We have a lot of information here on how to deal with FD on a budget (a very tight one :lol: ) So just breathe and take a few moments.
First- what food are you feeding? Sometimes all it takes is changing from dry food to an all canned diet. You might think it is more expensive but in the long run it turns out to be cheaper as you don't have to deal with the problems that a dry food diet gives. Cats eat more dry food- mainly because it is air filled and not as nutritious (like cheese puffs). Canned food is more nutritious and denser and has water.
here are three lists- you want to choose a food that is 10% or less in carbs or KCarbs:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc ... hYXc#gid=0 (called Hobo's List)
http://binkyspage.tripod.com/canfood.html (called binky's list)
http://www.catinfo.org/docs/Food%20Char ... -22-12.pdf (new list from CatInfo.org)
Second- what insulin did your vet prescribe? Good ones are Levemir, Lantus, and ProZinc. All others are bad for cats and don't really work well if at all and are pretty much a waste of time and money over the long run. The first three are pricey but if you live near another member they might be able to sell you just one pen rather than having to buy a full pack of pens for a higher price.
Third- did the vet mention home testing? This is the biggest way to save money. If you test at home you do not need to do vet curves- which are a waste of money- and you know exactly what/how your cat reacts to the insulin on a daily basis. You need to choose a HUMAN meter that has strips you can afford to purchase. A lot on the board use the Relion series from Walmart. Prime (around $20) has 50/$9 strips and are the cheapest around. Micro and Confirm (around $16) have 100/$36 (used to be the cheapest) and you can get them cheaper on-line. You need to do at least 3 tests a day- one before each shot and one somewhere in between the two shots to find out how low she goes on a dose. There is also a button at the top of each page about a home testing kit, all you pay is shipping and you get a whole kit. You have to buy the strips for it- again on-line sites such as Craigslist and Ebay are favorite haunts to find strips.
We do have a helper site- DCIN- but there are some restrictions and you have to be able to help some. It wouldn't hurt to check them out.
Good luck on finding things out and starting this journey.
Heather
