Uh-Oh Fur Shots and Your Diabetic Dog
Today we talk about the inevitable… A fur shot. Hopefully, it is a rare occurrence, but on occasion, it may happen. What is a fur shot? It is when you give your pup an injection and for whatever reason, you miss, or your dog moves, his/her skin twitches or something happens that causes you to not get the whole dose into your pup. Oooops!
Now what? You say, “Oh well” and move on. Do not try to guess how much of the dose was injected and how much is now on your pup’s fur. There is absolutely no way to know how much if any of the insulin is now “on board”. Do not draw up another unit or two and inject. Do not!!! Just move on. Provide extra water and potty breaks throughout the day. That is the ONLY way to deal with a fur shot.
How will you know? The first telltale sign that all of the insulin didn’t get where it was supposed to go is the smell. Novolin N smells very strongly like Band-Aids. I never used Vetsulin/Caninsulin, so I can’t speak to whether it has a smell or not. Maybe one of you Vetsulin users could let us know in the comments below? Another sign is that the fur around the injection site is wet or damp. Even if both of these things are true, do NOT give any more insulin.
Here’s an experiment for you to try… Take one of your syringes and draw your normal dose of water instead of insulin. Now squirt it onto a small plate or paper towel. See? It’s not much at all, so trying to guess how much of that small amount went into your pup is a very bad idea. Insulin is a very powerful drug and a little bit of it goes a very long way.
If you give a fur shot, you will just have to wait and see what your next fasting reading is. Until then, provide lots of water and potty breaks. If you work all day and your pup is alone, set out some extra water bowls and please don’t be upset if you come home to a puddle or two. It is not your baby’s fault!
We see all the time in our group ( Canine Diabetes Support and Information) a member that gives a fur shot and is panicked. At the dinner meal, they come back on and most often say, “Well, I guess more of the insulin went in than I thought, my pup is at 230 BG (Blood Glucose)”. This is why you NEVER give more insulin. Your pup will be back on track in 12-24 hours if in fact you gave a true fur shot and none of the insulin went in. Always better safe than sorry.
Another question that we see repeatedly is “What do you do with your syringes?” Well, many take them to the fire department or a local hospital, or back to the vet where some charge to dispose of them for you. Let me share what I did with mine…
After stabbing myself twice trying to put the cap back on the syringe and bending the needle through the cap (stop laughing, one day that will be you), I got a needle clipper. BEST invention EVER!!! You insert the needle into the little hole on the side of the clipper, clip the needle, recap the syringe (no chance of stabbing yourself now) and throw it in the garbage. It is no longer hazardous waste and a sharps container is no longer needed.
The needle clipper holds 1,500 needles inside and is the best little tool ever!!! This will be the best $6.13 that you spend along this journey! Well, except for your first meter which you can get for just the cost of shipping.
So there you have it my friends, how to handle a fur shot. Feel free to share your “I stabbed myself too” stories since I broke the ice and confessed! I want to thank those of you that have started emailing me with topics that you’d like to see covered in upcoming posts! It helps me not feel so alone… lol
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Until next time…