Recently diagnosed & having trouble getting numbers down

[D Marchus]

Greetings! My 9-year-old kitty was diagnosed with diabetes in January after an emergency room visit due to lack of appetite. Initially, we were dealing with a fatty liver diagnosis as well and had to resort to a feeding tube for three weeks. Fortunately, that issue has resolved, although he will only eat dry and refuses every offering of diabetic friendly wet foods. His dry food is Young Again Mature Zero, which is very low carb.

Though Neo is eating fine now, we are having a heck of a time getting his consistently high numbers down. There have been occasional days that made me feel like we were finally on the right track and then, poof, no more. Initially, he was super responsive to a .5 dose of Lantus and my vet (who has been great - very supportive and seems knowledgeable about kitty diabetes) thought that very promising. However, he's settled into a routine of high readings no matter what we do. I figured it was time to run his story by the folks on this group to see if anyone has had a similar experience and has some advice. This is my first time posting so I hope I set things up correctly for any interested parties to look at his spreadsheet. The link is in my signature block.

Additional details:
He's currently on a Lantus dose of 3.0. Following SLGS.
Neo seems happy and healthy though energy goes up and down.
Free fed - amount he's eating seems to be spot-on for the recommended daily amount.
No hiding, seeks my company and enjoys play time.
Drinking plenty of water and urinating accordingly
Never tested positive for ketones so far
Never experienced hypo so far

Thanks in advance!

Daniela

 

[Yong & Maury GA]

Welcome!
Setup looks good . There have been a few kitties that seem to respond well to low doses initially but then need increases. There's a big Lantus group here if you want to ask dosing specific questions. Always feel free to post other questions on the Main Health Forum.

Only thing I would add to your signature is mentioning his Fatty liver and what dates.

P.S. Neo's face in that picture is adooooorable!

 

[Kris & Teasel]

Welcome! Please post on the Lantus forum to get more help. I'll get started here though. You said you're following SLGS so that means there are some specific guidelines to follow:

1. hold a dose without changing it for 5 to 7 days
2. do a full curve once a week
3. drop the dose if you get a BG that's 90 or less.

I see one full curve done on Feb. 2 but no others. You did not give insulin on Mar. 10 PM because the pre shot number was a bit lower (153). You could have given the full dose then. Also, I see that you gave different doses AM and PM on Mar. 9, and Mar. 25. Lantus works best with consistency in dose size unless an increase or decrease is called for after a week at a dose.

There are many people on the Lantus forum who have a lot of experience and can help you get this sorted out.

 

[D Marchus]

Yong, thanks, he's always adorable. Yep, I'm a little biased. Added that info to my sig block.

Kris & Teasel, we're still working out the testing routine. Admit that's one area where my vet does fall short because she doesn't push for testing more...so, learning curve for me because I feel better testing & am planning on sticking with current dose and doing a full curve after a week. Trying to work toward consistency but admit the lower readings are where I struggle and am afraid of full doses for fear of hypo because the low readings are usually at night, it seems. Need to work on getting more comfortable with that!

I will post in the Lantus forum...just started here in the intro forum because we're newbies.

Thanks again!

 

[Kris & Teasel]

Yong, thanks, he's always adorable. Yep, I'm a little biased. Added that info to my sig block.

Kris & Teasel, we're still working out the testing routine. Admit that's one area where my vet does fall short because she doesn't push for testing more...so, learning curve for me because I feel better testing & am planning on sticking with current dose and doing a full curve after a week. Trying to work toward consistency but admit the lower readings are where I struggle and am afraid of full doses for fear of hypo because the low readings are usually at night, it seems. Need to work on getting more comfortable with that!

I will post in the Lantus forum...just started here in the intro forum because we're newbies.

Thanks again!

One day at a time! Neo is a cutie!