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Brenda Locke

Brenda Locke

Member Since 2017
my 11 year old cat just switched from kibble to wet food on Sat. He is on Lantis 3.5 units. This a.m he read 42 and just now read 40. I use the ReliOn meter. I have not injected him today. I do have his spreadsheet. What do I do about this number?
 
If you have food with higher carbs, like a gravy food, feed him a little bit of that. Then, test again in 20 minutes or so to make sure his number is rising. If you do not have higher carb food, add a drop or two of honey or Karo syrup to the food you have.
 
Please let us know how you kitty is doing. If you have retested, what is his reading now? If not please retest now.
Also what insulin are you using? It would also be most helpful if you could provide a link to your spreadsheet. It's likely you need to decrease the dose going forward to keep kitty safe.
 
Oops! Missed that. Thank you! Was following other post and it didn't say and I didn't read first message here. Lesson learned! :blackeye:
 
I have him more wet food (friskies pate) with some honey in it at 9:40. Just tested him and hes down to 36!
 
You need to rub some honey on his gums unless he will just lick some from your finger (half tsp or so) and then retest again in 15 minutes. You don't want him dropping any lower.
 
How many hours since last shot now? I know you skipped his shot this AM but with Lantus and the depot, he may just coast along in low numbers for awhile so you may be monitoring somewhat intensely for a bit yet. Do you have lots of strips for you meter in case he does surf along in low numbers for a while?
 
Brenda Locke said:
OK I just tested him and he is up to 50.
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ok, well since he hasn't had any insulin since last night, he's probably ok at this point. I would probably test again in 10 min. Switching to wet food can lower his numbers significantly, so because of that you should have lowered his dose. I'll let more experienced lantus users comment on their recommendation for the new dose. Have you been taking readings consistently? can you share with us your spreadsheet or log of his tests?
 
I agree with Janet that Riley is probably Ok now but another test or 2 just to be sure he holding would be a good idea. Dose definitely needs to be lowered and while we usually suggest dose adjustments of 0.25u, without seeing some recent pre-shot and midcycle test values, it's possible you need to reduce more than a quarter unit given the switch to wet food.
 
MrWorfMen's Mom post: 2055717 said:
How many hours since last shot now? I know you skipped his shot this AM but with Lantus and the depot, he may just coast along in low numbers for awhile so you may be monitoring somewhat intensely for a bit yet. Do you have lots of strips for you meter in case he does surf along in low numbers for a while?
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His last shot was last night at 8;30 pm
JanetNJ said:
ok, well since he hasn't had any insulin since last night, he's probably ok at this point. I would probably test again in 10 min. Switching to wet food can lower his numbers significantly, so because of that you should have lowered his dose. I'll let more experienced lantus users comment on their recommendation for the new dose. Have you been taking readings consistently? can you share with us your spreadsheet or log of his tests?
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how do I share his spreadsheet
 
Is the spreadsheet in Google sheets? If so, you need to turn on sharing with anyone with the link and then you can put the link to the spreadsheet in your signature for anyone here to view. If you are using an excel or other type of spreadsheet, you'd have to upload the file but only those with the appropriate software would be able to view it. If you need more help with the sharing or signature please holler and we'll help you get it set up here.
 
There are no readings between Sept 23rd and Oct 8th on your spreadsheet. Do you have any data for that time period? My gut feeling is that Riley's dose may have been too high for awhile causing those HI and black readings and it would be good to know what readings have been like for the past couple of weeks before making any recommendations about dosing for tonight.

I suggest you post with your pre-shot reading tonight a half hour or so before Riley's shot is due along with any data that may be missing from the spreadsheet to get advice on what dose to give at this point in time. That low reading this AM may make Riley a little more sensitive to insulin right now but Riley's BG may bounce up higher today following that low reading earlier. The dose definitely needs to be reduced...the decision to be made is by how much.
 
I agree that it looks like Riley's dose has been too high all along

That 94 the other day was my first clue.....that's why I had told you to try to get mid-cycles more often if you can. I think what's going on is that he's getting too much insulin, especially now that you've got him off the dry food

Is he eating better than he was?
 
I would lower to 2 units for a few days. Your cat is bouncing like a rubber ball. To go from 600+ down to 40 is crazy. It's gotta be making him feel crappy. Stop the bouncing and hopefully the preshots will come down. What wet food are you feeding.

What do more experienced lantus users think about a dose moving forward?
 
I just got home and tested him....he is at 203 now. I did not do any testing from sep 22nd-oct 8. He is currently eating Friskies pate.
 
I think we are all in agreement that the dose needs to be lowered. As others have suggested, try 2u but do try to get a test before bed tonight to see if Riley is dropping fast or holding steady. He may stay higher for a few cycles (up to 6 cycles) from the low this morning so it's important to test whenever you can to see how low the 2 units is taking him. The change from dry to wet food can have a dramatic effect on BG so monitoring a little more closely right now is really important to make sure Riley stays safe.
 
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