Justgin
Member Since 2017
Hi I am new here. Oreo got diagnosed a few weeks ago after vomiting the night before. He's 13. He was a feral cat from birth. I started feeding him and his two siblings and another kitty family on my back porch many years ago.
On Monday night, April 17, Oreo vomited, he must have thrown up about 7 times. But he still wanted to eat. I'd noticed he'd been losing a little weight over the course of several months but thought it was due to lower carb diet. I took him into the vet the next morning, Tuesday April 18. They drew blood and urine but did not do a quick stick. I wish they had.
The next morning, April 19, the vet phoned me at work and said his bg was 420's and he had some trace ketones in his urine. He wanted to see me the very next afternoon, but I wanted to get Oreo on insulin NOW.
That night when I got home, Oreo didn't even want to eat and was lethargic. I was afraid he was going into ketoacidosis and took him the the vet ER. They tested his bg and it was 460's but they did not want to give him any insulin. I was due to see the vet the next day anyway.
The next morning, April 20, I called the vet and asked to be seen sooner than 5:30 that afternoon, but that vet had surgery all day and could not see me. I had to be worked in. Oreo is a feral cat, and that first vet visit was very hard on him, I didn't want to sit there for God only knows how long until I could be worked in. So I called another vet office recommended to me by one of the techs at the ER the night before (she even told me she would not recommend taking Oreo back to that vet who diagnosed him, nor anyone else at that practice.)
So I got an appt with the recommended vet office that morning, still April 20, and canceled at the other office just due to that vet's unavailability and the urgency of the situation. The 2nd vet put Oreo on ProZinc insulin starting at 3 units every 12 hours. She told me to dose blindly. She discouraged home testing and told me that you can't use a regular glucometer on a cat because their blood is different. SMH!
Being a nurse, I didn't like blind dosing at all. I'd done some internet searches and found Dr. Hodgekins who recommended ProZinc and TR, so I thought this was the best thing for Oreo. In retrospect, I've wasted a lot of time. I even told this vet I work 12 hour shifts and she still put him on ProZinc. I used to work in a hospital many years ago back when the insulins used were Regular, NPH, and Lente. I'm not familiar with these newer ones.
Anyway, vet #1 had already written me a script for Lantus the day he notified me Oreo was diabetic. When I had asked him about ProZinc, he said he didn't like to use it because Lantus was more stable. I wish I'd listened to him. None of these vets are taking the time to listen to me, which is discouraging.
I started trying to test Oreo at home after I got a One Touch glucometer about a week ago. Oreo resisted, to say the least. I kept trying to take baby steps, getting him used to me petting his head, which he does not like, and rubbing his ears, which he hates!
When I stopped giving any dry food last Thursday, May 4, I also stopped the insulin for almost 24 hours, per the TR detox rules. Then Friday May 5 I tested Oreo for the first time at 1930. His bg was 338, so I dosed him using the PZ scales used on the YDC website. I had been talking with one lady there, who told me about another smaller group website, but I find it difficult to get information from her because of the language barrier. Some of her info has been confusing/conflicting and at times even alarmist, which I don't like.
I've had increasng difficulty sticking Oreo and getting a sample. Last night was the absolute worst. So today I'm taking the day off and not testing him. It's become a damned nightmare anyway. I almost threw that little machine and broke it because I was so frustrated. And after working 2 12 hour shifts, I was exhausted.
So now I'm here looking for guidance as I switch Oreo over to Lantus. Will call his original vet today, the one who first diagnosed him and gave me a script for Lantus.
I'm sorry this is so long. If you've read this far, thank you!
On Monday night, April 17, Oreo vomited, he must have thrown up about 7 times. But he still wanted to eat. I'd noticed he'd been losing a little weight over the course of several months but thought it was due to lower carb diet. I took him into the vet the next morning, Tuesday April 18. They drew blood and urine but did not do a quick stick. I wish they had.
The next morning, April 19, the vet phoned me at work and said his bg was 420's and he had some trace ketones in his urine. He wanted to see me the very next afternoon, but I wanted to get Oreo on insulin NOW.
That night when I got home, Oreo didn't even want to eat and was lethargic. I was afraid he was going into ketoacidosis and took him the the vet ER. They tested his bg and it was 460's but they did not want to give him any insulin. I was due to see the vet the next day anyway.
The next morning, April 20, I called the vet and asked to be seen sooner than 5:30 that afternoon, but that vet had surgery all day and could not see me. I had to be worked in. Oreo is a feral cat, and that first vet visit was very hard on him, I didn't want to sit there for God only knows how long until I could be worked in. So I called another vet office recommended to me by one of the techs at the ER the night before (she even told me she would not recommend taking Oreo back to that vet who diagnosed him, nor anyone else at that practice.)
So I got an appt with the recommended vet office that morning, still April 20, and canceled at the other office just due to that vet's unavailability and the urgency of the situation. The 2nd vet put Oreo on ProZinc insulin starting at 3 units every 12 hours. She told me to dose blindly. She discouraged home testing and told me that you can't use a regular glucometer on a cat because their blood is different. SMH!
Being a nurse, I didn't like blind dosing at all. I'd done some internet searches and found Dr. Hodgekins who recommended ProZinc and TR, so I thought this was the best thing for Oreo. In retrospect, I've wasted a lot of time. I even told this vet I work 12 hour shifts and she still put him on ProZinc. I used to work in a hospital many years ago back when the insulins used were Regular, NPH, and Lente. I'm not familiar with these newer ones.
Anyway, vet #1 had already written me a script for Lantus the day he notified me Oreo was diabetic. When I had asked him about ProZinc, he said he didn't like to use it because Lantus was more stable. I wish I'd listened to him. None of these vets are taking the time to listen to me, which is discouraging.
I started trying to test Oreo at home after I got a One Touch glucometer about a week ago. Oreo resisted, to say the least. I kept trying to take baby steps, getting him used to me petting his head, which he does not like, and rubbing his ears, which he hates!
When I stopped giving any dry food last Thursday, May 4, I also stopped the insulin for almost 24 hours, per the TR detox rules. Then Friday May 5 I tested Oreo for the first time at 1930. His bg was 338, so I dosed him using the PZ scales used on the YDC website. I had been talking with one lady there, who told me about another smaller group website, but I find it difficult to get information from her because of the language barrier. Some of her info has been confusing/conflicting and at times even alarmist, which I don't like.
I've had increasng difficulty sticking Oreo and getting a sample. Last night was the absolute worst. So today I'm taking the day off and not testing him. It's become a damned nightmare anyway. I almost threw that little machine and broke it because I was so frustrated. And after working 2 12 hour shifts, I was exhausted.
So now I'm here looking for guidance as I switch Oreo over to Lantus. Will call his original vet today, the one who first diagnosed him and gave me a script for Lantus.
I'm sorry this is so long. If you've read this far, thank you!
. Unfortunately, I injured myself about 2 weeks after my boys diagnosis so I had to shoot blindly, I knew he couldn't miss getting insulin. Think my hair got even thinner 
. Let us know which insulin you plan to use. TR protocol is for Lantus, Prozinc doesn't have those sort of protocols since it is not a depot insulin. Going to leave you with some links to instructions now 
Hopefully I'm zeroing in on getting Oreo on the right drug. He's off all dry food now and on low carb - as far as I know! I hate not knowing for sure just what the percentages are in each can. Some people who make their own kitty food swear it's actually cheaper to make it than buy it. I'd like to know more about that if you know anything about it.
