How soon after eating should insulin be given?

[Mamalou]

My Lily gets so hungry that she doesn't want to wait until the scheduled shot time to eat. Can I feed her and give the insulin a little later? Not sure if that will hurt her or not.

 

[BJM]

Test, feed and shoot all within about 15 minutes for long acting insulins. For Novolin, you want to give the food some time to get in the system if she isn't very high; if high, shoot right away.

And you can leave the food down for a good 4-5 hours before picking it up. Novolin hits nadir about +3 to +4 hours after the shot.

Here is a Primer on N type insulin.

 

[Mamalou]

Thank you BJM! I wasn't sure if it would harm her or not. That was a great link you provided. I am still so unsure of my ability to take care of my sugar-baby, there is so much to learn but I am willing to do what it takes to educate myself on this disease.

 

[BJM]

Is there any chance you can get her on a longer acting insulin such as ProZinc, Lantus, or Levemir?

If not, given that N type insulins last roughly 6-8 hours in the cat, you may find that shooting 3 times a day - TID - gives you the best control.

Costwise, per unit, Lantus is actually less expensive per unit than ProZinc. We recommend getting the pens (or cartridges if in Canada)

ProZinc, however, is more flexible with dose adjustments and scheduling. You must get it from a veterinary prescription, either online of from the vet.