Hi to all! New to this forum w/ a recently diagnosed kitty

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krenee

Member Since 2013
Hi everyone! My name is Kimberly and my 14 yr old cat Charlie was recently diagnosed with diabetes. I'm just getting over the initial shock of the diagnoses, and am currently trying to figure out if it is remotely possible for me to afford to give him the treatment he needs. I just graduated from college, and am struggling with unemployment and college loan payments. I desperately do not want to surrender him to a no-kill shelter, but I know I need to get him treatment as soon as possible. My vet said he absolutely needs to begin taking insulin 2x a day, and needs a change in diet. Thanks to the info in this forum, it seems that I should be fine giving him Fancy Feast Classics Pates instead of prescription food, which will cut down on the cost. I will not know the type if insulin he was prescribed until tomorrow, although I do know that the vet wrote a prescription for needles/syringes as well. So my first question is -- has anyone else needed prescription needles/syringes? And do you think they were necessary, or would the over the counter ones work just fine? I am also wondering if anyone has any other recommendations on how to make treatment as affordable as possible. Also, if anyone is comfortable letting me know about how much they pay per month for treatment (insulin, syringes, food, vet bills, etc.) that would be incredibly helpful.

I do want to say thank you in advance for any advice/recommendations anyone can offer. I am genuinely grateful this forum exists, and I very much hope I can find a way to keep Charlie and give him the treatment he needs!

One other note -- I understand that this is a forum mainly for people who have made the choice (and been able) to keep and treat their kittys with diabetes. Because of that, I understand many may not be understanding of someone in my position who has considered surrendering her cat to a no-kill shelter. Please know this is not a decision I would make lightly, and I am going to do all that I can to keep and treat Charlie. That being said, any helpful suggestions or comments would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,
Kimberly (&Charlie :smile: )
 
Re: Hi to all! New to this forum w/ a recently diagnosed kit

Hi Kimberly,

I am also new to this world of feline diabetes, so others, more experienced, will be able to help you. I just wanted to welcome you. I can tell you that your start up is the most expensive.

Vet bills, FF cat food, about .55 cents a can on sale in my area. I already had a meter,lancets, and test strips for home testing, but when these strips run out, I will buy one of the Relion Meters from Walmart. Meter, I believe is under $20, and strips under 20cents apiece. The syringes I got at Sams Club, $10 for 100, and I used Lantus Insulin, $141 for a 10ml vial, also from Sams Club. If you handle the vial correctly, they say you can sometimes get 90 days out of it, not the 28 days listed on the box. Next time, I will ask for a Lantus pen, try to find a pharm they sells them individually, and there is a $25 coupon on the Lantus site.

Please review all the "stickys" at the top of the forum pages. They will give you so much info. They will tell you about a hypt home kit, not much $. It took me a while to realize they were so "info filled!"

Again, Welcome
 
Re: Hi to all! New to this forum w/ a recently diagnosed kit

Kimberly, Forgot to say, that I am sure that many people (especially first diagnosed) think about their cat's (and their own) quality of life and wonder if it would be best for everyone to either give their kitty away, or even PTS.

There is a Grief Forum in this board. I have not been able to bring myself to view it yet. There may be some info there.
 
Re: Hi to all! New to this forum w/ a recently diagnosed kit

Good morning Kimberly & Charlie. Let me first say, you're in the right place. I am 1 month new here and my kitty Mego is currently already off the juice - meaning he's not insulin dependent anymore and I am just controlling his diabetes with low carb food. I understand your situation as I too am on a very tight budget.

So first, yes, try to switch to a low carb wet food. I started with Friskies classic pates from walmart in the small cans and then went to the larger 13oz cans ($.94 each). In regards to start up costs, this is when it's most expensive. Fancy Feast classic pates are fine to start out with as well. It sounds like you've already gotten the diagnosis so I'm assuming they did a blood test & urine test?
Most of us here are using a long lasting insulin called Lantus. I purchased the Lantus Solostar pen (3ml) from a CVS pharmacy using the Lantus Savings Card from their website for only $25. The card can be used up to six times. If you can get the card and find a pharmacy that will accept it, this will greatly reduce your insulin costs. Call and shop around for best prices and see if you can find somewhere that will sell you the individual pen. Some places only sell in packs of 3 or 5. As for the prescription for needles/syringes, I too need a prescription where I live. All that means is that the vet needs to write a script before the pharmacy will fill it. Otherwise, where I live, Walmart would only give me a pack of 10 at a time without the prescription. Over the counter syringes work just fine too. As you get more experienced, you can shop around for better pricing, needles, etc. I started buying 10 packs of U100 syringes, 5/16" needle, 30 gauge with 1/2 unit markings from Walmart (ReliOn brand) for $1.87. I ended up using the ADW shopping link at the top of the page to buy syringes and I didn't need a prescription - plus a little money goes back to FDMB when you shop online from those sites above.
For the most part, most of here do home blood glucose testing which will cut down on your vet visits as they will want to do blood curves to see how your kitty is responding to the insulin. How often your vet wants to do this varies and requires an 8-12 hour stay at the vet for blood tests which can get quite expensive. With that in mind, this is why we home test as well as ensuring the safety of our kitties before we shoot insulin.

So, for an overall idea of cost I spent $120 for initial vet visit and blood work and $30 for the urine test (which I collected at home). Because of home testing, I haven't been back to the vet for a visit and I provide my vet with Mego's testing numbers.

See this post for more info on start up costs at the bottom for what I purchased for home testing and a hypo kit.
Initial Start Up Costs

Good luck and ask a ton of questions. We will not judge you for your decision as it is a difficult one. Please keep us updated and welcome to the board.
 
Re: Hi to all! New to this forum w/ a recently diagnosed kit

Hi there, Wanted to let you know that I am offering to mail coupons for free (Good only in the U.S) I have sent you a message with the kinds of coupons I have - message me back if you are interested. The savings all add up and if you can save a few dollars on food and litter - you will have that couple of dollars to spend on something else you need instead.

Like Katie has already pointed out, the Lantus Solostar pens are much cheaper then the vials of Lantus - so if your cat is prescribed lantus - that is a way to spend a LOT less. I also use the syringes from walmart (Reli-on brand). I do believe they were about $13 for a box of 100 syringes which should last you 50 days when giving the injections twice a day.

Home testing is a safe way to make sure your cats blood glucose levels arent too low before injecting insulin - and home testing will save you a ton - instead of paying the vet to test him. There are members here that can teach you about home testing and they will help you figure out what all supplies you will need.

My cat Jupiter was diagnosed 3-14-13 (so just about a month ago) and I home test him and feel so much more comfortable giving him his shots knowing what his blood glucose numbers are. I post on this site everyday and there are always experienced members available to answer any questions I have.

Welcome to FDMB!!
 
Re: Hi to all! New to this forum w/ a recently diagnosed kit

Here is the link to sign up for the Lantus Solostar savings card. Fill it out with your own information. Since this is for your cat, I'm guessing you have no insurance coverage to cover medications for the cat.

http://www.lantus.com/considering/save-on-lantus/default.aspx

Print it out, the pharmacy should then only charge you $25 for each solostar pen. You will need your vet to write the prescription for the solostar pens, not the vial.

You will need to use insulin syringes with the solostar pens. The dial a dose feature on the pens does not work well with small amounts so using the disposable needles that come with the pen is not advised.

The pens are sold in packs of 5 so you may need to find a pharmacy that will break up the 5 pack and sell you only a single pen. That will take some calling around on your part.

Yes, more homework for you. In the lantus tight regulation forum, there are a number of stickies at the top of the topics list that give a ton of good information about lantus and levimir. From storage and handling, to how to shoot low, to tight regulation protocal.... I would suggest reading these, maybe printing them out for reference.
 
Re: Hi to all! New to this forum w/ a recently diagnosed kit

Welcome. You asked "So my first question is -- has anyone else needed prescription needles/syringes? And do you think they were necessary, or would the over the counter ones work just fine? "
Some states/localities requires a script for syringes, even for human diabetics. Maybe that is your case.
However, some vets prescribe an animal-only insulin like ProZinc. Animal insulins are diluted compared to human insulin (U40 strength vice human U100 (100 units per mil)). Thus maybe your vet is prescribing a U40 insulin and wants you to use U40 syringes. You can use human U100 syringes with U40 insulin but you have to convert units. One unit of U40 insulin requires that you draw up the insulin in a U100 syringe to the 2 1/2 unit markings on the U100 sryinge.
 
Re: Hi to all! New to this forum w/ a recently diagnosed kit

Thank you all for your help and support. Sadly, I had to find Charlie a new home this morning. But he is now with a family friend who will be able to give him the love and treatment he needs. I told her about this forum, and hopefully she will be checking in.

Thank you all again!
 
Re: Hi to all! New to this forum w/ a recently diagnosed kit

Sorry to hear you had to part with Charlie. This can truly be a very difficult decision for some. You did right by Charlie if you knew you would not be able to provide him with the care he needed. We hope to hear from your friend soon and look forward to hearing more about Charlie's progress. Hugs to you - I'm sure it was a difficult day.
 
Re: Hi to all! New to this forum w/ a recently diagnosed kit

I found test strips on ebay - a lot cheaper than in the drugstores.

My cat was off the insulin after switching to FF pate. Took him about 3 months on insulin and FF.

Good luck.
 
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