Diabetes accessories that I like

First, the most accurate meter I've tried is the Ascencia/Bayer Elite XL. But it takes a ton of blood, hence me trying out the Contour. We'll see how that goes.

Other stuff: the little lancet devices that come as part of the meter kits usualy work pretty well. The one that comes with the mini is quite compact and uncomplicated and I like it. I also use the microlet lancet thing that comes with Bayer meters. I haven't found any differences in the lancets themselves so I usually buy the cheapest ones.

The best place online to order from, price-wise, is usually Hocks.com. The best urine strips are the Keto-Diastix which measure urine glucose and ketones. The syringes I like to use for my U-100 insulin (all insulins are U-100 except for PZI and Vetsulin, both of which are animal-specific insulins) are the short-needled, 3/10cc syringes with half unit markings. Since most cats receive just a few units of insulin at a time, these syringes are worth getting because they make those small measurements a little easier.

For testing the ear, I use these cheap cotton squares. I fold one and put it on the other side of the ear so that I don't poke myself accidentally and also because it gives me something to press the ear against. The cheapo brand that I use isn't good enough to use for removing makeup or anything but it is perfect for ear testing.

Another thing I do is put my insulin bottles in pill vials like this:


so that I can't drop and break them. I wrap the bottle in one or two of the aforementioned cotton squares: