A lot of cats are very responsive to tiny amounts of insulin and as a result, fine tuning doses into miniscule amounts is a tool frequently used when practicing TR.

Typically dosing scales are broken down into 0.25u, 0.5u, 0.75u and 1.0u increments. In addition to drawing amounts without exact lines for example, 0.25u increments; quite often a "fat" or a "skinny" adjustment will be used to further fine tune dosing.

Both fats and skinnies are 0.125u of insulin. Two fats (or two skinnies) equal 0.25u of insulin. A Fat is more insulin being added - an increase.......A Skinny is less insulin - a reduction.

For the purpose of this example, a 3/10cc U100 syringe for 30 units or less is used; the illustration would be the same for a U40 syringe with half unit marks. The key is the half unit marks which truly make drawing miniscule amounts so much easier!

We highly recommend using 3/10cc syringes with half unit marks for U100 insulin, or U40 syringes with half unit marks to make it much easier to measure out fats, skinnies and even 0.25u or 0.75u increments. Quarter units are relatively easy to measure - half way between the unit and half unit marks.

The key to measuring the smaller increments referred to as fats and skinnies are to use the lines on the syringe to make the job much easier. Some find fats easier to measure, some skinnies - it is whatever will work best for you. When drawing fat or skinny doses, it may be helpful to round up (or down) to the nearest unit or half unit line to make it easier. For example a 1.0u fat draw is the same amount as a 1.25u skinny draw but it is easier to do as a 1.0u fat, even though your scale might call for 1.25u skinny. Another example would be a 1.25u fat draw which is easier to do if it is approached as 1.5u skinny. Both examples are the same amount of insulin, 1.375u.

We recommend taking an old syringe with half unit marks and using some tea or apple juice to practice drawing fat and skinny doses to get a feel for them. The key to any draw whether it is a fat, a skinny or even 0.25u is to be consistent. Once you start drawing these very small increments from the vial, gently turning the plunger almost like turning a screw, helps to slide the plunger to the right amount.

When drawing a half unit or full unit dose, the plunger is drawn right to the appropriate line on the syringe. However, when using the approach of rounding up or down to the closest line in order to specifically draw fats or skinnies, the plunger on the syringe should rest right at the edge of the line with no space showing.

For a fat draw (more insulin), the plunger will be on the bottom side of the line on the syringe. For a skinny draw( less insulin), the plunger will be above the line on the syringe. For both fats and skinnies, there will be no space between the line on the syringe and the plunger.

If you need further assistance when it comes to drawing fat and skinny doses, please post on open forum.