• Use of minimal and gentle restraint is vital.
• The cat should be in a calm quiet room, away from other animals.
• Detection of blood flow requires good contact between the Doppler probe and the skin. This is best achieved with alcohol to dampen the hair and skin, and the use of plenty of ultrasound gel.
• In a calm and quiet environment, SBP can sometimes be measured in hospitalised cats while they are in their cage.
• Have the cat resting on its own bedding (with its own scent) and/or consider using a synthetic facial pheromone (Feliway; Ceva) in the environment or on the bedding, which may help to reduce stress.
• Clipping the hair at the site is not usually necessary. It may be considered if detection of blood flow is difficult, but use quiet clippers and allow the cat time to settle before measuring BP.
• Ensure the inflatable portion of the cuff is positioned over the artery to be occluded.

• Allow the cat at least 5–10 mins in the room to acclimatise.
• The cat should be free to explore the room and interact with people.
• A cat carrier with a removable top will allow the cat to stay in the bottom of the carrier if it prefers.
• Having a trained, experienced individual measure SBP improves reproducibility of results.
• A nurse or technician who is empathetic with cats may often be the best person to measure SBP. o comfortable position.
• If the cat becomes agitated, stop and let it settle rather than use firmer restraint.
• Try to keep the cat in the same position throughout the procedure. Avoid measuring BP while the cat is moving.

• Using headphones to avoid sound from the Doppler unit disturbing the cat is highly recommended; if not available, ensure the volume is turned down when the procedure starts, and use the lowest volume needed to hear pulsatile blood flow.
• Position the Doppler probe with gentle pressure to avoid restricting blood flow, and adjust the position slowly until pulsatile blood flow is heard.
• Use the minimum number of people necessary (usually two).
• Having the owner present may be valuable
• Inflating and deflating the cuff a few times before making recordings helps the cat to get used to the sensation.
• The site for BP measurement will depend partly on what is tolerated best by the cat, but the forelimb may be better for Doppler measurements while the tail is better for HDO87.
• Slowly inflate the cuff to 20–40 mmHg above the point where blood flow is no longer heard.
• Allow air to slowly bleed from the cuff. SBP is the point at which pulsatile blood flow is first detected.

• The cuff width for cats should be 30–40% of the circumference of the limb/tail where it is used.
• Cuffs are usually secured with a Velcro fastener; fit them snugly but avoid restricting blood flow. A small piece of adhesive tape may also be used if necessary, but this should never be wrapped around the limb/tail.
• Where possible, the site of BP measurement should be roughly on the same horizontal plane as the heart.
• Handle and manipulate limbs gently – older cats especially may suffer from osteoarthritis.