Home Client Procedures: Giving Your Cat Insulin Injections

Diabetes mellitus is a hormonal condition that leads to many damaging effects. Your veterinarian may prescribe insulin shots to help control excess blood sugar levels seen with this condition.

Though your veterinarian will have demonstrated this technique before sending Kitty home with this powerful medication, this demo below will help to reinforce the steps you need to follow to successfully treat your cat with insulin.

Cats usually tolerate insulin injections very well. Small injection volume and ultra-fine needles make this an easy treatment to give! Let's get started!

1. remove the insulin bottle from the fridge immediately before treatment
2. gently rotate or roll the insulin bottle to mix the contents—do not shake it!
3. draw up the exact dose prescribed, and remove any air bubbles by gently tapping the side of the syringe (see picture below), and expelling air with the plunger

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. gently raise a tent of skin using the non-injection hand

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5. inject by entering the skin at an angle between 20 and 45 degrees from the horizontal, into the center of the raised skin

 

 

 

 

— feel for the light “pop” sensation as the needle goes through the skin—the pop sensation is very subtle because the needle is so fine

 

 

 

 

 

6. rub your hand over the area to feel for moistness—if you feel wet, this means your injection did not enter the subcutaneous tissues as prescribed.

Tips and reminders:

• Rotate sites of injection according to your veterinarian’s instructions

• Make sure you have measured the correct dose

• Give the injections at the SAME time(s) every day

• If Kitty does not eat, do not give the full dose and if she seems weak or ill, do not give the dose at all —call your veterinarian

• If home ear-prick blood sugar or urine sugar/ketone monitoring has been prescribed, use these methods to check the status of diabetes control

• Do not use insulin past the date of expiry

• Keep Karo ™ or corn syrup handy to manage potential hypoglycemic (low blood sugar) episodes. Early signs of low blood sugar include weakness, lethargy, and loss of appetite. Late signs include collapse and seizures, which can progress to death if left unattended. Rub syrup on the gums and take Kitty to the veterinary facility IMMEDIATELY, as the syrup treatment should be reinforced with in-hospital therapy to stabilize the cat.

Diabetic cats are difficult to stabilize compared with dogs or people. If your veterinarian suggests a change in the type of insulin or dosages for a while after the condition is first diagnosed, this is not unusual.

Some cats will revert back to normal and lose their need for insulin. If you suspect that Kitty has low sugar signs, and if she no longer has excess urine production or weight loss, have the diabetes checked. Some of these cats will again later develop diabetes, but often, a cat that normalizes can go for quite a while without insulin. Special diets will generally be continued through this phase.

Cats are less likely to experience some of the diabetic complications seen in people and dogs. Eye problems and infection/circulation problems are not seen as frequently. Cats do tend to get neuropathy (nerve disturbances) more frequently though. The most common sign of this complication is walking with a dropped leg stance in the back legs. This results in walking on the back joint half way up the leg (hock). Once the sugar levels are controlled, this complication often gradually resolves.

Because of cat’s unique features, the goals for controlling blood sugar levels are less exacting than with people and dogs

Video of the technique:

 

Preparing for the Insulin Injection

For video suitable for a dialup connection, select here: Prep

For video suitable for high speed connection, select here: Prep

Giving the Insulin Injection

For video suitable for a dialup connection, select here: Injecting

For video suitable for high speed connection, select here: Injecting

Disclaimer: This website is not intended to replace professional consultation, diagnosis, or treatment by a licensed veterinarian. If you require any veterinary related advice, contact your veterinarian promptly. Information at Cathealth.com is exclusively of a general reference nature. Do not disregard veterinary advice or delay treatment as a result of accessing information at this site.