9/23 Sooty AMPS 288 PMPS 279

Pat+Raja+Shadow said:

Hi Perry! I posted a few things in your condo from yesterday! But good job in linking the previous post. I tried to round up all your other posts too...from Health and whatnot in your condo from Wed. Please read the new posts there.
And post any questions you might have in this condo.

So, you got a new vial? That is good. Can I ask you if you were using the same vial from the date of dx?
If you were, there is chance that the insulin was not effective and was virtually toast. Can you do a few tests today?
Do you have HC gravy on hand?

It is a good idea to make a note in the notes section on your SS when you get new insulin. That way, you will have a record of the exact date...okay?

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Sienne and Gabby said:

Welcome, Perry & Sooty.

Yesterday, Jill has addressed the same issues that caught my attention. Once you've had a chance to digest the information in the Tight Regulation Protocol sticky, you may note that it's possible that Sooty is getting too much Lantus or that his dose has been raised too quickly. The best way to know this is if you can get more tests in. The minimum amount of tests include a test at every pre-shot and minimally, one additional test each cycle. Pre-shot tests are essential in order to know whether it's safe to shoot. It's also critical to test during the PM cycle. Many cats have lower numbers at night and with not testing, you are quite literally, missing half of your data. In addition, you'll note that doses are most typically raised in 0.25u increments. This is why I'm concerned that Sooty may be getting too much insulin. (As an aside, if you don't have syringes that are marked in 1/2 unit increments, you may want to order some. It's much easier to make dose adjustments with this type of insulin syringe.)

It sounds like you aren't home during the day. That's true for many of the people here. Get tests in during the AM cycle when you can. If you can get a +1 or +2 test before you leave the house, that will give you some sense of where the cycle is heading. When you have a chance, please take a look at our spreadsheets. You'll get a feel for why it's important to test -- gathering data is important for guiding your dosing decisions.

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Kim 'n Shadow said:

Hi Perry and Sooty, Welcome. good job on the SS. Have you looked over Janet and Binky's food list? http://binkyspage.tripod.com/canfood.html LC is low carb, below 10%. MC, medium, up to 16-17% and over 18% is HC. (someone will correct me if my numbers are out of whack). The higher carb cans are the ones that have gravy, which is a little shot of carb if the BG values are dropping too much or too fast.

I know several human diabetics that re-use their syringes until the injections begin to hurt, same with their lancets. So I was guilty of the same thing, but my vials last longer if I use a new syringe each time and be careful about swabbing some alcohol on the port before I insert my needle. And the human diabetics I know ARE able to use their lantus all the way to the end. I expected my vial to last me the same way. Rats! It didn't. Some of the older style insulins did have to be rolled in your hand and I think some of them still do, but not Lantus.

I got my syringes at Walgreens. I like theirs the best of all that I've used. They have 1/2 unit scale marking and that is very helpful when you are doing quarter-unit dosing. They were about $12-13/box, 5/16" 31 gauge needles. It was the first one I used, maybe I am just more comfortable about using it. Lots of people use Walmart, I haven't had good luck with that but it is because the behind-the-counter help there doesn't know very much about syringes and couldn't figure out what I was asking for when I asked for 1/2 unit scale markings.

One more thing - I was one of those people that had to "start over" with Shadow's dosing - I took it as a defeat, like we had been wasting our time up to that point but I'll tell you, Shadow is doing so much better. With guidance from the folks here, we cut our dose in half and now, Shadow is on less than half what her vet had her dose up to. And her daily insulin requirements continue to decrease.

Good advice from Jill and Sienne. We look forward to seeing you around the boards.

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Jill & Alex said:

hi perry. i took a peak at sooty's ss. looks like you've decided to start over at 1.5u bid in the morning with a new vial of insulin. since the effects of lantus are cumulative, you may see some residual action left over from the higher dose over the next few cycles even though you skipped tonight's shot.

with the weekend almost upon us, you'll have a good chance to collect some data. please post daily so we can keep track of sooty's progress. we may suggest fast tracking him up the dosing scale... depending on how he responds.

if you haven't already, i encourage you to pick up some ketostix or ketodiastix from any pharmacy to test sooty's urine for ketones frequently. this is especially important since the dose has been dropped dramatically. if there's even a hint of ketones we'll want to increase the dose amongst other things such as increasing his intake of water.

good luck!

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