My fluffy baby was just diagnosed...

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Fluffy Face

Fluffy Face

Member Since 2016
She has lost half of her weight and was drinking/urinating more than usual for the past several months. It was a slow progression, so of course it took some time for me to recognize this as something serious and take her to the vet. I was expecting kidney disease or hyperthyroidism, and it turned out to be diabetes mellitus. Ugh! :(

I have completely rid of dry food and switched to Fancy Feast Classic, Poultry and Beef Varieties. The vet gave me some cans of Royal Canin Glycobalance, but after a good bit of Googling, it sounds like FF Classic will do just as well, for less $$.

$$$ is the reason I am posting on here. As many of you probably know, Lantus is a popular human insulin for use in cats right now. Well, at $300 per 10ml vial, I am hesitant to purchase it, especially after spending $500 at the vet Saturday!

PZI sounds promising, but then again Lantus still seems to be trumping that per my Googling. Anyone have any thoughts, personal suggestions, experiences, etc with these?

I am thinking about waiting a week before taking the insulin plunge. I'd like to do some home-testing after she's been off the dry food (I was free feeding) and only getting low-carb wet food regulated, and see where her levels are at. I'd like to know if anyone has experience trying to lower glucose levels this way first.
 
I used to buy Lantus and then Levemir, from the online Canadian pharmacies. They are way cheaper than buying them here in the U.S.
 
There are often people posting in The Supply Closet with insulin. I would get in the habit of checking there.
 
Erica & Carter said:
This! However there is some sort of postal strike going on right now in Canada, not sure on the latest information from that. @Chris & China might have more info.
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At present there is no postal strike in Canada. Both sides are still trying to work out the negotiations without a strike. IF they can't there will be a 72 hour warning before the strike goes into effect. At present all is normal...I got my bills today :(
 
I buy lantus from my vet in the solostar pen which is 3ml. Its around $90 here. Not sure if that varies depending on where you live.

Depending on your cats needs, she might not need much daily insulin. At least to start with it would be very small dose. The 10ml vial is probably not the best way to go because it will lose potency way before you are near using it all. Plus, the outlay for the pen is less money. I dont know how much other insulins cost.

Changing food did very little to affect my cats glucose. i do know people here have had much better luck than i with that.
 
Misterbeesmom said:
I buy lantus from my vet in the solostar pen which is 3ml. Its around $90 here. Not sure if that varies depending on where you live.

Depending on your cats needs, she might not need much daily insulin. At least to start with it would be very small dose. The 10ml vial is probably not the best way to go because it will lose potency way before you are near using it all. Plus, the outlay for the pen is less money. I dont know how much other insulins cost.

Changing food did very little to affect my cats glucose. i do know people here have had much better luck than i with that.
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Do you use the pen Itself to inject or use a syringe?
 
The strike is currently still in negotiations so if you're considering using Lantus, I suggest you get it soon so you don't have to worry about it. All the information is in this "Insulin From Canadian Pharmacies" post. A 5 pack of pens will last most cats well over a year, so it breaks down to about $15/month or less (depending on dose)

We use regular insulin syringes with the pens because we do dose adjustments in .25 unit increments...the pens only adjust in whole units. You just pull the top off the pen and stick the syringe into the rubber stopper
syringe in pen pic.jpg
syringe in pen close up.jpg


You'll want to get 3/10ml, 3o or 31 gauge insulin syringes with half unit markings.

All these have half unit markings and are the correct syringes for U100 insulin and are available from ADW online:
UtiCare
Monoject
Carepoint
Sure Comfort
BD Ultra-Fine

They're also available at WalMart if you have one near you..Their Relion Brand 3/10ml, 3o or 31 gauge, 8mm insulin syringes all come with half unit markings and are only $12.58 for a box of 100 (although it seems a lot of WalMart employees don't realize that they DO come with half unit markings!!)
 
I have used vetsulin and pro zinc and wish I had started with lantus--
there is usually some in the supply/free closet-
I might have a partial bottle--if you cannot find anyone Pm me-
 
Chris & China said:
The strike is currently still in negotiations so if you're considering using Lantus, I suggest you get it soon so you don't have to worry about it. All the information is in this "Insulin From Canadian Pharmacies" post. A 5 pack of pens will last most cats well over a year, so it breaks down to about $15/month or less (depending on dose)

We use regular insulin syringes with the pens because we do dose adjustments in .25 unit increments...the pens only adjust in whole units. You just pull the top off the pen and stick the syringe into the rubber stopper
View attachment 21872 View attachment 21873

You'll want to get 3/10ml, 3o or 31 gauge insulin syringes with half unit markings.

All these have half unit markings and are the correct syringes for U100 insulin and are available from ADW online:
UtiCare
Monoject
Carepoint
Sure Comfort
BD Ultra-Fine

They're also available at WalMart if you have one near you..Their Relion Brand 3/10ml, 3o or 31 gauge, 8mm insulin syringes all come with half unit markings and are only $12.58 for a box of 100 (although it seems a lot of WalMart employees don't realize that they DO come with half unit markings!!)
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Thank you for this info! I didn't know I could order it from Canada. This was so helpful. I would need to talk to my Dr. Of course I just bought 200 of the u40's. Lol.
 
Thank you all so much. I did see that I can get the 3ml pens for about $100. Seems like a much better way to start off. When I took her to the vet, she was in the lower 500's. I just tested her last night before evening feeding and she was in the 300's.
 
I don't see anyone saying anything about pro zinc. Is there something I should know about this? My cat has been own it for several years and seems to be doing fine except for some weight loss.
 
Georgia said:
I don't see anyone saying anything about pro zinc. Is there something I should know about this? My cat has been own it for several years and seems to be doing fine except for some weight loss.
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Hi Georgia,
Many cats do just fine on Prozinc.
Different insulins suit different cats. :bighug:

Eliz
 
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