Sky says hello :)

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Sootyca

Sootyca

Member Since 2016
New here, obviously through a new diagnosis, and looking forwarding to reading and learning!

Sky is 10 and was diagnosed as having diabetes last week. Her route to diagnosis wasn't straightforward - she had hind leg weakness and struggled getting upstairs ( not down) and jumping. After xrays the vet thought she had a spinal lesion problem which was pressing nerves. A second opinion said yes she had the lesions but he thought it was more a cruciate ligament problem. I happened to google hind leg weakness, came across a link to diabetic neuropathy and it was like a lightbulb had gone on - she was matching those symptoms and I realised had not been blood tested. As a previously obese cat (7.2kg) she was always going to be a candidate for it (don't judge me, lol - she is indoor through her choice, very inactive and even though we monitored everything she ate and had no treats the weight just would not shift). She is now 4.8kg but has a very large appetite so I'm hoping the insulin will help regulate that!

I soon got her in for a blood test and she had an initial blood glucose level of 23.2 so was suggested that she probably had diabetes. Full results came in a week later, so here we are. I'm hoping the hind leg weakness improves when she has been on the insulin for a while.

Started injections last night and so far we are okay - a little nervous and I do hate doing it but she is such an angel she isn't bothered and doesn't fidget. Tonight I was at the vets to learn the home testing for her bloods - unfortunately her ears weren't giving up their blood so couldn't do anything but we'll get there. have to do a glucose curve on sunday so here's hoping her ears give up their blood!

She is on wet food but going to do some investigation into what will be the best food for her.

So, that's us in a nutshell! I'm a little concerned about the lack of freedom that I'm now going to have to make sure she gets the injections when she needs them - my vet really wasn't forthcoming about the consequences of missing an injection. But I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

Karen
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Hi Karen, welcome to FDMB. You will find lots of help here. If you have any questions, post the, on the Health forum. We will need some info from you so we can help. What insulin are you using ? What meter?

If your vet hasn't told you, always test and feed Sky before giving the shot. This will help keep Sky safe. Read as much as possible, there is so much to learn.
 
Sootyca said:
I'm a little concerned about the lack of freedom that I'm now going to have to make sure she gets the injections when she needs them - my vet really wasn't forthcoming about the consequences of missing an injection. But I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.
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Welcome to FDMB. All of us had that notion that our lives are going to be totally turned on end when we get the diabetes diagnosis and I am not going to tell you it doesn't change your life somewhat, however, you do NOT have to give up your freedom nearly as much as you may think. Some insulins are more forgiving than others when it comes to scheduling. What insulin are you using? There may be times when shots will have to be missed or shot times adjusted to accommodate your schedule or Sky's BG readings. It happens but you have to have a life too! With a bit of organization and planning, you'll be able to look after Sky and enjoy a social life of your own. We all have to find the schedule that will be the most stable for us and work around it as needs arise. :)
 
Thanks for the welcome. :)

She is on caninsulin (I think it's called) at the moment. The vet did say to make sure she had eaten but didn't mention taking her bloods before hand. We are using the Alphatrack 2 meter to measure her bloods. She isn't very happy about having her ears done - last night the vet had me turning her ears inside out and pressing the lancet on one of the raised veins. Have tried all day today to this (well, when she let me - she's the sweetest cat so when she shows signs of annoyance I know she must be really uncomfortable and give her a break). Tonight I have done the bloods the way all the internet instructions show - by using the vein and not the lancet- and have managed to get her tested. She didn't like it but at least I know I can do it. Her bloods 2 hours after eating/injecting are 12.2 which are still high but not as bad as when taken originally.

the vet only mentioned taking the bloods when they want a glucose curve doing but I had expected to be taking them more than that. Hopefully she will get used to them and it will become easier for us both - neither of us are bothered much by the injections but I expected the blood checking to be easier than it is!
 
Karen, taking BG tests does get easier with time because our kitties grow more capillaries in their ears from the testing. Make sure Sky's ear is warm when you test. Trying to get a test when the ear is cold is like trying to get blood out of a stone. Some folks use a little rice sock warmed in the microwave to warm the ear, some just rub them a little and others use a pill bottle with some warm water held against the ear. Just be sure to check the temp of the sock or pill bottle on your ear before using it on Sky to be sure it's not too hot. :)

You have the right size lancets if you are using the device/lancets that came with your meter. When you need more lancets, pick up the FS Lite lancets as they are identical and less expensive than the one's branded as Alphatrak.

One thing I found with the AT lancing device is that I have to remove the cap on the device in order to get a sample. I wrap the edge of my girl's ear over a folded makeup pad held behind her ear to create a bit of support and protect my finger. I hold the lancing device at about a 45-60 degree angle to the sweet spot right between the vein and edge of her ear and let the device do the work. Some folks find it easier to just use the lancet without the device and free hand it.

You can also try putting a tiny coat of Vaseline on the spot you intend to poke to help the blood bead up instead of smearing into fur. In time you will both get into a routine and you might even be surprised to find Sky searching you out at testing time. I am amazed by how accurate my girl's internal clock is!

We strongly recommend testing before each shot to ensure it is safe to give insulin. Our mid cycle testing then fills in the blanks and provides info about how a dose is working for kitty so we can adjust doses as needed. Curves are like snapshots of one day in time while getting pre-shot and random tests each day creates more of a full length movie with a lot more information.

You are well on your way and I guarantee it will get so much easier! :)
 
If you are using the AT meter, I found the FreeStyle light strips cost $35/Pack. They are identical to the AT strips and give the same numbers.
 
Had a slight setback - tested her blood tonight as I felt she wasn't quite right and it was 2.2! Didn't really trust myself to get her back up so gave her honey and got to emergency vet. Took a while but got her up to 4.0 so she could be let home - they are sure she will be fine as the numbers were increasing (did 2 tests, one was 3.1 the next 4.0). Now going to have to get my vet to look at her treatment plan. Could do without another crisis - still, gets it out of the way early!
 
That's quite an initiation! Sounds like you handled it extremely well. Thank goodness you tested her. How is Sky doing? You will likely want to test her again to make sure her levels are safe. If you need help, you might want to post on the main feline health board--I think it is more trafficked than this one. There are a lot of experts here and everyone is extremely helpful.
 
Hi, today is my first day here too! Although Griffin was diagnosed almost a year ago it feels like a day one for us (due to a vet that doesn't seem to be very well informed on this subject).

We are on the same insulin as well.
Glad you found your way here much sooner than us.

Moe
 
Sootyca said:
Had a slight setback - tested her blood tonight as I felt she wasn't quite right and it was 2.2! Didn't really trust myself to get her back up so gave her honey and got to emergency vet.
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Thank goodness for home testing! You did exactly the right thing.

The dose you gave is (obviously) too high. It needs to be reduced. If your vet hasn't already told you by how much to reduce then call them before giving the next dose. It is vital that you test before giving insulin to check whether it is safe to do so. Post a new thread on Feline Health for help if you need it.

VERY IMPORTANT: Some cats may become more sensitive to insulin after a hypoglycaemic episode and BG may start going lower than before, even on a reduced dose. Be extra-vigilant and test more frequently over the next couple of days - especially prior to and during the period when nadir is due.

:bighug:


Mogs
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I'm so sorry you had that baptism by fire! You did a great job handling the situation and getting Sky to the vet. :) Hopefully you won't have to deal with another low number event but in case, you can post on the Health HERE using a prefix of 911 (drop down box to the left of the Title box you type in) to get some assistance quickly as we all jump on any posts needing immediate assistance. If you haven't already done so, it would be a good idea to print out THIS document about handling low numbers so that you have it handy should you need it.
 
You are all amazing :) Thanks for all the assistance - I had read the documents yesterday and was going to print them this weekend.

Sky is like nothing is wrong today - not giving her the morning dose and going to speak to the normal vet.
 
PS: Take her BG at normal AMPS time even though you're not giving insulin this morning. It's very useful information to keep a record of after the hypo.
 
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