Newly Diagnosed, need advice about funding need for Lantus

[BlackJackMAMA]

Hi All,

This is my first post to the group!

My cat BlackJack, was just diagnosed with Diabetes. I am living on a low income, and really need advice on how I can keep his meds to a minimum amount. Also is there anything else I should be doing to help him.

Here are his stats:

Male, 20IBS.

I cant afford prescription foods, so through online research I read that Fancy feast classics are a good alternative? How many should I be feeding him a day? I also read that its good to keep corn syprup in case of an accidental overdose? Is that true? If so how much do I give him?

Also he is currently on 5 units of Lantus, 2 x per day. My vet (close friend of mine) gave me a sample of Lantus, but there is not much left. She said she would be happy to call it in, to any pharmacy of choice. I have no idea who has it the cheapest? Costco? Walmart? I wish I could shop around, but I work very long hours and never have time.

Do i need to buy a glucose meter?

Has anyone used the walmart reli on syringes? Are they the cheapest?

Im sorry this post is a mess, im just very confused and tired right now!

Thanks In Advance for any replies!

 

[jt and trouble (GA)]

Re: Newly Diagnosed, need advice about funding need for Lant

bumping your post up..there are definate answers to your questions. I'm just not adept at getting them together to post coherently. This will bump your post up for more eyes.
Good luck and WELCOME, you HAVE found the right place to help your kitty.
JEANNE

 

[Hillary & Maui (GA)]

Re: Newly Diagnosed, need advice about funding need for Lant

I cant afford prescription foods, so through online research I read that Fancy feast classics are a good alternative? How many should I be feeding him a day?

Fancy Feast classics are just fine to use - you may also want to purchase a couple of the gravy lovers type and keep them in a separate place (in case you need to use for a hypo situation).

The amount to feed per day, will really depend on how well he does with the insulin. To give you an example, when Maui started out - she could eat 2 - 3 cans of FF in one sitting and I gave her food 2-3 times a day. As she got regulated on the insulin, this dropped down to 1-2 cans.

also read that its good to keep corn syprup in case of an accidental overdose? Is that true? If so how much do I give him?

In case of a hypo situation - which can be caused by too much insulin, or the BG's dropping too quickly - it's good to have some kind of sugar product on hand - you don't have to purchase corn syrup if you don't have it - you can use honey, maple syrup, even take sugar and melt it in water, even canned frosting will work.

Of course any type of sugar like I mentioned, will cause a quick spike in the BG and then another drop, as it may not last as long as needed.

This is why I suggested purchasing gravy lover's FF, so you can use the gravy (not the food bits) and feed the cat this, which will have the same effect as the sugar, but hopefully a slower, more gradual drop.

Other tricks in this situation, is to mix a little of the classics food with the gravy and feed that.

Also he is currently on 5 units of Lantus, 2 x per day. My vet (close friend of mine) gave me a sample of Lantus, but there is not much left. She said she would be happy to call it in, to any pharmacy of choice. I have no idea who has it the cheapest? Costco? Walmart? I wish I could shop around, but I work very long hours and never have time.

You are on a huge dose of lantus (especially if this is a starting dose). We recommend that you start at 0.5 or 1 unit and with home testing - yes you need a glucometer and all the trimmings - gradually adjust the dose based on those test results.

Your question where to get lantus - while it may cost a little more upfront, we found that the best lantus to get is the solostar pens instead of the vial. The reason for this, is that the pens come in a pack of 5 and contain less insulin than the vial. Therefore, less waste and potential for it to go bad. As long as you store all the lantus in the fridge, all unopened lantus is good through the expiration date.

Also, check out the "supply closet" as there are coupons for I think $25 off lantus.

When I purchased the pens (and that was a few years ago), I found that Costco was indeed the cheapest local place to get it. If you are member, you get an additional discount.

There are others, who have purchased it from Canadian pharmacies and found it to be cheaper there too.

If you go to the Lantus and supply closet forums on this board, there is lots of information about where to purchase and how to handle lantus.

Do i need to buy a glucose meter?

YES - you most certainly need a meter. You are shooting 5 units at a time and that's a huge amount of insulin to shoot blindly. Think about it this way, if you were giving yourself insulin - would you test yourself to know that it was safe to do, or would you just blindly inject it and hope for the best?

Has anyone used the walmart reli on syringes? Are they the cheapest?

Walmart relion meter is fine to purchase, it's inexpensive and the strips are cheap too. And it's easy to use.

Walmart syringes - I used and are fine - they are the cheapest around $13/box 100. Just be sure to get ones with 1/2 unit markings and personally, I prefer the short needle, vs. long needle. You will want the 1/2 unit markings as it will be easier when you get into to microdosing.

Please continue to ask questions, we are all here to help.

 

[nwnews]

Re: Newly Diagnosed, need advice about funding need for Lant

HI there - Diabetes is not a cheap disease to treat BUT it can be done economically. Monitoring your cats blood sugar at home is a HUGE savings not to mention you won't cause your cat harm by overdosing them. There is a link at the top of the page for a free meter - the actual cost is in the test strips. Some folks buy test strips off ebay - just be sure they aren't expired. Lantus is very expensive here in the US - one way to get it cheaper is to buy it from a canadian pharmacy online. You will need to have your vet write a prescription for it but they will have to do it no matter where you buy it. Another suggestion is to check your local Craigslist. I found a lady selling Lantus pens because she had gone to a pump and didn't want what she had to go to waste. I would just make sure the lantus has been kept refrigerated and verify the expiration date. A bottle of Lantus can last up to 4 months if kept refrigerated and treated gently. Just post any questions you have - the terrific folks on this board are always happy to help. Jan