Help Please re change Caninsulin to Lantus

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Julie and Alice

Julie and Alice

Member Since 2014
Hi,
Are there any Lantus users that may be able to give me any advice or tips on changing Alice my lovely black moggy from Caninsulin to Lantus.
My vet has ordered 'Glargine' for me & it will be in tomorrow! I am soooo pleased to get her off this short acting insulin. It really was an answer to prayer! It just doesn't suit her. She swings from 30.6 ish, down to teens & then back up again in a matter of hours. She is hungry for ages before her shot and drinks++. She has been on Caninsulin for a month now following keto-acidosis which was the first I knew of her being diabetic. If there was a guilty Smilie available, I would use it here :oops:
I tried to download the BG monitoring tool that you used from a link kindly posted for me. I managed to download it but not upload it again (??) It asked me to download 'Google Chrome' which I think I managed but still don't know what to do. Any help would be appreciated.
Many thanks.
Juliana
 
Just make the change. The starting does of Lantus is typically 1 unit twice daily. However, since you are already on Caninsulin you it maybe better to start either higher (likely not) or lower depending upon the current Caninsulin dose. You did not state the Caninsulin does
 
Hi Larry & kitties
Alice has been having a dose of 3 units which I reduced to 2.5 units of Caninsulin a couple of days ago. She was diagnosed a month ago (DKA). She weighs 3.2kgs. She is approximately 13 years old (she was 'guessed' at 5 years old when I had her.
Thanks
Juliana
 
Hi Juliana! I'm by no means an expert on Lantus, but there are a few things that work differently than an "in and out" insulin. The first thing to know is that once you get started, it's important to hold the dose for 3-5 days, unless you get a number under 50 (sorry, not sure what that equates to in mmoL, I'm American! :oops: ). If you get a number under 50, that equals a reduction in dose. Lantus dosing is based on the nadir or lowest number of a cycle, not the pre-shot. Also, it seems to like consistency, so it's best to shoot as close to 12 hours apart that you can manage and to keep the dose the same each time unless a deduction or increase is warranted.

I highly encourage you to go check out the "stickies" on the Lantus Tight Regulation forum. It's a lot of information, but really good to have on hand and we're always here to answer questions! Good luck with the switch!
 
He should go no lower than 2.7 mmol/L at his lowest (nadir) between shots. That generally falls between +5 to +7 hours after the shot and it can move around a bot.

You should always have a hypo kit available:
high carb gravied food
Karo or other syrup
oral syringe
printed instructions for treating low numbers/steering low numbers with food
 
Hi Juliana,

I'm an experienced Lantus user. Elizabeth posted and asked someone to come over and give you a hand getting started with the switch.

Larry's right, you can just do one shot with caninsulin and the next shot with Lantus. The dosing calculation for starting a newly diagnosed kitty on Lantus is 0.25u per kg. she sounds like a little girl at 3.2kg, so it would be 0.75u. We do take into consideration the previous dose when a cat comes from having been on another insulin. i'd like to talk to a couple of other experienced users about a good starting dose. We want to weigh the fact that she has a history of DKA in the suggested dose as well.

Can you answer the following questions so we can help you as best as possible:

Are the numbers you're talking about from hometesting?
......If so, what brand meter are you using, ie, people meter or AlphaTrak?

Is she only eating low carb canned food?
......If not, what is she eating? Is there any dry pet food in the house at all?

How are her teeth?
......does her breath smell bad, not just like cat food, but bad? does she favor anything in her mouth while eating?

Here is where most of the Lantus/Lev users who are interested in trying to get their cats off of insulin post. The premise of Tight Regulation is that cats who have their blood sugar "tightly regulated" in normal numbers have a good chance of their pancreas healing and them being able to work off of insulin and become diet-controlled. The success-rate for newly diagnosed cats is pretty high - the sooner they get with the protocol the better the chances.
Lantus/Lev Tight Regulation Insulin Support Group

Please start at the link above and read through as many of the yellow starred stickies as you can manage. You don't need to remember it all and the vocab may be difficult, but it will give you an idea. I'd especially flag the sticky on taking care of your insulin. Lantus "likes" to be treated a particular way. There is a video halfway down the page on how to draw up a dose and protect your insulin from contamination.

I'd encourage you to get a prescription for Solostar pens. There are pharmacies around who will sell you one pen at a time, but you have to just call around and ask. there's no rhyme or reason on who will break up the box of 5 and sell just one, but some will. There is also a Lantus savings card on the Lantus.com site that will let you buy the Lantus for not more than $25 per pen. Moggy is your "child" and Moggy is over 18 when you're filling out the form.

Folks here will help you get the spreadsheet set up. If you have any trouble, Marje will set it up for you and turn it over to you and she's happy to do that. Just ask here and we'll get you going. It's a document that is stored online, so you fill out numbers and then choose the option to share that says publish to the web for "anyone with the link."

You're making a great choice. Caninsulin was developed for dogs - it's not the best for cats by any stretch. Too harsh and doesn't last long enough. You will likely see Alice stop having dramatic drops and her numbers will probably even out.

I'd encourage you to go post in the TR forum (link above) and there you'll find a lot of Lantus users who can help you get started and learn what you need to know to safely use Lantus and help Alice do the best possible.

Perhaps this is a silly question, but i just want to make sure - Alice is a cat, right? You said "moggy," and i'm not sure what that is.

I'll be back with a suggestion about the starting dose. In the meantime, would you answer the questions above?
 
you want to shoot 12 hrs apart, so pick a shot time that will work with your schedule. if you're gone to work during the day, it can help if you shoot early enough that you can get a +2 test, a test 2 hours after you gave the shot. With Lantus, the +2 can give some information on where the cycle is going, ie, if her blood sugar might drop significantly that day and need intervention.

Take a look at the yellow starred stickies, especially the New to the Group and how to take care of your lantus posts, and ask away. it takes a while to absorb things, so just focus on what you need to know to get started for now.
 
Hi Juliana

Julie sent me a note and asked if I could help with the SS. If you will send me a private message by clicking on the PM TBIL to the right under my Gracies photo, then we can sort it out. I can have a SS up in no time.

We're also talking about a dose. One of us will get back to you.
 
Still rooting for you here Juliana! This will be a bit different to Caninsulin so another learning curve, but hang in there, you are learning fast!
All paws crossed for a smooth transition and better BGs!

Diana x
 
Thanks all,
I'm most greatful & impressed by your support. Disappointing news in that the Lantus still hasn't arrived - vet rang to say it will now be tomorrow. So tomorrow night all being well will be the first shot!! I can't wait. She was so unwell this morning with a BG of 30.6 pre-shot last night at 18.45pm (Caninsulin 2.5u), a BG of 16.2at 00.25am & this morning 32.1 pre-shot. She wanted to eat but had a few mouthfuls & went to her water. I coaxed her after an hour or two and kept offering it to her within 4 hours. She is not interested in anything today.
The vet said she would start with a low dose of Lantus but then said if I can monitor closely she would start with a higher dose. I assured her that I would set my alarm in the night so not to influence her decision. I'm worried now she will go too high with the dose :YMSIGH: She will be off for 3 days but will review her on Friday when back. She's left me the name of another vet if needed. I think 3 units of Caninsulin were ok at the nadir (at times) although it only lasted an hour, the trouble is it bounced back high, as it does whatever dose she has. She was distressed when her BG went to 5.7 (after a day in Hospital), she woke me up with a distressed meow for food then so I'm guessing she is used to higher numbers now.
I will repost now with answers to the questions you asked me.
Julianax
 
Juliana

What are you currently feeding Alice? That will also help us on determining her Lantus dose. If you are still feeding dry, it might be good to switch her to canned or raw before we switch insulins. Often the switch from dry to canned or raw Low carb has pretty marked effects on the BG.
 
Hi Julie & Punkin,
Thanks for your interest and advice, here goes, answers to questions you asked:
Yes the numbers quoted are home testing on an AlphaTrack2

I have changed her from Royal Canin Chicken and rice sensitive + little cooked chopped lamb as treats to Hill's Diabetic M/D cans. I still give her a little of the original food but less than a quarter of the total. The reason for that now is that she went off the Hill's unless ravenous & so a little along side it helps her to eat a bit more. She has grown to love the lamb so I make her wait until she has eaten so much of the Hill's.
I don't have dried food in the house at the moment but the vet just ordered me 1.5KG of Hill's diabetic dried food. Is that ok?

Her breathe in the past at times has been bad but at the moment is fine. She seemed to go through phases when it was really bad at night. Her teeth probably need cleaning but a while ago a vet said that if they were cleaned they would be just the same in a few weeks time. The night vet when she was admitted with DKA when I asked him about her teeth said 'I have seen worse'. In the past I have tried to clean them but there is no way I could manage it! It does bother me. Now I am wondering if it was the diabetes that gave her bad breathe. I only ever noticed it at night when brushing her but not noticed it for quite a while now. She chews dry twigs in the garden as though cleaning her teeth.

Thanks for the 2 hour tip re BG testing after the shot. It could be awkward on a work day (only 2 days a week) hubby might manage it but difficult to do alone unless she is sleepy. I can pop home in the afternoon as I can be fairly flexible thankfully if planned ahead.

I wont be able to request the form the Lantus comes in tomorrow as ordered but could afterwards if the Solastar pens are better? I'm in the UK so does that still apply?
I've just learned that her pancreas looks abnormal but not surprised due to the diabetes but test for pancreatitis will be back end of week hopefully (I do hope NOT!)

Many thanks
Julianax :smile:
 
Just a quick note.....I'd cancel the order for the dry diabetic food. Most of us (in fact, I can't recall anyone who feeds any of the prescription diabetes foods) feed regular LC food; we don't use the prescription diabetes diets because they are very, very poor quality. You are better off feeding her a higher quality, LC commercial canned food or a raw diet than using any prescription diabetes formula.

We use Dr. Lisa's Food Charts to select the foods we want to give. As a note, it's a good idea to also stock some HC foods with gravy for times when her numbers run low.
 
Hi Gracie,
I have also ordered a lamb sensitive from 'The Happy Kitty Company". Would you consider that to be a higher quality? (Does 'LC' mean 'Low calorie'?). I am feeling a bit upset now as I have just changed her to Hill's Diabetic M/D with difficulty and was amazed that it didn't upset her gut. I have not been able to introduce ANY other foods in the 8 years I've had her she always vomited them back. I am a bit over whelmed now as to what to do. Its thought that she has inflammatory bowel & I don't want to upset that just as I am commencing her new insulin (tomorrow). The food chart doesn't seem to indicate what would be suitable for IBD and theres so many I'm not sure where to start. I don't know how to introduce a raw diet & is it the best for her? I don't want to give her a rubbish diet if that is what the Hill's is.
Any advice :?
Julianax
 
When I start the Lantus tomorrow evening can I on that first occaision give it at the time I would normally give her Caninsulin which is 13 hours before her morning shot? She is soooo hungry for such a long time before I think to wait an extra hour would be even more distressing for her and I think her BG shoots up in that last couple of hours. I know its supposed to be exactly 12 hours apart but perhaps on the first shot only it could be 13 hours? Tonight she was desperately searching for food as even 11 hours is too long and of course in the morning it will be Caninsulin again.
Appreciate any advice as this whole thing is becoming a bit of a nightmare :cry:
Juliana
 
LC is low carb. I'm not sure Marje had time to read your other condo where you talk about your girl's health troubles. If she has an underlying allergy or condition, I'd treat that first and the diabetes second. In other words, if she can keep a higher carb food down then stick with that! It might mean going up in dosage a bit but first we have to see how she does on the Lantus. Lower carb food is the ideal, but we need to make sure she keeps her food down.

You're doing a great job! It's so overwhelming at first but it will get better! :YMHUG:
 
Hi Juliana!

You could feed Alice a mini-meal a couple of hours before her shot of Lantus. That might help to tide her over until her bigger meal with the insulin shot. We often feed our diabetic kitties mini-meals. That helps to spread out the load on the pancreas and may be something you can try.

As long at that mini-meal is 2 hours before your pre-shot test, it won't be influencing the pre-shot test and we will get a truer reading on what her BG level is.
 
(((Julie))),

The most important thing is that Alice eats and is happy.
And if Alice's sensitivities mean she can only tolerate 'x' food or 'y' food, then that's what she eats.
The diabetes treatment can work around that. Really. :smile:

In time you may find that she can tolerate other foods.
Some folks experiment with single protein foods. It can be a helpful way to find out exactly what the kitty is sensitive to.
Beef, chicken and fish are the commonest causes of food intolerance and allergy, I think. Some cats do well on 'novel proteins' (those not commonly used in cat food) such as lamb, duck, rabbit, venison etc. Soya, carageenan, and grains/cereals can cause issues for some cats (although some seem to tolerate rice).
Some cats with IBD do well on a raw food diet. It is possible to buy raw cat food, so you wouldn't have to make it yourself (unless you really wanted to!).
Oh, BTW, foods from the Happy Kitty Company are excellent quality. (The names may be unfamilar because they come from smallish companies in Europe. But they don't have any of the junk and fillers that the big-name companies use).

But, for the moment, you may feel you've got quite enough on your hands with the change of insulin.
That's OK. You don't have to do everything all at once.
Do it at your own pace.
Baby steps is fine.
And remember to breathe...

One thing I would suggest though when starting out with the new insulin is to keep some consistency in what Alice is eating.
By 'consistency' I mean that you try to keep the carb content of the diet consistent while working out an insulin dose for Alice. (I can work out the carb content of any foods you're not sure of.) That will make it easier to work out the effectiveness of any given dose of insulin.

Then, you could always introduce/try other foods once you have a baseline for how Alice is responding to Lantus?

You're doing fine, Julie.
I know this is not easy. But it will get easier.

Big hug to you,

Eliz
 
Thank you for all your kind & very helpful comments.
I was getting into a bit of a lather! I collected the Lantus this afternoon from the vets (a 10ml vial) and syringes. I felt myself relax when I actually had it in my hand! The Caninsulin has been sooo bad for Alice with huge constant swings. I did watch the video on drawing the Lantus up, it was helpful. I found the syringe quite stiff despite pulling the plunger up & down a few times first. I injected the air into the air in the vial & then withdrew more than I needed as suggested. I couldn't understand why I couldn't expel a fraction to the correct line, it kept bouncing back - then my hubby, who was watching over my shoulder pointed out that I was looking at the bottom of the black plunger & not the top!! I started again, with a new syringe. What a tiny amount, it was so hard to control the amount I expelled!! The vet said 1 unit & that she would look at the BGs and increase after 3 days. I know someone suggested 0.75 units at first so I'm hoping its ok. I haven't had a chance yet to fill in the spreadsheet but will asap. The needles are half the length of those for Caninsulin, I'm wondering how I will do when her furs regrown. I couldn't feel any resistance in her skin this time so I wasn't sure it had gone in without checking, I suspect the needle is finer too.
Her BG was surprisingly lower pre-shot, even though she hadn't had any of this insulin before. I think her BG must shoot up in that last hour or so because I gave it an hour earlier than usual (18:00pm today) as she was exceptionally hungry from around 1.45pm, scavenging for food everywhere. I noticed a lower BG when I also bought her Caninsulin forward to 11 hours in the day instead of 12. Today was 10 hours after her last dose of Caninsulin.
BGs so far before Lantis 14.7 (never this low pre-shot before!), +4 BG 22.8.
She has eaten loads!! The Happy Kitty food, 'Ropo cat lamb, sensitive came today. It was a gamble but this evening I gave her a total of 28 gms of it mixed with the Hill's D/M (108gms) over a period of time. I stopped her 'normal' Chicken & rice Royal Canin Sensitive as I had almost phased it out anyway. She loves the Ropo cat! I am now 'holding my breathe' hoping there is no reaction - no vomiting so far!
The vet said I only needed to test her BG pre-shot for 3 days & then she will re:think her regime. I'm not sure what times you recommend testing but I would feel happier doing it at other times too just incase she does go hypo. Could you recommend the times please to test? I'm grateful to Marje for setting up the SS (sorry I called you 'Gracie' I think by mistake, still somewhat sleep deprived)! I will fill it in asap just not a chance today.
Thanks for you constant encouragement & patience with me, its lovely to have such great support, THANK YOUX
I'll let you know how it goes & no doubt be asking more questions! Should I just post on the Lantus forum now?
Julianax
 
PS Just checked Alice's BG again at +5.5 and it is 26.3 (rising!) Pre-shot was only 14.7 I'm a bit worried at the rate it is rising, is this normal with a first dose of Lantus?
 
Lantus takes time to fill the "depot" and that can take 3-5 days. Also, remember you were on a higher dose of Caninsulin. It's better to start out slow and increase slowly then to start with too big of a dose. Give it some time. This is where those patience pants may be needed.

One recommendation from the Lantus TR forum is to test at +3, +6 and +9 for the first few days on Lantus.

REQUISITES WHEN FOLLOWING A TIGHT REGULATION PROTOCOL WITH LANTUS OR LEVEMIR:

•Kitty should be monitored closely the first three days when starting Lantus or Levemir.
Blood glucose levels should at least be checked at pre-shot, +3, +6, and +9.
More monitoring may be needed.
Click to expand...

"General" Guidelines:
•Hold the initial starting dose for 5 - 7 days (10 - 14 consecutive cycles) unless the numbers tell you otherwise. Kitties experiencing high flat curves or prone to ketones may want to increase the starting dose after 3 days (6 consecutive cycles).
•Each subsequent dose is held for a minimum of 3 days (6 consecutive cycles) unless kitty earns a reduction (See: Reducing the dose...).
•Adjustments to dose are based on nadirs with only some consideration given to preshot numbers.
Click to expand...

Yes, you may want to post on a regular basis over in the Lantus forum. They will be looking for some numbers on your SS (spreadsheet) in order to help you best. You post a new "condo" or topic each day, linking in the previous day's post. Subject line should be date, cat's name, AMPS reading, updated with any subsequent readings for the day. A whole cat report (WCR) telling us how your cat is doing is appreciated. This usually consists of the 5 P's (peeing, pooping, purring, preening, purring) and how the appetite is. Any concerns or questions, please use that ? mark icon on your post.
 
Hi Deb,
Thanks for the super quick reply! I'll try to be patient! She seemed in a stupor when I ear- pricked her. I guess I have time for an hour & half nap myself before her 9 hour BG then (3am)! As long as she's safe, that's the thing.
Thanksx
 
hi juliana!

my computer died yesterday - sorry to not have gotten back to you sooner.

your 1u starting dose is fine. i'm glad that you're testing more than just preshots - it's important to keep her safe. Lantus does take a while to build up in the body, but some cats react more quickly than others.

yes, if you have a food issue, it's better to feed her what keeps her gut happy and we can work the insulin dose around it. Ideally, diabetic cats are on a low carb diet, but if you need to feed other food, we'll work with it. There are other cats with IBD on here as well. Dry food is the worst choice for diabetic cats, however. i think its main value is for people who don't hometest, the carbs are so high that a cat is just kept in high numbers and they never have a hypoglycemic episode. But for the person who wants their cat to be as healthy as possible, high numbers are what we want to avoid. The canned food will be better to work with.

I'm glad Marje got your spreadsheet set up for you! it's an invaluable tool for us - we "read" the numbers on the chart and it helps us know what's going on in Alice's body. We'll teach you how to read it too. We all try to get into the habit of entering blood glucose numbers (BGs) as we test so that if we need help, the spreadsheet is up to date.

It would be great if you could post on the Lantus TR forum here. There are many experienced Lantus users there and you'll have many people watching out for you and able to help you readily.

Good job getting switched to Lantus - you're on your way now!
 
Thanks for the info, thats great. My hubby has offered to do one of the tests tonight! :shock:
I forgot to say also, yesterday the vet told me all the test results are now back. Unfortunately she has pancreatitis too :YMSIGH: She says there is no treatment and she is likely to always have it. Is this anyone else's experience? Does this mean she will never have a chance of remission? Should I start a new thread with this here?
Alice is 'ok' this morning. Drinking, not eating much but looks comfortable. I'm not sure we got an accurate BG but think we did (hubby insists when he jabs on outer ear & it was a bit low on the ear and not much blood but the meter did bleep.
I will from now post in the Lantus forum. I hope you will still be around.

All the best and many thanks to all for your great support and help.
Julianax
Ps have updated signature with the 'Pancreatitis'.
 
Morning, Julie :smile:

I've no experience personally with feline pancreatitis but know that there are others here who do, and they may be able to help.
Meanwhile you may want to have a wee read of Marje's 'Pancreatitis Primer' here:
viewtopic.php?f=14&t=83108

Big hug to you,

Eliz

PS. Sending your hubby 'successful test' vibes for this evening!
 
there isn't a "cure" for pancreatitis, but there definitely are things that can help make it better! Marje listed a lot of options in her post. It's not uncommon for pancreatitis to flare up and settle down. It's pretty common in diabetic cats - the pancreas is the organ that produces insulin. Punkin had pancreatitis and we gave him sub-q fluids, pain relievers (bupe) and vitamin b-12. Those are the most common treatments.

I'd ask for those and get started with them. Alice will feel better.
 
Hi Julie,
The vet said the pancreatitis is not acute at the moment but probably chronic & not likely to go. She advised me to watch out for signs of acute pancreatitis like 'hiding under the bed' and not moving much. She didn't think Alice was in agony but asked if I would like pain relief for her 'back legs' but that it would make her drowsy. I'm not sure that she's in lots of pain, it is hard to tell but I don't want the complication of drugs & drowsiness as she may not eat & it would make it difficult to assess how she is. Her B12 is apparently normal, I asked where it was in the range but apparently there isn't one, just 200 is lowest normal & hers is alot more than that.
I always live in hope though & have my 'ear to the ground' for any tips on settling the pancreatitis. I'm suspecting it is caused by inflammatory bowel. She is so difficult to manage food-wise.
I did take note of Marje's post but think I will re-read it.
Thanks Julie
Julianax (actually 'Julie' too but you beat me to it!) :smile:
 
i'm uncertain if the current blood level of vitamin B-12 is in any way related to it helping pancreatitis resolve. it is really effective. i don't think we had punkin's vit b-12 levels ever checked - i doubt that's in normal labs - and we gave him vit b-12 for the rest of his life after his first pancreatitis flare. it is really helpful - many people use it.

as far as the bupe being a narcotic - you tinker with the dose so that the cat isn't "drugged." we gave it to punkin daily. we've had people here who have had pancreatitis tell us how awful it is. it's both painful and nauseating. Alice can't tell you she feels poorly, but we do know it's very likely to make her body hurt. i was concerned about punkin becoming addicted to it but my vet said there is no evidence that happens, and after all, he doesn't have to drive a car, so is it really a concern? he never seemed dopey with it and we gave it to him for months straight - i'd have to look at his ss to say how long, but it was a long time, twice a day. it did seem to help him feel better.

i guess what i'm saying is that if she has pancreatitis, i would try all the "usual" tactics to help her feel better. i would worry more about her feeling awful and her pancreas being inflamed than anything else. not sure if you had a chance to read the PDF on the Lantus TR forum in the yellow starred sticky called "Tight Regulation Protocol" that is titled "Management of Diabetic Cats Using Long-Lasting Insulin" or not. It's about 5 paragraphs down from the top of the page. It is very good and the most recent protocol for dosing and managing cats. There is a section in there that talks about pancreatitis - it is one of the factors that can cause insulin resistance, so it is important to treat as much as possible.

Just took a look at her spreadsheet. She's definitely higher than we would want to see, even though this is just her 5th dose on the Lantus. the drop from 2.5u caninsulin (was that the dose of her last shot?) to 1.0u Lantus may have been too drastic. Some of us are talking about it and will get back to her. With a background of DKA we would prefer she not be in these high numbers any longer than necessary.
 
Sometimes, pancreatitis, especially chronic, may reduce the pancreas ability to produce digestive enzymes. Signs include foul smelling feces, and large, pasty-colored stools. Discuss with the vet if it might be helpful to supplement those.
 
hi julie!

marje, sienne and I have talked about Alice's blood sugar numbers. We'd suggest that you increase her dose by 0.5u with her next shot. She's in too high of numbers and with a history of DKA that's not good. Let's see what 1.5u will do for her. she may still need more than that, but let's see what it does.

julie

by the way, i'd really like to again encourage you to post on the Lantus TR Insulin Support Group. I'm afraid your posts are going to get lost here and not seen by any of the regular lantus users that can help you with dosing. Do you have concerns about posting there, or questions that i can answer?
 
Julie

I'm sorry I didn't get back here after posting about the food but I'm glad the others reassured you. They are spot-on, first rule is to have kitty eating and then we can always adjust the insulin dose. I apologize for not catching that the DM was helping her IBD. I thought perhaps the lamb might be but that your vet just wanted her on DM because a lot of vets prescribe it.

I hope things are settling down and I also hope the increase of 0.5u in the morning will help to start bring her numbers down. We want to give it four cycles (unless she system coming down into blue and green) and then reevaluate.

See you in the Lantus ISG.
 
Thanks for your posts. The only reason I haven't yet posted on the Lantus forum is that I didn't understand how. I have a post to digest from someone on 'How to" so I'm hoping I can follow that. I need to go & try & digest that now.

I didn't read your post about increasing dose until I had given it this morning & I didn't feel happy about her starting at night. Her vet has asked me to keep a record of her 'pre-shots' & drop them off to her tomorrow, she plans to then contact me re raising dose. I may just do it anyway & hope I don't 'fess'! I know that's what she planned anyway. She has had 7 doses now at 1 unit. We didn't have the timing too good as started at 18:00pm & moved it slowly to 19:45 pm. so not the advised overlap. We are on target now though. With the Caninsulin I didn't understand about the 'bouncing' (nor did the vets) and so I pushed for larger doses & I think it was a mistake now. Do you think its ok tomorrow then (she hasn't had any more ketones although not checked today).

Right, now to study posting on Lantus forum (it still looked a bit complicated!). nailbite_smile

Julianax
 
No worries - we have a convention we use in the subject line so that we can see at a glance how all the cats are doing, but you don't have to start out using that.

Just click here and then look for the "button" near the top that says "new topic." click that and go for it. we all were new too. so don't worry at all. i just don't want you to get missed here. and when i say that, i know people won't miss you! the folks who cover the Main Health page are great! it's just that the people who use Lantus the most are on the TR page and they will be able to help you with dosing adjustments.

I think the sooner you increase her dose the better, but it's up to you when that's going to work best. we just don't want any return of ketones.

re your vet asking for preshot numbers - the vet may not understand that Lantus dosing is based upon the lowest point that a dose will get a cat to, not the preshot number. The low number in each cycle is the most important number. The preshot number only tells you if it's safe to shoot, ie, we wouldn't shoot a number in the 40's.
 
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