Storing and travelling with your pet's insulin

Insulin is a delicate medicine, and looking after it properly is one of those quiet things that makes everything else work. The frustrating part is that mishandled insulin looks exactly the same — it just quietly stops working as well. Here's how to keep it right.

Storing it at home

Keep insulin refrigerated and never frozen — freezing damages insulin permanently. Store it in the main body of the fridge rather than the door, where temperatures swing every time someone reaches for the milk. Check the expiry date, and note your specific product's guidance on how long it lasts once opened.

Mixing: roll, don't shake

Many veterinary insulins should be gently rolled and inverted to mix — not shaken hard, which creates froth and can damage the insulin, making doses inconsistent. Your vet or the product leaflet will tell you exactly how to mix yours; it's worth checking rather than assuming.

How to tell if insulin has gone off

Insulin that's been frozen, overheated, over-shaken or kept past its in-use date can lose strength. Some types show it — clumping, discolouration, frosting on the glass — but often there's no visible sign at all. If your pet's control suddenly worsens for no obvious reason, a tired or mishandled vial is worth mentioning to your vet.

Travelling with insulin

Very doable with a little planning. Carry it in an insulated cool bag with a cool pack that doesn't directly touch the insulin (contact can freeze it). Never leave it in a hot car. Take more supplies than you'll need, keep a copy of the prescription, and hold injection and meal times as steady as you can. Flying? Insulin goes in hand luggage — never the hold, where it can freeze.

Mello keeps the whole routine — doses, timings, what's running low — organised wherever you are.