Methylcobalamin - Vitacost

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Hi. I am new to this forum and feline diabetes, but I've been reading a ton and have been looking at b vitamins. Vet gave me injections of b12, but my boy is really over being poked and I don't want to spoil him for his insulin shots. Soooo, I read in an article that 500mg is a good dosage for kitties for b12. Sound right? I'd rather sprinkle some in food, though I could also just man up and give him the shot, I suppose.
 
William's Mom said:
Hi. I am new to this forum and feline diabetes, but I've been reading a ton and have been looking at b vitamins. Vet gave me injections of b12, but my boy is really over being poked and I don't want to spoil him for his insulin shots. Soooo, I read in an article that 500mg is a good dosage for kitties for b12. Sound right? I'd rather sprinkle some in food, though I could also just man up and give him the shot, I suppose.
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Unfortunately, B12 does not go through the stomach and digestive tract very well (people or cats) and maintain much impact. So, injection is the best approach. Thomas gets 2.5 ml (I think that is correct) once a week for 6 weeks, then one time per month from then on. We are also feeding him some extra liver to build up his red blood cells. I went down that road (liver) when I had a surgery that went bad. The good news about B12 is that it is virtually impossible to overdose.
Neal, Carrie, Thomas, and Max
 
There are two forms of B-12 often referred to on this board. Cyanocobalamin is best given as an injection. It can help with pancreatitis, IBD, appetite, anemia, etc. I give it to all of my geriatric cats as it's not uncommon for them to be deficient and it seems to promote well being. However, it will not help neuropathy. The dose is typically 0.25 ml which is 25 units in an insulin syringe. Frequency of dosing depends on the condition being treated.

Methylcobalamin is available as pills or powder in capsules. It does come as an injectible but is rather expensive and difficult to source. The pills/powder work fine. On this board it's used to treat diabetic neuropathy but it can also be helpful for other neurological things. I give it to one of my senior diabetic cats (in remission) who developed a weird head twitch and he stopped twitching. He gets about 1/3 - 1/2 of the aforementioned capsules daily, mixed in food.
 
Well, I thought there had to be a reason injections were the preferred method. i can do his insulin quickly enough that he doesn't have a chance to get crazy, but the b12 and sq fluids he needs are close to impossible with him. pooh.

Thanks for the info about the powder dosing. It's worth a try.
 
You do realize those are 5000 mcg caps and a cat should get only 500 mcg per day. So each of these capsules would contain a 10 days worth of doses.

Since you are giving sub-q you can put the B12 in the y port and run it in with the fluids. Many folks on the CKD board do it that way.
 
Yes, 5000 mcg = 5 mg. Hannah gets 3 mg. per day, p.o. (1 tablet), sprinkled on her evening meal, as we use Zobaline. The Vitacost capsules mentioned above are equal to 5 mg. and that is also a safe/recommended amount. Methylcobalamin is a water-soluble vitamin, so any excess amount that isn't used by kitty's body is urinated out. Hope this helps. :cat:
 
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