Methylcobalamin

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Juleslynne43

Hi, I live in Canada and have managed to find a source of methylcobalamin on amazon.ca. It says its sublingual (under the tongue). Is this the stuff you guys use for diabetic neuropathy? I inject it under the skin right? How much do I use and how often? My vet only gave me cyanocobalamin which is not making any difference and I don't want to ask again for the methylcobalamin so am trying to find it myself.

Please help.
 
I found this thread yesterday as I was researching just this subject

viewtopic.php?p=914980

I don't think you can use something meant for under the tongue under the skin (sorry you might not be asking that question). So I think the one you are looking at isn't quite what you want. I am going to get remi some zobaline, I will order it from the US but the thread mentions another I branded version.

Best wishes

Sarah
 
Thanks. So where can I get this zobaline in canada? Or on US that will ship to canada?

Any ideas how to get my cat to take a pill? He's already being pricked and injected he's not going to like pills too :-(
 
It takes time for the cyanocobalamin injections to work.

Sublingual meds are absorbed in the mouth.

I don't use Zobaline but from what I've read on this forum I believe that the tablets can be crumbled into your cat's food. That would save you having to pill your cat. That said, sometimes it is necessary to pill, poke and inject in order to help our kitties get better. It's not pleasant for the caregiver or the cat, but the alternative is worse.
 
You can order Zobaline from Lifelink. They deliver to Canada. The pills just crumble and you can add it to their food. The other alternative is to use Pill Pockets. You can buy the Duck and Pea Allergy Free ones at most pet stores. They are diabetic friendly. They are the dog version, but you just break off a small piece to wrap the pill into. Both my kitties love the pill pockets. I'll occasionally give them a piece with nothing in it so they think it's just a treat.
 
I've just ordered the zobaline and I live in the uk. The charge was 15 dollars for international shipping and I think the website said that included Canada. Depending on how big they are my plan is to cut them in half and add it to remi usual gelatine capsules that I give him twice a day when he has he other meds. Or I might crumbling them into food.

I am really hoping that along with the vet b injection that he got today (and every four weeks) this will really start to give him the strength back in his legs.
 
I live in the UK and used Zobaline for my cat, but recently read a post here by someone who'd found another brand of methyl B12 that can be easier to find (and a lot cheaper) for those of us outside the US. It's Doctor's Best methycobalamin. I think it's half the strength of Zobaline so you'd need to use 2 capsules to get the right dose.

Here's a link:
http://ca.iherb.com/Doctor-s-Best-Best- ... =null&ic=4

Eliz
 
Well I haven't started him on anything yet. I have the zobaline on order but am going to look for something I can buy in the uk in the meantime. I think the dose they suggest is 3000 mcg but they just pee out what they don't need. Just be careful what other additives are in the supplement you choose.

So far in the UK I have found this spray

http://www.jgsupplements.com/products/m ... vings.html

Can someone advise if the ingredients of purified water, vegetable glycerin and potassium sorbate are okay for a cat?

Or alternatively Elizabeth suggested the doctors best brand and I have found it in the uk here

http://www.bodykind.com/product/browse/ ... #questions

I will order these tonight.

These only seem to have the active ingredient and cellulose from the capsule and so guess I will go with these.

Can anyone explain why remi appears to still be getting worse with his legs even though his glucose readings are much lower? Is it just the slow build up of toxins. I have taken to massaging his legs to see if that helps
 
phlika29 said:
...Can anyone explain why remi appears to still be getting worse with his legs even though his glucose readings are much lower? Is it just the slow build up of toxins. I have taken to massaging his legs to see if that helps
Click to expand...

Hmmm... Is Remi still peeing a lot? Potassium deficiency can also cause leg weakness (and increased peeing can flush potassium out of the system).

Exactly what symptoms are you seeing with Remi's legs? Generalised weakness? Walking on hocks? Anything else..?

Please try not to worry. This is probably something easily resolvable.

Hugs,

Eliz
 
Hi Elizabeth

I am an obsessive worrier when it comes to remi. :? That must come across :lol:

He is walking fine but just doesn't seem to have any strength to jump onto chairs and still seems to get tired walking up the stairs. I can tell he doesn't feel his back legs as much as he used to as you can poke his feet etc and he doesn't react much. When you pick him up there is no resistance in his back legs. Front legs seem okay. It's almost like he has lost his confidence.

He does seem to be peeing more than he used to but then he has changed to quite a wet food and so I don't know what is the normal is for a cat that eats wet, as all his life he has had dry. When he pees it doesn't have the power that he used to. Does that make sense? I hadn't thought about potassium deficiency. Do I need to get that tested or is that something I can just get a supplement for and he will pee out the excess. I am a little worried about kidney disease. He was tested recently and was okay but maybe not now :(

He is eating thrive complete wet food. I ordered the doctors best off eBay tonight for delivery on Wednesday and also ordered the zobaline.
 
My sugarcat Bob suffered from low potassium like Elizabeth mentioned. Like Remi, he lost his ability to jump or climb, and needed potassium supplements for a long time. The muscle weakness appeared to be worst in his hind legs.

It is definitely something you would want a vet to test him for to verify his potassium is not within normal range. Potassium affects muscle function throughout the body, and too high is just as bad as too low, so you wouldn't want him getting supplements unless blood work shows he needs them.
 
Thankyou for your reply. As I said to Elizabeth this wasn't even something on my radar and I am so pleased that you have highlighted this as a possibility. I will book an appointment to get remi tested before the week is out. I don't know if I want to know the answer but did your cat Bob have low potassium because of kidney disease or was it a side effect of the diabetes?
 
Just the act of giving insulin can cause potassium to drop. So it is something that should be checked frequently with diabetic cats. One of the reasons that I have my sugarcats' blood panels run every 6 months as opposed to the rest of my seniors that I only run a blood panel on once a year. I guess it was on my radar because of living with my mom who was a life long diabetic and it was just one of those things that I remember her saying that was important to keep on top of when on insulin.

Mel and The Fur Gang
 
Thanks Mel. Over the last couple of years I have had many a blood test done on remi but this has always focused on his pancreas and his liver. I don't remember if potassium was even on the panel but will make sure it is now ;-)
 
phlika29 said:
Thankyou for your reply. As I said to Elizabeth this wasn't even something on my radar and I am so pleased that you have highlighted this as a possibility. I will book an appointment to get remi tested before the week is out. I don't know if I want to know the answer but did your cat Bob have low potassium because of kidney disease or was it a side effect of the diabetes?
Click to expand...
Bob fortunately didn't have kidney disease, and the low potassium was first noted at diagnosis for diabetes. He was also DKA at that time. Over the course of a few months, with supplements, his potassium got back to normal, and he was only on insulin for ten weeks before he went into remission. He was "sugar free" for almost 2 1/2 years after that before he earned his angel wings.
Carl
 
phlika29 said:
Or alternatively Elizabeth suggested the doctors best brand and I have found it in the uk here
http://www.bodykind.com/product/browse/ ... #questions
Click to expand...

apologies for bumping the thread, but i've been trying to search on here, and it keeps telling me the keyword is too short =/

i'd like to get some b12 for Kizzy, but i am struggling to find a suitable one here in the UK.

as mentioned above, doctors best is found here, and i saw this mentioned on another diabetic cat site, also. looking at the ingredients it states: Cellulose, modified cellulose (vegetarian capsule). cellulose is a form of sugar but since it says (veg cap) does that mean it is just in the capsule? which i obviously won't be giving to the cat...

so is it, therefore, okay to give to Kizzy cat?

her problem is is that she has arthritis in the leg she has neuropathy. she does only walk on her hocks on that back leg, not the other leg, so it's obviously a mix of the two problems. she is on loxicom for the arthritis, but we don't think it helps one bit... now the weather has gotten warmer, the arthritis has obviously eased a little, as she is a bit more mobile on the leg (moving it easier, climbing the stairs more often and much easier).

and since the weather is getting nicer, she has been venturing outside again. a new family moved in (their back garden is against our back garden, although they live in a different street) and they have a cat which has come into our garden a couple of times. it seems friendly, Kizzy has yet to notice it, but we don't want her chasing it and getting stuck somewhere (she can't jump well due to the neuropathy, i've had to go rescue her from the neighbours garden a couple of times, lol), or it chasing her and her not being able to get in the house quick enough.

it would be great if she just made friends with the cats in the area, rather than chase them =( but that's just how she is!!

so, yes, i'd love to get some methyl b12 for her. has it helped Remi at all?? i think it would be worth a try for Kizzy.
 
Hi Gillian,

The Dr's Best methylcobalamin is fine. As you say, you're not giving the capsule, just the powder inside.

The Dr's Best capsules are 1.5mg, and usually for neuropathy the dosage is around 3mg, so you can use two capsules to get that dosage. It seems to have little taste, and so can easily be added to food.
If you choose to, you can also add a small amount of folic acid, which works synergistically with the B12 to increase the effect. (Alternatively, if you don't want to fiddle around with chopping up folic acid tablets you could try giving this feline B complex here: http://www.provet.co.uk/nutrition/ProvitB Feline R.htm with the methylcobalamin.)

If Kizzy is OK with fishy tastes you could also consider trying a little fish oil or krill oil. I give all my oldies about 250mg krill oil a day (ie, split a 500mg capsule between two of them.) If you use fish oil rather than krill then it's advisable to also give a little vitamin E. Fish and krill oils have been found to have anti-inflammatory properties that can help with joint pain/stiffness (I take krill oil myself for that reason, and also for my heart disease).

Back leg weakness can also be caused by potassium deficiency, and it can look like neuropathy. If Kizzy is peeing a lot then that will make her more prone to potassium deficiency (but whether she actually is deficient or not can only be determined by a blood test). If the B12 doesn't help then that might be something to consider...?

Best wishes to you and to Kizzy,

Eliz
 
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Hi Gillian

I think that Elizabeth has answered your questions. It turned out that remi had low potassium and therefore I didn't actually start the dr's best as I have to add potassium to his food and also add a probiotic. He gets regular vit b injections from the vets.
 
thank you both for the replies.

i will contact the vet to get blood test info. she had a big one in nov/dec and they did test extra things, so i will ask if potassium was one of those. actually, they did a fructosamine in january, and they shaved her neck, as usual (and a lot more than they have to) and it's never grown back =/ she loves getting it rubbed though!

fishy tastes are no problem for Kizzy, she used to prefer the fishy Felix 'as good as it looks', and she occasionally gets some cod if we have it for dinner. she is a little strange in that respect, she won't eat it plain, but loves it if we cook it with parma ham, lemon and chilli sauce...

a little update of Kizzy since i last posted on this site - we'd taken her to the vet regarding her water intake back in Nov/Dec and she had blood tests and glucose curves, insulin adjustment, and she was back in Jan for that follow up fructosamine test. we weighed her last week, she has lost 1.5kg since Jan. so the vet will be happy about that. she has also changed her eating habits. she used to get wet and dry food (something i was not thrilled about, but the vet insisted she stay on dry) but now she is barely eating the dry food and preferring to eat the wet food. her water intake has also decreased. and she just looks much happier!! we have a cat bed in the living room, she is now using it more often, which is great, she used to sleep behind the sofa, so she's at least in our company.
my sister got herself a boyfriend in Jan, and when he comes to visit, Kizzy actually lets him touch her and she likes it, which is so unusual because she usually hides from visitors. we don't know why he is different, lol!! or, and i've just thought of this, maybe it is because he is diabetic too, hahaha!!

her coat is actually a lot nicer, too, and so soft. i'm not sure if that is due to her going out, getting fresh air, or because of the change in her diet.

overall, we are in a much happier place. us and her. and that's all we ever wanted, for her to be happy =)

thanks again!
 
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