Do I wait after feeding?

Myrtlesmum

Myrtlesmum

Member Since 2017
I’ve looked around this forum and can’t find the info - apologies if I missed it. First time dosing with Lantus - do I have to wait any amount of time to shoot after she eats? With Isophane it was recommended to wait half to one hour. Although thinking about it may make sense with Lantus too to make sure she keeps her food down - or doesn’t it matter as much?
 
I commented on your other post about this and did not realize isophane was another word for NPH!

But now I looked it up. ...So more confidently can answer: with Lantus, in comparison to isophane, no, you do not need to wait the same for food to be on board. However if your cat is having a lot of nausea and vomiting, that’s more complex. But it is not the same as with NPH where the insulin takes effect and can drop blood sugar very quickly. I would recommend a small snack, if you can get your cat to at least try that much first. :)

Also what dose isophane were you using before? I was only achieving regulation shooting that insulin three times a day, and when I switched Alice to Lantus she went from 10.5u total/day NPH, to 8 units total/dayLantus, changing over.
 
AliceMeowliss&Cassandra said:
I commented on your other post about this and did not realize isophane was another word for NPH!

But now I looked it up. ...So more confidently can answer: with Lantus, in comparison to isophane, no, you do not need to wait the same for food to be on board. However if your cat is having a lot of nausea and vomiting, that’s more complex. But it is not the same as with NPH where the insulin takes effect and can drop blood sugar very quickly. I would recommend a small snack, if you can get your cat to at least try that much first. :)

Also what dose isophane were you using before? I was only achieving regulation shooting that insulin three times a day, and when I switched Alice to Lantus she went from 10.5u total/day NPH, to 8 units total/dayLantus, changing over.
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Thanks for that info. She was on less than 2 units of isophane (1am, 1pm) - not incredibly well regulated but it’s only been 10 days and her numbers have been up and down and there has been vomiting so missed shots too. Isophane worked well for her last time and she achieved remission after a couple of months. This time around she is a bit more fragile and the big drops in bg make me nervous.
 
Hopefully Lantus won’t give you as much of a roller coaster then, and I asked about the dose because while you would normally start Lantus at a certain low dose, that situation might be different if another insulin was previously being used at a particular dose, other factors could affect dose, too....
So anyway if you are starting Lantus very low then I personally would just try to make sure she gets a snack and make sure you can be around to monitor for the first couple of cycles to see how low the dose takes her. And I f the preshot number is really high, then there’s little chance a half unit dose could send her hypo, anyway.

But when you go to do your first Lantus shot, I would create a post on the Lantus board, post her PS blood glucose number, what and how much she ate, and just check in with us and keep us updated and ask any questions if you have them. :)
 
Lantus usually onsets around +2 to +3 so you have a couple of hours after the shot to get some food into your kitty. I would give her some food, what she will eat, at shot time, and it is not necessary to wait after eating like it is with faster acting insulins, to give the insulin. You just need to make sure she will eat before you shoot Then give some snacks during the first half of the cycle to make up the required amount of food. If kitty has no appetite it is harder.
 
Sh
AliceMeowliss&Cassandra said:
What @Bron and Sheba has more clarity to it than what I said, but I think it’s what I meant, too. Lol. :p (Thanks! I’m glad you came by.)

@Myrtlesmum , don’t stress too much about if you can give her insulin, as long as she will eat some at all. I’m just worried how to advise if there is nausea and vomiting in the picture. ....?
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e hasn’t vomited today just some nausea this afternoon I think. She ate about half a can of FF about half an hour ago. I was going to give just a drop of Lantus bg was 13.7 (236) just before she ate
 
Myrtlesmum said:
Sh

e hasn’t vomited today just some nausea this afternoon I think. She ate about half a can of FF about half an hour ago. I was going to give just a drop of Lantus bg was 13.7 (236) just before she ate
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What do you mean by a drop of insulin?

@AliceMeowliss&Cassandra you do a great job helping people and you have a great deal of experience with looking after a DKA kitty and a kitty who is nauseated.
 
I ended up giving about 0.25 as she ate a little bit more as well. I find it’s really hard to measure smaller units than 1 with these 3cc syringes but I’ve looked high and low for something that will allow a half unit measurement and can’t find anything.
 
Andrea, we can't buy half unit syringes here in Australia, but you can order them from the UK and they will get here in about a week. They can be bought from Hyperdrug.co.uk
Here is the link to the actual syringes
https://www.hyperdrug.co.uk/BD-Micr...03ml-pack-of-100/productinfo/BDMICROFINE03ML/
How is Myrtle doing? Is she eating for you?
How are things going for you generally Andrea? I know when you first joined you found it all very stressful. It can be tough in the beginning and feel overwhelming.
ETA do you have anything for the nausea such as cerenia or ondansetron? If Myrtle is nauseated she may need some meds. The cerenia can be got from the vet but the ondansetron is a human drug and the vet will need to write a script and you get it from a chemist. They work on different pathways and can be given together if needed and both are good to have at home.

When you get a chance, would you mind changing the type of insulin you are giving in the signature please. It will stop any confusion..thanks:)
 
Thanks Bron - I’ve ordered a couple of boxes - at least that will take some of the guess work out of giving insulin! Is it just me or does it feel sometimes like we live in a third world country the way we have such limited products and have to pay through our teeth to get stuff from overseas?

I’ve been able to get Myrtle to eat about half a can of FF chicken & liver pate at a time so she had half a can for dinner and another half a few hours later. Seemed to keep it down Ok.

I am stressed and overwhelmed. In addition to Myrtle, I have a parent in their 90s who has spent most of this year in hospital and while living independently is now housebound so I have to do everything for her. I’m physically tired but more so I’m tired of worrying all the time and I really didn’t need Myrtle to get sick now on top of everything else. Anyway, I’ll take one day at a time. Thanks for asking
 
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