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MISSY + Simone&MICIO (GA)

MISSY + Simone&MICIO (GA)

Member Since 2021
Hello, my 17 yrs old cat Micio was recently diagnosed with diabetes type II. His glucose was last tested at the vet office 2 days ago and it was at 474! Vet wants to start him on 1unit of Lantus only in the morning after breakfast to begin.
Still trying to decide which insulin brand, which form and where to get it from.
What is the difference between Lantus and Semglee (beside the obvious cost difference)? Are they both long acting insuline?
Should I get vial or pen? Lot of people here are recommending pens but the vet thinks the vial is better option and here’s where I don’t understand…Here’s what the vet wrote to me: “I do think pulling the insulin from the vial rather then using as the pen may be easier as the pen requires loading the needle every time which wastes product and needs to be held for 10 seconds under the skin to allow full dispensing of the medication. Whereas pulling it up from a needle is quicker and less waist full”…. Can someone explain what that means, please?

I did find out my local Costco can get Semglee 5 (3ml) pens at $121.00 and it’ll take 1-2 days…should I go with that?

Also, I did get a ReliOn Glucose monitor kit but will have to wait before testing till the test strips control solution (that was suppose to be included) gets shipped to me by the company (Walmart)…go figure!

Thanks
 
Welcome to the fdmb. Semglee is a genric of lantus. It’s fine. We don’t recommend once a day dosing.we use the pens like a vial with syringes. That way they can be kept in the fridge and you can use each pen to the last drop. I used to throw away half or more of the vials. We don’t use the pen like he wrote. As we increase and decrease doses in .25 increments. Get the syringes with half unit markings.

What are you feeding Micio, canned or dry fd or both? We suggest low carb canned food and many use fancy feast pates or raw food. How old is your cat? Any other medical issues? All this information will be put into your signature so we won’t keep asking.
 
We have a number of people here using Semglee now. It is a biosimilar to Lantus, as is Basaglar. Get the pens, you don't want to use the pen needles as it's you have to keep open pens outside the fridge which means throwing it away after 28 days. If you use syringes, you can keep in in the fridge and use the pen to the last drop. More information here:
Insulin Care & Syringe Info: Proper Handling, Drawing, Fine Dosing Also in that post is a list of reasons why using syringes is better than pen needles, including being easier to give.

No need to wait for the control solution to start practising with the BG meter.
 
tiffmaxee said:
Welcome to the fdmb. Semglee is a genric of lantus. It’s fine. We don’t recommend once a day dosing.we use the pens like a vial with syringes. That way they can be kept in the fridge and you can use each pen to the last drop. I used to throw away half or more of the vials. We don’t use the pen like he wrote. As we increase and decrease doses in .25 increments. Get the syringes with half unit markings.

What are you feeding Micio, canned or dry fd or both? We suggest low carb canned food and many use fancy feast pates or raw food. How old is your cat? Any other medical issues? All this information will be put into your signature so we won’t keep asking.
Click to expand...
 
Thank you!
Micio is about 17 yrs old male, he’s on raw diet meat (with very little good quality canned ) for almost 11 yrs.
He started displaying symptoms of what we thought CKD at first back this spring (excessive thirst and urination, increased hunger and fatigue) but recently found out he’s diabetic.
He’s been battling high ALT values since I’ve got him at 5yrs old, he then developed IBD and EPI (he’s on pancreatic enzymes for at least 3 yrs), he also has heart murmur (no medication needed yet) and arthritis.
MEDS:
- he’s taking Budesonide for the last couple of yrs ( .3 Mg every other day, now down to .2Mg as we’re trying to wean him off of it)
- Pancreatic enzymes at every meal
- Ursodiol and Milk Thistle (for his liver) , Probiotics, Duralactin and CBD Oil every day

tiffmaxee, vet wants to start Micio on Lantus 1 Unit insulin once at day to begin with. Vet said she never dealt with pens, only vials but I rather to go with what you guys say in here…IS THERE ANY VIDEO SHOWING HOW TO DRAW INSULIN FROM A SEMGLEE PEN?
I have no idea on giving shots, the only time I tried was 2 years ago with B12 and it all went in my cat’s fur
Also, looking for a video on how to test Glucose from the ear tip (paws not an option as Micio is very sensitive)
Tnx
 
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Thank you!
Micio is about 17 yrs old male, he’s on raw diet meat (with very little good quality canned ) for almost 11 yrs.
He started displaying symptoms of what we thought CKD at first back this spring (excessive thirst and urination, increased hunger and fatigue) but recently found out he’s diabetic.
He’s been battling high ALT values since I’ve got him at 5yrs old, he then developed IBD and EPI (he’s on pancreatic enzymes for at least 3 yrs), he also has heart murmur (no medication needed yet) and arthritis.
MEDS:
- he’s taking Budesonide for the last couple of yrs ( .03 Mg every other day, now down to .02Mg as we’re trying to wean him off of it)
- Pancreatic enzymes at every meal
- Ursodiol and Milk Thistle (for his liver) , Probiotics, Duralactin and CBD Oil every day

tiffmaxee, vet wants to start Micio on Lantus 1 Unit insulin once at day to begin with. Vet said she never dealt with pens, only vials but I rather to go with what you guys say in here…IS THERE ANY VIDEO SHOWING HOW TO DRAW INSULIN FROM A SEMGLEE PEN?
tiffmaxee said:
Here’s information for you on the signature setup and starting a spreadsheet.
https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/new-how-you-can-help-us-help-you.216696/
Click to expand...
Not sure what I’m suppose to write in the “signature”, are there examples?
 
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IC.lick on this link. Toward the bottom is information on what to put in it. Look at mine. Don’t include dosing amount as that will change though. Look at mine

Starting with 1.0 is fine but give .5 in the morning and .5 at night. Duration of lantus in cats is 12 hours. It’s a depot insulin so the depot will take 7 days to build initially. It’s all green xplaines on the sticky at the top of the LLB forum.
 
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Wendy&Neko said:
We have a number of people here using Semglee now. It is a biosimilar to Lantus, as is Basaglar. Get the pens, you don't want to use the pen needles as it's you have to keep open pens outside the fridge which means throwing it away after 28 days. If you use syringes, you can keep in in the fridge and use the pen to the last drop. More information here:
Insulin Care & Syringe Info: Proper Handling, Drawing, Fine Dosing Also in that post is a list of reasons why using syringes is better than pen needles, including being easier to give.

No need to wait for the control solution to start practising with the BG meter.
Click to expand...

Just got an email back from the vet and Dr. is “reluctant” and uncomfortable to use Semglee because there “isn’t much experience with it in the veterinary world to know if there are any issues with it in cats” so…what should I do? I mean , she can go ahead and write the prescription for it if I really want to ….DON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO, SHOULD I JUST GET LANTUS TO BEGIN WITH ?
 
We have kitties here on Semglee and I don't honestly see a difference in their spreadsheets. If you want to get Lantus, it can be purchased cheaper through a Canadian pharmacy. See this post on buying insulin from Canada. Basaglar is another option that might be worth pricing in your area and seeing what the vet thinks.
 
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