? Is there a difference between 1mL cc and 3/10 mL cc syringes?

My 1 week diagnosed Rocky get's 3 units of Novolin twice a day. We have two types of needles, 1 mL cc and 3/10 mL cc. I would prefer to use the 3/10 because it has an actual mark for 3 whereas the 1 mL just goes by twos so I have to eyeball it. But the 3/10 goes to 30 and the 1 goes to 100, so it's making me wonder if a 5 on the 3/10 gives a different amount than the 5 on the 1

 

You need to use the 3/10 mL(cc) syringes. They're small enough in capacity that you can actually see the space between units on the syringe barrel. That will make it easier for you to draw up the proper dose. Also - we don't recommend changing the dose in full unit increments. It's too easy to zoom past a good dose that way. If you can get U100 syringes that are 3/10 mL (cc) capacity and have half unit marks on them they'll be the ideal ones to use. We recommend dose increases of no more than 0.25 u at a time and that has to be eyeballed on a syringe that has half unit marks. Many people order syringes online from adwdiabetes.com.

It would be helpful if you let us know how your vet arrived at a 3 u dose. That's actually very high for a newly diagnosed diabetic. Most insulins are started at 1 unit twice a day and the dose is carefully increased from there if needed.

 

I didn’t think to ask why he chose that dosage as I knew literally nothing about cat diabetes at the time

I assume it was a combination of the numbers (450) and my cat’s weight, 18 lbs. He’s a big guy, though he did lose muscle mass in the weeks leading up to us taking him to the vet

 

Have you read the Novolin dosing sticky at the top of this forum's list of threads?
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/beginners-guide-to-novolin-humulin-nph.186097/
There's good info in there to help you with testing, dosing, etc.

 

The only difference is the capacity.... 3/10 are much easier to use and see so sick with that. And get ones with half unit markings so you don't have to guess. Typically the starting dose is 1 unit twice a day.

 

Why were my official Caninsulin syringes marked in increments I had never seen before? Every 1/3, 1/2 and 1 cc syringe I've ever had were all marked so that one line was 0.01ml. Nigel was switched to Caninsulin years ago and the 28 gauge syringes looked big enough for a donkey.