Starting from scratch with Novalin N

Hello, I'm looking for advice for starting my 15 yr old sugar kitty Artemis on Novalin N.
He was diagnosed in Dec. 2015, and I had him in remission Feb. 2016-Aug. 2016. He was on Prozinc, but I am extremely low income and this time around had to find an insulin I could afford. I'm finishing up the last bottle of prozinc($150+, I can't afford it.) And switching to Novalin N.

My vet does not condone home testing, I did the research(before I found this site) and figured out as much as I could. I use a relion prime human meter. I did a glucose curve a long time ago, but will have to do a new one on this insulin.

I also have to try to find a new vet, as I am not pleased with my current vets attitude, but cannot afford all new labs and such right now.
Artemis was at 1u prozinc 2x, but his BG was high and erratic. 400s-600s
He's on the friskies pate diet, as luckily he's one cat that's satisfied just eating wet food.
I have been trying to figure out the spreadsheet program on here, but I'm not very technically inclined when it comes to computer programs.
I plan to start Artemis on 1 u 2x of the Novalin, and do a curve, but any advice is welcome.
I do my best for my baby, but I just can't afford a lot.

 

Welcome. To use the spreadsheet download Google Sheets. If you have any questions just ask.

 

Welcome! You might want to post on the main health forum as well because it gets more visitors.
Artemis is very pretty.

 

Hi and welcome. So glad to hear you are home testing Artemis. While curves can be useful, we strongly advocate testing before every shot to ensure BG is high enough to give insulin and food should be withheld for a period of 2 hours prior to the pre-shot test. We also suggest testing during each cycle to see how low the insulin is taking Artemis. Novalin N and ProZinc work a bit differently and you may see a steeper and earlier drop with the Novolin N. And make sure kitty has eaten at least 30 minutes before you give the shot so you know Artemis has food in his system for the insulin to work with.

Your routine should be test, then feed, wait at least 30 minutes and then administer the insulin.

In the early days, it would be ideal to test 2 hours post shot to see how fast Artemis BG is dropping and based on that reading, determine when to get the next test. Generally the main drop in BG will occur between +2 and +6 post shot but every cat is different. Once you figure out when Artemis is reaching his lowest BG levels on Novolin N, then you can gear your test times accordingly.

Do not give Artemis any insulin if his BG is 200 or less. In that case, you could stall without feeding (if time permits) and retest to see if he has risen enough to give the insulin. Otherwise it is best to skip the shot.

We can help you make this transition but we'll be able to help you more if could set up a spreadsheet to track Artemis BG readings. The instructions for setting up a spreadsheet are HERE and THIS document explains how to use it. If you have any difficulties setting this up, just holler and we will have someone assist you.

 

Okay, thank you! I am starting.him today, and testing, and will be writing down all the info. I will attempt to figure out the spreadsheet once I have a decent amount of numbers! Wish us luck!