Giving my cat Trooper 2 units and not sure if I should skip his next shot

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catdaddy1

catdaddy1

Member Since 2017
Hi, I'm pretty new to all of this and still haven't figured out how to read a chart, plus I'm terrible at math so a lot of these conversations are like they're in a foreign language to me. My vet gave me a prescription for Prozinc and told me to give 2 units 2 times a day every 12 hours. I've been doing that and have missed the dosing time and so skipped it a couple of times. In the last 5 days though, we have been on schedule. The thing is that today he seems more sluggish and a little more wobbly in the legs than he has. So what is better? To skip his night time shot tonight? Lower the amount of insulin? 2 units sounds like a lot compared to what others are giving their cats and also I'm not real sure my new vet really cares because the only instructions he gave was to give him insulin and he didn't even show me how or tell me where to get it. Or just skip the shot all together?
 
catdaddy1 said:
still haven't figured out how to read a chart
Click to expand...
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/
AND:
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/understanding-the-spreadsheet-grid.156606/
catdaddy1 said:
give 2 units 2 times a day every 12 hours.
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The usual starting dose is 1 unit twice a day. Try for as regular a dosing schedule as you can manage so you don't have to skip shots.

The only way to know if a dose is too high or too low is by testing blood glucose yourself. From what you've said your vet hasn't been very helpful. We can help with just about anything diabetes related.

  • When was your kitty diagnosed?
  • What do you feed him?
  • Does he have any other medications or health problems?
  • How old is he?
Welcome! Lots of help and support here. :)
 
Last edited:
Kris & Teasel said:
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/
AND:
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/understanding-the-spreadsheet-grid.156606/

The usual starting dose is 1 unit twice a day. Try for as regular a dosing schedule as you can mange so you don't have to skip shots.

The only way to know if a dose is too high or too low is by testing blood glucose yourself. From what you've said your vet hasn't been very helpful. We can help with just about anything diabetes related.

  • When was your kitty diagnosed?
  • What do you feed him?
  • Does he have any other medications or health problems?
  • How old is he?
Welcome! Lots of help and support here. :)

He was diagnosed about three weeks ago. When he was diagnosed his blood glucose was 633. I attemted a few times to get a blood reading for a home meter I just bought and I've been able to get one reading and it said 128mg, that was yesterday and on a human meter.
I've been feeding him fancy feast classic for about 4 weeks because I started reading about it before he was diagnosed but I didn't stop the dry food until he was diagnosed.
He has some medicine for ear mites but that is about used up and I need to get him something for fleas. I also just inherited my mom's cat because she is 89 and fractured her femur and after nursing her back to healthy she moved to an assisted living out in Tennessee by my older brother.
Trooper, the cat in question, is about 14, the other cat is 15 and these two have lived together off and on throughout those years. (Old cats sure can be a lot like old people lol)
I don't know why he wanted me to give him 2 units twice a day but I also don't know what to look for and I watch and worry about my boy every day. Tomorrow I start a new job which is going to drive me nuts while I'm there but it's only part time so I will survive, I just want Trooper to survive too. If diabetes gets him then I will have no one to blame but myself for not knowing what to do so that's why I'm here now on this site.
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I just wrote a long reply and I don't know if it went anywhere so here it goes.
My cat Trooper was diagnosed about 3 weeks ago and at that time the vet said his blood glucose was 633. I finally got some blood out of his ear yesterday for my ReliOn Prime meter and it read 128?

I have been feeding him fancy feast classic since he was diagnosed, I just inherited my mom's cat too so she is also on a fancy feast diet like it or not.

Trooper's only other problems are ear mites which I'm giving him drops for and fleas which I need to get something to defeat them for a while.

Trooper is 14 and mom's cat is 15 so basically I tell people I'm running a home for elderly cats lol.

I did end up skipping his shot tonight because I remember reading that it's better to be safe than sorry and I can just start up again with his shot in the morning. However, that may have been the exact opposite of what I should do? I'm having a heck of a time getting blood out of his ear, not because of him but I guess due to operator error so obviously other than the fact that I don't yet know how to do a chart for him, I don't think one meter reading is going to cut it since I'm supposed to do it every 2 hours, I'm going to practice some tonight on a lemon.
 
How long after the shot was that 128 you got? Is it time for the shot now? Can you try to do a test and see where he's at and then post the number? We can't really tell you what to shoot without knowing how high of low his blood glucose is.
 
What size lancets are you using? There should be a number on the box - something usually something like 28, 30, 33...

Also, try warming his ear up before you poke - especially at this time of the year their little ears get chilly and it's really hard to get blood from a cold ear. And if you aren't already, try adding a couple of tablespoons of water to his fancy feast. Diabetic cats tend to dehydrate easily and when they are dehydrated it's harder to get blood - adding water to the food helps with that.
 
catdaddy1 said:
I just wrote a long reply and I don't know if it went anywhere so here it goes.
My cat Trooper was diagnosed about 3 weeks ago and at that time the vet said his blood glucose was 633. I finally got some blood out of his ear yesterday for my ReliOn Prime meter and it read 128?

I have been feeding him fancy feast classic since he was diagnosed, I just inherited my mom's cat too so she is also on a fancy feast diet like it or not.

Trooper's only other problems are ear mites which I'm giving him drops for and fleas which I need to get something to defeat them for a while.

Trooper is 14 and mom's cat is 15 so basically I tell people I'm running a home for elderly cats lol.

I did end up skipping his shot tonight because I remember reading that it's better to be safe than sorry and I can just start up again with his shot in the morning. However, that may have been the exact opposite of what I should do? I'm having a heck of a time getting blood out of his ear, not because of him but I guess due to operator error so obviously other than the fact that I don't yet know how to do a chart for him, I don't think one meter reading is going to cut it since I'm supposed to do it every 2 hours, I'm going to practice some tonight on a lemon.
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If you've decided to skip, then you can ignore my post asking if you can do a test right now. But if you do one in the morning before you give the insulin it might help to decide how much to give.
 
Definitly cut that dose to 1 unit moving forward. Test this morning and if it's over 200 give 1 unit. Test, then feed, then shoot. Then try to get a few mid cycle readings.
 
Ok, I will try to answer these questions, Trooper and I both fell asleep but we're up early because I have to start a new job today which isn't the best timing but it's part time so I will be able to keep up his shot schedule. As far as the 128 reading, I didn't write down when I gave him the shot and when I tested the blood, I copied the spreadsheet last night so if I can get this figured out then I can keep track of that.
The lancets are a size 30
I will try to get a blood sample from him in a few minutes and I will definitely lower his dose to 1 unit, his eyes looked a little dilated yesterday but his pupils are always huge so it's hard to say if they were really dilated or if I'm just freaking out more than I would normally. I won't be able to get any mid cycle readings today due to the starting of the job but Friday comes on Wednesday this week for me so I could try and start a chart Thursday morning. I had no idea what all was involved with cat diabetes, never heard of it until now.
His history is basically this. He found me when I moved out to my brother's house in Kentucky about 14 years ago. I was only there a couple of months and things didn't work out, I was looking for work at the time, I was packing up stuff in my rental car to drive to another relative's house in Indiana when this guy, about as big as a tiny mouse came crawling out from under the porch, eyes closed, and started crying so I scooped him up, lucky for him because I don't know what happened to the rest of his family but I think they ended up in a cat barn whatever that is. Couldn't find work in Indiana so we jumped on a plane and flew back to California. These moves were the reason his name is Trooper, for putting up with all the moving. He still loves to climb into his cat carrier, I call it his house because that was his portable house when we were bouncing from place to place. He spent the rest of the time here in california but went from a house to an apartment to another apartment and yet to one more apartment, we are now down by the beach but I had to make him an indoor cat because of all the dogs around here. So a few weeks ago he started drinking a ton of water and peeing a lot and it was obviously not normal but money has been tight so we had to ride it out for a couple of weeks before I could do anything about it and so here we are, and I've inherited mom's 15 year old blind cat who I call Trooper's sister because they have lived together on and off throughout the years. The only issues he's ever had is fleas and hairballs until now and I would hate to be the reason for anything to go wrong now because he's like my kid and even though I know he's lived a pretty long life for a cat, I don't think he's lived a long enough life yet and I want to learn what I can to keep him comfortable with me as long as we can both handle it. Thank you all for your help, I've been winging it and trying to read up on everything but there is way more information out there to filter through than any human has time for. So any more questions I will be happy to answer but I might take a few hours to respond because of work. Have a good day everybody and Happy New Year!!
 
catdaddy1 said:
Ok, I will try to answer these questions, Trooper and I both fell asleep but we're up early because I have to start a new job today which isn't the best timing but it's part time so I will be able to keep up his shot schedule. As far as the 128 reading, I didn't write down when I gave him the shot and when I tested the blood, I copied the spreadsheet last night so if I can get this figured out then I can keep track of that.
The lancets are a size 30
I will try to get a blood sample from him in a few minutes and I will definitely lower his dose to 1 unit, his eyes looked a little dilated yesterday but his pupils are always huge so it's hard to say if they were really dilated or if I'm just freaking out more than I would normally. I won't be able to get any mid cycle readings today due to the starting of the job but Friday comes on Wednesday this week for me so I could try and start a chart Thursday morning. I had no idea what all was involved with cat diabetes, never heard of it until now.
His history is basically this. He found me when I moved out to my brother's house in Kentucky about 14 years ago. I was only there a couple of months and things didn't work out, I was looking for work at the time, I was packing up stuff in my rental car to drive to another relative's house in Indiana when this guy, about as big as a tiny mouse came crawling out from under the porch, eyes closed, and started crying so I scooped him up, lucky for him because I don't know what happened to the rest of his family but I think they ended up in a cat barn whatever that is. Couldn't find work in Indiana so we jumped on a plane and flew back to California. These moves were the reason his name is Trooper, for putting up with all the moving. He still loves to climb into his cat carrier, I call it his house because that was his portable house when we were bouncing from place to place. He spent the rest of the time here in california but went from a house to an apartment to another apartment and yet to one more apartment, we are now down by the beach but I had to make him an indoor cat because of all the dogs around here. So a few weeks ago he started drinking a ton of water and peeing a lot and it was obviously not normal but money has been tight so we had to ride it out for a couple of weeks before I could do anything about it and so here we are, and I've inherited mom's 15 year old blind cat who I call Trooper's sister because they have lived together on and off throughout the years. The only issues he's ever had is fleas and hairballs until now and I would hate to be the reason for anything to go wrong now because he's like my kid and even though I know he's lived a pretty long life for a cat, I don't think he's lived a long enough life yet and I want to learn what I can to keep him comfortable with me as long as we can both handle it. Thank you all for your help, I've been winging it and trying to read up on everything but there is way more information out there to filter through than any human has time for. So any more questions I will be happy to answer but I might take a few hours to respond because of work. Have a good day everybody and Happy New Year!!
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Good luck at your new job today! Trooper sure is lucky he found you. :).
 
You've come to the right place! We can help you to get organized around Trooper's treatment so keep posting here. This is a small forum so your posts will be seen. :)

catdaddy1 said:
The lancets are a size 30
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Those are very thin. Go to a human pharmacy and ask for 26 or 28 gauge lancets. Sometimes the box will say "for alternate site testing". Warming the ear before testing helps a lot. Many of us use what we call a "rice sock" - old, clean sock with about 1/2 cup dry uncooked rice in the toe, tied off, heated in the microwave until it's quite warm to the touch. Test it on yourself first - not too hot. The outer upper edge of the ear about 1/2 inch down from the tip is a good place to poke. Don't worry if you poke right through occasionally. The ears heal well.

Here's the recommended testing schedule. Do what you can around your work schedule.
  1. test every day AM and PM before feeding and injecting (no food at least 2 hours before) to see if the planned dose is safe
  2. test at least once near mid cycle or at bedtime daily to see how low the BG goes
  3. do extra tests on days off to fill in the response picture
  4. if indicated by consistently high numbers on your SS, increase the dose by no more than 0.25 u at a time so you don't accidentally go right past a good dose
  5. post here for advice whenever you're confused or unsure of what to do.
One thing we really need to see to help you as well as we can is a spreadsheet like the type you see here:
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/
If you set one up ASAP and post any/all blood glucose data you have we can get you moving forward right away.

I see that he's eating Fancy Feast classics - perfect! No dry food at all?
 
Ok, I managed to get a test done before he ate and before his insulin shot and it reads 129 on a ReliOn prime meter. So what does this mean?
 
catdaddy1 said:
Ok, I managed to get a test done before he ate and before his insulin shot and it reads 129 on a ReliOn prime meter. So what does this mean?
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Whew! Good thing you tested him! No shot last night, right? This morning's BG is too low for insulin because you don't have enough data yet to assess how he might respond to a tiny dose. I suggest you test once or twice today if you can and certainly again this evening at what would be pre shot time (no food at least 2 hours before). Those results will help you to know what to do but post here for advice.

Your kitty certainly doesn't need a 2 unit dose. However, he might need a small dose but we need data to judge that. :)

BTW - the ReliOn Prime meter needs a larger blood drop to register correctly. Did you get a good drop with this test?
 
Kris & Teasel said:
Whew! Good thing you tested him! No shot last night, right? This morning's BG is too low for insulin because you don't have enough data yet to assess how he might respond to a tiny dose. I suggest you test once or twice today if you can and certainly again this evening at what would be pre shot time (no food at least 2 hours before). Those results will help you to know what to do but post here for advice.

Your kitty certainly doesn't need a 2 unit dose. However, he might need a small dose but we need data to judge that. :)

BTW - the ReliOn Prime meter needs a larger blood drop to register correctly. Did you get a good drop with this test?
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Yes, it took a few little stabs but I finally got a decent drop, he is no fan of the ear poking because of the ear mite problem his ears are sensitive, who knows where he gets all these fleas and mites, he doesn't go outside. I gave him a 1 unit dose because if I didn't give him any at all then I would have skipped two in a row and I don't know if that's good or bad. I got your message to late to see that you said he was too low for insulin, I feel like I'm going to kill him by accident because I'm so clueless. I called in to work, probably not the best idea but like I stated earlier, Trooper is my kid and I won't even be able to do my job while my head is at home and they were ok with it because of the holidays, so I will be able to test him again in about an hour and a half which will be two hours from his last test, he's gonna hate me today but it's gotta happen.
 
catdaddy1 said:
I gave him a 1 unit dose because if I didn't give him any at all then I would have skipped two in a row and I don't know if that's good or bad.
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Please do your best to test his BG at around the 2 hour mark since giving insulin. If he's much lower post here. You'll have to do a bit of food intervention if that's the case. I know he eats FF classics but do you have a can or two of gravy style wet food around in case you need higher carbs? In a pinch you can add honey or other syrup to his FF to carb him up. Don't do any of that until you know it's needed.

Meanwhile, how about setting up the spreadsheet I gave you the link for in post #11 above? If you have to monitor his BG more today it's the best way to track his progress and the easiest way for us to see what's happening.
 
Kris & Teasel said:
Please do your best to test his BG at around the 2 hour mark since giving insulin. If he's much lower post here. You'll have to do a bit of food intervention if that's the case. I know he eats FF classics but do you have a can or two of gravy style wet food around in case you need higher carbs? In a pinch you can add honey or other syrup to his FF to carb him up. Don't do any of that until you know it's needed.

Meanwhile, how about setting up the spreadsheet I gave you the link for in post #11 above? If you have to monitor his BG more today it's the best way to track his progress and the easiest way for us to see what's happening.
Click to expand...

I have the spreadsheet, the only thing I didn't figure out was how to put it on this website. It' said there would be instructions on how to do that on one of the pages I looked at but it didn't have any, the last step was to copy the link and then I guess somehow I put that on my signature page? I think I have a couple of cans of the gravy style food, the problem is that he doesn't like it, what else could I give him if necessary? Last night I gave him tuna but that's only because I didn't know what the heck to do.
 
catdaddy1 said:
I have the spreadsheet, the only thing I didn't figure out was how to put it on this website. It' said there would be instructions on how to do that on one of the pages I looked at but it didn't have any, the last step was to copy the link and then I guess somehow I put that on my signature page? I think I have a couple of cans of the gravy style food, the problem is that he doesn't like it, what else could I give him if necessary? Last night I gave him tuna but that's only because I didn't know what the heck to do.
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Re SS: I'm not very techie but go read from step 5 onward again on the how-to link. You have to click on "publish to the web"
catdaddy1 said:
ok, at 2 hours it dropped to 64 so what should I do next?
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OK. Give him a small snack of his regular low carb food, about a teaspoon or two. Not too much because you'll probably have to repeat this and you don't want to fill him up. Retest in 15-20 minutes and post here as soon as you do.

ProZinc usually reaches its peak action about 5 to 7 hours after an injection. Feeding small snacks periodically is to control the descent of his BG. You don't want it to go below 50 because then you're getting close to hypo territory.

For now, his low carb food will suffice. If he goes lower later you can try squeezing the gravy out of one of the cans of that food and put it aside to use a bit at a time. Honey or karo (corn) syrup can also work. If you end up using those later, it's best to drizzle a little onto a teaspoon of his regular food.

Keep good notes of everything you do:
  • dose
  • BG test numbers and how long after the dose they were done
  • snacks to prop up BG - what, how much and when.
Any questions?
 
@catdaddy1 When you're in a situation like this and we're trying to help, we need to get update posts from you to know what's going on. I don't mean to sound bossy. We trying to keep your kitty out of trouble.
 
I have to go out now. If you need help fast, go post on the main health forum and add the red 911 icon to your thread title. Lower right area of title bar - "edit title" then left end of title bar you'll see a little icon menu.
 
I gave him some more food but couldn't get a blood test, he's pretty pissed off at me for making his ear look like a minefield but I will at least try to get the 2 hour tests done.
 
I'm trying to keep you updated as quickly as I can, between chasing him around and answering the phone I might be slow but I will keep updating. Also I do have honey and I will go buy some of the Karo syrup mentioned above. In fact I have to go out in a few minutes so I will pick some up then.
 
By the way, what do you do when the ear prick thing isn't working out due to the fact that it seems to be hurting him enough that I'm the one who ends up doing all the bleeding?
 
catdaddy1 said:
By the way, what do you do when the ear prick thing isn't working out due to the fact that it seems to be hurting him enough that I'm the one who ends up doing all the bleeding?
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Have you tried warming his ear before you poke? I described a rice sock thing to make in my post #11 up above on this thread. Some of us find that free handing the poke instead of using the lancet trigger device works better. If you have low carb treats to give after every poke he might be a little happier. Little bits of plain cooked chicken work well. You can also buy freeze dried meat or fish treats (no other ingredients added) at most pet food stores.

Get a BG test when you can and post it here.
 
@catdaddy1 Sounds like you all had quite the adventure this morning! Is everything okay? Testing is really tough at first. It took awhile and lots of tears for me and my cat. I hope you and Trooper are both okay after all of that! If you check in here, I would suggest skipping the dose tonight. It sounds like Trooper is running low enough that skipping will be okay, and it also sounds like you could both use a break. Please give us an update whenever you can. Hugs to you both! :bighug:
 
Kris & Teasel said:
Have you tried warming his ear before you poke? I described a rice sock thing to make in my post #11 up above on this thread. Some of us find that free handing the poke instead of using the lancet trigger device works better. If you have low carb treats to give after every poke he might be a little happier. Little bits of plain cooked chicken work well. You can also buy freeze dried meat or fish treats (no other ingredients added) at most pet food stores.

Get a BG test when you can and post it here.[193]

That BG is from tonight at 5:50, I also took one at 5:50 this morning which was 129 and one at 7:50 this morning that was at 64 and I've lowered his insulin dose from 2 to 1 unit twice daily. I tried the rice sock and the freehand poke today but his ears are already hurting, I know it has to be done like it or not which is what keeps me going on trying to get a sample, it just makes me feel bad for him.
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I completely understand. I felt so awful for my kitty when we first started because he hated getting the tests and even though everyone says it doesn't hurt them, it sure seemed like it was hurting him! He will get used to it as it becomes more routine for both of you. I would still say my kitty hates the tests, but he'll hop up on the counter when it's time - even if I'm not in the kitchen - because he knows that he gets lots of head scratches while we're doing the test, and treats as soon as it's over.

Kris' suggestion to get the bigger lancets will help. Then you only have to poke once (most of the time) to get enough blood, so that helps. You can also try a little neosporin (the gel kind, not the cream) to help heal a little faster. And if he'll let you, after the test, gently squeeze the poke spot a little between your fingers to keep it from bruising.
 
Hi, I'm back. Yesterday into this morning became a nightmare as far as trying to test this little hair ball (Trooper). I was embarrassed to come back on here just to let you know that I can't get him to sit still long enough to get a sample. He will let me poke him once, maybe twice, but after that, if I still haven't gotten a decent drop then the race is on and I lose every time, he managed to get blood out of me again this morning though. I'm going to buy the size 26 lancets today so that I can get this moving forward before I turn fifty (I'm kidding, that would be in November, I know I have to figure this out today). I have what little bit of a chart started I just have to figure out how to post it up here to my signature page.
 
catdaddy1 said:
I have the spreadsheet, the only thing I didn't figure out was how to put it on this website. It' said there would be instructions on how to do that on one of the pages I looked at but it didn't have any, the last step was to copy the link and then I guess somehow I put that on my signature page? I think I have a couple of cans of the gravy style food, the problem is that he doesn't like it, what else could I give him if necessary? Last night I gave him tuna but that's only because I didn't know what the heck to do.
Click to expand...
I haven't been able to access your spreadsheet. Until you get it figured out, please keep track in a notebook and give us his numbers and times in this forum. There's a thread about setting up and linking your spreadsheet somewhere. One of those posts with the red pins I think. You have to copy the address for this website and link your spreadsheet to that. There might be a place to copy and paste the address on the top right of your spreadsheet, I think.
 
catdaddy1 said:
Hi, I'm back. Yesterday into this morning became a nightmare as far as trying to test this little hair ball (Trooper). I was embarrassed to come back on here just to let you know that I can't get him to sit still long enough to get a sample. He will let me poke him once, maybe twice, but after that, if I still haven't gotten a decent drop then the race is on and I lose every time, he managed to get blood out of me again this morning though. I'm going to buy the size 26 lancets today so that I can get this moving forward before I turn fifty (I'm kidding, that would be in November, I know I have to figure this out today). I have what little bit of a chart started I just have to figure out how to post it up here to my signature page.
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Please don't ever be embarrassed!!! The first few weeks of testing are really hard. They were hard for all of us. Okay, a couple of people have easy kitties to test, but most of us have had a tough time at the beginning. A big part of it is that as you test (or try to test), their ears actually "learn" to bleed - they get more little capillaries - so it starts to get easier. Plus, our cats start to associate testing with feeling better so they cooperate more as time goes on. So even the attempts that don't work are part of the process leading towards this being easier.

Make sure that you give him a low carb treat every time you've poked - even if it hasn't resulted in a number. And after a couple of attempts, let him go, take a deep breath, give it a couple of minutes, and then try again. Oh, and you do kind of have to "milk" the ear to get it to bleed. If you kind of push blood towards the poke spot it sometimes helps. At this time of the year, even after I've warmed Sam's ear, I still have to do a fair bit of milking to get a good sample. My house is always a bit chilly so even a kitty who's been at this awhile isn't much for bleeding when he's cold.

Great job getting the spreadsheet started by the way. There is so much to learn and do at the beginning and it can all feel like just too much sometimes. You're doing a great job, and I promise it will get easier!
 
Ok, I've added what there is of my spreadsheet, at least I think it's added. I only gave him the one test tonight because this morning was a disaster but now I have different lancets and it only took a treat and a poke tonight. So as of an hour ago he was at 204 and I'm now giving him the 1 unit every 12 hours but this morning it got missed basically because he thought I was trying to terrorize him I think but I've settled down and so has he so we are friends again.
 
Hooray for a good test! And hooray for being friends again! I'm so glad to hear it went well today. There may still be some ups and downs along the way, but you'll start to see more and more of those 'easy' test times as you go forward.

You've been feeding him fancy feast for about three weeks now, is that right?

You've had some pretty low numbers so far, and I'm wondering if he may become a diet-controlled diabetic with just a bit more time and insulin support. Because of that possibility, getting the pre-shot tests like you did today is going to be really important, and for now I would suggest skipping the shot if he is below 200. We'll lower that number soon so you can shoot below that, but I'd like to see the testing be a little more secure first. You really don't want him to go below 50, and he was getting pretty close yesterday.

Also, here is a link with an explanation of the different columns on the spreadsheet since it isn't really self-explanatory. The AMPS and PMPS columns are for the pre-shot blood glucose number, so for this morning you would enter the 204 in that column. And since you skipped the shot this morning, you'll put "NS" in the column for "U"
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/understanding-the-spreadsheet-grid.156606/
 
I try to avoid giving 'no shot's. If the numbers are below 150, I give half a dose and monitor. Have you tried using the rice sock? Warm it in the microwave for 28 seconds and massage her ear with that for a minute before poking. Also, if her ear is on the rice sock when you poke, you won't get your finger pricked. Unless you want to check your own blood sugar. I remember how nervous I was the first month. Often, Chloe will yelp when I put the needle in, but I've caught her yelping before I even pricked her. The insulin shot seems to hurt her more.
 
srk4cats said:
I try to avoid giving 'no shot's. If the numbers are below 150, I give half a dose and monitor. Have you tried using the rice sock? Warm it in the microwave for 28 seconds and massage her ear with that for a minute before poking. Also, if her ear is on the rice sock when you poke, you won't get your finger pricked. Unless you want to check your own blood sugar. I remember how nervous I was the first month. Often, Chloe will yelp when I put the needle in, but I've caught her yelping before I even pricked her. The insulin shot seems to hurt her more.
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Yes, with Chloe you really want to avoid no shots because she's been DKA and has been diabetic for a lot longer. CatDaddy1's cat is a new diabetic and is trending lower rapidly, so greater caution is needed in dosing. Those are great suggestions about the rice sock and sharing your experiences in learning to test! :)
 
Djamila said:
Yes, with Chloe you really want to avoid no shots because she's been DKA and has been diabetic for a lot longer. CatDaddy1's cat is a new diabetic and is trending lower rapidly, so greater caution is needed in dosing. Those are great suggestions about the rice sock and sharing your experiences in learning to test! :)
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Yes, it's her one-year anniversary of being diabetic.
 
srk4cats said:
Did you tell him about the YA cat food?
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No, because I'm one of those folks who thinks kibble is bad for kitties no matter what the carb content might be. ;) I know lots of folks use it around here, but I don't want to promote it because of the dangers of dry food beyond just diabetes. Besides, I've found that leaving out canned or raw food for free feeding works just fine, so there isn't really any need for kibble once a can has transitioned off of it.
 
srk4cats said:
I try to avoid giving 'no shot's. If the numbers are below 150, I give half a dose and monitor. Have you tried using the rice sock? Warm it in the microwave for 28 seconds and massage her ear with that for a minute before poking. Also, if her ear is on the rice sock when you poke, you won't get your finger pricked. Unless you want to check your own blood sugar. I remember how nervous I was the first month. Often, Chloe will yelp when I put the needle in, but I've caught her yelping before I even pricked her. The insulin shot seems to hurt her more.
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hahaa, I've been thinking he's chirping before I even touch him with the lancet too, I should be able to start getting regular tests soon, he doesn't seem to have a problem with these new lancets I got. I've tried the rice sock but he starts complaining the second it touches his ear so for now I just rub his ears with my fingers, it almost puts him to sleep.
Djamila said:
Yes, with Chloe you really want to avoid no shots because she's been DKA and has been diabetic for a lot longer. CatDaddy1's cat is a new diabetic and is trending lower rapidly, so greater caution is needed in dosing. Those are great suggestions about the rice sock and sharing your experiences in learning to test! :)
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Yesterday's NS was more my fault than his, I woke up late because my alarm didn't go off. He seems ok today, it's hard to tell just by looking at him but I guess that's what the blood tests are for and hopefully those will be less of a problem now. He just tested at 127 and it's been about 3 hours since he had any food. I don't know If I am supposed to but I give him half a can at breakfast and then about a half can at lunch and another half can at dinner and maybe a quarter of a can in there when he's feeling hungry. I feel like it's not enough because Fancy Feast are little cans. Any advice?
 
Djamila said:
Yes, with Chloe you really want to avoid no shots because she's been DKA and has been diabetic for a lot longer. CatDaddy1's cat is a new diabetic and is trending lower rapidly, so greater caution is needed in dosing. Those are great suggestions about the rice sock and sharing your experiences in learning to test! :)
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Also as far as the dosing goes, the vet had told me to just give 2 units for a month and bring him in but that didn't sound right and I knew absolutely nothing about what he was talking about. So now I am giving 1 unit twice a day. Are you saying that I should lower it to half of that?
 
No, I think Djamila is just saying that for you, some no shoots are okay. Chloe is a former DKA kitty so she really needs the insulin, even if she is lower than we would normally dose...but your cat isn't, so it's better on lower numbers to not shoot...like if your cat hit 150 at preshot, we might not recommend giving a shot that time.
 
Rachel said:
No, I think Djamila is just saying that for you, some no shoots are okay. Chloe is a former DKA kitty so she really needs the insulin, even if she is lower than we would normally dose...but your cat isn't, so it's better on lower numbers to not shoot...like if your cat hit 150 at preshot, we might not recommend giving a shot that time.
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Ok, tonight he pre-shot at 163 so I gave him 1 unit, should I have made it 0.5 units? Or should I have not given him a shot?
 
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