My cat has no blood!

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Terry Neumann

Terry Neumann

Member Since 2023
My 12 yo cat was just diagnosed last week. Glucose level was around 450. As I am on a fixed income, vet said I could use Novolin N. As he weighs 13 lbs, she said to start him on 2 units every 12 hours. He tolerates it well but now that he is on day 4, I just got a blood sample (which is harder than herding cats) and his glucose level was 375. This was 6 hours after eating. I am wondering when the best time to test and also the best time to give the insulin. Also, I have a True Metrix glucose meter for humans. Is this accurate for cats and if not, whats a good meter?
 
Hi and welcome to the forum.
2 units is too high a dose to start off with.
If you are feeding just low carb wet food, please go back to 1/2 unit twice a day.
If you are feeding dry food please go back to 1 unit twice a day.

Novolin N is not a good insulin for cats. It is a fast acting, harsh insulin that does not last the 12 hours.
I understand you are on a fixed income but we may be able to help you get some cheaper insulin that is better for cats.
Lantus is a very good option. I will tag @Diane Tyler's Mom as she can tell you your options.

with Novolin N you need to feed 1 hour before you give the insulin.
So you test, feed, wait one hour then give the insulin.

I am going to give you the link to the spreadsheet and the signature, if you could set up those and add any data you have, we can help you with dosing. That will save you vet fees.

HELP US HELP YOU

Here is a link to using NOVOLIN N
Keep asking questions
 
Terry Neumann said:
Also, I have a True Metrix glucose meter for humans. Is this accurate for cats and if not, whats a good meter?
Click to expand...
Yes a human meter is fine and accurate.
Terry Neumann said:
am wondering when the best time to test and also the best time to give the insulin. ?
Click to expand...
Always test before every shot to see it is safe to give the dose.
Then test again at around +2 with using Novolin N and again at +4 if you can both cycles.
I would also give, apart from the two main meals before the shots, some snacks. When using Novolin N I would give a snack at +2 and +4 bath cycles. A snack is a couple of teaspoons of food.
 
Bron and Sheba (GA) said:
Lantus is a very good option. I will tag @Diane Tyler's Mom as she can tell you your options.
Click to expand...
If you do switch to Lantus
Lantus is expensive in the US so many members use the generic
Here is some info
Check this out
https://www.goodrx.com/insulin-glargine?dosage=five-3ml-prefilled-pens-of-100-units-ml&form=carton&label_override=insulin glargine&quantity=1
One pen would last me about 6 months . we use the pens just like a vial, you would just insert the syringe it the gray rubber stopper on the pen and draw out your insulin
Its generic lantus



Or this one also

I see some members will call CVS, Rite Aid, Costco, Walgreen's, to get the price for 5 pens
Posted by another member
One members posted this
. I paid $175 for a box of 5 pens at Walmart pharmacy, but GoodRX coupon says you can get it for around $90 if you have a Rite Aid pharmacy near you.

We don't use the pen because you can only adjust the dose by full units, we adjust the dose by 0.25 units at a time. You would need U-100 syringes half unit markings



Just take the cap off the pen and use a U100 syringes and pull the insulin out of the pen!
syringe-in-pen-pic-jpg.45006
 
It's important to get a pre-shot test every time before you give a shot. Novolin can work quickly and it can drop numbers and it doesn't last 12-hours. It is a better insulin for dogs than cats given that a cat has a much faster metabolism. The American Animal Hospital Assn recommends either Lantus (glargine) or Prozinc for cats. As Diane mentioned, the branded insulin, Lantus is very expensive. However, it is now available as a generic/biosimilar at a much more reasonable price. You may want to call around and get prices. The link that Diane provided should help since it factors in the GoodRx pricing.
 
Thank you all for the responses. My vet had me start him on 2 units. In testing him, I found it not effective. His glucose level was still around 375 and last eve when I tested him just before eating it was 80! Getting ready to test shortly and will post the results since he ate a bit more food at 1pm. Its really difficult as he has always been a grazer.
 
Terry Neumann said:
Thank you all for the responses. My vet had me start him on 2 units. In testing him, I found it not effective. His glucose level was still around 375 and last eve when I tested him just before eating it was 80! Getting ready to test shortly and will post the results since he ate a bit more food at 1pm. Its really difficult as he has always been a grazer.
Click to expand...
I'm not experienced enough to give dosing advice but since your new to this & he's on Novlin you earned a reduction for his next shot to 1.75 units because he dropped under 90. I'm going to tag some more experienced members to confirm @Sienne and Gabby (GA) @Wendy&Neko @tiffmaxee
 
What food are you feeding your kitty?

That 80 means the two units is too much insulin. I would follow Bron's suggestion and lower the dose back to 0.5 units if feeding low carb wet food, 1 unit if feeding dry food.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
What food are you feeding your kitty?

That 80 means the two units is too much insulin. I would follow Bron's suggestion and lower the dose back to 0.5 units if feeding low carb wet food, 1 unit if feeding dry food.
Click to expand...
Currently feeding him ProPlan complete essentials beef and carrot canned and have a bag of Science Diet gluco support M/D however, he much preferred purina cat chow gentle for the dry food. He was always a grazer and I have to do tricks to get him to eat more than a few bites at a time. My question re. feeding is how do you get him to eat enough in order to be able to give him a shot if he just wants to eat over several hours?
 
Some cats don't like, or grow tired of the vet "diabetic" food. Note, they are generally to high in carbs for a diabetic. However, I wouldn't remove the higher carb dry from his diet yet, until you have a better idea how he's doing on insulin, or can get him to eat more before the shot.

I'm not sure what to do to get him to eat more, unless maybe you can top the food with something really yummy. Many cats love the freeze dried all meat treats, like PureBites chicken. Try crumbling some of that on top. Or bonito flakes. Have you tried different flavours of wet food?

With a grazer cat, a longer lasting insulin like Lantus or Prozinc would be better, as they don't hit as hard and fast and it's OK if kitty is a grazer.
 
Thanks for your reply. He does fine on the wet food and the dry, he just snacks on occasionally. He probably only eats several teaspoons a day. The M/D science diet food is 45% protein as I have only been treating him for just over 2 weeks and the Novolin was only 25 bucks from WalMart, if I don't see any improvement in another week, I will purchase the generic Lantus and hopefully things will stabilize.
 
The protein percentage does not matter to a diabetic cat, it's the carb% that matters. Diabetics should eat less than 10% carb food.
 
Terry Neumann said:
Thanks for your reply. He does fine on the wet food and the dry, he just snacks on occasionally. He probably only eats several teaspoons a day. The M/D science diet food is 45% protein as I have only been treating him for just over 2 weeks and the Novolin was only 25 bucks from WalMart, if I don't see any improvement in another week, I will purchase the generic Lantus and hopefully things will stabilize.
Click to expand...
I just tested before he ate and his BG was 381. I gave him his 2 unit dose this morning around 9AM.
 
Today, my test just at 6pm had his BG at 158. I have been sticking with 2 units of Novilin N. As he is an indoor outdoor cat, I can't get blood out of his paws. His ears are all that works and he hates it! He is a very gentle cat and I don't want him to reject us.
 
Diane Tyler's Mom said:
If you do switch to Lantus
Lantus is expensive in the US so many members use the generic
Here is some info
Check this out
https://www.goodrx.com/insulin-glargine?dosage=five-3ml-prefilled-pens-of-100-units-ml&form=carton&label_override=insulin glargine&quantity=1
One pen would last me about 6 months . we use the pens just like a vial, you would just insert the syringe it the gray rubber stopper on the pen and draw out your insulin
Its generic lantus



Or this one also

I see some members will call CVS, Rite Aid, Costco, Walgreen's, to get the price for 5 pens
Posted by another member
One members posted this
. I paid $175 for a box of 5 pens at Walmart pharmacy, but GoodRX coupon says you can get it for around $90 if you have a Rite Aid pharmacy near you.

We don't use the pen because you can only adjust the dose by full units, we adjust the dose by 0.25 units at a time. You would need U-100 syringes half unit markings



Just take the cap off the pen and use a U100 syringes and pull the insulin out of the pen!
syringe-in-pen-pic-jpg.45006
Click to expand...
 
You mentioned that one pen lasts you 6 months. Curious what your kitty's glucose was running? My cat was running between 475 and 575 on testing. Curious what the dosage might be for him as he weighs just shy of 13 lbs.
 
Diane's cat was on a small dose of insulin. Tyler's spreadsheet is in her signature if you want to take a look. How long the pen last depends on how big of a dose your cat needs. With most insulin, the dose is not based on weight.
 
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