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Excellent video - we actually got our cat his fluids whilst watching!

Owners' should be careful giving their senior cat sub q fluid at home, as there's an increased risk of Pleural Effusion- a condition that becomes a life threatening emergency when the cat cannot breathe, due to fluid accumulation within the space between the outer surface of the lungs and the inner surface of the chest cavity. The thin wall of tissue called the pleura effusion when fluid becomes trapped. Sometimes the condition involves chylothorax, which is an accumulation of lymphatic fluid in the chest and is very serious. My cat almost died after giving only 50mls of sub-cutanious fluid (Ringer's formula) and had to be rushed to hospital for oxygen therapy and treatment. As a vet, Why aren't you warning owners about the risks involved with giving sub q fluids to their cats?

I have been giving fluids to my 2 CKD cats for the past year every second day. What helps a lot when inserting the needle is shaving a patch of hair with a low noise pet clipper. Always insert the needle just under the skin, dont try and go too deep. Keep the environment calm and quiet and give loads of cuddles and scratches. I have a cuddle and brush routine before giving their fluids and it makes them so much more relaxed. If they tense up, it is diificult to "tent" the skin and inserting the needle becomes more difficult. If you get it just right, the fluid will actually flow in a steady little stream into the bulb instead of just dripping, which makes it go so much faster. Remember to slight pinch the area when pulling out the needle as a 18G needle leaves quite a hole and the fluid may leak out a little from that hole due to the pressure from the fluid pocket under the skin.

My cat hates it. I end up having to scruff him to keep him still long enough for his daily dose. I come away wearing some of the fluids. 😒

Thank you so much for this video. The vet has shown us how to do this twice but every time we try the needles comes out when we start the flow of fluids. My cat is over 17 years old and very skinny. Is there any advice you can give?

Thank you ❤

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I have to do this for the first time. Do you open the valve all the way up?

Are you kidding? I'm one person and this is a two-person job. You guys have GOT to come up with something better. This is primitive.

Never microwave a fluid bag unless it SPECIFICALLY states from manufacturer this is ok and only use a fluid warmer not a microwave. 😢

Uhm, I thought that you warm it in a bowl of warm tap water? Wtf w micro water!!! Some helpful tips and I understand that you are experienced but this looks very unhygienic. You also need a sharps container and poke a different spot if you do it every day. Some pets need to be wrapped in a blanket or positioned differently to be more comfortable.

Always put a new needle on immediately after you've finished with the current one, otherwise bacteria can travel up the needle and could cause an infection. I know you can't microwave the bag then but I think there's a danger of it getting too hot and I just warm it with beanbags and test it for heat on my belly (so it doesn't feel warmer or colder).

My cat just shook the needle out 3 times

Do you know which IV fluids I would get if I suspect toxins or MODS and yes I have went to the vet 5 times and still having trouble with convincing them of the problems I’m seeing

Thank you Dr. Scherk!! I didn't think using the Churu would work as well with my cat when administering the fluids, but it did!! I appreciate you so much for sharing this video...can't thank you enough.

I fill a 2 quart pitcher with water that's around 105-110 Fahrenheit for a full bag and the bag fits into it much better. Because the bag takes about half the volume and is around 83F at room temperature right now, the 2 will balance out after 5-10 minutes at around 95F. A cat's body temp is 102.5 so it's a little low but I don't want to risk having it too high. I got a great digital meat Thermometer on Amazon for $9 that I use to measure everything.

very helpful, thank you :)

I'm supposed to follow lines drawn on the bag but as the bag empties there is much more water in the bag at the bottom, it bulges, but the higher lines dont have as much how do I know what I'm giving or if its right? Do I flatten the bag with my hand so it's equal or what?

Thank you! I have a cat with kidney failure who needs fluids now. My vet is great but this was my 1st time and I was nervous. Your video helped clarify a few things for me and everything went smoothly!

Very helpful, thank you! The Vet gave us the bag and line and I wasn't sure how to set it all up. Stella got her fluids with no problem!

what is the snack?

When I was working in a research lab I was taught to never recap used needles. Too much risk of needle sticks. When finished with it, it needs to go directly into a sharps container.

thanks crazy cat lady

Thank you for this easy to understand video!

Aren’t you making open wounds each time? And what about hitting the same spot more than once?

I let the bag sit in a warm water bath in a glass lasagna pan….works great! Just keep the bulb and line out of the bath. I only use warm water and let it sit for 5-10 minutes. I’d be scared to use anything hotter, but testing the heated bag against the inner wrist should be a good way to make sure it’s not too warm. For my cats, room temperature fluids made them fidget more as they felt it as cold on their backs. I like this insertion method very much. Good luck everyone… you can do this!

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My cat is not chill at all ! Not even when I cut her nails or brush her ! Shes very spoiled, I have always been gentle with her but my god she’s so naughty! Even at the docs place it took 3 people including me to do this 😢 we do it with a syringe not a bag. It literally takes 2 mins ! I gave her the treat she loves but no ! After I did it once ! She was fine the next min and finished her treat and kissed my nose ! What is her problem? She doesn’t even like to be held for too long, only with me does she stay and then purrs and leaves ! I do everything her way even then.

Great video!! I wish I had the information you shared 18 years ago when my kitty needed sub-q fluids. Love the tips of warming the fluid and balance the fluid on both sides (I just gave my little girl a "camel hump" 😂). 💜

Okay I just talked to my vet about doing this to my cat there's no way I'm sticking a needle in my cat I just can't do it

I was so shaky but once i got the needle in, my cat was so chill. Hopefully tomorrow I will be more chill. Thanks for the help. 😸

merci infiniment mon chat with kidney desease on a besoin le vet a refuser de me l expliquer

i have a skrew on wall next to my desk, i attach the bag on it.

my cat is stage 3 kidney disease. his creatine was 33 and bun 63 on 1/29/24. the vet at u put him on kidney friendly diet, but never told me to gradually put him on his new diet. in 2 days on diet my cat was sick vomiting. so on 2/6/23 i went to another vet and his creatine was 43 and bun 68. the vet gave my cat fluids and said if my cat needs fluids again i would have to go to the ER. then 3 days later on 2/6/24. i went to local vet and his creatine was 44 bun 60. that vet sent home sub q fluids, i gave him 100ml 1/10th of bag every 3 days. on 2/13/24 seven days later, his creatine was 29, bun 47.at vets office then 8 days later on 2/21/24, his creatine was 28 bun 46. i have been giving 1/10th a bag or 100ml every 3 days ever since and on 4/2/24 it was creatine 28 bun 49. on 5/15/24 creatine 30 bun 52. Is 100 ml or 1/10th of bag of iv fluids every 3 days the right dosage. i see you give 150 ml every day. my cat is a male 10 lbs. i am very thankful the 3rd vet sent home iv fluids, and put him on iv fluids, something the u or 2nd vet didnt do!

i like the idrea holding needle in place and pulling the skin. many times i put needle in and kitty got mad because hurting him. and then no liquid was coming out so had to do it again.. it was terrible when that happens. Now i know to rotate needle when fluid is not coming out... also notice the fluids building up. now now i know to pull needle out a little and go in opposite direction...

I can’t remove the needle no matter how hard I try.

I soak it in a large bowl of hot water from the tap. I would never use boiling water. Better to be safe than sorry.

I have dumb question to ask: Why do you have warm up the fluids?

Which one better give through iv line or under skin ? Ans i can do it for poor oral intake? And what type of ivf can be give

We're still newbies at this. We give our cat Brandy fluids once a week, so have only done it 3 times so far. I've seen that about drawing the skin towards the needle, instead of pushing the needle, and always forget to try it to see if it makes it easier. I noticed that the fluid was running very slowly the first time. It was taking like maybe 10 minutes, and we gave up after about 5. The 2nd time though, I had seen something online about moving the line closing aparatus, because the line can get a kink in it. So I closed the other one, further up the line so I could move the one with the roller, and yep, when I moved it, I saw a kink where it had been. You just have to squeeze the 2 edges together until the line is round again instead of flat. I always put a new needle on after, because they say contamination can make its way back into the fluids. Another thing our vet showed us, was to "bleed" the line first, to get bubbles out, as they can cause some discomfort (although not dangerous). I do this each time. It only takes a few seconds. We don't warm the fluids any. Our cat is a peach though. Maybe if we had a problem kitty we would try warming first, to see if that helped.

My cat has stage 4 kidney disease and we need to give him fluid, but he won't eat anymore. Distracting him with treats isn't working, how can I keep him still?

I was surprised to hear the vet say that it was all right to let the cat explore the exam room if they so choose. I would have tried to prevent the cat from escaping the carrier.

Thanks for the concise demonstration! I have had trouble from time to time with fluids stopping flow. I tried to move the needle out or sideways and boom-it came out and we all got wet. So frustrating. Not good. I'll try rotating it, for some reason I never thought of that. It IS hard doing it with a confused cat (new to fluids) and no helper to distract the kitty. More than about 30 seconds is a challenge. Also sick cats don't always want a treat, they just want to go back to bed. I do use an instant read thermometer in the water basin used to warm the fluids bag, too hot is a risk.

Thank you so much! My Bugsy is nearly 20, and we are hoping this will help him stay more comfortable. They showed me how to do it at the vet’s office, but they weren’t clear about a couple of things, so thankfully, you answered those questions. I’m warming the bag in my lap as I’m rewatching this video. Then, we will be attempting it on our own 😬 🤞🏻. I’ll make sure Bugsy gets some lick treats before next time, too! I think my only worry is if he does end up taking fluids every day, will scar tissue start to build up in the poke place? I’ve worked with animals who got insulin injections, and that was the case. Ps Nimitz is adorable 😻

Teflon coated needle makes me worry about PFAS and heating plastic bag in a microwave or in a boiling water also cause release of toxins in the plastic bags into the fluid. I am a little wary of heating fluids in plastic bags. The amount of trash generated from this necessary procedures is troubling, while convenient, and I wish I would reuse disinfect and reuse needles at home or at least return the needles for sanitation and reuse.

What is the treat he is licking while you are administering the fluids?

My cat gets VERY upset and uncomfortable for the whole process :"(

Okay I'm just about to do it so wish me luck. I'll be sure to let y'all know how it goes ... 🙏🤞😁 Thank you for the video!

Did anyone catch the treat she is using to calm her cat?

Your pre-visit information was very helpful. 😅