HOW does your vet get blood??

sharky

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mine does jugular first on a cat leg first on a dog ... reason blood pressure
 

mmc32879

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I just had my first experience with blood drawing the other day. The vet tried the jugular twice with no success. I personally think the assistant did a very bad job restraining her. But he wasn't able to get it from the jugular so he got it from her inner thigh area. The whole process was very traumatic for her, she was even dry heaving and foaming at the mouth after the two jugular attempts. He said it's a little harder to get a lot of blood that way but I'm not going to let him go in the jugular again, if he needs more blood he can use the leg. I also got a response to this on another saying that someone's cat had blood drawn from the jugular and the cat developed a blood clot and died shortly after. Has anyone else heard of this?
 

tamgirl99

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Originally Posted by MMC32879

I just had my first experience with blood drawing the other day. The vet tried the jugular twice with no success. I personally think the assistant did a very bad job restraining her. But he wasn't able to get it from the jugular so he got it from her inner thigh area. The whole process was very traumatic for her, she was even dry heaving and foaming at the mouth after the two jugular attempts. He said it's a little harder to get a lot of blood that way but I'm not going to let him go in the jugular again, if he needs more blood he can use the leg. I also got a response to this on another saying that someone's cat had blood drawn from the jugular and the cat developed a blood clot and died shortly after. Has anyone else heard of this?
Oh my gosh that is scary. They just took mine from my kitty in two places on her neck yesterday. They needed two vials and I think the tech didn't realize that until the first was drawn and done. Today I had to take her into the ER vet because she started limping when we got home yesterday (after the regular vet had closed as I was one of the last patients). So, $300 later her x-rays showed soft tissue inflammation and a loose patella. I know it's from the poor restraining they did yesterday as the ended up having to gas her to get a stool sample after the first attempt was too difficult. I don't have much faith in vets these days. Fortunately the ER vet was very kind and very thorough.
 

mmc32879

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Originally Posted by tamgirl99

Oh my gosh that is scary. They just took mine from my kitty in two places on her neck yesterday. They needed two vials and I think the tech didn't realize that until the first was drawn and done. Today I had to take her into the ER vet because she started limping when we got home yesterday (after the regular vet had closed as I was one of the last patients). So, $300 later her x-rays showed soft tissue inflammation and a loose patella. I know it's from the poor restraining they did yesterday as the ended up having to gas her to get a stool sample after the first attempt was too difficult. I don't have much faith in vets these days. Fortunately the ER vet was very kind and very thorough.
I'm sorry to hear that you had such a bad experience, I hope you cat is doing better. The symptoms you described, the limping, is what one of the symptoms the cat I read about had. The sign of the clot was the loss of use of the rear legs, I'm glad you were able to get her to a good vet in time. How is she doing now?
 

blaise

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Originally Posted by MMC32879

...I also got a response to this on another saying that someone's cat had blood drawn from the jugular and the cat developed a blood clot and died shortly after. Has anyone else heard of this?
That tragic story can be found here.
 

stephanietx

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I don't know! I'm not around when blood is drawn, but after any procedure they're usually shaved a bit on the neck and the front leg. I'm assuming they get blood from one of those two places.
 

kittkatt

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Reading those stories is freaking me out!
My vet always takes it from the jugular too, but now I'm afraid to let him do it that way anymore.
The vet I used to have used to put the cats out before doing the procedure, b/c he said it was easier to do it that way. But the new vet doesn't..
 

pookie-poo

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My vet takes blood from Cleo's left hind leg. I always hold her, and hold off the vein while Dr. Sue does the needle stick. Since I'm right handed, her left sapheneous vein is the easiest for me to hold. Cleo is a very mellow cat, and I've volunteered in the vet clinic in the past. It probably doesn't hurt that I'm a nurse, and not bothered by the sight of blood! Cleo gets bloodwork done 3 or 4 times a year for her CRF. I think once we had to use her cephalic (front leg) vein, because we couldn't get it from either sapheneous.

Maggie also has CRF, but she's so traumatized by a vet visit, that she only gets bloodwork done once a year. I've tried holding her, but it was a disaster, so now I leave it to Dr. Sue and an experienced vet tech. They have always used her hind legs. I've never needed to have a blood draw done on the jugular for any of my cats, and the thought of it kind of geeks me out!
 

wishiwas

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Chase had it done both ways.. sometimes front leg, sometimes neck, depending on which vet he was seeing. My dog has always had it taken from the leg, though they always have a very hard time finding a vein. Our other dogs they just stick it in and - bingo! - blood. But for some reason on her they have a lot of trouble. I wonder if they should be trying somewhere else?
 

mews2much

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I do not know where they got blood from Meeko this last time because she went nuts at the Vets and nothing was shaved on her. I did read that terrible story on here and it scared me.
 

booktigger

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Mine always does the jugular, and only once has there been a problem - and that was cos I let them take her into the back (same cat had to be sedated at the e-vet just to be examined, and would bite for no reason). Molly has an anaesthetic gel on her neck first, or we can't do anything with her.
 

kitytize

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I have seen my vet use the leg and the neck. Not sure why different places.
 

denice

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My vet takes it from the leg when they are well and she is drawing blood for routine checks. When Patches was sick and a little dehydrated she took it from the jugular.
 

mmc32879

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Originally Posted by kitytize

I have seen my vet use the leg and the neck. Not sure why different places.
The vet said the jugular is quicker because the blood comes out a lot faster. When he took it from her leg he had to have the needle in for at almost a minuet before he got all the blood he needed. I still prefer it that way though.
 
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