My dog (Ozzi) is a 13 year old mixed breed..half Dalmatian and half Australian cattle dog. He was diagnosed with diabetes last August, and we are still trying to get him adjusted on insulin, almost 6 months later. We initially started him on Humulin N and because of the cost, we switched him to Novolin N (made by Relion from WalMart). About two weeks after changing him to Novlin N twice/day, he started to deteriorate, and we switched him back to Humulin N. About 2-3 weeks after, he again began to deteriorate. By deteriorate, I mean that his blood sugars rose, he had increased drinking and urination, lethargy and hind leg weakness. Each time we brought him to the vet, insulin was increased. He has lost about 10 pounds and currently weighs 65 pounds. We did a glucose curve that showed the insulin peaks at TWO hours instead of 6-8 hours. Here are the results:
8am 276
10am 114
12pm 147
2pm 190
4pm 282
6pm 310
Since the NPH is essentially working as "regular" insulin on him, we asked about splitting the dosage in three rather than twice a day, which the vet said not to do. About a month ago, Ozzi's symptoms increased again, and were so worrisome that we called our vet who was not available and the covering vet didn't seem to want to get involved! So we were left with dealing with him on our own over the weekend. For some unknown reason, we decided that we would give him Humulin N 23 u in the morning and Novolin N 23 u in the evening. For whatever reason, he has been doing very well on this regimen. Yesterday, I picked up a new vial of Novolin N and this morning it was "separated" with all the residue on the bottom and clear on the top half. Usually it's cloudy, with just a little residue on the bottom. I called Novo Nordisc and they are sending out a new vial of Novolin N, however they advised that i NOT refrigerate the insulin after starting use.
Basically, I want to do the right thing, and I'm completely frustrated. Here are my questions, if anyone has experienced a similar situation:
(1) Has anyone else had a glucose curve like this, and what was done to make it better?
(2) Is anyone else alternating using Humulin N and Novolin N?
(3) Has anyone had their insulin completely separate with all the precipitant on the bottom? Have you used it?
(4) Do you store your insulin in the refrigerator or at room temperature after using it?
(5) Does anyone know if one can get assistance for the cost of insulin? I called Lilly and Relion and their assistance programs don't extend to pets!
(6) I'm concerned about using Novolin N now, however this regimen seems to be the only one that has been working for any length of time, so I'm concerned about going back to Humulin N twice/day.
Thank you for reading this, and I welcome any advice. I love Ozzi dearly and I don't know what to do at this point.
8am 276
10am 114
12pm 147
2pm 190
4pm 282
6pm 310
Since the NPH is essentially working as "regular" insulin on him, we asked about splitting the dosage in three rather than twice a day, which the vet said not to do. About a month ago, Ozzi's symptoms increased again, and were so worrisome that we called our vet who was not available and the covering vet didn't seem to want to get involved! So we were left with dealing with him on our own over the weekend. For some unknown reason, we decided that we would give him Humulin N 23 u in the morning and Novolin N 23 u in the evening. For whatever reason, he has been doing very well on this regimen. Yesterday, I picked up a new vial of Novolin N and this morning it was "separated" with all the residue on the bottom and clear on the top half. Usually it's cloudy, with just a little residue on the bottom. I called Novo Nordisc and they are sending out a new vial of Novolin N, however they advised that i NOT refrigerate the insulin after starting use.
Basically, I want to do the right thing, and I'm completely frustrated. Here are my questions, if anyone has experienced a similar situation:
(1) Has anyone else had a glucose curve like this, and what was done to make it better?
(2) Is anyone else alternating using Humulin N and Novolin N?
(3) Has anyone had their insulin completely separate with all the precipitant on the bottom? Have you used it?
(4) Do you store your insulin in the refrigerator or at room temperature after using it?
(5) Does anyone know if one can get assistance for the cost of insulin? I called Lilly and Relion and their assistance programs don't extend to pets!
(6) I'm concerned about using Novolin N now, however this regimen seems to be the only one that has been working for any length of time, so I'm concerned about going back to Humulin N twice/day.
Thank you for reading this, and I welcome any advice. I love Ozzi dearly and I don't know what to do at this point.
Comment