Vet Doesn't Know What 0.25 Units Is

I took Brownie in a few weeks ago to get some tests done due to her having CKD/CRF. The tech asked how much insulin I'm giving. I answered, "point two five units." I looked at her paper and she wrote 2.5 units. I corrected her, but she seemed confused and annoyed. I later got an email from the vet asking what 0.25 units is. Are they for real! WTH!?

How can a veterinarian not know what 0.25 units is? She's been practicing for over 20 years. I wonder how many animals she has killed due to hypoglycemia from her ignorance. Am I blowing this out of proportion or is this a serious matter? I mean, if they don't know what half or quarter units are, then they're obviously only prescribing insulin in whole units (1U, 2U, 3U, etc.). That just seems dangerous.

On the bright side, the vet seems interested in learning about this. They (the vet and her staff) don't know anything about the Solostar pens or that half unit syringes even exist. So at least maybe the information I provide will help other animals and their humans.

 

Maybe they are confused because there are no syringes with .25 unit markings? Did you explain that you use the ones with .50 unit markings and visually estimate the .25 unit dose by going halfway between 0 and .50?

I think it is pretty standard for vets to prescribe in whole units. So, it is not that shocking that the vet would find your 'partial' unit dose odd. Now, if she really does not understand what .25 is, that is another story. I guess I would really blow her mind if I told her Mia's current dose is a 'fat' .50.

 

I hope you share your knowledge and help other kitties. My vet wasn't aware there were half unit syringes either, and told me that shooting once a day was good enough and easier for the humans. Also to just test mid-day, a couple of times a week. Idjit went OTJ very rapidly and we haven't been back. If we have to go back for diabetes, I will ask if any of the other vets have more experience with FD. And if we end up with the same one, I will be doing some information sharing also. Good luck with it, not everyone can know everything after all.

 

I have seen three different vets just lately, and two of them asked me about half-units and quarter-units. One didn't think it was even possible to give 0.25U! My first (former) vet actually told me there was no such thing as a half-unit! I so badly wanted to ask her where she thought whole units came from, then, but I held my tongue, lol!

 

My ER Dr told me it's impossible to give anything other than whole units. I told them I use syringes with 1/2 unit marks and I use calipers. She said she didn't know those syringes existed (they were just coming out). She asked what are calipers. And when I said I had ketone meter to check those. She didn't question me on Smokey's diabetes anymore and started working on the reason we were there which was his breathing.

 

I had the same issue at my vet clinic when Jones was on 0.1units. I explained how I did it and they said I was doing it wrong and was harming my cat (our regular vet was off on maternity). I took the needle in with coloured water showing the dose. And explained over again how I was able to get that. (I use the insulin ruler..printed out and measure against it).

I then got a lecture about changing the dose without providing my curve information.

 

My Rom was on 0.1 units before he passed (unrelated to diabetes) and worryingly the Internal Medicine specialist at the RVC was confused. She asked what dose. I said 0.1 units. She said 1 unit. I said no, 0.1 units. She again said yes, 1 unit. I had to actually write it down for her and show her how to dose as Rom was having a procedure done on his eye there and needed to be admitted. Even then, one time his pre shot test was 8 and they withheld insulin as that was too low to shoot. I went mad and told them exactly how to dose him. I had to tell them to test midcycle too, but at least they did and gave me the readings. The shots were not at consistent times though. I seriously question the RVC on their diabetes treatment, as even when Frankie was first put on Lantus they gave me a sliding scale for dosing!!

 

Most of the techs at my vet see how big our file is and just give me what I ask for. If after 12 years of school you still don't know if France is a country then 2 more years won't help. I was given Caninsulin U40 syringes and told what "line" to fill it up to. When I switched to U100's because I prefer Monoject syringes they could not understand how I did the math.
There is a huge emergency clinic near here that has an MRI. Pictures on the walls of the staff with their pets, lots of framed degrees. They murdered one of our cats in the middle of the night, we had another cat die on the waiting room floor while I went screaming for help and they told us our dog had inoperable cancer and would not see Christmas. It was not cancer, it was a cyst but that's all they could come up with.
It's not just you.

 

This is the thread of nightmares. So sorry to everyone stuck with a sucky vet. Been there! I had a vet want to give Gypsy a pain med for her hips (that I now suspect is related to her diabetes), but the package VERY CLEARLY read "Do not give to cats. May cause death." I asked them about it and they nonchalantly said they prescribe it for cats all the time (with no labwork!)

 

It's scary how little vets know about diabetes and insulin sometimes, I got the suggestion to dilute the insulin and then give 1 unit of the diluted solution to give less than a unit of insulin, go figure where they get those ideas. clearly not from reading at least the insulin instructions

And also got one vet to diagnose asthma from a badly taken x-ray

 

Part of what's wrong with the system. I really hated high school and was so happy to get enrolled in a tech college as a civil engineering tech. A big word for surveyor. Along with English classes (the only thing we wrote down was numbers) I was required to take Phys Ed. Just to be clear, this was NOT high school anymore. I signed up for bowling.