? Advice Needed: Lantus Dosing Schedule and Syringes

Status
Not open for further replies.
Shani

Shani

Member Since 2015
I finally got insulin, Lantus SoloStar pens! However, when I was getting the prescription, the vet said that it would be illegal for her to prescribe syringes along with the pens. Now that I look at the box, it says needles compatible with SoloStar are "sold separately". What?

Also, a question: what should I do if I'm late with giving my kitty insulin? The diabetic consult check list that I was given says that if late giving, or missed, wait till next dose is due. What if I'll constantly be late for one of the two daily doses?

I don't want to go too much into detail, but I have a (so far incurable) condition that makes it really hard to form any kind of schedule or routine. I forsee it as a really big problem for something that needs to be done at the same time each day. For reference: when I switched him to FF two weeks ago, his first meal of the day was at 2 AM, today his breakfast shifted to 11 AM.
 
The Solostar pens do have special needles FOR HUMAN USE....I've never heard of anyone saying it was illegal to prescribe syringes with the pens! I think your vet is a little crazy

The pens are designed to only give doses in whole units....for our kitties, we need to be able to give doses in .25 unit increments, so you need regular insulin syringes to draw the insulin out of the pen.

Where do you live? There aren't a lot of places that require prescriptions for insulin syringes (although there are some states that still do, as well as individual pharmacies can have a policy to require scripts)

To get insulin out of the pens, you just take the top off and inside there's a rubber stopper just like a tiny vial
syringe in pen close up.jpg
 
According to THIS SITE
Insulin syringes can be obtained without a prescription in Delaware, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and New Jersey by patients 18 years old and above and, in Virginia, you must be at least 16 years of age.
Click to expand...

The syringes you will want to get need to have half unit markings and should be 3/10mL, 30 or 31 gauge, 8mm or 1/2" needle length

WalMart carries them in their pharmacies under their Relion brand, or a lot of us buy them online from American Diabetes Wholesale....Look for the 3/10mL ones with half unit markings though.....here's a link to ADW's B/D syringes with half unit markings or their UtiCare syringes come with half unit markings too

Here's the Relion syringes ($12.58 per 100) available at WalMart
relion syringes.png
 
Thanks! I'll order some right away!

That just leaves the question of what to do if I'm late giving insulin.
 
As far as being late, it really is important to give insulin as close to every 12 hours as possible

Not knowing what you're dealing with medically, about the only advice I can give you is to get a very loud alarm clock.... a few people have been able to make slightly different schedules work, but generally no more than about an hour one way or the other (but it's not the best for your kitty)
 
That's what I thought. I guess we'll use alarm clocks. XD

But if we are an hour late, is it better to give insulin anyway or is it better to skip and wait till next dose?
 
If you shoot later with Lantus, you can move the time back by either 30 minutes once per day or 15 minutes per shot.
 
Oh I LOVE Stripes' picture!!!

I've always been a sucker for an orange kitty!! (My first kitten was an orange tabby...I just love them to death!)
 
BJM said:
If you shoot later with Lantus, you can move the time back by either 30 minutes once per day or 15 minutes per shot.
Click to expand...
Let me make sure I understood it right. If I shoot later, then the shot after that should be 30 minutes earlier?

Chris & China said:
Oh I LOVE Stripes' picture!!!

I've always been a sucker for an orange kitty!! (My first kitten was an orange tabby...I just love them to death!)
Click to expand...
Aww, thank you! Is there a board where I'd be able to share more pictures? :)
 

Option 1: next shot is 30 minutes earlier
Option 2: next shot is 15 minutes earlier and the shot after than is 15 minutes earlier.
Some cats can be more sensitive to time changes and the 15 minutes per shot works better.
Many cats go lower overnight, so if you choose the 30 minute option, do it in the morning where it is less likely to cause a problem.
 
You can also do a Profile page for Stripes and add as many pictures as you want! Then you just put the link to your profile in your signature (like you have his spreadsheet link already)

I'm looking for the instructions on how to do a Profile page for you
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top