Westie Sophia

[sophia]

I'm new and learning as much as I can as quickly as I can.

My 10-year old Westie Sophia was diagnosed this past Friday with diabetes. She's on injections 2 times a day.

Friday I failed miserably trying to do the first injection. It landed on her fur. I've done OK these past 3 days. BUT, it feels highly stressful. Does it get easier? Each time I do one, I high five the air lol. Even in my dreams I'm practicing injections.

I think one of the problems is her skin. She went from 14 pounds to 12 pounds. I'm hoping as her body regulates, she will gain weight. She's always been on the small side for a Westie.

And it doesn't help that family and friends are asking me if I fed her soda pop and candy?! UMMM, NO. She's been on kibble her whole life and any treat would be healthy. Rarely table treats.

I just want to get to the point where injections aren't such a big deal.
Thank you. I'm sooooo glad a place like this exists. I left my vet with so many unanswered questions.

[Ozzie's Mom]

Re: Do injections get easier?

Hi there! I am fairly new here as well, as my Ozzie was diagnosed on October 1st. He gets two injections daily, 4 units Caninsulin.
It does get easier every day. I found it very difficult to do at first, but now I just do it. Try not to think too much about it, it has to be done.
Ozzie has lost about 3 pounds since May, but I have a pretty good feeling that he has lost more weight since he was diagnosed. He is so hungry all the time. We have a Vet appt on Wednesday, and I have a list of questions as long as his tail!!
Good luck, you can do this.

[Franklin'sMum]

Re: Do injections get easier?

Hi and welcome to you and Sophia,

My little boy and I are new at this also, and we've had some injecting issues ourselves. Let me tell you it does get easier Franklin had lost a kg, and I could only inject into his scruff because he didn't have loose skin elsewhere, and I wasn't co ordinated enough to try.

I now use a device called inject ease, I don't need to tent, I can tug on a bit of hair to get the same effect, I can smoosh the skin up into a wrinkle and do it or tent. Truly, I nearly cried the first time (and other times) I've used it. The difference for me, and my previously unco operative boy is tremendous. And I can also inject him left handed if he has wiggled around You can see a video of it in use in Franklin's thread a couple of pages back.

Are you distracting her with a treat, or is the problem your nervousness?

Hope that helps

[sophia]

Re: Do injections get easier?

Thank you for the kind welcome Ozzie's Mom. He's adorable! So far Sophia is on 2 units. I've learned a lot from youtube videos.

It's hard when they are hungry all the time. I'll just try not to think of it so much. Knowing me, it's possible I'm over thinking. Aside from sewing, I've never used any sort of "needle" before.

Best of luck on Wednesday. I hope your vet is able to answer all of your questions. Especially in an informative way.

PS. How did you get Ozzie's cute pic by your username?

[sophia]

Re: Do injections get easier?

Thank you Franklin'sMum. He's a doll! Looks just like a dog we know on Instagram. So glad to know it gets easier. As it is now, I'm exhausted (Which then made me think of the elderly who live alone and can't do this for their dogs or cats.)

I must look up inject ease. Thank you. Never heard of it. When I tent near her scruff, it's actually more sensitive than other places on her back.

When she is standing, she has less skin to grab. I give her a treat when doing, but she stands and thus less skin. Tonight I tried while she was sitting and it worked, but flinched more.

I already feel better by posting here. Thank you.

Hi and welcome to you and Sophia,

My little boy and I are new at this also, and we've had some injecting issues ourselves. Let me tell you it does get easier Franklin had lost a kg, and I could only inject into his scruff because he didn't have loose skin elsewhere, and I wasn't co ordinated enough to try.

I now use a device called inject ease, I don't need to tent, I can tug on a bit of hair to get the same effect, I can smoosh the skin up into a wrinkle and do it or tent. Truly, I nearly cried the first time (and other times) I've used it. The difference for me, and my previously unco operative boy is tremendous. And I can also inject him left handed if he has wiggled around You can see a video of it in use in Franklin's thread a couple of pages back.

Are you distracting her with a treat, or is the problem your nervousness?

Hope that helps

[k9diabetes]

Re: Do injections get easier?

There are lots of ways to inject in terms of the angle of the needle, whether you tent the skin, how much you tent the skin. So if your current technique maybe isn't working well for you, you can try changing it up.

Side can make a difference too... I was always a lot more awkward on our dog's right side than on his left - I think it's related to being right handed - so I just used his left side only. I didn't tent exactly. I just pulled Chris' skin away from his body and injected into the space.

There are lots of injections tips and tricks in the Answers forum, where we save useful past posts. Might take a look there at the various diagrams and discussions.

http://www.k9diabetes.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=14

There also are videos of people giving their dog an injection at the home testing page / YouTube channel.

www.k9diabetes.com/bgtestvideos.html

http://www.youtube.com/user/CanineDiabetes

Natalie

[jenny]

Re: Do injections get easier?

Hello and welcome to you and sweet Sophia.

It sounds to me that you are doing incredibly well in your first few days and yes most of us initially felt overwhelmed by the thought of giving twice daily injections for the rest of our dogs life. It does get easier, I promise.

Is sophia wriggling about? My Pippa westie initally flinched and wiggled but now is as good as gold. I think getting her into a place where you are comfortable is important, at a good working level for you where you can hold her and be quick with the jab followed up with a really nice treat. I put Pippa on the kitchen worktop straight after her meal and she knows its coming as shes on her special towel but does not mind at all now. Like Nathalie I can only comfortably inject into one side, the right for me, as I find her left side incredibly awkward.

Getting into a routine is important too. Food , injections, 12 hours apart, walks fitted in as normal and lots of fun times too.

I know its early days , but many of us believe home blood sugar testing is the way forward in getting good regulation, and thats not as hard either as it sounds. Might be worth chatting to your vet about this when you next see them.

Look forward to hearing how you are getting on and more about your beautiful little westie.

Big hugs, Jen x

[Franklin'sMum]

Re: Do injections get easier?

Squeal!! Sophia is absolutely gorgeous!

[Cebe]

Re: Do injections get easier?

I've been doing this for a year and I can give a shot in the dark now. It does get easier as you get more comfortable with it.

If the scruff is sensitive, then look to the shoulder or the area above the flank. Any loose skin there?

Have you considered home testing? I always get a little concerned when new folks describe a vet hungry dog. It would be good to know the blood sugar levels as you sort out a proper dose. The first prescribed dose doesn't usually seem to be accurate and there's a fine tuning needed. But this is all a lot to take in so take your time. Just consider it, as it gives you so much more control over the treatment.

[jim maceri]

Re: Do injections get easier?

Welcome and the simple answer is YES it gets a whole lot easier. It has been a year for us now and home testing and shots are just a way of life and no longer a struggle. I inject in both sides of the scruff and just above the flank most of the time. Those spots give me (8) injection options...

RS-F right scruff front
RS-B right scruff back
LS-F left scruff front
LS-B left scruff back

MBR-F mid back right front
MBR-B mid back right back
MBL-F mid back left front
MBL-B mid back left back

The front or back is the direction of the needle. This helps me to keep shot rotation and brings me back to the first spot every 4 days.

I also would urge you to consider home testing. There is just so much information you can gather from doing home curves and spot checks...the comfort level goes up dramatically and you will be able to make educated decisions instead of informed "guesses" when it comes to increasing or decreasing doses.

[sophia]

Re: Do injections get easier?

How was Ozzie's appointment today? Were your questions answered? Hoping it went well and at least there is a better understanding.

Hi there! I am fairly new here as well, as my Ozzie was diagnosed on October 1st. He gets two injections daily, 4 units Caninsulin.
It does get easier every day. I found it very difficult to do at first, but now I just do it. Try not to think too much about it, it has to be done.
Ozzie has lost about 3 pounds since May, but I have a pretty good feeling that he has lost more weight since he was diagnosed. He is so hungry all the time. We have a Vet appt on Wednesday, and I have a list of questions as long as his tail!!
Good luck, you can do this.

[sophia]

Re: Do injections get easier?

Walked away from laptop and logged me out.

I too have harder time on right side, though found more skin towards lower back on both sides. The tutorial here about how to actually position the needle has greatly helped.

Thank you for all of the links.

For me right now it's mental and I have to simply break through the thought that I'm *stabbing* her. When I tent, I tend to inject more into top of skin I pull up then below it. Not sure if that is correct.

There are lots of ways to inject in terms of the angle of the needle, whether you tent the skin, how much you tent the skin. So if your current technique maybe isn't working well for you, you can try changing it up.

Side can make a difference too... I was always a lot more awkward on our dog's right side than on his left - I think it's related to being right handed - so I just used his left side only. I didn't tent exactly. I just pulled Chris' skin away from his body and injected into the space.

There are lots of injections tips and tricks in the Answers forum, where we save useful past posts. Might take a look there at the various diagrams and discussions.

http://www.k9diabetes.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=14

There also are videos of people giving their dog an injection at the home testing page / YouTube channel.

www.k9diabetes.com/bgtestvideos.html

http://www.youtube.com/user/CanineDiabetes

Natalie

[sophia]

Re: Do injections get easier?

Thank you. Is it normal to smell some of the insulin on her fur after a shot? This part worries me that I'm not injecting far enough as I can sometimes smell it

Because I read all of the home testing replies, I bought one today. I actually find it easier to take the blood test than the actual injections.

Had I not read all of urges to test it at home, I NEVER would have even thought about it. Not something my vet mentioned.

Welcome and the simple answer is YES it gets a whole lot easier. It has been a year for us now and home testing and shots are just a way of life and no longer a struggle. I inject in both sides of the scruff and just above the flank most of the time. Those spots give me (8) injection options...

RS-F right scruff front
RS-B right scruff back
LS-F left scruff front
LS-B left scruff back

MBR-F mid back right front
MBR-B mid back right back
MBL-F mid back left front
MBL-B mid back left back

The front or back is the direction of the needle. This helps me to keep shot rotation and brings me back to the first spot every 4 days.

I also would urge you to consider home testing. There is just so much information you can gather from doing home curves and spot checks...the comfort level goes up dramatically and you will be able to make educated decisions instead of informed "guesses" when it comes to increasing or decreasing doses.

[sophia]

Re: Do injections get easier?

Another Westie!!! Hello cute Pippa.

Thank you for encouragement. For now I worry that after some, not all, shots I can smell the insulin on her fur. She does wiggle a bit and especially after needle goes in. She's calm for a Westie. But this is something different for her.

Because of the urging I went out and bought a testing monitor for her blood today. To be totally frank, the blood testing was much easier than actual injections. I think because needle is smaller.

Thank you for the help. Before last Friday, I never even knew dogs could have diabetes.

Hello and welcome to you and sweet Sophia.

It sounds to me that you are doing incredibly well in your first few days and yes most of us initially felt overwhelmed by the thought of giving twice daily injections for the rest of our dogs life. It does get easier, I promise.

Is sophia wriggling about? My Pippa westie initally flinched and wiggled but now is as good as gold. I think getting her into a place where you are comfortable is important, at a good working level for you where you can hold her and be quick with the jab followed up with a really nice treat. I put Pippa on the kitchen worktop straight after her meal and she knows its coming as shes on her special towel but does not mind at all now. Like Nathalie I can only comfortably inject into one side, the right for me, as I find her left side incredibly awkward.

Getting into a routine is important too. Food , injections, 12 hours apart, walks fitted in as normal and lots of fun times too.

I know its early days , but many of us believe home blood sugar testing is the way forward in getting good regulation, and thats not as hard either as it sounds. Might be worth chatting to your vet about this when you next see them.

Look forward to hearing how you are getting on and more about your beautiful little westie.

Big hugs, Jen x

[sophia]

Re: Do injections get easier?

She says thank you I found your youtube video and watched. Very helpful and seemed pain free. Seemed so easy. I bought a inject ease, but my 30 needle seems so short and loose in it. I'm not sure it will work with these disposable needles.

She takes 1 unite 2 times a day. The plunger on needle is low. Am I using wrong sort of needle with the inject ease? Needle is so loose in it.

Squeal!! Sophia is absolutely gorgeous!