Posted by iZ's mom on June 25, 2000 at 13:52:36:
First ~ Some Misc. Thoughts ~
i've had vets tell me that you can re-use the same needle a couple of times ... *i* personally do not recommend you do that ... i always use a new, nice *sharp* needle and things go much smoother! a sharp needle is much less of an owie than a dull one and when you're pushing thru ig-skin, they dull fast!
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Baytril is one of the few reptile drugs that has had some research done on it ... in *most* cases, Baytril is just as effective given orally as it is effective given by injection! the exception being, if you are treating an intestinal infection, injected Baytril will hit that part of the system quicker ... after the 1st couple injections tho it is *my understanding* that orally will be just as effective and quite alot LESS stress for all involved!
if Baytril *must* be given by injection, either IM or Sub-Q, it helps to dilute the drug with sterile saline (1:1 )... while it makes for a larger amount to be injected, i've found it *does* make a *huge* difference in the ig's discomfort, it stings less when injected!
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Preparing the Syringe~
clean the rubber top of the medicine vial with a bit of alcohol, let it air dry a couple seconds ...
take the syringe + pull the plunger back to draw some air into the syringe ~ about as much air as how much med you're gonna draw ...
insert the needle into the rubber stopper of the medicine vial and push plunger to inject the air into the vial, keep the needle in the vial ... (med vials have a vacuum, adding air to the vial will make it easier to withdraw the drug)
with the needle still in the vial, turn the vial upside down ... make sure the needle inside the vial is in the liquid, not in the air pocket at the top of the vial ... draw slightly more than the desired dose into the needle
Do Not remove needle from vial yet! Keep the bottle upside down!
Gently tap the syringe with your finger nail to get any bubbles in the syringe to the top of it ... push the syringe plunger slowly to the correct dosage + pull the needle out of the vial ... recap the needle! *grin* ... (note~ some small air bubbles are ok!)
Part Two~
next prepare the area of the house where you're gonna give the injection ... the 2-person approach is usually recommended, however with iZ, the 5' baby gets extremely intimidated and immediately stressed even more when he knows hubby *and* i are there to gang up on him! i have had better results working on my own ... (that way too, i only have *one* animal to calm down!)
i sit on the edge of my bed to do injections ... i have a quilt on my left, the syringe on my right and a big thick bath towel in hand ... i get iZ, wrap the towel over + under his head so that any wiggling is not gonna free his head! i sit on the edge of the bed and with him on my lap, put the quilt over + kinda wrapped around the lower half of his body + especially the 3.5' tail (!) ... his legs + base of tail are more or less at my side and i tuck them firmly in between my arm + side ...
The Shot~
now there's 2 ways to go ... IM or Sub-Q ... i prefer Sub-Q as it is less of an owie! i do Sub-Q's at about his shoulder where there aren't really any scales big enough to slide under ... with one hand i pinch + lift a fold of skin, slide the needle in the part that i've got pinched + raised, inject fairly quickly, withdraw the needle, release the pinch + rub the area ... by lifting the skin, iZ doesn't really feel the med going into him ... it's the medicine being injected that hurts! not the needle poke!
IM is trickier (for me) ... don't even try to go *thru* a bicep scale! those things are tough!! ... you want to slide the needle underneath a scale, so to start, the needle is pretty much level with the arm ... when the needle tip is underneath the scale, point the needle slightly down + push the needle into the muscle ... careful not to hit the plunger yet or you've lost all the med! when you are under the scale and at the skin, the needle will push into the ig with very little effort, if it's not sliding in easily, you're not quite under a scale, you're trying to go thru a scale ...
ok ... iZ is pretty big so keep that in mind if you're working with a smaller ig ok? his injections were 2-3cc's at a time, not "point two"... i insert the needle deep into the muscle 3/8 to 1/2 inch ... when done right, this part does not hurt! it just sounds awful! ... as i'm withdrawing the needle, i am pushing the plunger and injecting the meds ... it's injecting the actual med that hurts, you're forcing liquid intothe muscle ... by taking the needle a bit deeper than usual and withdrawing the needle at the same time i'm injecting, it spreads the med out in the muscle a bit more and hurts less!
at this point, you're probably shaking and the ig is probably thrashing ... i've been known to toss the syringe across the room to get it out of my way (heheheh) ... with *my* luck, if i set the syringe on the bed next to me, i'd end up jabbing it into myself ...
rub the area you just injected ... it helps disperse the med and kinda relieves the sore spot a bit ... also keeps the med from leaking out the hole you just poked in the ig ...
don't try + snuggle or make it up to him right now ... put him back into his room/safe place and let him be ... go to *your* safe place and try to quit feeling guilty ...