Best UK foods available

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Sue484

Sue484

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Hi

I have the link about the best foods to use in the UK, but I was just wondering what people's experiences are of these? Which ones do they use with success? Wet (preferable pouches rather than cans) and dry please.
 
Hi again, Sue,

It probably seems like I'm the only UK person on the forum, but I do promise you I'm not! Sometimes folks just get busy with other stuff. I'm going to tag a few for you: @phlika29 , @Critter Mom , @BaileyUK , @anna and bailey.uk england , @SweetAngel , @Dr Schrodinger , @Vintry , @Julie and Alice

Is it the case that Frankie has pancreatitis? That may affect the choices you make. Some pancreatitis kitties are sensitive to fat content for example. (Some folks I've tagged above will be able to tell you more about feeding kitties with pancreatitis.)
Some UK folks have kitties with other specific dietary requirements and so they may seek out; low phosphorous foods, or single protein foods, or 'novel protein' foods; or they aim to avoid certain ingredients like grains, soya, carageenan or salmon oil.

If you're willing to buy online that opens up the food choices enormously. Quite a few UK folks (with and without diabetic cats) now buy online from Zooplus or the Happy Kitty Company. These places both sell cat foods from Germany which have become increasingly popular over the past few years. (The Germans make great cat food!)

I have one diabetic kitty and four others, young and old, and they all get the same wet food. Currently in my 'cat food cupboard' I have Nature's Menu pouches, and a selection of canned foods; Catz Finefood, Ropocat (the 'venison' being my cats' absolute favourite food), Grau 'grain free', Mac's, Granatapet and Feringa; all of which get fed in rotation. I also give them a bit of raw food about every other day.
I don't feed any dry food (but used to only feed dry food prior to Bertie becoming diabetic....)

The only dry foods in the UK that are less than 10% calories from carbs are the Ziwipeak air-dried meat foods, but these aren't at all like 'regular kibble'. The next lowest in carbs is a Porta 21 grain free food (only from Zooplus). And it may be that the Thrive 'complete' dry food is less than 10% calories from carbs (but I've not yet been able to get the right nutritional data from the Thrive manufacturer in order to work that out....)

Hopefully, other UK'ers will be along soon...:)

Eliz
 
Wow. That's given me something to think about. Thanks very much. Once I have done Frankie's curve this weekend, I can ask (tell???) the RVC about changing his food. And yes, he has had two bouts of pancreatitis. The first September 2013 and the second April 2014 which resulted in the diabetes. :(

Does the RVC have shares or something in these special diabetic food which aren't any good for diabetics? Lol.
 
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My cat just eats Everything I give her :) it's all low-carb food, no dry.

70% - 100% meat: Ropocat, MACs, Catz Finefoods, Thrive Complete, Natures Menu, Granata Pet, Om Nom Nom, Almo Nature Legend (supplementary food)

3-5% meat, derivatives: Felix Supermeat, Felix Meaty Loaf, Bozita, Miamor pates, Sheba, Gourmet Gold

Canned food is usually very dense so I always add water. There was a time my cat wouldn't eat them at all, she likes jelly. So all she ate was Felix pouches. My other cat who is also used to jelly now eats Almo Nature as well, but be careful, not all varieties are low-carb. Use the carbohydrates calculator. And she eats all of the above worse quality foods with little real meat in it (sigh).
 
Sorry to be a pain, but what are the German cat foods? Are they all low carb or only some?
 
Frankie used to love the Felix as good as it looks in jelly but was told to take him off it as too hugh in carbs. He only eats pouches in jelly really. Are there any on the list like that? Otherwise I'll have to try the cans in jelly.
 
Felix Supermeat and Felix Meaty Loaf are ok (5.1% from carbohydrates so don't worry!), they're just not greatest as far as quality goes, it's not proper meat unlike german brands. If you read their labels, all of the Felixes are meat derivatives. But in the past when my Barsa wouldn't eat any other food I just had to feed her Felix. She grew up on that so it was Very difficult to get her off it.
 
Sue484 said:
Sorry to be a pain, but what are the German cat foods? Are they all low carb or only some?
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Not a pain at all, Sue!

Quick bit of history: Germans make very good cat food (compared to the usual multinational/supermarket offerings). They usually have higher quality ingredients, fewer ingredients of vegetable origin, fewer ingredients in total, and clear ingredients labelling. Some of the manufacturers also try to ensure the welfare standards of the animals that go into the food. Because they tend to have a higher meat content they are usually lower in carbs also.

Up until a few years ago some of us were buying directly from German websites (with help from the ingeniously helpful and also totally hilarious 'Google Translate'). But Zooplus, a pan-European chain, started selling more of the foods; and then the Happy Kitty Company started up in order to supply some of the popular ones that Zooplus weren't selling in the UK.
Some popular ones on this forum are Granatapet, Ropocat, Mac's, and Om Nom Nom from the Happy Kitty Co; and Grau 'grain free' and Catz Finefood from Zooplus. (There are quite a few others also...)
Another European food that has become popular over recent years is Bozita (made in Sweden). It's fairly widely available from independent pet stores. And the Bozita 'in jelly' tetrapacks, might be a similar texture to Felix in jelly...? (I've not tried the tetrapacks, only used the Bozita cans, which are 'pate' style). Iryna might know the texture of the Bozita tetrapacks...? @Vintry ?
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Oh, and Bozita is also in jelly. I'd say it's the same thing as Felix )) also derivatives, also only 3-4% meat. But the chunks are huge. My cats don't like it. They lick the jelly off and don't finish the meat at the bottom.
 
Vintry said:
Felix Supermeat and Felix Meaty Loaf are ok (5.1% from carbohydrates so don't worry!), they're just not greatest as far as quality goes, it's not proper meat unlike german brands. If you read their labels, all of the Felixes are meat derivatives.
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Yes, indeed.
And the reason I've not put many of the Felix/Whiskas type foods on the UK list yet is simply because it's not always easy to fathom what's actually in them...o_O
'Meat and animal derivatives' might be absolutely fine; but, as I understand it, it can sometimes also be a bit of dumping ground for all kinds of things left over from meat and animal processing.

And then there are terms like 'various sugars' and 'derivatives of vegetable origin'. I did contact Felix a year or so back about the 'various sugars' in the Felix foils and they said it was a small amount of beet pulp. That didn't sound too bad (and I was somewhat relieved as one of my cats adored Felix foils...). But there is an increasing trend to use something called 'vegetable protein extract'... This can be made from a number of vegetable protein sources, and seems often to be used to create texture in the meat chunks/pieces. Felix 'As Good As It Looks' is a good example of this.
But that 'vegetable protein extract' can be a tricky ingredient to feed to some diabetic cats. In a minority of cats it seems to elevate the blood glucose, sometimes quite dramatically. Bertie is one of those who is affected by it, but there have been others on the forum; and I remember one case where a member fed a sachet of this food to her cat who was in remission, and his blood glucose went up to 31/558!!! Fortunately, it did come down again and didn't affect his remission. But it was a good job his caregiver was still testing his blood glucose...

Incidentally, I will add some more supermarket foods to the list soon (because not everyone wants - or is able to - buy online);perhaps with a glossary explaining what the various terms mean..?
 
Hi there, thanks for the info on the different foods, my cat Molly has only been diagnosed diabetic 3 weeks ago, and I have been trying to source better food for her, I did go pets at home who where very helpful and I ended up buying natures menu and pro plan junior, which my cat loves.
my vet has told me to feed her the same food at the same time everyday, is this correct?
Also can anyone recommend some treats that are suitable for her, for after he glucose test, I bought wainwrights treats which are all natural, but she does not like them, my other cat does typical, Molly is used to dreamies but she can no longer have them, but I want to try and make the home testing easier for us all!!

Thanks Lorraine

Newbie to this site, and also from the uk
 
Thanks for that. I'm sure Frankie will love being back on the Felix. My vet just called and I told her about the high carbs and she said she will look into it, but I bet she comes back and says it wouldn't be sold as diabetic food if it wasn't suitable.
 
My cats are grazers so my vet said it's not fair to feed them only twice a day when they are used to having food on tap. As an experiment at the moment, we are trying him on just twice a day but he really isn't eating enough, so I have to give in and let him have a bit more. He should always have a main meal before his insulin though, so in that respect the vet is right and they have to be given the same time every day. I'm lucky in that my cats think the food is their treat!! Every once in a while they get a couple of Dreamiest though. Rom only has to hear the test strip tube opening and he's by my feet!!
 
My Barsa is purring everytime I test her glucose :)) she's weird right? But I kinda feel sorry for her..she's not getting any treats after that but I would really like to give her something yummy. Elizabeth, do you know any treats suitable for diabetics? You're the expert here!
 
Ha-ha! Iryna, I'm NO expert. I fed my cats dry food until Bertie became diabetic.... Then I got online and found this forum...

A really favourite treat amongst UK'ers are the Cosma freeze dried chicken treats. They're available from Zooplus and can be way cheaper than the very similar Thrive treats (especially if you buy enough other stuff from them to qualify for free postage...) There is a good offer on the Cosma XXL chicken treats at the moment here: http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/cats/...a_cat_snacks/cosma_snacks_single_tubes/433283 But, if you only want to buy 2 tubes to try them out, the price of the smaller treats is better here: http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/cats/...a_cat_snacks/cosma_snacks_single_tubes/414041 The latter are really cheap, but they only let you buy 2 tubes.
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Lorraine Edwards said:
Hi there, thanks for the info on the different foods, my cat Molly has only been diagnosed diabetic 3 weeks ago, and I have been trying to source better food for her, I did go pets at home who where very helpful and I ended up buying natures menu and pro plan junior, which my cat loves.
my vet has told me to feed her the same food at the same time everyday, is this correct?
Also can anyone recommend some treats that are suitable for her, for after he glucose test, I bought wainwrights treats which are all natural, but she does not like them, my other cat does typical, Molly is used to dreamies but she can no longer have them, but I want to try and make the home testing easier for us all!!
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Hi Lorraine,

And well done for hometesting! Yay!
Are you using Alphatrak or a human meter?

The Nature's Menu pouches are very popular here, although the beef and the 'senior' ones are quite a bit higher in carbs than the others. (I've never heard of the Pro Plan Junior, so I'll look that one up. :) )

Lorraine Edwards said:
my vet has told me to feed her the same food at the same time everyday, is this correct?
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Consistency in feeding can be helpful, especially when new to dealing with feline diabetes and trying to work out how a specific insulin dose is working in a cat's body: It's one less variable to think about!

'What' to feed, and 'how often' to feed are issues that are discussed here a lot.
Are you feeding Molly at set meal times, or does she prefer to be free-fed?

It is important to ensure that the kitty is eating normally at the time you give the insulin shot. (You don't want to give the shot and then find out that your kitty doesn't want to eat..) But after that, it is really a matter of what works best for you and Molly. Many newly diagnosed diabetics are really hungry, and like to have meals spread throughout the day so they don't go too long without food.

Since you're in the UK I'm guessing your vet has prescribed Caninsulin? That insulin can drop the blood glucose quite fast in the first few hours in some cats; so it can be helpful to feed a snack/mini-meal about an hour to an hour and a half after the insulin shot, as this can help to slow the blood glucose drop. If you're not home then leaving food out (or having a timed feeder) may help.

Regarding treats, there are quite a few options. Pure meat treats are particularly good, whether they are the 'freeze dried' kind or just little cubes of meat or fish (or prawns...). What does Molly like...?

Lorraine, are you (and Molly...) withing travelling distance of the RVC in London by any chance? They are running a feline diabetes 'remission trial', and cats who qualify for the trial can receive free insulin and other supplies for a year, as well as having access to good veterinary care.

(And DO think of starting up your own thread. We wouldn't want your posts and questions to get lost in other folks threads....;) )

Eliz
 
Quick question. Are all the Nature's Menu low in carbs or are some higher than others? I plan to go to Pets at Home on Saturday and buy some. I was thinking of the Senior chicken, salmon and cod or is the adult version better? Is that chunks in jelly by any chance? What about the frozen nuggets? Is that a complete food or a treat?
 
Quick answer, Sue (and I'll need to check my facts quickly after writing this...:nailbiting:), but the beef variety is too high in carbs and the senior ones also.
The Nature's Menu food is not actually a 'chunks in jelly type', I'd say it's somewhere between 'chunks in jelly' and 'pate'; maybe a 'chunky pate!'

The frozen nuggets are a complete food.

Here's the link to the fledgling UK food list. (You need the 'UK Food List - Draft B' tab). And you'll see the Nature's Menu lower carb pouches are the very first ones on the list. The yellow column shows the percentage of carb values.) The frozen nuggets are near the bottom of the page in the raw cat food section.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1J5JpMe6TDXrHq_aTl9hUtHy6Gs9oRBqlz4nPGKxtySA/pubhtml#

Edited to add: The 'senior' chicken, salmon and cod pouches contain 5% rice and have around 13.2% calories from carbs, Sue.
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Thanks Eliz. I have the link, just clean forgot to look. Sorry for the extra work. Even the senior is less carbs than he's on now on "diabetic" food!!!
 
No probs at all, Sue. In fact it keeps me on my toes! :)
Incidentally, the beef and chicken ones are around 11.9% cals from carbs. So if you come across a mixed box of NM pouches you may be able to transition the kitties to lower carb food by starting with the beef and then moving on to the other flavours from the same box! Ha-ha!
 
I would but they all hate beef!! Actually I had an old food list. This one has a lot more on it. There are loads of widely available foods I could try them on. But which one? Can I buy several and rotate? After introducing gradually of course!
 
As long as it's something fishy my lot will eat it. But they are fussy with their brands!!
 
Hi, there yes they are the same, is there something not right with it? I went more for the protein levels and moisture , it doesn't say vegetable extract on mine so am unsure? is there a better food I should try? thanks Lorraine
 
Lorraine Edwards said:
...is there something not right with it?
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Not necessarily, Lorraine @Lorraine Edwards ….
As the saying goes:'I've got some good news and some bad news'...

When I put the percentages for protein, fat, ash, fibre and moisture into my calculator the result I get is that the food has 15.3% calories from carbohydrates.... If this is the case, then the bad news is that this is too high carb for a diabetic (the recommendation for diabetics is that foods have less than 10% calories from carbs).

However the good news is that if you've been feeding this, and you stop, the blood glucose may drop lower and the need for insulin may reduce further....:)

Edited to add: Loving the pic of Molly. She looks a real cutie.
 
Thanks for that info, much appreciated, and I am glad theres a positive, I did get quite confused by all the foods but I will relook and see what else I can try for her.

thanks for the comment on the pic she is quite photogenic at times lol
 
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Lorraine Edwards said:
I did get quite confused by all the foods but I will relook and see what else I can try for her.
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There is a food list in this document that might be helpful, Lorraine (open it, and then look along the top and click on 'UK Food List - Draft B'). The first column is a list of foods, the second says where you can buy them, and the third (yellow column) show the 'percentage of calories from carbs'. All the foods on this list should be less than 10% calories from carbohydrates.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1J5JpMe6TDXrHq_aTl9hUtHy6Gs9oRBqlz4nPGKxtySA/pubhtml#

Do be aware that if you lower the carb content of the food then the kitty's blood glucose may drop also...
 
Elizabeth and Bertie said:
Hi Lorraine,

And well done for hometesting! Yay!
Are you using Alphatrak or a human meter?

The Nature's Menu pouches are very popular here, although the beef and the 'senior' ones are quite a bit higher in carbs than the others. (I've never heard of the Pro Plan Junior, so I'll look that one up. :) )


Consistency in feeding can be helpful, especially when new to dealing with feline diabetes and trying to work out how a specific insulin dose is working in a cat's body: It's one less variable to think about!

'What' to feed, and 'how often' to feed are issues that are discussed here a lot.
Are you feeding Molly at set meal times, or does she prefer to be free-fed?

It is important to ensure that the kitty is eating normally at the time you give the insulin shot. (You don't want to give the shot and then find out that your kitty doesn't want to eat..) But after that, it is really a matter of what works best for you and Molly. Many newly diagnosed diabetics are really hungry, and like to have meals spread throughout the day so they don't go too long without food.

Since you're in the UK I'm guessing your vet has prescribed Caninsulin? That insulin can drop the blood glucose quite fast in the first few hours in some cats; so it can be helpful to feed a snack/mini-meal about an hour to an hour and a half after the insulin shot, as this can help to slow the blood glucose drop. If you're not home then leaving food out (or having a timed feeder) may help.

Regarding treats, there are quite a few options. Pure meat treats are particularly good, whether they are the 'freeze dried' kind or just little cubes of meat or fish (or prawns...). What does Molly like...?

Lorraine, are you (and Molly...) withing travelling distance of the RVC in London by any chance? They are running a feline diabetes 'remission trial', and cats who qualify for the trial can receive free insulin and other supplies for a year, as well as having access to good veterinary care.

(And DO think of starting up your own thread. We wouldn't want your posts and questions to get lost in other folks threads....;) )

Eliz
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Hi there yes I am using the Alphatrak, my vet wanted me to use the same as them but funnily mine gives the results in the American way so I have to divide it lol.

I do have a box of natures menu so I will see if she likes that, if its better than the pro plan junior, oh ive just looked and its natures menu kitten in chicken I have. I give her food before her her insulin injections, and she is not really in a routine at the minute, she sometimes wants food late morning which makes sense with the Caninsulin dropping the levels quickly within the first three hours which does seem to happen, for example this morning her glucose result was 9.2, she had 1 unit shot of the insulin with 1 sachet of food and by 10.00 am her levels had dropped to 3 so I had to bring it up with food and by 11am it had risen to 4.8. sometimes she can drive me nuts for food between 1/3 pm which as far as I can work out is when the next insulin peak happens. but then other times she doesn't ask, but I feel with her as she used to be a grazing cat, that I should just give her a small amount here and there as well as the food with her insulin. I bought some natural treats and she doesn't like them, my other cat does, but I found some pure tuna fish fillets and I give her some of that for a treat.

Unfortunately I am not near the RVC and I own a guest house so would really struggle to find the time now we are getting busier. I am lucky in that respect that I am at home a lot so am able to monitor Molly although my nerves are in tatters after this past 3 weeks lol . Im really starting to understand that there are a some important factors to stick to, but really it is down to you and your cat working it out together for what works for her. My vet just confuses me she told me today if her glucose levels are 12 or under not to give her insulin, she seems to not be sure herself. So at least I can home test her and to keep a check on things.

Regarding starting my own thread I did start one but I am still getting used to the site, something else I will figure out, I will try again, thanks for the info really appreciate it
 
I've read this thread with interest as although I don't have a diabetic cat I feel guilty that the Whiskas in jelly pouches I feed my l'il civie Sapphire (four years old) isn't the best really. I guess the vast majority of pet owners in the UK feed supermarket-available pet foods, but those of us who have cared for poorly pets over the years and/or take a special interest in these matters always want to do our best so trying Saff on something new and better is always on my mind...

...sadly, that's as far as it gets. 'Trying' Saff on other foods seems a bit of a mountain to climb. I have huge admiration for Elizabeth and others for their hard work in compiling lists of good foods and where to get them. My worry is there seems to be almost too much choice. I'd like to keep Saff on bird/poultry foods (ie she isn't keen on beef and I've never fed her fish in case she develops too much of a preference for it) but beyond that, where do I start?????? I know some of the companies probably offer starter/taster/variety packs of some sort, which seem a great idea, but some cats could be wary of new foods at first and turn their nose up the first time a new food is offered, so it's thrown away - yet if we were to persevere for longer (and risk a starving cat!) it might actually be a good bet. In other words, how can we tell what's worth trying and what's not, and how long do we offer a new food for before rejecting it? How many brands/varieties do we try before settling (hopefully) on some favourites that are actually worth buying in bulk?

I may be the only one with this sort of dilemma so any input from anyone who's conquered it would be very welcome! Meanwhile, good luck to all you other UKers in finding the best food for your kitties for your specific situations.

Diana
 
I just transitioned my diabetic Frankie on to wet food. I went to Pets at Home and bought a couple of individual pouches to try of different brands and while he eats those, grudgingly, he wolfed down the Felix. He was bought up on that from a kitten, but the good thing is his civvie brother Teddy who would previously only eat dry is now eating a little at a time too, so hopefully all dry food will soon be gone from my house. Luckily I have other greedy cats and several strays who will wolf down anything in sight, so I know any surplus food will not go to waste. It must be hard with one cat.
 
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Diana&Tom said:
I'd like to keep Saff on bird/poultry foods (ie she isn't keen on beef and I've never fed her fish in case she develops too much of a preference for it) but beyond that, where do I start??????
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Hi Diana,

I think a major factor in 'where you start' is where you want to buy the food from. Buying from supermarkets and pet stores is convenient, but the choice is more limited. Buying online means there is more choice, but there are shipping costs to consider, especially if you're buying for a single cat and aren't buying enough in one go to be able to benefit from delivery discounts.

FWIW, you are most welcome to raid my cat food cupboard/s (so you can experiment) the next time you're over this way....! ;):)

Eliz
 
Thanks Eliz. I did mean buying online so I can get better quality - it's easy enough to see what's available in person at the supermarkets but it's a big www out there! I'd never know where to start without your useful links. The issue really is which ones do I try, as Saff might not eat something one day as it would be new, but might with perseverance. As you and Sue have said, it's slightly harder when buying for just one cat! But Saff is of course a very special cat and I want to do my best for her.

I guess the options might be to give you x amount of cash and ask you to pick some options (if you don't mind that is) or 'swapping' some of your suggestions from your cupboard in exchange for what ... Lunch at the Medicine Garden???

D x
 
Vintry said:
Oh, and Bozita is also in jelly. I'd say it's the same thing as Felix )) also derivatives, also only 3-4% meat. But the chunks are huge. My cats don't like it. They lick the jelly off and don't finish the meat at the bottom.
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Hi Vintry, I noticed that you started treatment with Caninsulin, have you changed insulin since? my cat has been on Caninsulin for approx. 4 weeks and I wondered if you have changed and what were the reasons for this, as I am wondering if we should change as it has quite a quick drop point between 2/3 hours but then comes up quite quickly most of the time so we are finding it difficult to keep her levels consistent for any length of time. Although she is really doing well, i question if another insulin might control it better and for longer, thanksLorraine
 
@Lorraine Edwards My cat was started on Caninsulin when she was diagnosed with diabetes. In the UK, you have to have some luck on your side for vet to start your cat on something other than Caninsulin. I had exactly the same problem as you do, Canisnulin doesn't last long enough. It drops sugar very quickly and then after a couple of hours shoots up high again. What happened with my Barsa was that I overdosed her on Caninsulin (increased dose too soon, basically skipped the right one) so Caninsulin stopped working, bg started going even higher. That is called Somogii effect. You can see what it looks like if you click on the Caninsulin tab within my spreadsheet and scroll down until you see red numbers appearing. As soon as I realized what was really going on, I reduced the dose and held it for 3 days for BG to stabilise. But it never did, it just stopped working. So I got myself an appointment with our vet, explained what happened and showed that Caninsulin stopped working for us, Barsa became resistant to it. He suggested we change insulin, mentioned PZI. I asked for Levemir, to be honest without any hope because he's not even familiar with it and it's not popular choice in the UK.. Emailed him a lot of information about it. To my great surprise he agreed to prescribe it :) That's what happened. Levemir is much better, it's a long lasting insulin and very gentle. If you want, you can try your luck and ask your doctor about switching. They might oblige, you never know :)
 
@Lorraine Edwards One more thing. Just looked at your spreadsheet. My situation was really bad back then. I think if I showed your spreadsheet to my vet, he'd most likely say it's fine, no need to change, insulin is doing what it's supposed to do,, bla bla.. He said something similar to me before, when I vented my frustration with this Caninsulin. In your situation, he might also say that it hasn't been long enough (4 weeks), so give it more time to work. But just like every cat is different, every doctor is different too :)
 
Hi Lorraine @Lorraine Edwards ,

In the UK there is a requirement to start on a veterinary medicine first, and currently Caninsulin is the only veterinary insulin available (there used to be several others also). If that medicine/insulin doesn't work, then, according to 'the cascade system' the vet can prescribe a human medicine/insulin.
UK vets vary enormously in their willingness to do this. Some vets will positively encourage an alternative insulin (and one or two may even be radical and prescribe a human insulin first); some vets can be persuaded to prescribe an alternative; and some vets doggedly refuse.

Quite a few folks here have persuaded their vets to prescribe alternatives to Caninsulin (me included). And what's needed to do that is evidence that the Caninsulin isn't working. For this, hometesting data has proved invaluable.
Alternative insulins in the UK are Lantus/glargine, Levemir, and Hypurin bovine PZI.

However, from looking at Molly's current SS, I think you might find it hard to get a vet to switch insulin on the basis of the current data. As Iryna said above, it's quite possible that a vet would think the situation is basically fine; and, Molly has only been on insulin for 4 weeks. And I have to say, although you think Molly's numbers aren't great, I think there are quite a few folks on this forum who would be thrilled to see their cat in the same numbers as Molly! (Do have a look at some other folks spreadsheets and you will see what I mean...)
That's not to say that you shouldn't ask your vet about another insulin. Just be prepared for the possibility that the vet might not see the need to prescribe it at this point.

Another thing to bear in mind is that another insulin wouldn't necessarily be better. There's a saying here that "The best insulin is the one that works best for your cat." But nobody knows in advance what that insulin will be. It is true that the longer lasting insulins are generally considered more effective, but 'every cat is different'.

Can I ask, what exactly are you feeding Molly at the moment? And what is your feeding schedule?
Are you feeding a snack (or half her breakfast/dinner) an hour to hour and a half after the shot? That can help to slow the fast drop.

(Oh, and am I correct in thinking that you're not within travelling distance of the RVC remission clinic in London?)

Eliz
 
Diana&Tom said:
I guess the options might be to give you x amount of cash and ask you to pick some options (if you don't mind that is) or 'swapping' some of your suggestions from your cupboard in exchange for what ... Lunch at the Medicine Garden???
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Ha-ha! Diana, do feel free to try foods from my cat food stash. And no cost involved. Although a chat over a cup of tea is always nice. :coffee::cat::coffee:

Eliz
 
Vintry said:
@Lorraine Edwards One more thing. Just looked at your spreadsheet. My situation was really bad back then. I think if I showed your spreadsheet to my vet, he'd most likely say it's fine, no need to change, insulin is doing what it's supposed to do,, bla bla.. He said something similar to me before, when I vented my frustration with this Caninsulin. In your situation, he might also say that it hasn't been long enough (4 weeks), so give it more time to work. But just like every cat is different, every doctor is different too :)
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Hi there, thanks for your reply, Mollys situation is definitely different to what your was, and she is doing really well, I was just wondering as she doesn't seem to stay low for very long, but her numbers are really good, I suppose just my mind wanting to get them more settled for longer, but it has only been a few weeks lol so I will see how it goes, but thanks, Lorriane
 
Elizabeth and Bertie said:
Hi Lorraine @Lorraine Edwards ,

In the UK there is a requirement to start on a veterinary medicine first, and currently Caninsulin is the only veterinary insulin available (there used to be several others also). If that medicine/insulin doesn't work, then, according to 'the cascade system' the vet can prescribe a human medicine/insulin.
UK vets vary enormously in their willingness to do this. Some vets will positively encourage an alternative insulin (and one or two may even be radical and prescribe a human insulin first); some vets can be persuaded to prescribe an alternative; and some vets doggedly refuse.

Quite a few folks here have persuaded their vets to prescribe alternatives to Caninsulin (me included). And what's needed to do that is evidence that the Caninsulin isn't working. For this, hometesting data has proved invaluable.
Alternative insulins in the UK are Lantus/glargine, Levemir, and Hypurin bovine PZI.

However, from looking at Molly's current SS, I think you might find it hard to get a vet to switch insulin on the basis of the current data. As Iryna said above, it's quite possible that a vet would think the situation is basically fine; and, Molly has only been on insulin for 4 weeks. And I have to say, although you think Molly's numbers aren't great, I think there are quite a few folks on this forum who would be thrilled to see their cat in the same numbers as Molly! (Do have a look at some other folks spreadsheets and you will see what I mean...)
That's not to say that you shouldn't ask your vet about another insulin. Just be prepared for the possibility that the vet might not see the need to prescribe it at this point.

Another thing to bear in mind is that another insulin wouldn't necessarily be better. There's a saying here that "The best insulin is the one that works best for your cat." But nobody knows in advance what that insulin will be. It is true that the longer lasting insulins are generally considered more effective, but 'every cat is different'.

Can I ask, what exactly are you feeding Molly at the moment? And what is your feeding schedule?
Are you feeding a snack (or half her breakfast/dinner) an hour to hour and a half after the shot? That can help to slow the fast drop.

(Oh, and am I correct in thinking that you're not within travelling distance of the RVC remission clinic in London?)

Eliz
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Hi Ya, thanks for the reply, Molly is doing really well like you say, I have had a look at a couple of spreadsheets and was quite surprised to see what some levels are , I think because we are ending up with similar numbers everyday, and it seems to drop to its lowest point but only for an hour or so before starting to climb back up, so I thought maybe a longer lasting insulin may make this achievable, but it has not been long, so I need to be patient, something I am not good at! lol.

With regards to food, Molly has a 85g sachet hi life or natures menu chicken before insulin approx. 7.20am she normally eats half then returns a while later to finish it, she is normally more hungry in the mornings than evenings, and will ask for more food on and of till approx. 12.00 I do limit this food and just give a little at a time, then she goes to sleep for the afternoon, so I have not been intentionally giving her food an hour to hour half after insulin but she does normally eat more in the mornings. I sometimes give her a treat after glucose test, and she has a small piece of tuna loin, which she loves.

Yes unfortunately we are not in travelling distance to the RVC. Lorraine
 
Lorraine Edwards said:
...and it seems to drop to its lowest point but only for an hour or so before starting to climb back up, so I thought maybe a longer lasting insulin may make this achievable
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A longer lasting insulin might achieve this, Lorraine...(no guarantees, though).
Have you broached the subject with your vet....?
.
 
Hi, no I have not yet broached the subject with the vet, I will the next time I see her, but I will see how things go, Mollys had a REALLY hungry day today, she has not stopped asking for food, she was sick during the day, her levels were as normal, so I will see what she is like tomorrow with the wanting food all the time, and speak with the vet. Lorraine
 
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