insulin for diabetic cat

Hi everyone,
My cat Sophia has just been diagnosed with diabetes. I have six other kitties. Dr. put her on 2 units of lantus twice a day. I am diabetic and use levemir flex pen at night to control my morning highs. I asked the Dr. if I could use this on her as I always have extra, and the lantus is very expensive, hard for me to afford. She was very unsympathic and told me she did not know and that if I treat her with anything other than the lantus that I would have to find another vet. She was also against home testing as I already have some testing kits and told me that testing her myself would just complicate things. She wants me to take her in next month and have her do a blood test on her to find the average of her counts. She made me buy the lantus and syringes and bring them in to use on Sophia when she released her from the hospital to come home. Last night was the first time I injected Sophia with the lantus, as I have it now, and I also tested Sophia with my test kit regardless of what the vet said. This morning before insulin she tested 316. I then gave her two my units of lantus. I thought at diagnosis of putting Sophia down as she is 13 and money is an issue for my family right now. We decided to try to save her as we love her so much, but if I could use my insulin as I am covered by insurance it would help us to keep treating her without having to quit because of the expense. My question: is the levemir flex pen equivellent to the lantus, in other words is two units of lantus injected by syringe the same as two units of levemir injected with a pen?? If anyone can help me with this then when the lantus is used up I will know what to do. Thank you so much from all of us here. Patty & Sophia

 

I am so sorry that you have such a cold and unsympathetic vet! Why would she act that way? There are many insulin options with cats, and your insulin would work JUST AS WELL. Using the cartridges is also a much more economical way....and kudos to you for testing!

WHere are you located? Perhaps we can give you some local advice?

Jen

 

Welcome patty & sophia!


i'm a newbie here so dont have answers for you but there is a wealth of information here and on the Lantus & Levemir boards as well..

this is definitely the place to find help...and while we are blessed with a wonderful vet, i think you may find that there is a lot of knowledge here that your vet may not be aware of.

good luck!

celi & binks

 

Yes, levemir is very similar in nature to lantus and has been used quite successfully in cats also. The feline studies and protocol journal articles are for both lantus and levemir, so I have no clue why your vet would not know about using levemir! It is quite preferable to hometest - which also saves $$ because you don't have to do all day blood curves at the vet and you aren't shooting insulin blindly! At this point, you might as well use the rest of the Lantus you just purchased, but once that runs out (or goes bad in a few months) you can definitely switch over to your levemir! Others will have to chime in on the dose, but I think you can keep with the same dose for either insulin.

Another question for you - what kind of food are you feeding your kitty? Wet food is optimal, and we all suggest 10% carbohydrates or less.

Sounds like you need to scout out for a different vet ohmygod_smile

 

Many caretakers her use Levemir. Here is the link to the subgroup for that insulin:
viewforum.php?f=10
The FlexPen only dose in one-unit increments and most times smaller increments. Therefore, caretakers just stick a regular insulin syringe/needle in the end of the pen (without needle) and draw the needed insulin out. Just be away that that may result in injecting a little air into the pen and thus through off the dosing when the pen is used in the normal manner. I use the Lantus disposable pens and end up getting air in them but I only use then for my kitties.

Most caretaker here start with one-unit twice a day of any insulin and work up or down as necessary based on measured BGs, both before chat and measured between shots (curve).

 

Hi again,
This is to thank all who responded to my post this afternoon. I am new to the forum and would like to write to all personally but have had trouble figuring out how to do that. I am happy to know there are friends out there who can help. Tested Sophia again and her blood sugar is still in the 300's. Does it take time to stablize or should it have come down with the 2 units of lantus this morning? Just wondering if 2 units was enough? Again can't call the vet as she does not want me testing. Yes, I am going to find another vet. as it is her way or the highway. Too bad though as I have used her in the past and had little problems. Thanks again to everybody who wrote so far, it is really appreciated!!
Sophia & Patty

 

Levemir can be used for cats.

A unit of any U100 insulin is the same, regardless of the insulin (Lantus, Levemir, Humulin N, etc). Using a pen or insulin syringe makes no difference in how a unit is measured.

Instead of using the pen like a Human would, with cats you just stick the insulin syringe needle right into the rubber stopper at the end and draw up a dose:



Since you use Levemir for yourself, I suggest using a separate Levemir pen for your cat and clearly labelling it.

Insulin takes time to work. Lantus in particular needs at least a week to "settle" and to have effect on the blood glucose levels. Try doing a few blood glucose level checks during the day to see if the levels are dropping or staying flat. How long has your cat been on 2 units twice a day? Give the 2 units at least a week to work and then do a curve at home. You don't need the vet's permission to test your cat's blood glucose levels at home. There are many published veterinary articles that support hometesting.