Home testing meters

My cat has been recently diagnosed with diabetes and started on insulin injections. I would like to start home testing and would appreciate advice on what brand of meter to get.
Thank you!!

 

Welcome to the best place you want to be. So happy you want to home test
Sorry about the diagnosis. Thete are many experienced members here to help Neko

If you live in the US most of us use the human meter from Walmart
The Relion Prime it's 9 dollars
17.88 for 100 test strips
Get 26 or 28 gauge lancets
Some cotton rounds to put behind Neko's ear just in case you prick you finger and then gently press on the ear for about 10-20 seconds to stop the bleeding
They do sell the lancing devise but most of us find it easier to just hold the lancet and prick the ear with that. I feel you can see better.
There is The Relion Premier also
Just keep asking questions
The more you test the easier the ear will bleed, it will grow more capillaries

 

How to test your cat's blood sugar
This video was made by one of our members ,just tap on the blue above

 

https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/new-how-you-can-help-us-help-you.216696/

If you would like to set up your signature , it's in gray at the end of everyones post
It will give us some info about Neko

 

Always aim for the sweet spot warm the ears up first, you can put rice in a sock and put it in the microwave, test it on the inside of your wrist to be sure it's not to hot, like you would test a babies bottle. You can fill a pill bottle with warm water and roll it on the ears also.Just keep rubbing the ears with your fingers to warm them up

6. As the ears get used to bleeding and grow more capilares, it gets easier to get the amount of blood you need on the first try. If he won’t stand still, you can get the blood onto a clean finger nail and test from there.
When you do get some blood you can try milking the ear.
Get you finger and gently push up toward the blood , more will appear

 

Welcome to you and your kitty!

It's great that you're looking to learn to monitor your little one's blood glucose (BG) levels at home. Here are some great resources to help you learn:

Home testing links and tips

Testing and injection tips

One of the best tips, especially in the early days, is to warm the ear more and for much longer than you might think is necessary.

Here's another link with lots of pointers on how to get the best out of FDMB:

How you can help us to help you

Be sure to give a shout if there's anything specific testing-wise that you might be finding tricky, and for any other help you need.


Mogs
.

 

Thank you so much! Knowing that there is a support group like this is very comforting!

 

Thank you so much! Knowing that there is a support group like this is very comforting!

 

Very grateful to learn where the sweet spot is for testing!!

 

You are very welcome

 

Hi Gail (and Neko), welcome!
I'm not sure where you are in the world. But if you happen to be in the UK the most popular meter at the moment is the human meter 'Gluco Navii'. This is fairly widely available online. This meter also has the advantage of being one of the cheapest to use. (The main cost of testing is the test strips).

There is more UK info in the links in my signature.

Eliz

 

I appreciate your kind response! I don't live in the UK, though, but I will check to see if I can find it in my area.
Thank you, Eliz!

 

I will be sure to check out the references you listed.
Thank you. Mogs!

 

Hello, I just had to pop in and say welcome to you and sweet Neko.

If you tell us which country you are in, we'll be able to give some suggestions on meters to use.

 

Here is some info on meters (it's 2017) but may be helpful regarding size of blood drop required. http://main.diabetes.org/dforg/pdfs/2017/2017-cg-blood-glucose-meters.pdf

 

This post has a link to reports on meters, including 2020 information. Blood Glucose Meter Ratings, Comparisons, and Recommendations

 

I am in the US. I am actually looking into other options for doing home testing, such as the FreeStyle Libre and litter box test strips. Do you or anybody out there have any experience or knowledge with either of these methods?
Thank you all!!

 

I have used 3 Livre sensors, one on my Badger (https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/results-of-using-libre-on-my-badger.212928/) and two on my Wiggles. I found them useful, especially for Wiggles. However, they are not a replacement for actual BG testing. They are also expensive for continuous use. Also, the urine test strips only test you is average BG is about 180 or so. When no glucose shows on the test strip you have no idea how much BG is below the about 180. It could be 150 or it could be dangerously low at say 40.

 

Here's post where someone talks about using the Libre. FreeStyle Libre: video, demonstration, explanations, tips – discussion!
If you search for Libre in this forum, you'll get a number of hits. Besides the cost, another big down side is that some cats don't like it and I've heard of some managing to get it off within a day or two. Which means buying a new meter. The Libre is good for figuring patterns in blood sugar, though I've heard not as reliable in low numbers. Basically, nothing beats a blood glucose numbers in detecting low numbers to try to avoid a hypo.

 

Not what I wanted to hear, but I am so grateful to all of you for sharing your knowledge and experiences! This support group is fantastic!

 

Thank you so much for taking the time to educate me on this, Larry!

 

I am still looking into options to control Neko's diabetes that will be more attainable.
I am doing okay with giving him the insulin injections (1 unit 2x/day), but I am unable to do home testing due to the chronic arthritis I have in my hands. It makes me very nervous to think his BG levels could drop dangerously low, especially when I'm away at work all week. I am wondering if it would be safe for me to switch him over quickly to a raw diet, discontinue insulin injections, and use litter box strips to monitor any rising levels?

 

Hi Diane and everyone! I'm a complete newbie to FD. My Jessie was diagnosed a month ago and has a freestyle libre on loan from the vet for a fortnight. It's been really helpful, and going forward I want to continue to monitor her glucose at home. I'm not worried about pricking Jessie's ears and getting a sample, I'm actually just worried that she will hate me for it and start running away every time she sees me! What has your experience been in this regard?
~Amy