Diabetic cat

mrbrown69

Our cat was diagnosed with diabetes today, quick question....the vet says she needs 2 injections of insulin a day and to bring her back in a week and half to see her progress, question is the vet only gave 2 syringes with the insulin? can 1 syringe be used that amount of times?? I wasn't there at the time to ask the vet

d9oiu2wk07blr5

IMO, syringes and needles should be changed after each usage.

Here's some info that may help you...

http://www.petdiabetes.com/pdorg/faq.htm

anniehoo

In "theory" its ok, as you can use insulin needles more than once. This is because injections are "subcut" meaning subcutaneously or "under the skin" and have less of an infection risk than IV (intraveously)..into the vein.BUT..a few times...maybe 3...at a push if kept v clean.

I'm concerned.

My MAIN worry is why has your vet told you so little about your cats conditition and how to deal with it?

If they've diagnosed Diabetes you're in for a whole world of change. What has your vet told you, or are they doing a repeat glucose/fructosamine and waiting until next week?

mrbrown69

I wasn't at the vets myself but from instruction seems quite straight forward, 2 units of insulin twice daily 12hrs apart....we've already given her 2 injections now and it's not as daunting a task as you'd imagine......her blood sugar level was 24 at the vets when it should be around 4 so bringing her back in a week to see how she's coping on that dosage if it needs changing and also her diet.....I've since learned a single syringe is 70 cent, the vet says they can be used a number of times if kept clean, it's just looking up anywhere on the net says dispose of them after 1 use.......need to see if I can buy them in bulk anywhere


edit to say the cat has perked up hugely already in one day compared to what she was before, whether that's down to the insulin or antibiotics she was given I couldn't really tell

insu1

A good few types of insulin are available in a pen type device :

http://www.felinediabetes.com/images/jock_inj.gif

http://www.levemir.com/levemir/usinglevemir.aspx

you just change the needle tip.


Most chemists would have blood glucose meters so you can keep track of it at home , you'd need one that only requires a small blood sample though :

eg this sort of thing :

http://www.boots.com/en/Accu-Chek-Aviva-Nano-Blood-Glucose-System_920424

http://www.catinfo.org/?link=felinediabetes#In-Home_Blood_Glucose_Monitoring


You need to ask your vet about all the above though, the little furry ones are different to humans


http://www.veterinaryirelandjournal.com/Links/PDFs/CE-Small/CESA_September_07.pdf