Changing from Isophane to Lantus - cross post

[Myrtlesmum]

Hi all - I’ve already posted some of this on the Lantus forum but as shot time is close I thought I’d ask on here as there seems to be more traffic on this forum. Changing from Isophane to Lantus tonight - as long as Myrtle keeps some dinner down. Had Cerenia at the vet today and some subcut fluids as she had been vomiting the last couple of days. She hasn’t vomited today but I caught her drooling and lip licking after a snack this afternoon (stomach acid? Sore mouth?). Anyway my question is: do I wait a set period of time after she eats to shoot Lantus? Does eating matter as much with Lantus as it does with Isophane? I’m very nervous about the change of insulin and was planning to just start with half a unit?

 

[AliceMeowliss (GA)]

Short answer is that it does not in theory matter as much, but she still needs to be eating, preferably, in order to avoid risk of hypo.

I had my cat on NPH before, and I absolutely had to make sure she ate before she could get insulin. However, because my cat pretty much always has an appetite, I do not worry about her eating before I shoot on Lantus, because she is already hungry. It’s not going to set in so fast that you need to already have food on board, but if your cat’s appetite is tricky, I would recommend to be sure they have eaten *something* first. As long as everything is pretty much by the book for the day, I test, shoot, and feed, and it’s all done in that order and within five minutes.

I don’t know your current situation well enough to accurately advise for you, specifically, though. Good luck with the new insulin!