Subq fluids weekly

[tyleete]

Hi all! My vet wants me to give 2 of my cats (1 with kidney failure, 1 with intestinal Cancer) fluids weekly from now till... forever.
Anyhow, I've a question for those experienced in this.
She said 200 a week for both. Typically it's given all at once.
It's hard to give either 200 I just 1 sitting. I've finally gotten to giving 150 at once, but my question is this....
Is it better to separate it for cats that are having dehydration problems to just get 1 injecting of 200 at once? Or separate it for them so they get 100 twice in the week? Separating it for them? I'm just asking for personal opinions here. Neither have heart murmurs. But that's also another worry for me. Over working their little tickers.
Thanks in advance.

 

[sunny578]

Yeah, 200 does sound like a lot for a cat. I'd think it would be better to separate it, especially if they are feeling antsy and if they don't really mind the poke. You could always run it by your vet to be sure, but I'd think that separating it would be better for their hydration. I hope the fluids are helping your cats feel as good as possible! I think I gave my kidney failure cat weekly fluids for 2 years--it really helped her stay comfortable and seemed to really extend her life/quality of life.

 

[tyleete]

Wow! Two years is amazing! I had one diagnosed that was 16 but only lasted a year before as the vet said: Her blood turned to sludge. I had to take her in due to she started stumbling. I know that's a bad sign and when she went to take blood she told me that.
But as forthe dehydration, that's exactly what I was thinking. If I give it to them all at once, it's done and they won't receive a deprivefor another week. Verses if I split it up its kind of like a refresh. She told me I could when the kidney failure one wouldn't sit still for any length of time and that's the best I could do. It's a 2-man job with him and my husband started squeezing the fluids bad just like at the vets which helps a lot! And I can get more now. But I got to thinking... Shouldn't I just do 100 at a time? Wouldn't that be more beneficial? I HATE the needle & think it's more stressful to me than either cat. But I'll do whatever's best for them.
Plus I worry about the whole heart murmur thing. The one that passed developed one and I had to go from 200 once weekly to 100 twice. She said 200 makes the heart work harder?

 

[di and bob]

You know, I would talk to the vet and get their opinion, they would be better able to know the answer. There are 240cc's in a cup of water, but I do know there is a huge bump when they are done injecting the fluid. I would ask specifically if 100cc 2x or 200cc 1x is the best. These sub q's really do help, so I hope you can get them done. Someone to help you would be really nice. But really, if they can only tolerate 100 cc before they start really struggling, that may answer your question.

 

[sunny578]

Wow! Two years is amazing! I had one diagnosed that was 16 but only lasted a year before as the vet said: Her blood turned to sludge. I had to take her in due to she started stumbling. I know that's a bad sign and when she went to take blood she told me that.
But as forthe dehydration, that's exactly what I was thinking. If I give it to them all at once, it's done and they won't receive a deprivefor another week. Verses if I split it up its kind of like a refresh. She told me I could when the kidney failure one wouldn't sit still for any length of time and that's the best I could do. It's a 2-man job with him and my husband started squeezing the fluids bad just like at the vets which helps a lot! And I can get more now. But I got to thinking... Shouldn't I just do 100 at a time? Wouldn't that be more beneficial? I HATE the needle & think it's more stressful to me than either cat. But I'll do whatever's best for them.
Plus I worry about the whole heart murmur thing. The one that passed developed one and I had to go from 200 once weekly to 100 twice. She said 200 makes the heart work harder?

Yeah! We started early, but it helped so much! My cat was on the bigger side, and she did 100 a session, but she would get antsy so I think 200 would have been hard. I think sometimes vets want to give instructions that seem manageable--once a week fluids probably sounds easier than twice a week to most people. That's so great that you have help! It always felt nice to be able to do something to make her feel better. The heart thing makes sense!

 

[Antonio65]

I gave my cat (the one in the profile photo) sub-Q fluids every other day for 11 years. The fluid I would give her was Ringer's Lactate.
I would give 120 ml in one sitting every second day, and in the last two years of her life I would do it every day.
I, too, think that 200 ml is a lot of fluids, I remember that with 120 ml my cat would develop a huge bubble under her skin and I'm rather sure she wouldn't have stood more than that.
I believe that keeping a constant level of hydration is better than giving a huge amount in one session and then nothing for several days. The fluids will be expelled anyway within hours, so the result will be that for the rest of the week the cat might be dehydrated all the same.

 

[tyleete]

I can't thank you all enough for the stories & shared thoughts and knowledge! I'm definitely going to stick to the 100ml twice a week. I do think this will be what's best for both of my babies. And that's all I want for them.
Thanks everyone!