draw back the plunger if you see blood enter the syringe you’re in a blood vessel pull the needle out and try another location if you do not see blood enter the syringe gently push the plunger all the way down until the full dose has been given
Remove the needle from the skin run your hand over the injection site to feel for moisture this could be the insulin wasn’t correctly injected under the skin call your veterinarian if this occurs safely dispose of the needle and syringe and a closed sharps container talk to your veterinarian if you need one now celebrate you did it diabetes management is a journey
Filled with ups and downs and your veterinary team will be beside you to make your pets future as bright as it can be
Transcribed from video
How to administer insulin to your cat By American Animal Hospital Association
