New dx: What meter should I buy?

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ArmyFrau

ArmyFrau

Member Since 2018
##EDIT## I just posted this as my introduction on the intro page. I think I was supposed to have posted most of it here. SORRY! I will get better.

Hi,
My name is Erica and Mädel is my just-turned-4-year-old DSH female who was dx'd 2 and a half months ago. I left the country for 3 weeks not long after so I am just starting to educate myself and make a plan. I'm not sure if my vet is very informed or not. She answers my questions and is willing to work with me but I'm pretty disheartened that at the very beginning she discouraged home-testing because it doesn't usually work.

Mädel probably has been diabetic for a while....maybe even a year or two! I'm obviously blind! I thought she had a water fetish like my old cat but she was actually thirsty! She was "sick" at the time of dx....significant weight loss, loss of appetite, etc. but that might have been because of the liver numbers.

Vet put her ASAP on two units of Lantus twice per day. Also, put her onto Purina DM and/or Science Diet m/d. She didn't tell me to feed her only one so I have alternated to get her to eat it more. She weighs 9.6 pounds now and eats 5.5 ounces at breakfast and at dinner!

Vet had hoped 3 weeks on Lantus and proper food might put her in remission but it didn't. Numbers were better but she kept her on the two units/twice per day. Then I was gone for 3 weeks. And while I was gone she only got two units once per day. Now that's she has had several more weeks on two units TWICE per day, I'm supposed to take her back for a test.

BUT NOW I FIND from y'all that I can test her myself!!! Thought it was bizarre this throwing of insulin at her like spaghetti at a wall (I grew up watching my dad test himself many times a day as he had Type 1 diabetes pretty bad). But I trusted my vet and besides I was in too much chaos to do much besides follow her directions.

SO my question for right now: I want to buy a meter and take it with me to the vet and have them test the meter and their method at the same time.

Money is an issue. My husband is not on-board for many medical expenses so I have to scrimp and save where I can. If I can get a cheaper meter and cheaper strips, that would be a big savings in the long run which he would like.
I read the Meter Information page (sorry, I am really not tech-savvy with this group stuff) but it was last updated quite a few years ago.

Please just tell me what meter to buy.

Thank you so much! You are awesome people and I am so thankful to have found you. This is so overwhelming. If I did something wrong, please tell me that, too.
 
Where do you live?

If it's the US, the Relion Confirm or Micro are favorite meters here because they take the tiniest sample size and the strips are affordable ($35.88/100)

Since it's at WalMart, you can also get strips pretty much 24/7
 
ArmyFrau said:
##EDIT## I just posted this as my introduction on the intro page. I think I was supposed to have posted most of it here. SORRY! I will get better.

Hi,
My name is Erica and Mädel is my just-turned-4-year-old DSH female who was dx'd 2 and a half months ago. I left the country for 3 weeks not long after so I am just starting to educate myself and make a plan. I'm not sure if my vet is very informed or not. She answers my questions and is willing to work with me but I'm pretty disheartened that at the very beginning she discouraged home-testing because it doesn't usually work.

Mädel probably has been diabetic for a while....maybe even a year or two! I'm obviously blind! I thought she had a water fetish like my old cat but she was actually thirsty! She was "sick" at the time of dx....significant weight loss, loss of appetite, etc. but that might have been because of the liver numbers.

Vet put her ASAP on two units of Lantus twice per day. Also, put her onto Purina DM and/or Science Diet m/d. She didn't tell me to feed her only one so I have alternated to get her to eat it more. She weighs 9.6 pounds now and eats 5.5 ounces at breakfast and at dinner!

Vet had hoped 3 weeks on Lantus and proper food might put her in remission but it didn't. Numbers were better but she kept her on the two units/twice per day. Then I was gone for 3 weeks. And while I was gone she only got two units once per day. Now that's she has had several more weeks on two units TWICE per day, I'm supposed to take her back for a test.

BUT NOW I FIND from y'all that I can test her myself!!! Thought it was bizarre this throwing of insulin at her like spaghetti at a wall (I grew up watching my dad test himself many times a day as he had Type 1 diabetes pretty bad). But I trusted my vet and besides I was in too much chaos to do much besides follow her directions.

SO my question for right now: I want to buy a meter and take it with me to the vet and have them test the meter and their method at the same time.

Money is an issue. My husband is not on-board for many medical expenses so I have to scrimp and save where I can. If I can get a cheaper meter and cheaper strips, that would be a big savings in the long run which he would like.
I read the Meter Information page (sorry, I am really not tech-savvy with this group stuff) but it was last updated quite a few years ago.

Please just tell me what meter to buy.

Thank you so much! You are awesome people and I am so thankful to have found you. This is so overwhelming. If I did something wrong, please tell me that, too.
Click to expand...
In the US Relion micro or confirm. Outside of us get a meter that takes the tiniest sample size 0.3. Your other option is a pet specific meter called an Alphatrak 2 which is probably the one your vet uses, but the strips are much more expensive then the human meters. I have a video in my signature showing how I test my cat CC at home.
 
Thank you! Purchased a Confirm and strips. I am taking the meter to the vet on Monday to get them to compare numbers with their test. They draw blood from her neck every time they test her BG. Is that not necessary? I was going to ask a second question: I was reading the directions for the meter and it kept saying it needs "venous blood." When the vet tests her, as I said, they always draw blood from her neck (last time they failed and had to go for her leg). Is that venous blood? I was concerned about the different blood sources and whether that would confuse the comparison I want to make between the vet's BG numbers and the numbers I will get testing her at home with the Relion Confirm. My vet intially discouraged testing her at home but I haven't brought it up again yet with her. I'm obviously going to do so on Monday! I did let them know already that I would be bringing the meter and that I would like the same blood tested both ways.
Thank you, yes, I watched your video. Just haven't worked myself up to it yet. I'm going to test myself and some human guinea pigs in the house.
 
ArmyFrau said:
I'm going to test myself and some human guinea pigs in the house.
Click to expand...

I've tested myself so many times. I think it's a useful thing to do. If you are ever worried that the meter may be malfunctioning or a strip may be defective, you can just check your own blood. It helps if you've already tested yourself a few times, so you know what your normal range is.
 
Thank you for your encouragement. I'm not sure if I'm supposed to start a new thread or just continue here?? So we were at the vet yesterday.
Their number was 312. My new Confirm was 197. Vet was not exactly impressed. She didn't exactly say I was wasting my time but she wasn't encouraging either. She did come around at the end though and suggest that once I have a bunch of home testing numbers, I should be sure to test Mädel right before going into the vet (and she does agree to test at vet every time her way and with my meter) and then we'd see if the stress of her visit is spiking her numbers there.
Somewhere I read that it was hopeful that my meter would be within 15-20% of the vet's number. I'm not in that group.
I have to now learn how to test Mädel myself which I know will probably take a while but could someone weigh in on the disparity between those numbers?

Also, does it make sense if the vet's attitude is:
"1. We look at the cat's weight. (she did gain another tenth of a pound is already at an ok weight so that's a good sign)
2. We look at her behavior. (she seems to be feeling okay....her five P's seem to be in order the great majority of the time)
3. THEN we look at the numbers. IF #1 and #2 are okay then we won't worry too much about #3. "

Vet is keeping her at status quo which is canned Purina DM and 2 units of Lantus 2x/day. I'm about to go out of town for three weeks and leave her with my husband and Mädel is stable so I don't want to rock the boat right now. Going for super steady right now. :cat:

I just tested myself for the first time with the Confirm. I got on my own drop of blood a 126, 121 and 136 in the space of about 30 seconds (same drop of blood, three different strips.). Is that a function meter??
 
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ArmyFrau said:
Thank you! Purchased a Confirm and strips. I am taking the meter to the vet on Monday to get them to compare numbers with their test. They draw blood from her neck every time they test her BG. Is that not necessary? I was going to ask a second question: I was reading the directions for the meter and it kept saying it needs "venous blood." When the vet tests her, as I said, they always draw blood from her neck (last time they failed and had to go for her leg). Is that venous blood? I was concerned about the different blood sources and whether that would confuse the comparison I want to make between the vet's BG numbers and the numbers I will get testing her at home with the Relion Confirm. My vet intially discouraged testing her at home but I haven't brought it up again yet with her. I'm obviously going to do so on Monday! I did let them know already that I would be bringing the meter and that I would like the same blood tested both ways.
Thank you, yes, I watched your video. Just haven't worked myself up to it yet. I'm going to test myself and some human guinea pigs in the house.
Click to expand...
to test bg you only need to do a tiny poke to the ear.
D0F8E690-8798-4A62-859C-507990D08307.jpeg

Poke along the outer edge of the ear. Again, watch the video in my signature.

Your meter will run lower than the vets meter as he is most likely using a pet meter.

Normal on a human meter is 50-120 and on a pet meter it's 68-150. At low numbers the two types of meters are not far off. At high numbers they will be father apart. So for example a 50 on a human meter might be a70 on a pet meter. Only 20 points difference. However a 300 on a human meter might be a 400 on a pet meter. Big difference. Either meter will tell you if your cat is too high or too low.
 
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