How long to clear a bounce on Vetsulin?

[CrystalLynn]

Hey everyone, Crystal here. I’m still super new here and still learning the ropes with getting Monamie better regulated. I’ve been trying to find the right dosage for her to keep her numbers low during the day and get her high AMPS/PMPS numbers down too. I figured if she was bouncing, I could lower the dosage a bit and see if that helps. I know on other insulins it takes a while to “clear a bounce,” roughly ~3 days, right? I wonder if Vetsulin, since it’s shorter-acting, works the same way?

I did try lowering her dose for the last few days, and her pre-shot numbers didn’t change, but her mid-day numbers were a bit too high and she seemed a little uncomfortable ... so I shifted her back (a bit too quickly, I’m now realizing) to what I suspected would get her to a nice, low nadir during the day. She seems happier, but I guess the pre-shot numbers are staying high for now.

Did I need to wait longer than ~3 days for the bounce(s) to clear? Or maybe the bouncing isn’t really bouncing after all, but is just the Vetsulin wearing off too early?

 

[Jacque- Tiger & Jazz Man]

Check out my boy Tiger's ss. He is now Prozinc which is closely related to Vetsulin(he was on that temporarily) he is still bouncing from a low reading. Tiger has had quiet a journey so far. Prozinc>Vetsulin Bid>Vetsulin TID>Prozinc. Yes definitely Vetsulin is in and out fast. When Tiger was on it..the duration was for about 8hrs. Which is why we tried him 3x a day...that worked good but wore us out. @Deb & Wink and @Chris & China (GA) are a only a couple of the members that held my hand and supported me through this and they still do.

 

[Chris & China (GA)]

One of the big problems with Vetsulin is it doesn't usually last a full 12 hours, plus it tends to hit hard and fast, which usually just causes them to bounce.

Have you asked your vet if you can try a different insulin like Lantus, Basaglar, Levemir or ProZinc? They're much gentler and longer lasting.

Vetsulin is more of a dog insulin (it's called Caninsulin in the rest of the world..."canin" for dog) and a lot of vets tend to prescribe what they're used to. They see more diabetic dogs than cats so when a cat comes in, they are treated like a small dog and it just doesn't usually work very well.

2.25 is obviously too much so why don't you try 2.0 for a few days. Also be sure to get at least 1 test on the PM cycle (more if you can).....most cats go lower at night so without getting at least a "before bed" test in, you're missing half the data on what's going on

 

[Deb & Wink]

Did I need to wait longer than ~3 days for the bounce(s) to clear? Or maybe the bouncing isn’t really bouncing after all, but is just the Vetsulin wearing off too early?

Probably a bit of both.
Bounces take 3-6 cycles to clear usually. Can be longer or shorter. No matter which insulin you are using.

The thing with Vetsulin (aka Caninsulin) is that very few cats get more than 8-10 hours duration from it.
The pre-shot numbers will be the last to come down. You adjust doses based on the mid-cycle nadir.

Plus, your dose is too high. That 2.25U dose should be dropped back to no more than 2U. Maybe even down to 1.75U.

56!!! on and Alphatrak!?!? good thing you fed her some food at +4 when she dropped that low.

"Jeepers creepers, Batman!"

p.s. If you click on the "Like" at the bottom of a response/reply, it lets us know that you have read it.

 

[CrystalLynn]

Hi all,

Thank you so much for the advice/feedback!!

@Jacque- Tiger & Jazz Man , that is quite the journey indeed...! I admire you for attempting the 3x per day routine. Woah. I’m so glad you found a better solution. I think we might need to head that way ourselves...

@Chris & China (GA) , I think I will need to have a talk with the vet about changing insulin after all. I was hoping to correct it just with the dosage, but... alas. I didn’t realize it was meant primarily for dogs, but of course, your explanation makes perfect sense! I also didn’t realize the importance of a late PM shot. Thank you for that, I’ll be doing my best to collect that extra data point moving forward.

@Deb & Wink , yeah, the low number shocked me too! Back to 2 units it is...! I just worried that the nadir still seemed a little high when she was at 2 units before, so I thought maybe 2.25... but they really are quite sensitive to even the smallest changes, aren’t they? Thank you for you kind patience in guiding us novices through this.