New to diabetic cat

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robr

robr

Member Since 2014
My best friend Warren (named after my dad) at 14 years old has developed diabetes. I was a foster cat home for a local shelter and he's been with me since he was 2 weeks old. I learned this yesterday and am now cramming as much learning as I can into my head in a very short time.

His blood glucose was 457 yesterday. The vet gave us a bottle of vetculin ($50/10mg) and had us start dosing him at 1 unit in the AM and PM. I asked the vet about using the Walmart brand of insulin, she did some research on an internet vet board and said she was not comfortable with that at all, so I will be price shopping the vetculin.

I also used the list of canned foods linked from this board and switched him to a 100% wet diet. The wet food he likes was already on the list, so that helps (some of the Fancy Feast Classic flavors).

Next I bought a blood glucose meter and supplies from Walmart. I have not yet used this on Warren. I used it on me first to get the hang of it. Fun! Can't believe there isn't an 'all in one'.

Should I be starting his curve testing now? Or after he's been on the insulin/pure wet food for some period of time?
If his glucose level is too high, from what I read, I should up that to 2 units after one week at the current dosage?
Do people have more luck getting a blood sample from the ear or the foot? I think the foot would be easier.

I think those are all my questions for now. I read a whole lot of posts and FAQs here, but these are still not 100% clear to me and I want to be really careful I don't screw this up. Thanks for the help and for this forum.
 
Hi sugardude Warren and welcome to you and your caregiver. Would you share your first name with us?

Should I be starting his curve testing now? Or after he's been on the insulin/pure wet food for some period of time?
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It's going to take some time to get Warren's BG (blood glucose) levels better and time for the low carb wet food to make a difference. It's still a good idea to start testing now. We recommend testing before every shot of insulin, and then somewhere in the +4 to +6 hour timeframe. Vetsulin usually only lasts 8-10 hours in cats, so those mid-cycle tests will help you to see how low this dose is taking your cat.

For now, do not shoot if the BG reading is <200. You want to test, then feed, then shoot the insulin. If at all possible, withhold food for 2 hours before this pre-shot BG test. That is so we know it is not higher because of the food.

If his glucose level is too high, from what I read, I should up that to 2 units after one week at the current dosage?
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Our cats are really small, so smaller increases in dose. in 0.25U or 0.5U increments, work better. That way, you do not bypass a good dose for your cat.

Do people have more luck getting a blood sample from the ear or the foot? I think the foot would be easier.
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Depends on your cat. ECID (Every Cat is Different). Most people here test from the ear, but some find it easier to use the paw.

It can take time to get your cat adjusted to being tested and to get a blood drop every time. Warming the ear/foot and giving treats to gain cooperation are key factors. Here are more testing tips for you.
And the psychology of ear testing.
 
Vetsulin, aka Caninsulin, was developed on dogs and is not the best option for cats.
ProZinc and BCCP BCP PZI work similarly to Vetsulin, however then tend to do a better job than Caninsulin. The PZI is the least expensive of these 2.

Lantus and Levemir are depot insulins. This means they have effects which overlap from shot to shot. They are the best of the human insulins to use in a diabetic cat - in fact, the Merck Veterinary Manual notes its use as do the AAHA guidlines for a preferred insulin in diabetic cats. Unfortunately, the cost has been jacked up because the patent is due to expire in about 1 year. If you do mail order from Canadian pharmacy, you can the price down a fair bit. If you get either Lantus or Levemir, have the vet write it for the 3 mL pen. If filled locally, write it for 1 pen at a time to help spread out the cost. You treat the pen like a mini-vial and use syringes to withdraw the insulin, not the pen needles.
 
Thank you for the very informative responses. As you may have guessed, my name is Rob. The Lantus is unfortunately cost prohibitive regardless of Internet discounts. My vet told me the same story about the patent expiry and she is now seeking alternatives as almost universally none of her clients are willing to pay for it. Thus the vetsulin. I don't think she is convinced it's the best for cats either, she says she is still researching.

I tried to measure warrens glucose tonight but failed to get enough blood, either ear or paw and after 4 attempts it was time to give him a break. I was able to get a teeny tiny bit but not even close to a drop. Are 30ga lancets perhaps too small? Worked on my finger ok. Maybe I just need more practice.

As a side note, Warren does seem to have perked up and his poor bathroom behavior has completely stopped.
 
You know you can get a pen of lantus from some pharmacies for $25? And that lantus keeps up to six months if you keep it I the fridge?


Testing issues... We usually advise newbies start on 28g or 29g as the others can be too fine. What are you using to warm the ear? And what are you using to put behind the ear to press against?
 
My wife massaged the ear for a minute or so and I used a flashlight behind it right up against the inside of the ear while going in from the outside. I initially tried with the lancet pen thingy, then eventually just removed the top and use the needle directly and had better luck that way (but not enough). I'll try again tomorrow and if I fail, then I'll get some larger gauge lancets.

BJM, thanks for the tips on Lantus, I will look into the pen option. I had no idea!
 
Hi Rob! I'm new too and I had a hard time with the lancet in the beginning. I was very gentle and too squeamish. I ended up freehanding because my cat did not like the sound of the lancet clicking. Many times I did not get any blood and then one time I got too much blood and scared myself. But now I've been doing it for a week and I'm much better. So I know you can do it, it takes practice. Put some cotton behind the ear, you don't need the flashlight.

There are many videos that help, I liked this one the best:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zE12-4fVn8

Good luck,
Anna

PS Also turn off the beep sound if your glucometer has one. My cat hated that!
 
Hi Rob! Thanks for letting us know your name.

Would you be willing to go into your User Control Panel, Profile tab, Edit Signature and add some tidbits of information in there for us? It would help us to help you better and we'd sure appreciate it.

Something like this:

Your name, cats name sex and age
Diagnosis date
Name of insulin used and name of meter used for home testing
Diet
any complicating medical conditions like CKD or Hyper-T or IBD, etc.

Example from what you have told us so far. I was guessing at some of the information so you'll need to fix any of my goofs.

Rob & Warren (male, 14)
Dx 03/21/2014 ??
Vetsulin, meter name Relion Confirm? Micro? Prime? ???
Fancy Feast classic pates

While you are in the user control panel, if you would please consider an update in the Edit Profile with your country, state/province and nearest city, that would be useful information to have also. It let's us know where you live to give country specific advice and what time zone in case of emergency and someone needs to stay up with you to help.
 
Updated, thanks again for the guidance. He is doing MUCH better but I am still working on the whole glucose measuring thing. I was able to get one reading from his paw just before his shot, but having a very hard time doing this by myself without getting new decorative patterns all over my arms and legs :)

I just ordered a 5 month supply of U-40 needles, now I need to figure out the best place to buy bulk low carb wet food. With 4 cats now on a 100% wet diet, that's 8-10 3oz cans a day. My wallet says OUCH!!
Ah ha, good post here: viewtopic.php?f=28&t=113108&p=1192162&hilit=bulk+food#p1192162
 
Have you tried petfooddirect.com? They often have sales. They do charge shipping though. I buy cases from PetSmart and have their discount cars. It saves me at least 10-cents a can.
 
Friskies comes in 13 oz cans for around $1.00.

And I'm feeding 15 adult cats.
 
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