Buying needles online?

I have only gotten my needles through a prescription from my vet, but was wondering if there is a cheaper option. Someone pointed me to a link but the needles said 5/16 inch and mine are 1/2. Is that just the length of the actual needle I stick Dale with? Does that matter? If possible, I'd like needles with half-unit measurements as I am dropping Dale's dose. The needles I currently have are: BD Ultrafine. Capacity: 3/10 ml cc, length 12.7 mm (1/2"), gauge 30G. I want to make sure to get the right ones because one time the vet accidentally gave me some where the unit measurements were totally different. Thanks everyone. I'm fairly new to this board and it has been great!

 

1/2 inch refers to how long the needle is. Another common insulin needle length is 5/16 inch.

Needle lenght is preference. Some people prefer 1/2 inch needles for cats with long hair. Other people say that there is better insulin absorption with 1/2 inch needles and less chance of a fur shot.

BD does make half unit marked insulin syringes: http://www.bd.com/us/diabetes/page.aspx ... 02&id=7407 Here is the product listing on Hocks.com: http://hocks.com/hocks-healthcare/hocks ... 10291.html

There are other brands of half unit marked insulin syringes you can use that cost much less than the BD ones. There is a thread over on the old board with recommened brands and where to buy: http://www.felinediabetes.com/phorum5/r ... 22,1959486 It may take awhile for the page to load because the old board can be very slow.

 

Yeah, I meant 5/16. Dale does have long hair, so 1/2" might be better.

 

I only seem to find one needle that is both long (1/2 inch) and has the 1/2 unit markings: http://hocks.com/Merchant5/merchant.mvc ... de=A844884
Can anyone verify that this will be equal to what I use now in terms of measurement?

 

Those insulin syringes will be fine to use. The needle is 29 gauge which is only a teeny bit thicker than 30 gauge ones you are currently using. Most cats won't notice the difference at all.

The only 1/2 inch needle 3/10 cc insulin syringe with half unit markings available anywhere are in 29 gauge, the reason being is that 30 and 31 gauge is so thin that a 1/2 inch needle would bend too easily when inserted into the skin (I think). If you want 30 or 31 gauge and half unit markings, you'll have to use insulin syringes with a 5/16 inch needle.

I used these insulin syringes: http://www.americandiabeteswholesale.co ... Detail.bok