When is he supposed to eat?

Good morning,

I've heard different things about when Squeaky is supposed to eat relative to receiving an injection. The vet said right before; others are saying don't do that.

We just got up; his injection is scheduled for 45 minutes from now.....

What's the scoop?

Thanks from Jan, Purrs from Squeaky

 

Morning, Jan!

The normal drill for Lantus is:

- Lift all food for two hours before the next dose is due. (This will be is a critical step when you start home testing, because you need to have a fasting BG reading before giving insulin.)

- Test BG levels just before dose is due. (This is a preshot (PS) blood glucose check. Not applicable to you yet, just giving you a heads-up on where testing fits in. )

- Feed Squeaky. With Lantus, he does need a reasonable amount of food at the beginning of each 12-hour cycle but it's OK for him to have some small meals after that because Lantus is a long-acting insulin*. If there are no digestive or other issues, it's recommended that he eats most, if not all, of his grub for the 12-hour cycle in the first 6 hours (while the dose is more active).

- If Squeaky eats OK and you're confident he'll eat well for the next 12 hours, then you can go ahead and administer the Lantus dose.

You may often see this routine referred to here as 'Test, Feed, Shoot'.

Tell Squeaky thank you for the purrs!


Mogs


(* For general information, it is necesary to feed quite a substantial meal and wait a while before giving insulin when treating a cat with intermediate-acting insulins like Caninsulin because they hit hard and fast not long after administration and typically peter out several hours before the next dose is due.)

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Wow, thanks for the fast reply! Okay I can do that. Geez, I'm sure glad I'm unemployed and at home. I could not have done this with the stress of also working..... Thanks again, Mogs! I'm going this morning to get the test kit, etc from WalMart.

 

Glad that's helped you, Jan. Yes, it is a smidge less stressful when you're near Squeaky to keep an eye on him.

Great that you're getting your meter today. I think the Relion Prime is the most popular meter here now, and it has the cheapest test strips. When you're picking up lancets, make sure that they're 29 gauge or a lower number. They're sometimes labelled as lancets suitable for 'alternate site' testing. (The higher gauge lancets are too fine and that makes it difficult to get blood samples).

In case you've not seen this yet, it has recommendations on higher carb foods and treats that are good to have in your hypo kit:

Hypo Toolkit

You might see some bits and pieces to add to your shopping list.

Hope the expedition goes well, Jan. Be sure to shout out when you need a bit of help.


Mogs
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