37 SQ Subcutaneous Fluid Therapy

Subcutaneous fluids is a great option for delivering supplemental fluids to a dog or cat patient when appropriate.  Examples include minor dehydration, mild-moderate diarrhea, minor constipation, Chronic Renal Insufficiency supplement etc…

Often we teach owners to give SQ fluids at home so nice to go over how to do this properly so you can teach others.  SQ fluids can only be absorbed and utilized by a fairly normal patient, and is not designed to replace IV fluid therapy.

For Dogs and cats we generally use 18g needle, for puppies and kittens 20g needle. Always store fluid line with a new needle. An easy tip is to keep the paper cover on the needle or attach the plastic cover onto the end of the needle cap to signify this is a new needle.  If in doubt always change the needle.

Amount of fluid that can be given depends on body size and SQ space.  Typically for a cat we give 100-150 mls LRS and of course less for kitten in proportion to their weight.