Switching from Vetsulin to Lantus

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megmonger

megmonger

Member Since 2017
Hello!

As of this morning, my vet has agreed to switching our Abby from vetsulin to Lantus.

We have been on our diabetes journey for about 7 months now, and it has been a rough ride! If it weren't for FDMB, I think I would have lost my mind by now. :p LONG story short, we began by trying vetsulin per our vet's protocol and our loving, happy cat of 11 years went from her normal self (albeit with a very wet litter box) to a food aggressive, uncoordinated, yowling, bipolar, diapered wild thing. After giving up hope on that approach, I found this board and in early June we began home testing. Since then we have made a little bit of progress. We got her BG numbers to stop bouncing like crazy and Abby no longer vacillated between feral and comatose. But our at-home BG results came to show us that the Vetsulin just wasn't going to get her numbers to where they needed to be.

So, at our vet appointment today I showed the vet our charts. She flipped out and chewed me out for using a human meter (ReliOn) and said the data was meaningless and that we should never have decreased Abby's dose from the 7 units she told us to do. I am very thankful that I was then still able to convince her to let us try a new insulin and I got a prescription for Lantus. That came with a stern talking to about how I am only to use an AlphaTrak meter and never change a dose without her permission from now on. Also I am to start Abby on Lantus and then do a curve at home on Day 2 and they'll decide whether to adjust her dose based on that. (I struggle to believe that 2 days will be enough to see what Lantus does for her......)

So, long vent aside, looking for help with two questions:

1) Where can I get the best price on Lantus? I'm used to 10 mL bottles for Vetsulin so I lean toward wanting that instead of pens, but really I'm just looking for the best unit price. I found a pinned thread about Mark's Marine Pharmacy in Canada. I live in Maryland. Is that still a good place to order from?

2) Does any have recommendations for a good cat diabetes vet near the PA/MD/DE border? I'm convinced that Abby would have died if we stuck with our current vet's protocol any longer.

Thanks, as always, everyone. <3
 
Can't really offer any advice, but just experience that Gizmo is doing much better on lantus than vetsulin.

I'm not sure that 2 days would really be long enough for a curve, but definitely monitor her during the switch in case she decides to respond to lantus quickly.

I know a lot of people on the forum use marks, but I just called around locally and got the best price (higher than marks though).
 
Many people rely on Mark's due to the much more reasonable cost. If you want to get Abby started on Lantus sooner than waiting for a delivery from Canada, I would call around to the chain pharmacies, Target, Costco, Sam's Club and hospital outpatient pharmacies to see if they will sell you a single pen. If you opt to buy a single pen, make sure to make a copy of your prescription. Mark's will want you to fax them a copy (and a US pharmacy will want the original). An individual pen is somewhat more affordable than a box of 5 pens given the current cost of Lantus.

As for finding a new vet, I'd suggest changing or adding to your subject line. Indicate that you are looking for a new vet. There is also a Lantus group on FB and I'll post a note there and link people to this thread. (There are a number of people there who are old-timers and don't often come to this board -- it's more social than dosing related.)

I think you are wise to look for a new vet. For a US vet to be recommending Vetsulin sounds like your vet has not been doing her continuing education. (Vets in the UK are mandated to use Vetsulin/Caninsulin as a first line choice.) The American Animal Hospital Assn does not recommend Vetsulin. (They recommend Lantus and Prozinc.) There is also research, using Lantus, that has been published in one of the top feline vet journals supporting caregivers doing home testing.

Lantus is very different than Vetsulin. You base the Lantus dose on the nadir (lowest point in the cycle) vs on the pre-shot numbers. You do not need to feed your kitty 2 hours prior to giving a shot. You can test, feed, and shoot all within minutes since Lantus onset occurs in about 2 hours after you shoot. I'd encourage you to read the sticky notes at the top of the board. The notes will provide you with a solid foundation in how to use Lantus and manage Abby's FD. Once you make the switch to Lantus, remember to put a break on Abby's spreadsheet and indicate you've switched so we'll know what's going on at a glance.

 
Congratulations on getting a prescription for Lantus, I expect you'll find that is it a much more predictable and gentle insulin for Abby. Marks Marine is an excellent and affordable source. I ordered from them, and then got a single pen from one of the local pharmacies (they had not problem selling just one), so that I had some insulin on hand sooner (the single pen cost 2/3 as much as 5 cartridges from Marks Marine :confused:). I'm sorry your vet isn't supportive, and so glad you found your way here!
 
I also made the switch from Vetsulin to Lantus and have found it to be a much more gentle insulin. On Vetsulin my cat metabolized the insulin very quickly and often dropped 300 or more points in just a few hours and then went right back up into the high numbers again. The roller coaster made him feel awful.

On Lantus he'll drop 30 or so points a few hours after insulin and then he will gradually drop more until his nadir. He feels much much much better on Lantus. The hardest part for me in the switch was learning how Lantus works. Unlike Vetsulin which is all used up in each cycle, Lantus has a depot. Read the stickies and learn what you can from them about how the depot works and then come back to ask questions... Mark's Marine pharmacy is wonderful and very affordable.
 
Thanks everyone! :) Yes, I have studied the stickies now. And ordered from Mark's. Our insulin should arrive in a week or two, counting down!
 
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