? Merry - 01/02 1.6(29) +9 Fed the Hypo, 3.3(59) PMPS, Earned Reduced Dose Shot 4.75u

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LuanneP

LuanneP

Member Since 2017
Merry is blue today after his nice low greens yesterday. But that's ok because I'm at work today so can't watch him as closely :)

On another note, my almost 16 yr old boy, Beau, has an appointment this afternoon because the past few weeks he's had a few episodes of straining to pee. As soon as I notice it happening I give him 50mg of Gabapentin which seems to relax his bladder so that it doesn't spasm & then he pees normally. He has a history of inappropriate urination, rarely uses the litter box, but he's had every test imaginable, xrays, ultrasounds, bloodwork several times, u/a & culture several times & everything is always good so we assume he has Idiopathic Cystitis but this straining is a new symptom for him. Hopefully it's nothing serious & something we can help him with. I have had a cat with bladder cancer & although I know it's uncommon in cats it's not so uncommon once you've experienced it so that's what I worry might be going on with Beau but I hope not.
 
Hi Luanne, Not diabetes related...but curious with your experience with bladder cancer with a cat. We discovered a tumor in my guys bladder in September after 3 months of our vet trying to treat him for an assumed UTI (he was peeing outside the litter box and with blood). Ultrasound found the mass and 3 weeks later he had surgery to remove the mass (and 1/3 of his bladder). What protocol did you do with your kiddo with bladder cancer? I can't find any support groups for this specific cancer in cats, however, I'm on a FB board for dogs with bladder cancer. By the way it was confirmed TCC. Right now Kekoa is just taking herbal supplements as he couldn't take Piroxicam and because he had a tough recovery from the surgery (he ended up in ICU for a week due to a diabetic crisis because he would not eat), it was recommended for him not to do chemo until he was healthy again.
 
Anela said:
Hi Luanne, Not diabetes related...but curious with your experience with bladder cancer with a cat. We discovered a tumor in my guys bladder in September after 3 months of our vet trying to treat him for an assumed UTI (he was peeing outside the litter box and with blood). Ultrasound found the mass and 3 weeks later he had surgery to remove the mass (and 1/3 of his bladder). What protocol did you do with your kiddo with bladder cancer? I can't find any support groups for this specific cancer in cats, however, I'm on a FB board for dogs with bladder cancer. By the way it was confirmed TCC. Right now Kekoa is just taking herbal supplements as he couldn't take Piroxicam and because he had a tough recovery from the surgery (he ended up in ICU for a week due to a diabetic crisis because he would not eat), it was recommended for him not to do chemo until he was healthy again.
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I'm sorry to hear that Kekoa has bladder cancer but I'm glad you caught it in time so you could do surgery. Unfortunately by the time my Max's tumor was found it completed filled his bladder so surgery was not an option. I was able to give him a good 2 weeks with Piroxicam & Buprenorphine but then I had to let him go. Max was 21 yrs old. Which chemo would they have you use for Kekoa? The only other thing I might consider is CBD oil or the dried CBD in capsules.
 
I just checked Merry's blood & he's quite low at 1.6(29), the lowest he's ever been that I've caught. Does that earn him a reduction now?
 
He's eating some of his regular food to see if it helps to bring it up a bit. I haven't used high carb food yet so just seeing if his regular food will boost him a bit but soon he'll be 2 hrs pre shot so won't be able to eat. Then what do I do if he keeps dropping?
 
It Merry's numbers are that low, it doesn't matter if it's 2 hours prior to shot time. Give HC to get the numbers up! To the extent that there's a general rule about anything, it's "Feed the 40's (or lower)." And yes, please reduce the dose by 0.25u.
 
When Neko was below 40, I used karo/corn syrup cause I wanted her up FAST! Congrats on the reduction. Up now Merry! Good start getting to 49, a little more gravy to get him over 50.

I had a civie with idiopathic cystitis. The trick for him was low carb and low phosphorus food, with lots of water added. I did raw on his vets recommendation, but there is canned that fits that bill. Cartrophen injections and or glucosamine can help the bladder wall. I also used Feliways in his common areas - a lot of cystitis kitties are the nervous one. Mine was a semi feral. And yes it is painful, mine would get bupe during an episode. But once I changed the diet, no more episodes.
 
Good. You could give a tsp or two of LC and see if he'll coast into PMPS. LC at this point can help get them surfing. Test again in 1/2 hour.
 
Mandy & Rex said:
Congratulations on that reducie, but that was way too low! :eek: It also looked like he was clearing a bounce.
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Yeah I was surprised to see the green at +7 because I thought he would be in the blues all day after being in the greens yesterday. But he's full of surprises lately! Glad I checked at +9.
 
3.2(58) at +11.
When it comes to shot time, is it safe to shoot (will be reducing 1/4 unit) since I've had to feed him to get him out of hypo already? Adding insulin to that seems like adding fuel to the fire when I'm having to feed him to get him high enough to shoot.
 
LuanneP said:
3.2(58) at +11.
When it comes to shot time, is it safe to shoot (will be reducing 1/4 unit) since I've had to feed him to get him out of hypo already? Adding insulin to that seems like adding fuel to the fire when I'm having to feed him to get him high enough to shoot.
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My gut says to skip. Drain the depot a bit overnight then shoot in the morning. Do wait and see what the PMPS is. Merry does bounce a little.
 
The not feeding within 2 hours of testing is more for newbies and peeps that are not as experienced as you. If you can monitor tonight, with plenty of test strips and some higher carb food, I would shoot anything over 50.

Post if you need help
 
Mandy & Rex said:
My gut says to skip. Drain the depot a bit overnight then shoot in the morning. Do wait and see what the PMPS is. Merry does bounce a little.
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I see Mandy's point but, Merry has never been that low before and is bound to bounce up and shooting could help to minimize the bounce. Why don't you see what the PMPS is and decide. You've got 2 opinions and hopefully some others will weigh in.
 
Thanks @Mandy & Rex and @Bobbie And Bubba :)
Would a further reduced shot be a consideration? Like maybe 4.5 or 4.25 instead of 4.75?
I'll post what he is at PMPS & then we can decide.
Keep in mind I'll be at work all day tomorrow. I can come home at lunch to check him but that won't be until +3.5 or +4.
 
I have a slightly different spin than Bobbie. I would want to be sure that you don't end up shooting a dropping number. In other words, since you'e been propping numbers up with HC, you need some space to be sure that it's not the HC that artificially raising numbers. If you can stall a bit and see if numbers stay up, you'll know it's safe to shoot.

I agree that a bounce is likely but until you see that numbers are stable or rising, you won't know whether it's safe to shoot. Do you have the flexibility to stall a bit?
 
Your recent history with Merry shows when you shoot low he tends to go up anyway.

Congrats on the reducie and it's so nice to see his recent progress! I guess it is his season, isn't it? ;)
 
@Sienne and Gabby (GA) Stalling makes it tough in the morning. As it is I'm trying to work his shot time back slowly because I was an hour late on NY morning so that makes me late for work. I was going to shoot 15 mins earlier tonight until I got these lows so now I can't do that. But I'll do what is best for Merry.
 
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Stacy & Asia said:
Your recent history with Merry shows when you shoot low he tends to go up anyway.
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Yes, he does but he's been surprising me a bit lately. I didn't expect the lime green at all this afternoon. It was just lucky I decided to check at that time because I wasn't going to but decided to anyway.
 
So here's a thought that is probably impossible given your schedule (and probably a desire to sleep). One way to deal with a potentially low pre-shot number is to shoot at +18 and then again at +18 for the next cycle.. That willet you back on schedule.
 
Sienne and Gabby (GA) said:
So here's a thought that is probably impossible given your schedule (and probably a desire to sleep). One way to deal with a potentially low pre-shot number is to shoot at +18 and then again at +18 for the next cycle.. That willet you back on schedule.
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So that would make his shot time 3am & 6pm tomorrow. His usual shot times are 8am/pm so I think I'm better off sticking with +12 or as close to that as I can. I will stall tonight a bit if I have to.
 
Bobbie And Bubba said:
That is a very good point. When was the last HC food? If the PMPS is a few hours after the last HC feeding and is above 50 and you can monitor tonight, I'd shoot.
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I only gave HC after his +10.5 reading & just a scant teaspoon of gravy from FF Gravy Lovers. That will be 1.5 hrs before his 9pm shot.
 
Looking good! Can you get a +3 when Lantus usually onsets? And can you get a test in before you go to bed to make sure he is okay?
 
AND because he gave you such a low at +9, if you get up tonight to go to the bathroom like I always do, I would grab a test then too if he hasn't started an upward trend.
 
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