Is this bg getting in dangerous territory?

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bbwyo

bbwyo

Member Since 2017
My kitty is still being regulated. Today she has been bouncing around. AMPS 0700 bg was 332 the day was normal evening PMPS was 275 which is normal but at +2 she was at 62. This is the lowest reading we've had since starting vetsulin May 12th. I have been holding back 1/3 of evening feeding and went ahead and fed this. She seems normal but her nadir is 2-3 hrs away. Should I be concerned and since we are going into the night do I need to stay awake to watch for a hypo episode? She is only on .5 cu and the Vet said this was such a low dose a hypo situation was highly unlikely?

Thank you.
 
I wouldn't panic yet, but I definitely would keep testing at least till she's past her nadir. Have you tested her since you fed her the rest of her dinner? S0metimes just a little low carb boost is all they need to "surf" in good numbers.
 
I haven't tested her since but did feed her some more (a little w/d dry). Her eyes are still dilated somewhat but she did a little grooming and is curled up in her bed. Not real relaxed but the ravenous hunger seems to have subsided.
 
I really appreciate your concern. I'll keep watching her for the next hour or two. I have the Karo and hypo instructions at hand. I think we are doing ok now. How long does it take for food to have an effect?
 
bbwyo said:
I really appreciate your concern. I'll keep watching her for the next hour or two. I have the Karo and hypo instructions at hand. I think we are doing ok now. How long does it take for food to have an effect?
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The canned food takes effect pretty quickly. Do you have any gravy food on hand? When was the last time you tested her? It might be a good idea to get another test now.

EDIT: Dry food takes much longer to take effect.
 
babyBoo said:
I would definitely test again now, that was a fast drop. Over 200 in 2 hours if that test was correct. I would have tested within 30 minutes of that drop after feeding at least MC food.
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Yes, I'm wondering if it was indeed accurate.
 
I had a similar big drop on December 9th and immediately fed gravy and he would come up a bit 30 minutes later and 30 later drop again. It was over 5 hours of feeding gravy lovers before he stayed up. If the drop is correct you might have a lengthy time ahead of you tonight,. Do you have plenty of test strips.
 
Normal food is ff w/ 1/3 c prescription w/d. I fed her some of the ff classic at first low reading. then some more of the w/d.. she was ravenous. that has subsided but she's pretty lethargic. will see if she will eat more of the ff. I do have a question The Hypo instructions say that dry food will keep the bg #'s elevated longer. So the wet food is faster but the dry food helps keep numbers from dropping?
 
They will both elevate bg; the wet food is faster acting, the dry may last a bit because it takes longer to process, but it also won't take effect as quickly. Do you have any gravy-style food for hypos?
 
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I have the ff classic that has a gravy-like substance in/around it. I've been feeding her that and just fed some more. She seems to be coming around will test again shortly
 
For future reference, it's a good idea to have a few cans of the gravy-style food on hand for hypos. You can feed just the gravy (helps keep kitty from getting too full, in case you need to do a lot of steering with food), which is where most of the carbs are. :)
 
Back to your original question, is this bg getting into dangerous territory?. A 62 itself can be dangerous, depending on the cat and the meter. But a drop that fast can easily be in the 30's or less in another 15-30 minutes. So if that drop had happened with my cat, I would be scared at that point. If I had got a 67, 2 hours later without using any high carb I would be a lot less scared. At that 4 hour pont, I would expect a low carb meal followed by tests in an hour and then another hour to remain over 60. But I would still test in an hour and two to be safe.
 
Squalliesmom said:
Good! You say her nadir is around +4-+6? Do you know if she gets a full, twelve-hour duration from her Vetsulin?
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I dont know that. I guess I've only tested up to the +5. When I look back at her spreadsheet it does look like she she stays pretty stable and I'm very close to the 12 hr feeding/dosing schedule.
 
babyBoo said:
Back to your original question, is this bg getting into dangerous territory?. A 62 itself can be dangerous, depending on the cat and the meter. But a drop that fast can easily be in the 30's or less in another 15-30 minutes. So if that drop had happened with my cat, I would be scared at that point. If I had got a 67, 2 hours later without using any high carb I would be a lot less scared. I would expect a low carb meal followed by tests in an hour and then another hour to remain over 60. But I would still test in an hour to be safe,
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So I'm mixing a 6th of a cup of the hi carb w/d in with every meal. The Vet wanted me to go to the W/D 100% but I haven't done that. the 1/3 cup a day amounts to about 1/3 of total calorie intake. I'm trying to understand "if I had got a 67 2 hrs later without using any high carb" you would be less scared?
 
babyBoo said:
Back to your original question, is this bg getting into dangerous territory?. A 62 itself can be dangerous, depending on the cat and the meter. But a drop that fast can easily be in the 30's or less in another 15-30 minutes. So if that drop had happened with my cat, I would be scared at that point. If I had got a 67, 2 hours later without using any high carb I would be a lot less scared. At that 4 hour pont, I would expect a low carb meal followed by tests in an hour and then another hour to remain over 60. But I would still test in an hour and two to be safe.
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That is a huge drop at just +2.
 
Squalliesmom said:
For future reference, it's a good idea to have a few cans of the gravy-style food on hand for hypos. You can feed just the gravy (helps keep kitty from getting too full, in case you need to do a lot of steering with food), which is where most of the carbs are. :)
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I understand. I have been afraid of her getting really full and wondering how to deal with that tomorrow? Yes feeding only the gravy would have been better. is there anything else like that that I might have on hand?
 
bbwyo said:
I'm trying to understand "if I had got a 67 2 hrs later without using any high carb" you would be less scared?
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The 67 at +4, without the necessity of feeding HC food, shows that your kitty is staying fairly stable - at the moment. That can change quickly.
 
bbwyo said:
I'm trying to understand "if I had got a 67 2 hrs later without using any high carb" you would be less scared?
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Basically at +2 I would have started to fear that your cat was heading for big trouble and at +4 I'm not too worried at all, as you didn't need to apply much quick acting high carbs. I would still test in an hour, maybe even 30 minutes.
 
bbwyo said:
I'm Bev:) Kitty can't type. how do I post multiple tests for +5?
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Lol, she can't?!?!? So what is your non-typing kitty's name?
Do you mean on your spreadsheet? I just stack them and add a note with the times, if they're not all at the same time.
 
Usually its a good idea if your battling low numbers to keep testing until at least two hours after last food was ate and which hasn't dropped in bg level before you consider your cat safe. Also you want to be an hour or so past the usual nadir point.
 
I'm really sad to say that Kitty is her name. I had too much input. Some people call her Rosie, others Abbie so between the 2 of us Kitty B. works. How does she normalize after this episode? Will the extra food change how she should be fed tomorrow? Do I reduce her dose tomorrow? The Vet told me to stop testing, that it would take 3+ weeks for her body to regulate and then we would start testing. I guess I'll just have to tell her I didn't stop.
 
babyBoo said:
Usually its a good idea if your battling low numbers to keep testing until at least two hours after last food was ate and which hasn't dropped in bg level before you consider your cat safe. Also you want to be an hour or so past the usual nadir point.
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You're right. That's exactly what we're going to do. :)
 
bbwyo said:
I'm really sad to say that Kitty is her name. I had too much input. Some people call her Rosie, others Abbie so between the 2 of us Kitty B. works. How does she normalize after this episode? Will the extra food change how she should be fed tomorrow? Do I reduce her dose tomorrow? The Vet told me to stop testing, that it would take 3+ weeks for her body to regulate and then we would start testing. I guess I'll just have to tell her I didn't stop.
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Kitty, I love it! She is a beautiful girl.
I don't know why so many vets tell owners not to test. Our cats are like our children - I certainly would not blindly inject a child with a potent hormone like insulin! Kitty may bounce from this, meaning her body may dump a whole lot of glycogen because it goes into a panic, thinking she needs it, so her numbers tomorrow may be high. It can take up to three days sometimes to clear a bounce, so don't be upset if she continues in higher numbers for a few days. And definitely do not increase her dose. Feed her tomorrow just like you would any other time. If her numbers are below 200 tomorrow, stall, don't feed, and post for advice. When in doubt, it's always best to err on the side of caution and skip the dose.

ETA: Some cats can be more sensitive to insulin after a hypo; you may have to reduce her dose. But post first for help.:)
 
i don't understand "if her numbers are under 200 don't feed" and do you mean if her numbers are under 200 to skip a dose?
 
bbwyo said:
i don't understand "if her numbers are under 200 don't feed" and do you mean if her numbers are under 200 to skip a dose?
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I mean, if her number are under 200, stall - don't do anything until you post for help. You don't want to feed because you may need to test again in 30 minutes or so, and you don't want that number to be food-influenced.
 
When we stall, we typically wait about 30 minutes and test again to see if bg has risen enough to go ahead with the normal routine. If not, you can stall again for another 30 minutes. If her bg is high enough that you are comfortable giving her insulin, then you go ahead and feed, and decide if you're going to give a full or reduced dose, or none at all.
 
She said it was such a low dose .5 cu??? Re: Stall I thought numbers under 200 were safe to shoot is this because of the incident tonight?
 
bbwyo said:
She said it was such a low dose .5 cu??? Re: Stall I thought numbers under 200 were safe to shoot is this because of the incident tonight?
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We don't usually recommend shooting numbers under 200 unless you have a good bit of testing in (and on your spreadsheet for reference).
 
could the Vetsulin not been mixed enough? I try to watch that it's all consistent but when I was first learning to give shots I would turn the bottle up and some would squirt out. Maybe the potency was effected?
 
bbwyo said:
could the Vetsulin not been mixed enough? I try to watch that it's all consistent but when I was first learning to give shots I would turn the bottle up and some would squirt out. Maybe the potency was effected?
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Possibly, but doubtful. How do you mix it?
 
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