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Bron

Bron

Member Since 2017
Hi everyone - great to be here - Quiz was diagnosed just two weeks ago, is on Lantus and we are commencing home testing as soon as my strips arrive (ordered on Ebay). So far he's been tested twice at the vet, levels still high though....we are at 3 units of Lantus twice daily as of yesterday. He is on wet food only, general low carb, high protein with a bit of lactose free cow's milk. Feeding him the approved brands/varieties such as FF and Weruva and also some raw meat which he's loving. I'm also feeding him freeze dried meat bits as a treat. Being in the early stages of his insulin treatment he is still ravenous but I'm hoping to see that go down a bit soon.

I'm setting up our spreadsheet today. Still reading through the info - but for now can someone explain what the abbreviations on everyone's post titles here mean?

It's been a rough two weeks for us - our other cat Billie was backed over by a car and had to have his front limb amputated....then Quiz was diagnosed a week later. My partner is currently cat proofing the back yard - I've let Quiz outside (doesn't go too far) - he comes in easily at night, Billy is housebound and doing well but bored - can't wait until we enclosure is done - not to long I hope! I will eventually be feeding the two cats the same diet - but Billy isn't really into food - never has been....

BTW if anyone else here has a tripod I'd love to here from you....steep learning curve for us - diabetic and amputee cats!

Thanks for all your help!
Bron
 
Bron said:
but for now can someone explain what the abbreviations on everyone's post titles here mean?
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Our subject lines are pretty much just a "snapshot" of our kitties test results during each day from their spreadsheet

This "Understanding the spreadsheet grid" post will help explain

Each day we start a new thread with the date, cats name and AMPS test result (AM Pre-Shot...the test you get immediately before feeding/shooting in the morning)....as the day goes on, we "edit" the subject line to add newer test results....that way people who are scanning the forum can quickly see how each cat is doing that day and respond to ones they see that might need some help first
 
Thanks Chris - I understand some of the abbreviations but the ones with the '+' - I'm still getting the hang of.....
 
The + cells on the spreadsheet correspond to the number of hours since the last shot

So if you shoot at 6am and get another test at 9am, that's 3 hours after the shot...so +3.....if you test again at 2pm, that's 8 hours after the shot, so +8, etc.....all the way to +11 and then the next cycle starts the whole thing over
 
Welcome.

Confused about our jargon?
Don't let it scare you off! You'll catch on in no time.
Until then, here's some help:
  • FDMB Glossary - common abbreviations & definitions used throughout the Feline Diabetes Message Board
Click the blue words, they are links and will take you to the lists.

If it isn't on these two, just post up which you need definition for.
 
Thanks everyone - yes looked at the jargon page when I first came here - the 'Understanding' document was what I was after....so much information here - it's great, but I'm sure you all remember what it felt like when you first joined this world.....:(
 
Bron said:
Thanks everyone - yes looked at the jargon page when I first came here - the 'Understanding' document was what I was after....so much information here - it's great, but I'm sure you all remember what it felt like when you first joined this world.....:(
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Yes, lots of info to absorb. It's very overwhelming at first. But everyone is extremely helpful so just ask lots of questions. :bighug:
 
Hello Bron and Quiz and welcome. Can I ask a bit more about Quiz. Any other medical issues on diagnosis? How much does he weigh? It looks like you have gone up in dose faster than we do here, so getting those home tests in will be really helpful for figuring what his dose should be. Cats often test much higher at the vet, so it's not a good way to judge how well a dose is doing.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
Hello Bron and Quiz and welcome. Can I ask a bit more about Quiz. Any other medical issues on diagnosis? How much does he weigh? It looks like you have gone up in dose faster than we do here, so getting those home tests in will be really helpful for figuring what his dose should be. Cats often test much higher at the vet, so it's not a good way to judge how well a dose is doing.
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Hi Wendy,

Thanks for your reply....absolutely no medical issues on diagnosis - super healthy. Possibly slightly stressed due to the recent issues with our other cat (see above). He's a big boy....had lost a lot of weight before diagnosis but is putting that back on now - yesterday he weighed 4.4 kg (9.7 lbs) and has gained 100 g (.22 lbs) in the last week.

This morning I rang the vet with questions about insulin dose and home testing (after reading here and becoming totally confused haha!) - and he said that going from 2 to 3 units is normal at this stage. He wants us to just do weekly home testing (every 2 hours) until he is stable, and then 2 hourly - possibly by testing urine (not sure about that yet).
I really appreciate the help here - but as we are only 2 weeks in, we really want to go with the vet's advice at the moment - he is a personal friend too....really supportive of us testing at home which is great.
 
I don't know if you have looked at anyone else's spreadsheet yet. It's rather interesting, especially of other newly diabetic cats. You'll find that taking tests for one random cycle a week a week gives you no idea how well a cat is doing on a dose.

A lot of cats get stable on less than 3.0 units, though some like my girl needed more. Her good dose ranged from 8.75 units to 0.25 units over the five years. It was home testing regularly that allowed me to keep her safe. I am glad you have started testing at home. Just make sure you have a good supply of high carb food around and know the symptoms of hypos.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
I don't know if you have looked at anyone else's spreadsheet yet. It's rather interesting, especially of other newly diabetic cats. You'll find that taking tests for one random cycle a week a week gives you no idea how well a cat is doing on a dose.

A lot of cats get stable on less than 3.0 units, though some like my girl needed more. Her good dose ranged from 8.75 units to 0.25 units over the five years. It was home testing regularly that allowed me to keep her safe. I am glad you have started testing at home. Just make sure you have a good supply of high carb food around and know the symptoms of hypos.
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Yes I've had a look at a few, but want to go with the vet's advice for now....later on when I've got more confidence I can do more close monitoring. Quiz had a hypo which led to the diagnosis so very familiar with that!
 
Bron said:
Quiz had a hypo which led to the diagnosis so very familiar with that!
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The problem with low BG's is that they don't always show in the way the kitty acts. Just last night our Zeke went down to 33 and he acted perfectly normal even playful! Without regular monitoring, we would have probably went to bed and woke to a tragedy because we wouldn't have caught that he was dropping dangerously low like that. One day a week is not enough. Look at it this way, would you give your child a dose of insulin without first checking what their BG was? Why would you want to do that with your kitty?
 
I don't like kids much so I'm not the best person to ask :) Believe me I want the best for him and that's why I"m here but as I've said a few times, I'm going with the vet's advice .....
He only wants it to be done one day a week for now.....once the levels start going down - hopefully this week - I'll be able to monitor more often and there is nothing to stop me doing that in the meantime.
I really appreciate your concern though guys.....but perhaps not the pressure some of you are putting on me....I'm stressed enough as it is with a newly diagnosed diabetic and a new amputee as well....
 
It's a lot to take in at the beginning. :bighug: We all remember how overwhelming it is. Take your time, practice the home testing when you can, in your own time. Keep reading and learning, and above keep asking questions. The learning curve at the beginning is steep, but we love to help.
 
Bron said:
BTW if anyone else here has a tripod I'd love to here from you
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We've had several tripod kitties here....the cool thing about cats is they don't realize they're handicapped and don't dwell on it....they just adapt and move on

I know @Tricia Cinco(GA) & Harvey had an amputee kitty....she's now passed, but she was very much a normal cat in every way once she was healed. She's usually on later at night when she's here
 
Bron said:
if anyone else here has a tripod I'd love to here from you....steep learning curve for us - diabetic and amputee cats!
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Sorry to hear you have so much on your plate right now. Uncle is a tripod as well. About 8 years ago he had his back leg removed at the hip after he was found to have a cancerous tumor on his upper leg from the rabies vaccination. The hardest part was keeping him still and not letting him jump up or down on anything until his sutures were completely healed. After he was fully recovered from the surgery he kind of picked up where he left off, catching mice etc., he even got 2 in one day! I did make little stairs for him so that he can still get up on the couch and bed by himself. Sometimes I think it was more traumatic for me! The vet said "cats have 3 wheels and a spare". :bighug:
 
Hi Bron, and welcome to Lantus & Levemir Land - the nicest place you never wanted to be.

I'm sorry to hear about all the trauma you've had with your two kitties recently. I can relate. All four of my senior cats were diagnosed with cancer in the same year, including my civvie Sasha, who had to have her right front leg amputated due to an injection site sarcoma. Like Barbara's Uncle, she thought she was ready to resume normal activities before I thought she was! It did take her a while to figure out how to do certain things with one less leg - and that there were some she couldn't do anymore - but she managed. I'll tell you, the first time I saw her make it all the way upstairs on her own, I sat down and cried! She was a real fighter. Feel free to ask me any questions about it - I'd be happy to help. Someone else here that had an amputee helped me through the first scary weeks, so I want to pay it forward.

I am sorry you feel we are pressuring you about testing. That is not our intention. Of course, you don't know us, and you say your vet is a person friend, so it is absolutely understandable why you prefer to go with your vet's advice. We aren't trying to bully you or say your vet is wrong. We just want you to understand that we have seen what can happen when insulin is given without monitoring.

We are not vets. However, there are many people here with literally years of dealing with FD 24/7, some of us with more than one cat. We like to share what we've learned. What we give you are suggestions. You get to choose whether to follow them or not. We will support your decisions, and your right to make them, regardless of whether or not we agree. It's your cat and your life. We just want to help. So please read all the stickies at the top of the L&L page and ask lots of questions. There is a ton of info and it is very overwhelming, especially when you are already reeling from the FD diagnosis. Yes, we all remember how it felt!

We put together a post recently to help new members get comfortable with the forum and how we do things. Kind of an FAQ: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/updated-tips-for-new-members.173572/

Again, we're glad you're here and we can't wait to get to know you and Quiz (love the name!) better!
 
T
Wendy&Neko said:
It's a lot to take in at the beginning. :bighug: We all remember how overwhelming it is. Take your time, practice the home testing when you can, in your own time. Keep reading and learning, and above keep asking questions. The learning curve at the beginning is steep, but we love to help.
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Thank you Wendy :)
Chris & China said:
We've had several tripod kitties here....the cool thing about cats is they don't realize they're handicapped and don't dwell on it....they just adapt and move on

I know @Tricia Cinco(GA) & Harvey had an amputee kitty....she's now passed, but she was very much a normal cat in every way once she was healed. She's usually on later at night when she's here
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Thanks Chris
 
Thank you....I've read all the stickies on here now I think.....I absolutely respect the knowledge and experience of all of you, believe me. I haven't felt pressured at all being here - until today, and it was just one post, right after I'd made a decision after a conversation with my vet - so maybe it was bad timing. BTW we didn't name Quiz - both he and Billy were rescues so we inherited the names! :)
 
Welcome! I'm in Sydney and still getting my head around things myself. Bron & Sheba really helped me through some rough times at the start, especially with a long night where I learned how to manage Girlie's deep dives with glucose syrup and food.
Frequent testing is a lifesaver, especially if you've had a hypo. Girlie did that too early on - scared the willies out of me and she ended up in hospital for over a week.
So sorry re your other kitty, but glad there's improvement there.
You've come to the right place at FDMB. The people here have helped me so much!
 
As I had a hypo scare and Girlie likes to do deep dives, the first thing I did was set up my hypo toolbox with all necessary goodies in there so I wouldn't have to search for things. Girlie won't go near honey, so the vet gave us glucose syrup which is easy for me to get into her if necessary. I printed both of the posts below out and keep them at hand so I can just read them when my mind is a blank. I'm sure you have these, but if not, here you go:

How to treat hypos

JoJo and bunny's Hypo Tool Box
 
Bron said:
I don't like kids much so I'm not the best person to ask :) Believe me I want the best for him and that's why I"m here but as I've said a few times, I'm going with the vet's advice .....
He only wants it to be done one day a week for now.....once the levels start going down - hopefully this week - I'll be able to monitor more often and there is nothing to stop me doing that in the meantime.
I really appreciate your concern though guys.....but perhaps not the pressure some of you are putting on me....I'm stressed enough as it is with a newly diagnosed diabetic and a new amputee as well....
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Oh no - I hadn't read this when I went on about hypos and testing. You can ask Bron - I was falling apart from stress about all of this initially as well. I was terrified, couldn't get my head around anything, was overwhelmed with everything I was trying to learn, not sleeping, forgetting to eat - I even went off chocolate (which is saying something). Add to that, my vet also thought I was weird to test so often - and she's a specialist vet at the ARH here in Sydney. Although now she loves the FDMB spreadsheet and all of the data I have on Girlie.

So I was a basket case and I can understand how much stress you're feeling right now. I so hope I didn't add to it for you!

Girlie also started in blacks - and blacks - and blacks - and has only just started to dip her toes into healthier blues and even greens (although of course she does her deep dives which scare the willies out of me, but I've learned - with Bron & Sheba's and other people's help here - how to deal with them).

Quiz looks like a bit of a character. I'm glad you're both here and apologise, again, if I've added in any way to your stress levels!
 
Girlie's mom said:
Welcome! I'm in Sydney and still getting my head around things myself. Bron & Sheba really helped me through some rough times at the start, especially with a long night where I learned how to manage Girlie's deep dives with glucose syrup and food.
Frequent testing is a lifesaver, especially if you've had a hypo. Girlie did that too early on - scared the willies out of me and she ended up in hospital for over a week.
So sorry re your other kitty, but glad there's improvement there.
You've come to the right place at FDMB. The people here have helped me so much!
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Hi! Great to meet you!
Just waiting for my test strips to arrive (hopefully today) and then I'll get in to it - or Kim (my partner) will - he's so laidback about it all, good to have him around! He works from home too whereas I don't....
 
Girlie's mom said:
Oh no - I hadn't read this when I went on about hypos and testing. You can ask Bron - I was falling apart from stress about all of this initially as well. I was terrified, couldn't get my head around anything, was overwhelmed with everything I was trying to learn, not sleeping, forgetting to eat - I even went off chocolate (which is saying something). Add to that, my vet also thought I was weird to test so often - and she's a specialist vet at the ARH here in Sydney. Although now she loves the FDMB spreadsheet and all of the data I have on Girlie.

So I was a basket case and I can understand how much stress you're feeling right now. I so hope I didn't add to it for you!

Girlie also started in blacks - and blacks - and blacks - and has only just started to dip her toes into healthier blues and even greens (although of course she does her deep dives which scare the willies out of me, but I've learned - with Bron & Sheba's and other people's help here - how to deal with them).

Quiz looks like a bit of a character. I'm glad you're both here and apologise, again, if I've added in any way to your stress levels!
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Oh no you didn't ! :) I understand everyone is trying to help and really appreciate it - I think I just had a bad day yesterday....:) Yes the other Bron has been sending me some wonderful info - and it's good to have some other Aussies here too....
BTW in my profile photo he's watching the ballet haha - he loves watching telly :)
 
Barbara & Uncle said:
Sorry to hear you have so much on your plate right now. Uncle is a tripod as well. About 8 years ago he had his back leg removed at the hip after he was found to have a cancerous tumor on his upper leg from the rabies vaccination. The hardest part was keeping him still and not letting him jump up or down on anything until his sutures were completely healed. After he was fully recovered from the surgery he kind of picked up where he left off, catching mice etc., he even got 2 in one day! I did make little stairs for him so that he can still get up on the couch and bed by himself. Sometimes I think it was more traumatic for me! The vet said "cats have 3 wheels and a spare". :bighug:
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Barbara I love your vet's quote! I hope it's true with our lad - we are trying not to mollycoddle him too much but it's hard. It's winter here at the moment (spring next week yay!) so all he wants to do is lie on the bed or on our laps - he's very clingy. He's still fab at jumping though, no problems there (it's the foreleg so he still has his jumping legs) Not eating a great deal either which is worrying....I'm hoping this all picks up when the enclosure is finished and he is allowed to go outside again. But do you remember this happening with Uncle? Excuse the OT post everyone!!
 
Bron said:
Excuse the OT post everyone!!
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No worries - if you want to see someone who really went OT in her condos, you should read some of mine! With four sick cats (two diabetics), I covered everyone just about every day, and I got some terrific help for all of them from the wonderful people here. We love our civvies, too!

Bron said:
Not eating a great deal either which is worrying.
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If his activity level is reduced, it's not surprising that his appetite is, too. I would get a pet or baby scale, if you don't have one, and weigh him once a week. That way you'll know if he starts losing weight. Then you'd need to jump on it.
 
Bron said:
Hi! Great to meet you!
Just waiting for my test strips to arrive (hopefully today) and then I'll get in to it - or Kim (my partner) will - he's so laidback about it all, good to have him around! He works from home too whereas I don't....
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That will be really good if you are both able to test and a real bonus if Kim works from home. That will make it so much less stressful having someone at home. Keep us updated with how you go testing and yell if you need anything.
The other Bron ;)
 
Tricia Cinco(GA) & Harvey said:
No worries - if you want to see someone who really went OT in her condos, you should read some of mine! With four sick cats (two diabetics), I covered everyone just about every day, and I got some terrific help for all of them from the wonderful people here. We love our civvies, too!


If his activity level is reduced, it's not surprising that his appetite is, too. I would get a pet or baby scale, if you don't have one, and weigh him once a week. That way you'll know if he starts losing weight. Then you'd need to jump on it.
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I think half the time he can't be bothered going to the bowl - it's just Too Hard! If I shove his face in the bowl, he will eat. He's got us under the paw I think :)
 
Bron said:
Barbara I love your vet's quote! I hope it's true with our lad - we are trying not to mollycoddle him too much but it's hard. It's winter here at the moment (spring next week yay!) so all he wants to do is lie on the bed or on our laps - he's very clingy. He's still fab at jumping though, no problems there (it's the foreleg so he still has his jumping legs) Not eating a great deal either which is worrying....I'm hoping this all picks up when the enclosure is finished and he is allowed to go outside again. But do you remember this happening with Uncle? Excuse the OT post everyone!!
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Hi Bron, just hopping on the board after a long stressful day...
Uncle's surgery was a while ago so I can't recall all the details regarding his appetite. I do however remember that he didn't seem to have a great appetite right away after the surgery. Either the pain meds made him forget about food or the antibiotic was bothering his tummy.
Not sure how long Billy has been off all meds.
I agree with Tricia though, it just may be due to the reduced physical activity. Keep an eye on it for sure.
Hope it picks up soon :bighug:
 
Bron said:
I think half the time he can't be bothered going to the bowl - it's just Too Hard! If I shove his face in the bowl, he will eat. He's got us under the paw I think :)
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Girlie is like that! She is SO SPOILED! When she's next to the heater or lying in the sun, nothing will move her. And she knows that I'll bring her food to her...
She was REALLY ill after she was first diagnosed because a lot of other things happened, and getting her to eat was a nightmare. She's also always been really, really, really picky...
I am happy to follow her around with food bowls, though, although I don't have to do that as much anymore, thank goodness! :-)
 
Bron said:
Oh no you didn't ! :) I understand everyone is trying to help and really appreciate it - I think I just had a bad day yesterday....:) Yes the other Bron has been sending me some wonderful info - and it's good to have some other Aussies here too....
BTW in my profile photo he's watching the ballet haha - he loves watching telly :)
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I am SO relieved! :-)
Classy cat that likes ballet. Gold stars for that! I love ballet as well; I just wish tickets were affordable here...sigh...
 
Hi Bron,

I sent you a conversation invite in case you'd like to chat about food and supplies. I get my half-unit syringes from Hyperdrug in the UK: they're great, and the cost isn't bad because the British pound to AUD exchange rate is good for us.

You can find my conversation invite by right clicking on your name and choosing Conversations.

I hope you're doing well! :-)
 
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