Type of insulin

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freddiemom

Member Since 2012
Need to know what type of insulin owners are using. My Vet recommends N I personally use Levimere for myself (type 1) diabetic. I'm reading N is not good for my newly diagnosed Kitty
 
N is a good insulin for dogs, but NOT a good insulin for cats. I would not give this insulin to your cat. It's dangerous and ineffective in cats.

However, you're in luck, because Levemir is a great insulin for cats (along with Lantus). You'll need to get smaller syringes (.3cc, 30-31g, 5/16"(8mm) with half unit markings) because cats need finer doses. If you have the Levemir pens, you can use the syringe with the pen like a vial--you don't want to use the pen needles, though, because dose adjustments are made in .25u-.5u increments in cats.

Here is a document for you to print and give to your vet if he argues with you about going with Levemir instead: http://www.uq.edu.au/ccah/docs/diabetesinfo/link2.pdf. Note where it states "Lente is the 3rd insulin of choice and NPH the 4th of choice insulin for control of diabetes mellitus in cats, behind glargine or detemir (1st choice) and PZI (2nd choice), Lente and NPH result in lower remission rates compared to longer acting insulins."

You can also use your own glucose meter to test your cat's blood levels--the dosing protocol for Lantus and Levemir are written to compensate for human meters, so you don't need an expensive pet glucose meter if the vet tries to sell you one.

If your vet has the insulin wrong, I'm guessing that he probably doesn't have you on the right track with diet, either. Diabetic cats need a low carb, canned diet, which is key to getting blood sugar levels under control. There is an 84% remission rate in cats that are on a low carb, canned diet and Lantus or Levemir, with dose adjustments are made based on daily home testing.
 
Thank you for info I'm using Hills MD wet 3 times a day and a little MD dry for nighttime so some food is available. I test frequently (she 's newly diagnosed) and will speak to the Vet regarding Levimer or just do it myself. Used PZI and N on other cats with not much luck
 
Yo may find it helpful to do some more reading on nutrition for cats here: Cat Info The site is written by Vet Lisa Pierson, who occasionally posts on this board.
 
freddiemom said:
I'm using Hills MD wet 3 times a day and a little MD dry for nighttime so some food is available.
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None of the Hills prescription diets are low enough in carbs for a diabetic cat. Diabetics need at least less than 10% carbs (preferably below 8%) to get their blood sugar under control, and the carb content in both foods is higher than the recommendation at 13 and 14% carbs. Also, the ingredients in the prescription diets are simply AWFUL and full of cheap fillers that are bad for your cat, like corn starch and cellulose (wood pulp).

There is NO dry food appropriate for a diabetic cat. They are all too high in carbs, and the lack of moisture causes other nutrition related ailments. Check out http://www.catinfo.org for more information on feline nutrition and prescription diets. Most of us either feed at night by free feeding canned food (by adding water), or we freeze the canned food and put it in an auto feeder like this one or this one.

We all feed low carb, commercial diets, which are much better for your cat. You can get a premium, low carb canned food with human grade meat and no fillers for less than what you're paying for the expensive prescription food that is far better quality. There's a ton of choices in all different price ranges. Just check out the cat food nutrition charts here: http://www.felinediabetes.com/diabetic-cat-diets.htm and pick something under 10% (preferably under 8%) in the "carb" column. One really popular food here is the grain free Fancy Feast flavors, listed here: http://www.felinediabetes.com/glutenfree.htm. They are easy to find and most cats love them.

If you feel you must feed a prescription diet, Purina DM canned is the only prescription food appropriate for a diabetic. However, it's pretty much the exact same thing as Fancy Feast and the other cheaper grain free canned foods, so you're really just paying for the label.
 
I have read with interest the Fancy Feast classic is good. But worried about salt content. My Vet did say no dry. On the Hill's MD I see the first ingredient is Pork by products UCK! I was using Natural Balance Dick Van Pattens cat food the reduced fat one. Freeda is over weight, hence the diabetes!
 
You can cross reference sodium content with this chart: http://www.felinecrf.org/canned_food_usa.htm

Why are you worried about sodium intake? Does your cat have a secondary health condition other than diabetes?

There are still many low carb, low sodium foods. Most premium foods are low in sodium, and they are low in carbs and have better quality meat than what's in the prescription diet. Merricks, Wellness, and EVO are three popular premium brands with several low carb flavors.

If Freeda is overweight, I would HIGHLY recommend Merricks Cowboy Cookout and Merrick's Surf and Turf. Both flavors are high protein, low carb, and low fat. High protein low carb low fat diets are fantastic for weight loss. My Bandit used to be 21 lbs at one point (because of the dry food, of course), and now he's a perfect 12.5 lbs, his ideal weight. :-D I went through many low carb, canned foods, but when I started feeding the Merrick's his remaining fat turned to solid muscle. Because of the diet change, I would say he is healthier today than he was before the diabetes! He's in remission now.

Here's the store finder on their web site: http://www.merrickpetcare.com/where-to-buy.php

Also check out this link on how to do a weight loss program with your cat: http://catinfo.org/?link=felineobesity#Implementing_a_Safe_Weight-Loss_Program
 
Hi, I have a lot of questions. First my vet started my 4 yr old 13lb cat on prozinc 2units twice a day and changing my dry cat food to purina dm dry food. Well my cat still had all the same symptoms every time I took her in. Eventually went up to 4 units,than had the highest blood reading of 400 on one visit,she was also very stressed that day so the reading may have been wrong. Anyway so than the vet put her on humulin N 2 units twice per day it's been about 1 week and she seems worse starveing at times and drinkes alot of water and huge clumps in the litter box like before all this happened. I am worried about all this I have been reading on this kind of insulin and dry food. Can I just stop the insulin today and slowly switch her to fancyfeast. Now she gets a spoonful of tuna with injections and nibbles on the dry food off and on when I can give it to her, when she looks hungry.She does wake me up at night around 2:00am because she is hungry. I give her shot's at 6:00am and pm. I don't think my vet really knows much about this.I really need some help here. Trina
 
trina said:
Hi, I have a lot of questions. First my vet started my 4 yr old 13lb cat on prozinc 2units twice a day and changing my dry cat food to purina dm dry food. Well my cat still had all the same symptoms every time I took her in. Eventually went up to 4 units,than had the highest blood reading of 400 on one visit,she was also very stressed that day so the reading may have been wrong. Anyway so than the vet put her on humulin N 2 units twice per day it's been about 1 week and she seems worse starveing at times and drinkes alot of water and huge clumps in the litter box like before all this happened. I am worried about all this I have been reading on this kind of insulin and dry food. Can I just stop the insulin today and slowly switch her to fancyfeast. Now she gets a spoonful of tuna with injections and nibbles on the dry food off and on when I can give it to her, when she looks hungry.She does wake me up at night around 2:00am because she is hungry. I give her shot's at 6:00am and pm. I don't think my vet really knows much about this.I really need some help here. Trina
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Total stopping is NOT a good idea as there will be no insulin, even if it is a poor one, to counter-act the glucose. If you still have the PZI bottle I would switch back to that one. Then do the steps below:

First- Home test- if you home test you won't have to take your cat in for curves and you REALLY know what is going on with her in a low stress environment (your home). Once you start home testing then you can... Give it about a week to do this and get the hang of it. There are a lot of different helps with this so if you are really lucky a week is all you need. You fill in the numbers on a spread sheet available in the Tech forum.

Second- once home-testing you need to transition to wet food. We have a list of the best low carb foods to feed her. Once the dry food has left her system (can take a few days after the last bit of kibble is eaten) you should be left with her true levels and they should be lower than 400. This is when you will lower her dose- based on the BG levels she has through the day. And remember that a diabetic cat that is unregulated- as yours is- is a STARVING cat. They need to be feed every two hours or so just to keep up with the demand of nutrients that their body cannot get out of food. The rapid weight loss is basically the body going after the stored energy in the muscle to survive- and will eventually kill your cat if not taken care of.

Ask all the questions you want, we will be here to help. If you let us know what city/state you are in we can see if there is someone close by who can help you.
 
freddiemom said:
Thank you for info I'm using Hills MD wet 3 times a day and a little MD dry for nighttime so some food is available. I test frequently (she 's newly diagnosed) and will speak to the Vet regarding Levimer or just do it myself. Used PZI and N on other cats with not much luck
Click to expand...

Remove ALL dry food; it's no good for diabetics... too high carb and will raise your cat's BG numbers. You could also switch to more economical low carb wet food.... many people feed Fancy Feast or Friskies Pate varieties. You can leaved the wet food out and allow your cat to free feed; that's no problem.

Levemir would be my first choice for insulin; PZI does not last as long, and N is too harsh and lasts an even shorter time.
 
Hi, I was wondering how much food and how often to you feed a cat on prozinc .Or does it matter on the blood test results. I am new to this, I have not tried the at home testing yet,I want to do this but it looks overwelming for me.I dont get how to read the spreadsheet at all. My cat seems hungry most of the time, do I give food at shot time also? I am totally confused. Thanks a lot Trina
 
The idea is to test, feed and shot. You want to be sure the dose you are planning to give is safe so you want a blood glucose number before you plan the shot. Many of us give the shot when the cat is busy eating.

On people's spreadsheets: amps is the number in the am before food and insulin. +3 is the number 3 hours after the shot, +6 is six hours after, etc. pmps is the pm number before food.

In general, most of us feed small frequent meals; lots of us use automatic feeders. The only time you don't want to feed is the 2 hours before you test and shoot. Food can raise glucose numbers and you want a number not influenced by food when you test. Feeders work well for this since you can program them to close up 2 hours before the scheduled test, am and pm.

If you are planning to use ProZinc, here is some reading for you. It is a big document with lots of links but has great info for you.

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=32799

Have you told us where you live - city and state? Maybe we have a member who lives nearby and could help you with hometesting.
 
Hopkins, MI is about halfway between Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo on the west side of the state.

Hope, Devon, Kimber and I live on the east side -- Sarah and Loretta are around Lansing in the middle -- Allison is north and Lylene is way-way north.

So -- I may be forgetting some Michigan members, but I suspect Sarah and Loretta are closest to Hopkins. I google-mapped Hopkins -- 2.5 hours away from me.

Levemir is an awesome insulin for cats. I've been using it for ~3 years with Tiggy. He is well regulated on a tiny dose of 0.5u BID.

So when you use up the PZI, switch to Levemir. Your vet may not know about it, but it is an excellent insulin for cats. I changed Tiggy from PZI to Levemir when we adopted him in 2009.

Also - if you upload your personal BG results from your meter, perhaps you could get a duplicate meter for your kitty so you could share the same brand of test strips (and use up any you have leftover from personal use)
 
For testing BG in cats --- we use the lancet to prick the edge of the ear for a tiny blood sample.

There is a vein that runs around the edge of the ears -- blood flows from the center of the head outward. The "sweet spot" is between the vein and the outer edge about midway between the tip and base of the ear.

I hold the lancet device so it is about 1/3 off the ear -- the goal is to prick the edge of the ear and not hit the vein. I hold a folded tissue behind the ear for support and prick the furry side. I use index finger - thumb to hold the ear below where I prick -- milking it a little to help the blood make a droplet -- and use the other 3 fingers to wiggle and pet Tiggy's head while the blood drop is forming. After getting the blood drop for the test, I hold the tissue over the prick to stop the blood flow (gentle pressure).

A flashlight shining through the thin ear skin will show the dark line of the vein.

Try both ears at first. You will probably find that one ear flows a little better than the other. For Tiggy, we always prick his right ear.
 
Hi again, thanks so much for your help! I wish someone was closer but I think I am starting to understand all this. It sure takes alot of time reading up on all of this stuff. great information though,very helpfull and really appreciate all the people who put this web site together.I have not found a glucometer yet as the ones suggested are discontinued (Bayer Elete xl and Fast Take) thats what the pharmacy told me .Looking at the one from walmart, Relion ultima.. So far my kitty is hangging in there till I get educated HA! HA! Trina
 
Trina-
The Relion Ultima, Micro, AND Confirm have teh same priced strips- saw that last night at my WW when I went to check out the new Prime.

Micro and Confirm use lower amounts of blood that the Prime- not sure if the Ultima does, too.

The good thing with the Confirm/Micro is you can order them from ADW at 250/$72- a buy 4 get one free- which lowers the price again. Prime strips are lower but it is so new we don't know if it is reliable for FD (there are some meters that should NOT be used- Freestyle Lite and anything with TRU in the name).

As for food- what the cat will eat. Currently a cat newly diagnosed is literally starving- so feed the cat :lol: . Sneakers would come and steal food from my plate she was so hungry and I was a poor mommy who didn't understand :cry: . Feed lots- Sneakers would get 15-18oz/day until the insulin kicked in and her body was able to get the nutrients from the food as it normally should. Currently she is 10-12 oz/day but she is also an acro cat and has a tumor that makes her hungry. Your cat will eventually lessen the amount they need when their getting what they need from the food.

Feed several small meals a day/night- if your cat is a scarf n barfer give 1-1.5 oz at a time, every few hours. How to do this- get a feeder if you can, freeze food mixed with water and leave it out to thaw. But remember to pick the food up 2 hrs before AM/PM testing so you can get a true fasting BG level.
 
Hi,I just started my cats spreadsheet and just added it to my signature, not sure if i did this right, not sure if i added this right.Can anybody read my spreadsheet.Thanks Trina
 
No. When I manually extract the ling from what your provided I get this error message:
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