? 200 BG question & location question/food ?

[sherrib]

So if I get 200 i wait , feed & retest 30 mins later? what if I get 201 to 205?

Starting out I put the insulin in his shoulder area, BUT I do along his side/stomach area. Is the area okay? I do tent the skin.

I guess I should give a treat when I test between shots, what do you give? And how many hours should I be testing Skittles based on his SS?

he has been on can food since Thursday and I feed him whenever he seems to want to eat. But I am thinking about cutting back on his food towards the end of the week, unless ya'll dont think I should yet? After my scare on Thursday I am a little leary on everything

 

[Robin&BB]

So if I get 200 i wait , feed & retest 30 mins later? what if I get 201 to 205?

Hi, Sherri - You don't want to shoot if the BG# is below 200; if his BG is at 200 or above, you're good to shoot.

Is the area okay? I do tent the skin.

Shooting with the skin "tented" in the area of the shoulders is fine! I generally shoot my cat between her shoulder blades; do whatever works best for you to get in a good shot.

I guess I should give a treat when I test between shots, what do you give?

Bat-Bat doesn't get any food treats when I test her; never did. (She's enough of a chow-hound as it is.) Her "treats" are soothing words and a cuddle after submitting to ear-prick. (Works for us!) I tend to think the fewer food treats a diabetic gets, the better - but maybe I feel that way because overfeeding my cat was a lot of what helped send us down "Diabetes Drive!"

he has been on can food since Thursday and I feed him whenever he seems to want to eat.

Are you keeping really careful track of the total quantity of the food he gets every time he eats, including amount of each mini-meal/snack, etc. between his AMPS/PMPS meals? While it's fine to divide his total daily rations into several meals if that's what works for you and Skittles, you need to make sure his total amount of food each 24-hour period is not more than what he needs to maintain his optimum weight. (Although I know it can be difficult to make sure he's eating only his daily rations when you have more than one pet in the house, is best if you can work out a way to do that; can make a big difference in getting his blood sugar regulated.)

But I am thinking about cutting back on his food towards the end of the week, unless ya'll dont think I should yet?

Do you think he's getting more food than he needs/ is he overweight? Is that why you're thinking of cutting back on his food?

 

[Rachel]

I give my cats PureBites...they're freeze dried pieces of chicken. I get the at PetSmart.

 

[Merlin]

So if I get 200 i wait , feed & retest 30 mins later?

Also, you do not want to feed if you are stalling. Stalling means that your pre-shot number is too low to shoot (for now it is under 200 until you get more data). You do not feed for 20-30 minutes and re-test. If the number is above 200, then you can shoot. If the number is still below 200, you can stall again for another 20-30 minutes with NO food. Sometimes that is hard with them howling at you for food. But you do not want your pre-shot number to be influenced by food (food makes the BG number rise).

Starting out I put the insulin in his shoulder area, BUT not I do along his side/stomach area. Is the area okay?

Here is a link to all the locations of where you can give shots: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/lantus-levemir-new-to-the-group-please-read.18139/

 

[Robin&BB]

So if I get 200 i wait , feed & retest 30 mins later? what if I get 201 to 205?

@Merlin Good morning, "Hawkeye" - I can't believe I missed the word "feed" in Sherri's question above ... THANK YOU for catching that!
Maybe all that work you do with raptors helps keep you sharper?

 

[sherrib]

Do you think he's getting more food than he needs/ is he overweight? Is that why you're thinking of cutting back on his food?

No, just thought he shouldnt be eating off & on all day. but he doesnt eat much at a time. on Nov 14 he was up a pound from Oct 13 ( he was 14 pd at last check)

 

[sherrib]

My mistake.... I just read over my 1st post,and I made a mistake. I shoot the skin over his belly area, sorta on his side. I put him on his side or sometimes on his back and tent the skin there. How do I post pics or video and I will show. I do know it works faster there...right?

 

[sherrib]

Are you keeping really careful track of the total quantity of the food he gets every time he eats, including amount of each mini-meal/snack, etc. between his AMPS/PMPS meals

No, I am not doing this. Is that bad?

 

[Robin&BB]

You really do need to keep track of the total amount of food (including snacks) that a diabetic kitty is getting. You might be surprised at how easy it is to accidentally overfeed - believe me, I've done that! After Bat-Bat was diagnosed with diabetes, I started measuring out the food amount - every time I give her anything to eat - and I write it down, too. Then I total it up each day - so that I know for sure how much she's getting every 24 hours.

I also weigh her every week. (You can do that easily with a regular bathroom scale: Just weigh yourself, then weigh again while holding Skittles & subtract that # from the first # you got.)

Why it's so important to control food portions and keep track of the weight on Skittles: While a half pound or a pound (in either direction) is no big deal for a human, it's pretty darned significant for a cat. (Bat-Bat once weighed more than 18 lbs; today she's a slender 11 pounds.)

Helps to think of it this way: a 1/2-pound extra on a 10-lb. cat is roughly equivalent to an extra FIVE pounds on a 100-lb. human! (Sure did help me realize how critical weight control is for getting a diabetic kitty's blood sugar under good control.