Buy Caninsulin for dogs | Caninsulin for Cats | Caninsulin syringes

What is Caninsulin?

Caninsulin is a hormone injection made from porcine insulin. The insulin is chemically identical to the natural insulin of dogs and cats and is used to supplement inadequate levels found in diabetic patients. It is a pale watery suspension which passes easily through a fine needle. It is supplied in 2 sizes of  bottles: Caninsulin 2.5mls and Caninsulin 10mls. 1ml of Caninsulin contains 40 international units (iu) of active insulin. This is different from other forms of insulin, which are normally 100iu/ml. Therefore it is very important to use only Caninsulin Syringes, because other types will not be calibrated correctly and will not give the correct dose.
Caninsulin is not completely stable at room temperature, so for long-term storage should be kept in the fridge. However for a period of up to a month or so, it can be stored at room temperature. People will often keep it not in the fridge once the bottle has been started. The warm Caninsulin is more comfortable for the patient. Bottles should always be discarded after 28 days from opening anyway, due to possible contamination and degradation. Bottles should also be stored upright if they are to be kept for long periods, because prolonged contact with the rubber stopper at the top of the bottle will degrade the insulin. Before Caninsulin is administered to your pet, the bottle should be shanken very gently to mix the contents evenly. However if this is repeatedly done too vigorously, the insulin could degrade in time and become less effective.

How do I give Caninsulin?

Owners of affected animals have to learn to give these injections at home, which can appear daunting at first. However it is soon found to be remarkably straightforward and very few people have any difficulty once shown how easy it is. The needle used for these injections is incredibly fine and causes no discomfort for injections under the  scruff of the neck. The scruff area has a large collection of loose, relatively insensitive connective tissue and contains no large blood vessels or other important structures. Hence it is not critical exactly where the injection is given, allowing for a lot of leeway for the person giving the injection. Depending on the treatment plan an injection is given either once or twice daily. These injections have to be timed to fit in with your pet's meal times for the best results. The peak activity of the insulin given by injection is normally about 8 hours after it has been given, so this is when  your pet should be eating its main meal. Before giving the injection, remember to shake the Caninsulin bottle very gently a few times.

How does Caninsulin work?

Insulin travels in the blood stream and acts on all the cells around the body. It helps glucose to be transported through the cell walls and into the cells where it is needed to provide energy. As this happens, the blood levels of glucose go down. This is partly why blood glucose levels rise so high in diabetic patients, where the insulin levels are effectively too low. The cells are short of glucose and so the body raises blood levels to help them, but the cells cannot absorb the glucose without the insulin, so blood levels get ever higher. If a large amount of insulin is given by injection (or indeed by a certain type of tumour of the pancreas, an "insulinoma") then blood glucose levels go down much too low, and soon the cells cannot get any more glucose at all because it is not there to absorb. This is why it is dangerous to give too much insulin. As you can see, the immediate treatment for this condition is just to give glucose. This can be by injection, but glucose is absorbed very quickly if given by mouth, so a "hypo" attack can be treated initially at home by administering glucose or honey.
The main symptom of diabetes is an excessive thirst and urine production. The reason for this is that the abnormally high levels of glucose in the blood are so high that glucose "leaks" out through the kidneys, taking a lot of water with it (by the process known as osmosis). Diabetic patients produce lots of urine, even when becoming dehydrated. They have to drink loads of water to make up for this loss, or else they will dehydrate badly. The urine also contains measurable levels of glucose, which forms the basis of the first test often done to diagnose diabetes. Blood tests are a more accurate way of deternining what is going on. There is even a blood test (the "fructosamine test") which gives a good idea of the average glucose levels in the blood stream for the previous 3 weeks or so. This is often the best test to diagnose and then monitor the effective treatment of diabetes.

What else can I do to treat diabetes?

Unfortunately the tablets (oral hypoglycaemics) given to some human diabetic patients have a very poor effect in dogs and cats. This means that daily insulin injections are required. There are a number of other important factors in treating diabetes. The first of these is diet. Certain foods are better than others. It is usually best to give low carbohydrate, high fat and high protein diets. Commercial examples of these are the Royal Canin diabetic foods for dogs and cats. Also Purina DCO for dogs and Purina DM for cats, and Hills m/d for cats.
Another very important factor in successfully treating diabetes is a regular, consistent daily routine. Changing the type or amount of food, or the time of day it is fed, will tend to de-stabilise diabetic control. Changing the amount of exercise, or the time of day it occurs, will affect the amount of insulin required, often unpredictably. Therefore it is important to decide on a daily routine which is sustainable, then try to stick to it.

Where can I buy Caninsulin? Where can I buy good diabetic foods for dogs and cats?

You need your vet to monitor and advise on the treatment of your pe. However, your vet is probably an expensive person to buy medication from. Canisulin and other medicines can be purchased economically online. Just ask your vet for a written prescription and send it with your order to Viovet.co.uk, where you can buy a full range of diabetic food as well.