Newbie Scared is my cat ok? NPH 2 units

Brought him home from vets tonight, he was extremely tired. Slept for a while, he ate a couple of times, drank water and went pee. A little while ago he was restless and wouldn't sit still. I thought oh God hypglycemia. I gave him a few treats which he ate eagerly. Now he is laying down. I am taking him to a different vet in the morning. This has been such a hard experience. I am glad I found this site and have been posting since yesterday. I hated my intial vet and am hoping tomorrow will be more positive! He has only had one dose of insulin at the vet office and I am going to wait and see what a different vet says before going ahead with any insulin. Any thoughts, is the cat ok?

Re: Newbie Scared is my cat ok?

previous links
viewtopic.php?f=3&t=5994

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=6018


1st thread:
viewtopic.php?f=3&t=5896&p=59929#p59929

hi there

just read thru your link from yesterday.

Let me get this straight: the vet gave insulin yesterday, do u know how much? (units) and up to this point - how many hours ago would that of been?

Did they do a blood glucose test - BG - and what was the reading they got? (that is testing the blood)
not the fructo test (sorry cant spell) I see they didn't do the fructo test anyway.

When u see your next vet - YOU as the client CAN insist on home testing.
Most vets are against this, it's up to you to get it thru their heads - You will not be shooting insulin blindly.

One of the first things you'll need to buy - is a meter with strips. And dont get pushed into buying the vet meter, you can buy very inexpensive human meters at any pharmacy. The Relion is a good example and many here use it.

your cat's BG readings, what type of food your cat is eating, wet or dry, brand, ketones testing (testing the urine with ketostix) all of that, is important to know when starting insulin.

Re: Newbie Scared is my cat ok?

HI thanks for the reply. Yes the vet gave him 2 units of NPH about 20 hours ago. The last time they tested him his bg was at 114. I was very unhappy with the vet and the course of treatment suggested so I am not giving him any insulin and am taking him to a new vet in the morning. I did buy a relion micro today and am going to have a woman I have met through this site help me with home testing on Saturday. Would you believe the vet told me I was being neurotic when I said I wanted to home test? He seems ok right now, just laying down taking a bath.

Re: Newbie Scared is my cat ok?

mlagcat said:

HI thanks for the reply. Yes the vet gave him 2 units of NPH about 20 hours ago. The last time they tested him his bg was at 114. I was very unhappy with the vet and the course of treatment suggested so I am not giving him any insulin and am taking him to a new vet in the morning. I did buy a relion micro today and am going to have a woman I have met through this site help me with home testing on Saturday. Would you believe the vet told me I was being neurotic when I said I wanted to home test? He seems ok right now, just laying down taking a bath.

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please add "NPH 2units" to ur subject line to get more eyes on your thread for now, ok?
just edit ur original post and add that to the title line.

I'm very glad to hear someone from here is meeting with you to show u how to home test.
and no - ur not neurotic for wanting to test ur own cat at home ohmygod_smile

I'd like more back up on this from others - but if u see a new vet today, and they want to put more insulin in the cat - I'd want to be home testing first.
looks like your are already feeding some wet food right? Friskies?

once u begin a wet food low card diet, it can do wonders for BG levels, and by giving insulin without home testing - in my opinion - it's not safe.

Re: Newbie Scared is my cat ok?

NPH is a fast acting insulin and is not still in your cat's system after 20 hours. I am glad he seems to be feeling better now. He's probably picking up on your anxiety. Breathe. He will be OK and you will be OK.

Hometesting is the first best thing you can do for your cat.

Yes I do feed him a can of friskies a day just the regular kind not the special diet. He does eat a lot of dry though. Do you think the insulin messed him up? I will see what the vet says tomorrow. I would like to change his diet right away but the vet advised against it but I don't think he really knows what he is doing!!!! I had to even ask about hypoglycemia, he never said anything. He wants to put him on 2 units twice a day of nph. I am not sure I feel comfortable with nph as I have read a lot of negative. It seems lantus is the way to go? Maybe I will bring my home tester to the vets and they can show me how to use it.

So if the insulin is not still in his system what would cause him to not be ok? He is laying down now but still doesn't seem himself, could there be something else wrong? or am I just being paranoied!!!????

well, the way it goes with most vets, any food not sold by them is just bad, evil, terrible.
not so.

a low carb wet food diet is what a kitty needs, the dry food prob kept your cat safe, once u remove dry food - BG levels can come down - which is why we always advise IF UR GOING TO REMOVE DRY FOOD YOU HAVE TO DO IT SLOWLY
however, a dry food diet wont help to stabilize BG numbers and is not the healthiest for cats.

READ THIS LINK when u have some time:
u may of been given Dr Lisa's website link
http://catinfo.org/

please read this - re-read it - lots of good info on feline nutrition and transitioning from dry food to wet food safely

if u bring ur tester with you - this is more of a reason for a vet to take u seriously and respect ur wishes to home test.
they may even show u with their own tester, and if u they start on u about how a human meter is no good - and u should be using their animal meter,
just say yes, that's great, but I cant afford that meter right now.

a vet not talking to you about hypo is just wrong! ohmygod_smile

but whats done is done, u will meet a new vet, learn to home test, learn about food switch from dry, and ur kitty will be ok.

mlagcat said:

So if the insulin is not still in his system what would cause him to not be ok?

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It could be that his blood sugars are above normal. That would make him not feel well. You'll be seeing the new vet this morning.

mlagcat said:

So if the insulin is not still in his system what would cause him to not be ok? He is laying down now but still doesn't seem himself, could there be something else wrong? or am I just being paranoied!!!????

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did he eat this morning?
hows the litterbox?
is he drinking water?

I would also suggest u pick up a ketostix kit from any pharmacy. this is so u can test the urine at home. I think that was mentioned to u in previous threads too. Good idea to have.

EDIT to add: thanks Venita!

he ate when he first came home at approx 7pm and went back to his bowl a couple of times but didn't eat a lot. He has drank some water and gone to the bathroom twice(pee) since he has been home. He just got up again and I decided to feed him a can again to see if he would take it and he did, he ate quite a bit. Wish I knew how to home test so I could see what was going on with him but the vet appt is approx 4 hours away from now so hopefully I can find out how he is when i get there.

You are doing great!!

I have to say I'm outraged the other vet didn't give you info on hypos :-x The info on how to recognize/treat them is essential when giving insulin. So glad you found this site and are going to a new vet!!!

Hometesting will make all the difference in treating your sugarcat. We were shooting blindly the first few months after C's dx. It turns out he was being over-medicated. Now that we are hometesting and switching foods, everything has gotten much better. Diet and testing are the most powerful tools in handling the disease.

Good luck; and keep us posted!

Jen