How to put a dropper on a dog and a cat

Although attaching a dropper to your dog or cat may appear difficult, it can actually be quite simple if you prepare ahead of time. Knowing how to give your pet the right medication or water can make a big difference in their comfort and speed of recovery.

Make sure you have everything you need on hand first. This contains the dropper, the drug or liquids, and some after-meal treats for your pet. You and your pet will feel more at ease during the process if you can create a calm environment.

It’s essential to know the proper methods for securely restraining your pet. Because dogs and cats can be finicky, it will be easier to apply the dropper if you can get them in a comfortable position. You will be able to minimize tension for the two of you if you have patience and use a gentle touch.

The device of the dropper

The dropper is made up of multiple components.

Table 1: The dropper device, symbol decoding.

Number in the photo	Name of the component	Purpose of the component
1	Needle that is inserted into the vein	The size depends on the type and age of the animal. For a kitten and a puppy, take the thinnest, "insulin" needles
2	Drip former	A rarefaction process occurs inside the container, under the influence of which the liquid is sucked inside
3	Regulating device	Allows you to regulate the rate at which the medicine enters the body
4	Plastic tubes	Vessels through which the liquid moves to the needle

Video – How to assemble the system

It’s important to maintain your composure and kindness when giving your dog or cat a dropper in order to facilitate the process for both of you. To begin, get your pet settled in a comfortable position and use treats to keep them calm. Slowly dispense the liquid by carefully placing the dropper in their mouth and aiming for their back. Your pet will have a smoother experience taking their medication if you use this method to make sure they do so without experiencing any stress.

Procedure for intravenous infusion

The room is set up with a spot designated for the procedure. This is a good use for a table. A throwaway diaper and a blanket are placed on the tabletop. Medication is prepared according to the directions. To make the vein easily visible, the hair at the injection site is removed, and if necessary, the area is shaved. The best region for this is the area between the elbow joint and the wrist.

Placing the dropper on the front limb before the elbow bend is more practical.

• Open the packaging with the device.
• Close the roller regulator, moving it to the lower position.
• Remove the safety catch from the needle inserted into the vial, pierce the rubber stopper of the vial with the medicine with the needle and push it deep into the container to the full length.
• A bottle with a medicine is hung above the table on a suitable object on the wall (a nail, a hanger, etc. p.). It should be located much higher than the tabletop.
• Squeeze and release the sub-needle reservoir until it is half full of liquid.

Turn the medicine container upside down.

• Release the air by opening the roller clamp until the medicine flows out of the drip system, close the system using the regulator.
• Check if there are any air bubbles left in the system. If they are found, open the system again to get rid of the air.
• The limb above the elbow joint is clamped with a rubber tourniquet so that the vein fills with blood. Additionally, it is necessary to bend the limb at the elbow several times.
• Insert the needle into the vein, parallel to the limb. If the puncture is done correctly, then a little blood will appear in the tube, and no swelling will form on the paw when the drug is administered.
• Fix the needle on the paw with adhesive tape.

Crucial! You must discuss with the physician the proper preparation and dosage for the medication. The animal may perish if these guidelines are broken.

The IV is shut off and the needle is carefully taken out once the prescribed amount of medication has been injected. On the puncture site, a cotton swab soaked in medical alcohol is applied.

Disinfecting the puncture site is necessary.

Installing a catheter

When a lot of medication needs to be given over an extended period of time and long-term care is needed, an intravenous catheter, or bypass catheter, is placed.

• constant access to the vein with the ability to quickly administer the drug in difficult cases;
• no need to puncture the blood vessel before each administration of the drug;
• the presence of a catheter does not limit mobility;
• saving time and effort;
• no pain during subsequent administrations of drugs;
• the ability to collect blood for analysis;
• rehydration of the body.

The appearance of a catheter

It is preferable to let a veterinarian with experience install a catheter. This kind of skill is necessary for the procedure.

Catheter design

Created with a brownule; 1 — valve, which has a hole for adding medications and is available in various colors; 2 — the stylet portion that is extracted following catheter implantation; 3 — screw cap, obstructing the blood vessel’s entrance; 4. The cannula, which is connected to the needle-free syringe or system

• clamp;
• adhesive plaster on a cloth base;
• small sharp scissors (manicure);
• bandage or rubber tourniquet;
• razor.

The number of catheters chosen is contingent upon the animal’s size.

The catheter’s size and cap color

Inserting the catheter

Prior to installation, the animal’s hair is clipped with tiny scissors and shaved with a razor in the vicinity of the elbow joint and slightly below to improve visibility of the subcutaneous vein.

The subcutaneous vein is used to insert the device. This location is thought to be the most practical. There, the gadget lasts the longest and doesn’t upset the animal.

1. Above the elbow bend using a bandage or burn and clip pulled a limb for the bloodstream of the vein. You need to do this with moderate force so as not to damage the blood vessels.
2. With the help of small sharp scissors in the middle of the forearm, they make a small incision on the skin to enter the needle.
3. In parallel of the limbs, the catheter is introduced. The tool is introduced at an angle of about 15 ° to the stop, until blood appears in the indicator chamber.
4. The catheter is removed from the stylet, but not in the reverse order, since then the device will be installed incorrectly.
5. Try to introduce a saline. If the catheter is installed correctly, then there will be no swelling on the paw, swelling.
6. The device is fixed on the paw using a narrow adhesive plaster. During fixation, it is necessary to monitor the strength of the tension of the adhesive plateau – it should not be unnecessary so as not to break the blood flow in the limbs and not cause wiping tissues.
7. The catheter is flushed to avoid blood clots.

Video — Installing a catheter

How to administer medication through a catheter

1. Draw the required amount of solution or medication into the syringe or system.
2. Unbandage the paw.
3. Unscrew the white cap, holding the device itself, in a counterclockwise direction.
4. Open the colored valve.
5. Connect a syringe with saline, press on the plunger so that the liquid flows out of the other hole and cleans the device.
6. Connect the syringe to the hole where the white cap is, and administer the solution. If the plunger moves without difficulty, you can connect the system and administer the medication.

This is the appearance of a catheter attached to a dropper.

Take note! It is required to repeatedly rinse the device with saline through the hole beneath the colored valve if, during preparation, it is discovered that a clot has obstructed the passage.

Once the process is finished, 1 ml of liquid is injected using a syringe filled with saline or heparin and connected to the hole beneath the colored valve. In order to remove the blood clot, this is required.

Catheter care

• The plugs must be sterile. You must not use plugs that may have traces of infection on their surface.
• After administering the drug, as well as between doses, the catheter must be thoroughly rinsed with saline.
• The bandage that secures the catheter must also be clean. It is changed as it becomes dirty.

Catheter on the dog’s paw covered with a bandage

Take note! Every two to three days, a new catheterization site should be used.

How to remove the catheter yourself?

If your pet has a catheter placed, you need to keep a close eye on their health. Sometimes it will be necessary to remove the device early or without a doctor’s involvement. Damage, blockage, catheter leakage, the animal experiencing pain, or edema in the limb that the drug is injected into are the causes of this. In addition, the Braunyule must be taken out if it has been installed for longer than five days.

Seeing a doctor is necessary if the paw becomes swollen.

1. Cut the adhesive tape that holds the device.
2. Carefully remove the adhesive tape from the pet"s skin, trying to separate it from the fur (it is convenient to use manicure scissors for this).
3. Smoothly but as quickly as possible, remove the device from the vein.
4. A bandage soaked in alcohol, furacilin solution or hydrogen peroxide is applied to the puncture site.
5. Bandage the limb and leave the bandage for an hour.

Take note! Even seemingly painless medical procedures like catheter removal are not always well tolerated by pets, and they occasionally attempt to flee. It is preferable to perform manipulations with a helper who will hold the dog or cat in order to avoid this.

Occasionally, after removing the Braunyule, unfavorable outcomes arise. On the paw, swelling, redness, or cyanosis may appear. Feeling the area where the catheter used to be, the pet begins to limp or bend its paw, whines, and tries to pull it out. Then, a trip to the doctor is absolutely necessary.

Following the catheter’s removal, the paw is bandaged.

Asking the veterinarian how to remove the catheter, treat the wound, and provide post-treatment care is necessary if the owner of a dog or cat is aware that he will need to do it himself.

Subcutaneous infusion

Dogs and cats receive subcutaneous injections from droppers containing saline solution and various other medications. Another name for this is subcutaneous infusion. The withers are the most secure place for this.

1. The cat or dog is fixed so as to gain access to the withers or groin fold.
2. Bring the dropper into working condition, connect it to the bottle with the medicine.
3. Use your hand to form a triangular fold on the skin in the selected area.
4. Insert the dropper needle into the base of the formed fold.
5. Connect the dropper.
6. Open the system.
7. After the required amount of the drug has been administered, close the system.
8. Carefully remove the needle.
9. Press on the injection site to prevent the drug from leaking out.

Video — Subcutaneous dropper

Since the solution is absorbed very slowly in this situation, the subcutaneous drip rate can be maximized.

Take note! The maximum quantity of medication given subcutaneously to an animal per day is 20 milliliters for every kilogram of body weight. However, the dose could be as high as 40–50 ml/kg in cases of severe dehydration.

At the location where the medication is applied, a subcutaneous blister develops. Given that the liquid has penetrated the subcutaneous tissue, this is typical. It will vanish in an instant.

• glucose (5%) (if there are no contraindications in the form of chronic diseases, in particular diabetes mellitus, behavioral disorders, seizures);
• Ringer"s solution, Ringer-Locke;
• saline (drip heated to a temperature of 40-45 ° C).

This method’s drawback is that it cannot be used to administer other medications. Furthermore, in this instance, the drugs act more slowly.

Beginners frequently make mistakes when administering drugs subcutaneously, which keeps the drug from entering the body. In the first instance, a through puncture is made and the solution is poured into the external environment; in the second instance, the needle is inserted intradermally.

To insert the needle, grasp the skin at the withers.

Rules for all procedures

The animal must remain calm throughout the process. Animals can be rendered immobile with the use of specialized fixing bags, which double as carriers. You can reach any paw from the back because of the holes in the body.

To prevent injury, extra safety precautions need to be taken if the animal is large. Dogs wear muzzles as a preventative measure, while cats are swaddled.

An animal fixing bag will aid in immobilization.

The animal’s skin, the instrument, and the hands of the person doing the manipulations must all be cleaned before beginning any procedure.

Video — Rules for hand treatment before carrying out manipulations

• Solutions are warmed up to the room temperature or slightly warmer before administration. A cooled drug can provoke chills in the animal and lead to a drop in body temperature.
• The drug is administered at a rate of 1 drop in 1–2 seconds (unless otherwise specified in the instructions for the drug). Acceleration can provoke a deterioration in the condition — tremors, increased pressure, vomiting.
• When administering the drug, care must be taken to ensure that air does not enter the vessel.

Take note! In the event that a cat’s body temperature falls below 38–39.5 °C, or 38.5–39 °C for a dog, the saline solution tube can be lowered into a water container that has been heated to 60–70 °C. However, you should confirm that the manufacturer has not banned heating the medication.

Step	Description
1	Gather your supplies: dropper, liquid medicine, treats.
2	Calm your pet by speaking softly and offering a treat.
3	Hold the dropper in one hand and your pet"s head gently with the other.
4	Place the dropper at the side of the mouth, between the teeth.
5	Administer the medicine slowly, allowing your pet to swallow.
6	Reward with a treat and praise after successfully giving the medicine.

It can be intimidating to put a dropper on your dog or cat, but it can be done with the correct technique. Your pet can sense your emotions, so always try to remain composed and patient. To ensure a more seamless process, everything must be prepared in advance.

Begin by selecting a cozy area where your pet feels secure. If required, gently restrain them by holding them still with a soft towel or an assistant. Throughout the process, don’t forget to give them encouragement and reassurance to make it a positive experience.

Once the dropper has been administered, keep an eye out for any strange reactions in your pet. Maintaining routine veterinary check-ups is crucial, particularly if your pet requires frequent treatments. You’ll both grow more accustomed to using this crucial ability with time.

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