How can I get medication for a diabetic cat without constant testing?

Question

My vet will not refill medication for my diabetic cat without doing $150 worth of tests on him. I've spent over $1000 on testing on my cat since the beginning of the year plus $140 on medication every month and $100 on special food every month. I finally got to the point where the last time he ran out of medicine, I just didn't have the money to do the testing so I had to stop giving him medication altogether. I finally convinced the vet to get us cheaper medicine which is $30/month, but I don't the $150 to get testing done so I can get a refill on the medication. Is there ANY way to get the medication I need for my cat without testing? Like is there an Internet site to Canada that I can use?

Answer 1

I treated a diabetic cat for nearly 6 years, and she did not have to be tested each month.  Once we got her BG under control after the initial diagnosis, I had her checked twice a year, unless I felt there was a problem.

Is your kitty newly diagnosed?  Has the vet explained to you why the frequent testing?  Does he have another illness besides diabetes?

I feel for you, a lot of time and love goes into treating a diabetic kitty and this doctor is not making this any easier.  I would really consider finding another vet.

I think it is sad that he is only giving you a month's worth of medicine and then basically refusing to refill his medication without the testing.  I don't understand.  My first impression is to say he is taking advantage of you.  He could not care about your kitty's health and welfare if this is the way he practices.  

I don't know what you are giving him, but insulin (injectable or pill) would need a prescription.  So, you still need this vet in order to get kitty's medicine.

Kat above listed some excellent resources for diabetic kitty caretakers.  What I found in treating mine, is diet is the key to lowering the BG.  After doing much research and hometesting Kelley, I could keep her BG in check by only feeding her grain free foods (no wheat, corn, rice).  I did get the Purina DM dry for her because she liked dry food, but I only left a little out at a time to encourage her to eat the wet food.  The website, felinediabeties.com has list of all the major cat foods and their protein/fat/carb caloric breakdowns.  Below it the link to these charts.

What do you feed him?  Is it a 'prescription diet' from the vet?  

I don't want to encourage you to make any changes to his treatment without the advice of a veterinarian.  I was so lucky to have a vet that appreciated my study and research into this illness and we worked together for Kelley's good.  Please do some reading and join the message board at felinediabetes, there is a wealth of information and hands-on knowledge there.  I would be glad to help you in any way I can, it is so much information, more than can be put on one answer.

You can learn to hometest him yourself.  I used a glucometer and urine strips to test Kelley.  The glucometer I used was an Ascensia Contour by Bayer.  The link is below.  I used this one because it uses so little blood--see the chart on the website.  You do not need a prescription for the meter or the test strips.  I got my glucometer on eBay and the strips and lancets, too.  But you could get them at any pharmacy.  There are several videos on felinediabetes, but they are not clear, so I found one on Youtube that is very clear and informative.  

The urine strips test the glucose overflow in the urine and can be quite accurate.  They also test the ketones, an indicator of a dangerous condition where the body is not burning glucose but instead fat for energy.  These are available at your local pharmacy and you do not need a prescription. The link for the urine test strips.

If you only have one kitty, there is a litter box called 'The Smart Cat Box' that uses a special litter that does not absorb the urine, but lets it pass through to a reserve.  This makes it much easier to collect urine for testing.  When I was treating Kelley, I had 4 other cats, so this box wouldn't have worked for me.

I know this is a lot of information and I hope it is some help to you.  You and your sweet kitty are in my thoughts and prayers.

Sadly, I lost my beautiful Kelley in April.  She developed a cancerous tumor in her stomach.  The vet that had been so encouraging during her treatment, cried with me as we helped her make the transition to the Rainbow Bridge.  If I had her just 6 short weeks more, she would have been with me for 15 years.

Purrs to you and kitty.

Answer 2

diabetes is a very hard disease to control. Even if you test your cats glucose yourself at home do you know what to do if her blood sugars change drastically? Some cats can even go in and out of diabetes. I assume that your cat is on insulin? I am sure they can write you an RX for a pharmacy near you that may be slightly cheaper. Diabetes is a very expensive diseases to manage and it is great that you are doing that for your cat. If you are not a vet then I think you should follow the vets orders, they know the best way to help your cat survive.

Answer 3

I'm not sure if you live in the USA but the insulin that is available for cats is very limited.  There was a insulin, PZI, very expensive but they are discontinuing it due to the products needed to manufacture it.  At the vet that I work at there is only one choice and it is vetsulin.  I do not think that it is available online because the online pharmacies are actually selling "bootlegged" products.  They do not get their medicine from the manufacturer rather from other countries or vets looking to make a little side money.  Vetsulin has been in limited production for over a year now so unfortunately I don't see other options for you.  It is very important that you keep your kitty on the insulin.  If you don't you will ultimately end up paying way more vet fees due to hospitalization or loosing your kitty.  I know it is a horrible situation to be in and I hope you can work something out with your vet or perhaps look for a new vet that is willing to help you more.  

Answer 4

Without knowing what the medication is, I don't know where you can find it.

I have ordered prescription stuff from here: http://canadavet.com/

and non-prescription stuff here: http://www.revivalanimal.com/

But isn't the testing necessary to make sure the medicine doesn't need to be changed?

Can you find a cheaper vet?  If you haven't already, it might help to call around to several vets, explain your cat's condition and that you're considering switching vets and ask them about their rates for the various tests and if they believe all that testing is necessary.  Some should at least be willing to let you order the medicine online and verify the prescription.

Rates can vary a lot from vet to vet. even in the same general area.

Good luck!  

Answer 5

You can test you cats blood sugar at home- ask your vet if they have a monitor they will let you borrow or where you can get one for yourself-do not use the ones made for humans they are calibrated differently.

Have you tried PetMeds.com or human pharmacies-there are different places you can get the meds- Please do not take you cat off this medication-it is very important that they get this.If you stop the medication you are signing their death warrant.

By testing the blood sugar at home this should save you money by not having to go to the vet as often.Monitoring a diabetes cat is difficult-I don't know right off hand any website to go on for cats with diabetes but I am sure you can go ogle it and get the info you need.

Answer 6

You are to be commended for doing all that you have already done. It sounds like your vet is just digging at your pockets at this point. You should be able to do home testing to save some money.

I don't have the answer for you, but I've starred this is maybe one of my contacts does.

I'd like to point you to some other options for your cat though, that may help him, without any medication at all.

Here are some good places to start your research.

http://www.catinfo.org/felinediabetes.ht...

http://felinediabetes.com/

http://www.yourdiabeticcat.com/

http://www.mypetcarnivore.com/feline_dia...

http://www.catnutrition.org

I would HIGHLY recommend a Raw diet. Many cats are no longer insulin dependant once they are fed a species appropriate diet. Considering the diabetes was probably caused by feeding a species inappropriate diet of dry food to the cat for its entire life, a new appropriate diet is a good place to start!