Diego AMPS 123

[ja9390]

After food and an hour it is 140. Going to skip the shot this morning. I just hate doing it because then tonight I know he'll be up in the 400-500 range again. His vet wants him back after 10 consecutive days of him successfully having been administered 2u twice a day. That may not happen because he tends to be too low either at night or in the morning. Was in a great mood early this morning though...danced on my head while I slept and everything.

 

[MommaOfMuse]

That is one of the problems with Novolin is that it doesn't have a long enough duration and it is almost impossible to shoot low to stay low, because it hits hard and causes steep drops early on then wears off before the 12 hours is over. Now I am personally biased towards Levemir since that is the one that my boys have responded best to, but given a choice between Novolin and Lantus, I would chose Lantus every time. With either of the L-insulins (Lantus or Levemir) once you have a few weeks of testing data you can start lowering your No Shoot number until you get to the point that you know you are perfectly safe to shoot as low as the double digits. With my girl that was insulin dependent for 4 years I could shoot her when she was as low as 50 without batting an eye and go to bed and sleep like a baby because I knew she would not hypo on it. She was also on Levemir but my big guy sitting on my lap at the moment was a Lantus guy and this past November we just celebrated his 6th year OTJ.

Honestly if he was mine I would try to get him off Novolin sooner rather than later, as you will have a much better chance of getting him completely off insulin with a better, gentler and longer lasting insulin. Any of the 3 Lantus, Levemir or Prozinc would be a better choice than Novolin. Yes Novolin is dirt cheap upfront but when you start comparing how much more of it you use and the fact that it is one of the hardest insulin to get them off completely and into remission with the cost actually balances out. I would much rather pay for a better insulin that I have a chance to get my fur babies diet controlled on so that I don't have to pay for it for the rest of their lives than cut costs using a cheaper and less effective insulin. Just my two cents worth after having 6 sugarcats of my own.

Mel and The Fur Gang

 

[Ken & Tara]

Have you tried zero carb foods for a time?

 

[ja9390]

That is one of the problems with Novolin is that it doesn't have a long enough duration and it is almost impossible to shoot low to stay low, because it hits hard and causes steep drops early on then wears off before the 12 hours is over. Now I am personally biased towards Levemir since that is the one that my boys have responded best to, but given a choice between Novolin and Lantus, I would chose Lantus every time. With either of the L-insulins (Lantus or Levemir) once you have a few weeks of testing data you can start lowering your No Shoot number until you get to the point that you know you are perfectly safe to shoot as low as the double digits. With my girl that was insulin dependent for 4 years I could shoot her when she was as low as 50 without batting an eye and go to bed and sleep like a baby because I knew she would not hypo on it. She was also on Levemir but my big guy sitting on my lap at the moment was a Lantus guy and this past November we just celebrated his 6th year OTJ.

Honestly if he was mine I would try to get him off Novolin sooner rather than later, as you will have a much better chance of getting him completely off insulin with a better, gentler and longer lasting insulin. Any of the 3 Lantus, Levemir or Prozinc would be a better choice than Novolin. Yes Novolin is dirt cheap upfront but when you start comparing how much more of it you use and the fact that it is one of the hardest insulin to get them off completely and into remission with the cost actually balances out. I would much rather pay for a better insulin that I have a chance to get my fur babies diet controlled on so that I don't have to pay for it for the rest of their lives than cut costs using a cheaper and less effective insulin. Just my two cents worth after having 6 sugarcats of my own.

Mel and The Fur Gang

It's not the money. His doctor wants to try him on Novolin at first but it's so hard to get him to have OK numbers on it. I'll call the office and tell them that I am unable to even get him to the point where he's having two shots a day, because of the way the Novolin acts.

 

[MommaOfMuse]

I honestly think both you and Diego will be much happier with Lantus...It is a Great insulin for cats and it has a proven high rate of remission. He'll feel better because he won't be on this roller coaster ride from high to low to high again and you will be far less stressed caring for him because its not going to cause those scary steep drops. And you can order the Lantus from Canada (many of us do) and get it for about the third the price of it here in the States.

Mel and The Fur Gang

 

[ja9390]

I honestly think both you and Diego will be much happier with Lantus...It is a Great insulin for cats and it has a proven high rate of remission. He'll feel better because he won't be on this roller coaster ride from high to low to high again and you will be far less stressed caring for him because its not going to cause those scary steep drops. And you can order the Lantus from Canada (many of us do) and get it for about the third the price of it here in the States.

Mel and The Fur Gang

Yeah, I'm trying to get him switched over. Its hard to look a doctor in the face who's twice your age with 27 years experience as a practicing veterinarian and saying "This is what I think we should do"

 

[MommaOfMuse]

Oh don't I know that...My first vet that I bucked her advice when she wanted to put my Autumn on Novolin was a childhood friend that was also my boss at the time as I was working as her vet assistant and kennel help. But I kind of went rogue on her since my mother was also diabetic and I talked her into sharing one of her Levemir pens with me just to try Autumn on. So by the time we had our discussion I had about a month's worth of testing data to point to showing how well Autumn was doing on Levemir. She basically couldn't argue with success. And even now that I no longer use her as my primary vet, she still calls me when she has another client with a diabetic cat that either needs a short term foster or a pet sitter while they travel. But I had an big advantage in that I did have access to a better insulin through my mom so I could back my request with testing data.

But that also might be a way to approach your own...Ask to just 'try' him on Lantus for say a month...give her a link to his spreadsheet and ask her to keep an eye on it as well. And if he doesn't get any better numbers for you in that month that you are more than willing to switch him right back over to Novolin but that you would feel better if you could at least give Lantus a shot because these highs to lows are scaring you.

Mel and The Fur Gang

 

[ja9390]

Oh don't I know that...My first vet that I bucked her advice when she wanted to put my Autumn on Novolin was a childhood friend that was also my boss at the time as I was working as her vet assistant and kennel help. But I kind of went rogue on her since my mother was also diabetic and I talked her into sharing one of her Levemir pens with me just to try Autumn on. So by the time we had our discussion I had about a month's worth of testing data to point to showing how well Autumn was doing on Levemir. She basically couldn't argue with success. And even now that I no longer use her as my primary vet, she still calls me when she has another client with a diabetic cat that either needs a short term foster or a pet sitter while they travel. But I had an big advantage in that I did have access to a better insulin through my mom so I could back my request with testing data.

But that also might be a way to approach your own...Ask to just 'try' him on Lantus for say a month...give her a link to his spreadsheet and ask her to keep an eye on it as well. And if he doesn't get any better numbers for you in that month that you are more than willing to switch him right back over to Novolin but that you would feel better if you could at least give Lantus a shot because these highs to lows are scaring you.

Mel and The Fur Gang

Perfect. That's what I'll approach her with!

 

[MommaOfMuse]

Also remember she works for you not the other way around. And Diego is your cat, you are his voice. If she wants to keep you as her client then she should be willing to work with you and if not there is no shame in calling around to other vets in the area for a second opinion. As much as I loved Dr Tami as both a long time friend and possibly the best surgeon I know of for animals, I wasn't happy in some of her handling of my diabetics so I left her practice and found a vet that would work with me as a partner in my animals care.

Mel and The Fur Gang