5/15 Benny AMPS 430 +2 354 +3 370 +4 327 insulin pens?

https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/5-14-benny-amps-441-2-365.263283/#post-2949338

Hello everyone! Hope all are having a good day.

Benny was above the desired BG level all day yesterday, but there were no peaks or valleys. Is that in and of itself any kind of progress?

(By the way, I'm getting values frequently because he has a Freestyle Libre on. Is there a downside for doing this?)

He's on plain insulin Glargine right now but I would like to consider pens. Is there a difference between them besides cost? (If I should be asking this separately or elsewhere, please let me know and I will edit the post!)

Thanks in advance!

 

Are you using a vial? Pens are used just like vials with syringes. I had to throw out my first vials over half full at 5-6 months. Pens I used to the last drop. Are you asking about that or the generic insulin?

You can scan as often as you want. No downside. You had a ns and some bouncing from greens so he needs more time to see what it’s dose does for his bg.

 

Both. I may have to be out of town for a couple of weeks this summer, and it may be that my catsitter can only use a pen rather than a syringe. (If he is on the right dose, etc.; it's all hypothetical but I still want to try and plan.) Having pens last so much longer seems like a huge benefit worth going for now regardless of travel.

If he's on insulin Glargine, which would be the right pen to use? I'm in the US.

 

You would get lantus pens. All the generics come in pens and vials. If you use the pen needle it can’t be kept in the fridge and will go bad in 30 days I think. Most of us use pens like a vial. Pens alone you can only shoot in 1.0 increments. Why wouldn’t your sitter be able to use a syringe? You can show her how.

 

She is a wonderful older lady who is very bonded with the (former feral) cats, but I'm not entirely confident in her physical abilities to distinguish small doses and draw/use the syringe in a precise way. The pens might not even work, because I believe they only work at whole unit doses, but I thought it would be good to give them a try now.

I have thought about trying to get a vet tech to give him the shots, but he would probably not allow himself to be seen by a stranger, much less handled. If she can't do the shots at all I believe I'll need to cancel the trip.

Edited to ask: so the brand name Lantus is a match with the generic Insulin Glargine?

 

Yes.

 

Thanks, Elise.