Experience Giving Your Cat IV Fluids At Home?

[AvaJoy]

Due to a decrease in her kidney function, my elderly (gray) Lily must now undergo twice weekly Sodium Chloride subcutaneous fluids, which I am doing at home, with the help of my husband who must hold her still while I stick her with the needle . . . It is not clinically intravenous, because the needle should go just beneath her skin, not in a vein or muscle.

I wondered if anyone has had experience with this . . . I had the option of doing it at home, or bringing her to the Vet twice a week (and paying) for a tech to do it. After a quick lesson in how I felt confident that I could handle it, but it has not been smooth sailing; once the fluid leaked out everywhere because I must have stuck the needle through and out the other side of her skin . . . . . . and another time she bled afterwards so I must have hit a blood vessel . . . . . . When I called the vet's office, I was reassured that these are not uncommon and do happen, so I shouldn't be alarmed.

She seems to be doing OK, and seems to feel better after the treatments, but she is still peeing tiny little pees, very frequently.

It looks like she will have to have this Sub-Q treatment for the remainder of her life, since cats aren't able to get dialysis.

[krazyaboutkatz]

I'm so sorry to hear about Lily's failing health. Yes, I've had experience with this before. I had to do this with my RB Pepper because he was very dehydrated. I didn't have any help though and it can become very difficult at times. I would wrap Pepper in a towel so he wouldn't be able to move freely and then I'd kneel on the floor with him in between my legs. A few times the fluid leaked out but I never experienced any bleeding. Good luck and I hope Lily feels better soon. Here's a link that tells you how to do it correctly:http://www.sniksnak.com/cathealth/subques.html.

[neko1]

Yes I've given fluids many times. Most of the cats and dogs were good for it, however there were times when I needed an extra set of hands.

[Denyce]

I have found that gently warming the fluids slightly and keeping the cat in a warm environment afterwards helps. Having that mass of cold fluids on the back can chill the cat some and make them more uncomfortable. Just don't nuke the IV bag...in a pot of warmed not boiling water helps..just so the fluid isn't so cold.

Denyce

[AvaJoy]

Thanks for the input!

The website is very helpful and informative, so I printed it out to have on hand for reference.

I will try warming the bag up before I proceed next time . . . excellent idea and it should make her more comfortable and accepting of the whole procedure.

During our most recent stint with this, Lily was doing OK but then suddenly squirmed, the needle pulled out and slashed my husband's finger tip pretty deeply . . . finally got the bleeding to stop, but it probably could have used a stitch or two. He was concerned that the Sodium Chloride got into the gash, and also that he may need a tetanus shot because of the needle itself having been in a cat. He called the local hospital and they said the IV solution isn't harmful, but a tetanus might be a good idea . . .

I'm optimistic that we'll get the hang of this eventually.