intro

Hi, My name is Cameron and my beloved cat is Itty. Itty was dumped on my doorstep, I believe because someone was not able to care for her diabetis. I wish they would have left a note! cat(2)_steam Anyway... we are finally underway with a diagnosis! Oh yeh, and dispite eating me out of house and home Itty is a whopping 4lb.

The vet is starting Itty on Lantus and I just filled her script... and just about fainted! I would like to know others experiences with Lantus and if it is that much better than other options that may be more cost effective. Unfortunately Itty was not a planned pet... the plan was to fatten her up, spay her and find her a home. Given her health needs she has been brought in as a member of our family. Does anyone have any thoughts on more cost effective ways of managing her health? I am a single mom of a child with autism and other health issues. While I am very commited to Itty's care I am doubtful that my budget can obsorb an additional $200 a month for this medication.

Thanks!
Cameron & Itty

 

Welcome. Did you buy the 10 ml vial of Lantus? That is not the best choise since very many people find that the Lantus goes bad/does not work well long before the vial is used up. The best bet is to the buy the 5 pack of 3 ml cartridges or disposable Lantus pens. You use a regular syringe to draw up the insulin from the pens/cartridges.

A low-carb canned food is best. You do not need the prescription food from the vet. Most of us home test the cat's blood glucose level before each shot. A good starting dose is 1 unit f Lantus (0.01 ml) twice a day.

It sounds like Itty is young. How old is Itty? If young that is very unusual since diabetes usually hits at about ten years.

 

Hi Cameron,

The good news is that if you adjust the diet to wet, lo carb, it may be that the diabetes is short lived. See this website for info: http://www.catinfo.org The other part of the regiment is hometesting. We test our cat's blood glucose levels just like we would our children so we know how the insulin is acting and if it is safe to give insulin and how much. (Don't change food until you are hometesting. Diet change can drastically reduce bg levels and you have to be ready to adjust insulin levels.) Hometesting will also help with the costs - no trips to the vet to check levels. That can be done at home and the results sent to the vet. No need for expensive "prescription" diets - just pick a food 8-10% carbs (http://www.felinediabetes.com/diabetic-cat-diets.htm)

Really, the insulin is the most expensive part and you already have it!

 

The vet thinks Itty is about 5 yrs old... which shocked me as she looks to be an adolescent.

I appreciate your help! I have had multiple cats all my life and have never had one with any health issues. The last one I lost was about 20 yrs old and died of a stroke... so this sick kitty is all new to me!

Also... so they don't feel left out in the chaos... We have Omi a female orange tabby, Emma the "feril house cat", Gracie the cowardly catahoula leopard dog and Jazzy a quarter pony. All are rescues and thankfully everyone else seems to be healthy!

 

hi cameron,
your newbie kit will be sent out first thing in the morning. i hope waiting 3 or 4 days won't endanger your itty. i'm so glad you took her in. you sound like a wonderful person. if you have any problems testing pm me or ask here on board for video walk thru, i would also be happy to walk thru on the phone if need be. you will find ways of getting more use out of your lantus when you buy it the way they suggested, or you can try pro-zinc which is a little less expensive but should last about a year. once you get your newbie kit you can try to buy your strips on e-bay. your getting a contour meter so you'll use contour strips. i'm sending 20 strips to get you started. with a cat so young i would'nt be at all surprised if he becomes diet controlled. the low cal. wet food changes their bg's dramatically. that's why you must'nt start wet food without testing as you will likely need to lower dose.
see you again soon i hope,
lori and tom

 

Thanks for all your help everyone. I was up half the night on the message board! ;-)

It is about 6:30 am and a sleepy Itty (she is not exactly a morning cat) is getting ready for her long day. The vet will be doing the first dose of insulin this morning so please keep fingers and paws crossed that she will do OK.

Her urine tested in the 600's this morning before breakfast. Can I tell you how angry I am at the vet who had been letting this go on for several weeks! She only suggested switching to the Science Diet MD! She said the first time I pulled Itty through the night (putting that nutrition gel stuff on her gums all night) it might be diabetis but then dropped it. Really?!?!?! even if you are not into home testing how hard would it have been to give me the urine test strips? or a little information?!?! sorry... venting... anyway... onto a better vet.

Thank you for sending out the newbe kit. finances are very tight right now... especially after two vet visits for urinary tract infections and ER visit and finally a second opinion. Knowing me I will not be able to wait until it gets here but we will HAVE to have an extra in the house anyway... My 11 yr old son likes to hide things on me... the more important the better. Once we get past this initial chaos we will make a donation to help cover the cost of a kit for someone else.

I am sure that as I begin to prosess all the new information tonight I will be bombarding the message board with questions! I am one of those people that needs to know every little detail!

Also, is there anyone on here from Indiana? it would be nice to have someone close to home to be able to get to know. So far I have found one other person with a diabetic cat but she is not treating him with the same level of treatment you all seem to use.

Thanks!
Cam & Itty

 

You mentions a urine glucose of 600. Please be aware that the urine glucose levels do not correspond to blood glucose levels. The urine numbers are higher unless you are below the renal threshold. The renal threshold is the BG (somewhere around 240) below which there will be glucose in the urine.

 

Cam you'll have the lancets and everything you'll need. and I'd put up a seperate post looking for Indiana peeps. I believe there are some but they might not find that message buried in this thread. I'll ask Venita as she seems to know where every one lives!! :lol:
Lori and Tom