Feline Diabetes- Budget Buster

[si-am]

I have a cat with diabetes-- he was diagnosed in Feb. of last year and has been on and off insulin since.

I was TOTALLY freaked out about money in the beginning but it really hasn't been too bad. We do the glucose testing at home (again, not as traumatic as I thought it would be) so we don't have to take him to the vet for checkups.

He was on Vetsulin before it was recalled- now he's on Prozinc. I know that Vetsulin would lose potency after about a month, but every insulin is different. Prozinc, for example, can last for a year (according to their website) and we've been using the same vial for 3 months now (our cat is on a smallish dose).

We get syringes from WalMart, FAR cheaper than the vet ($12 versus $30!)

The only real bummer, moneywise, has been vacations. Instead of having a catsitter come every other day to feed and change out litter, we now have to get one to come twice a day for feeding (only canned food now, low carb) and insulin.

Please feel free to PM if you have any more questions, though I second the recommendation to check out felinediabetes.com. The people on the boards there are really helpful.

 

[Muushka]

Sometimes you have to dig for these things even though they should be in bold print on the package front.



They are apparently still having problems. Last time I checked it was on back order and before that there was a strict limit of 5 bottles per clinic. I have moved to glargine insulin because it is more readily available and seems to work as well. Only problem is it is u100 making dosing difficult sometimes.

I did check the blurb, I really didn't see anything about it and I looked under the storage/stability section. I guess I need to go look again!

How does glargine compare in price to the Vetsulin? I am currently paying $43 for 10ml. The u100 would be fine, that is the needle I use!

thank you doggydoc for all of your help.

 

[doggydoc]

How does glargine compare in price to the Vetsulin? I am currently paying $43 for 10ml. The u100 would be fine, that is the needle I use!

thank you doggydoc for all of your help.

Unfortunatly glargine insulin is at least twice if not 3 times that price. Vetsulin is great if you can get it consistently.

 

[Muushka]

Thanks DoggyDoc. I appreciate all of your answers to my questions.

 

[ajh88]

Just a comment on the pricing and stability of insulins - not which ones your cat should be using. The prices quoted for Lantus are about right - very expensive. Manufacturer stability is 28 days per vial once it is opened. The suggestion for using the pens is a good one, even though they are more expensive up front.

Most people have already mentioned getting your syringes at Wal-Mart or another pharmacy. Syringes at Wal-Mart will run about $12 a box of 100 or pen needles (if you did the pens) would run about $9 for 50. If you have a relatively slow store or a pharmacy where you frequent, they MAY be able to order you a box of U-40 syringes (maybe, maybe not, but it wouldn't hurt to ask) if you need those. Lantus is U-100 (as far as I know, unless there is another formulation for animals), so the different syringes would be moot. You may need a prescription, depending on where you live, but here you can just buy them over the counter.

I understand that human insulins may not work as well for animals and this would certainly be a conversation to have, but the non-prescription insulins (regular, NPH, 70/30) are about $25 per vial at Wal-Mart.

Good luck with your kitty.

 

[ImprovGal]

Everyone's given some great advice here. I had a diabetic cat for 4.5 years after her initial Dx. She was a particularly wonky case and between insulin, syringes, food, and vet bills, the expenses certainly do add up. Make sure you keep some corn syrup or maple syrup on hand in case of a hypoglycemic shock episode. Mine suddenly stopped eating and of course it was after I'd given her a nice dose of insulin. After that episode, though, her blood sugar was controlled by food alone and she was off insulin.

 

[greenchief]

Wow, I am glad to know I am not alone. My cat was just diagnosed last Monday with diabetes. We are now on day three of low dose insulin with special food. He will get a curve test in 10 days. Also giving IV at home for a couple of days. My vet told me the insulin says 28 days but it can still be good up to 60 days out, just keep it refrigerated. Maybe I need to get test kit at home just in case. So new to this. And glad there are so many other animal lovers out there.

 

[SCDizneyDawn]

I have a cat who was on insulin for 2 years but now only needs diabetic canned food. She was on Lantus (Glargine) and eventually went into remission. Our vet said Lantus can cause cats to go into remission and it worked for us. The biggest thing I recommend is canned low carb food. We tried to move our cat back to dry food after she stopped needing insulin and her numbers shot back up immediately. Also, I highly recommend at home curves. Our at vet curves were high but soon after we started at home testing was when we started lowering her insulin levels. Stress can and will affect a curve. Also, never give insulin if your cat did not eat. We had to watch ours like a hawk case she would refuse to eat when she knew it was time for her insulin! Someone else has recommended you keep suryp on hand. That is very important and read up on the signs of low sugar. Our girl had a very bad siezure one night and if I had realized the signs I could have stopped it before it got so bad by putting suryp on her gums with a q-tip. I sure wish someone had told us the signs of hypoglycemia!
Hope I have helped some!

 

[Muushka]

Ah, Hypoglycemia. My personal idea of a good time (NOT).

Now that I know what happens first, I too can stave off the event (or at least make it not quite as bad as that first time).

First the howl. Then she walks around the house, sniffing, head bobbing, loss of muscle use. Then ferocious appetite. But just giving wet food is not enough. I shoot some maple syrup in the food and she will eat that (otherwise I would shoot it in her mouth with a plastic pipette).

I actually put her in the bathtub. If I don't, she wanders around the house and it is not safe and really sad. I put her bed in there and eventually she will just lay down and rest.

After these events she is wiped. Then I put her on the bed and let her sleep it off.

 

[greenchief]

I have a cat who was on insulin for 2 years but now only needs diabetic canned food. She was on Lantus (Glargine) and eventually went into remission. Our vet said Lantus[/COLOR] can cause cats to go into remission and it worked for us. The biggest thing I recommend is canned low carb food. We tried to move our cat back to dry food after she stopped needing insulin and her numbers shot back up immediately. Also, I highly recommend at home curves. Our at vet curves were high but soon after we started at home testing was when we started lowering her insulin levels. Stress can and will affect a curve. Also, never give insulin if your cat did not eat. We had to watch ours like a hawk case she would refuse to eat when she knew it was time for her insulin! Someone else has recommended you keep suryp on hand. That is very important and read up on the signs of low sugar. Our girl had a very bad siezure one night and if I had realized the signs I could have stopped it before it got so bad by putting suryp on her gums with a q-tip. I sure wish someone had told us the signs of hypoglycemia!
Hope I have helped some!

My cat just started Lantus. Also what is the brand of cat food do you use. I have Royal Canin but the dry food is diabetic and the wet food is a high protein calorie control. He prefers the wet food and started reading this is actually better for them. So much more reading to do.

 

[Muushka]

Is all low carb canned cat food Rx only? I know I tried to buy the dry and needed a Rx. I think it is ridiculous to need a Rx for food!

Can anyone recommend a low carb canned not Rx only?

 

[SCDizneyDawn]

We feed her Hills Rx diet M/D. She gets half a can two times a day and occasionally has wanted more and we give her a third serving. She lost a lot of weight after starting M/D so that may in part be why she no longer needs insulin. But, I firmly believe if we had not started home testing she would still be on insulin. My girl REALLY freaks out at the vet (or any boarding places) so the home testing was a much more realistic curve. Believe it or not the ear pricks I did to test her did not bother her! She is much, much more dramatic over a nail trim!
Feel free to ask anything else you need to know!

 

[Muushka]

Thank you! I think around here you need an Rx for Hills, but it has been several years since I have checked.

I check my cat's urine for sugar pretty often. I won't go into how readily she gives me a specimen, but so far she still has diabetes. The vet checks her when she has her physical. Last time it was great (108) so I cut her back a little. But if I could get her sugar down with food, that would be wonderful. Thanks!

 

[SCDizneyDawn]

What state are you in? We have lived in several and always just had to find a vet that would order it for us. Several times it was before she went in to see the vet even. (so she was not a pt yet) I was a traveling ultrasond tech (not anymore) so we sometimes were only in a state for 8 weeks!
good luck!

 

[Muushka]

I am in NC

 

[si-am]

Google "Janet and Binky's food chart" for a list of popular canned food that is low carb. You are looking for something with a 10 and under in the carb column, the lower the better.

We feed a variety of brands, but mostly Friskies and Fancy Feast. Most of the pate varieties are good. Stuff with gravy is bad.

 

[Muushka]

Thanks!

What a great site. Lots of great info.