Yes, it might well be. The problem can clear up when the BG is better regulated. It can also be a sign of a brewing UTI and FD cats are very prone to these.
That's quite possible; she had some pain last Thursday night when the vet pressed into her kidney area, so they suspected a UTI. They found some bacteria when they did the urinalysis on Friday, so they sent samples for culture & sensitivity, but no cultures grew. She's on a course of amoxicillin/clavulanic acid just in case.
As a scientist (read your other thread) you understand the importance of data in decision-making. As challenging as it might be right now I strongly recommend that you try the basic BG testing routine:
- 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
- test at least once near mid cycle or at bedtime daily to see how low the BG goes
- do extra tests on days off to fill in the response picture
- 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
- post here for advice whenever you're confused or unsure of what to do.
That makes sense - thank you for the advice. In your opinion, what should the sliding scale thresholds look like?
I also see that you have your own version of a spreadsheet. There's no reason why you can't keep that one for your personal use but also set up the one we're more familiar with here. We're all accustomed to looking at it and we can take in a lot of information about trends at a glance.
Fair enough - please check the link again, I have migrated the data to the accepted format.
Have you checked the %carbs as fed in the wet food you're giving her?
Yes, I have - I calculate it at approximately 9% dry matter or less. Here is the guaranteed analysis:
Crude Protein (Min.) 12.5%
Crude Fat (Min.) 6.5%
Crude Fibre (Max.) 1.0%
Moisture (Max.) 78.0%
Ash (Max.) 3.5%
Taurine (Min.) 0.07%
I figured out dry matter basis by calculating Dry Matter = 100% - 78.0% moisture = 22.0%, and then figuring out that (22.0% - 12.5% protein - 6.5% fat - 1% fibre)/(22.0%) = 9.1%. I realize that the fibre is a maximum, so it might be less, but I figured the variance is probably accounted for by the ash. Does this make sense? What do you think about this food? I can't find actual carbohydrate information - I will request it from the manufacturer.
Most of us also feed more than twice a day. It can help with better regulation of BG level through a cycle. An automatic feeder can be great if you're away from home a long time.
That makes sense; my husband is now actually feeding her in the middle of the day, so that's good. I will have to eventually get an automatic feeder. Thankfully, my other cats don't like Lola's wet food, so I don't think they'll steal it.
new FD diagnosis and new to insulin = erratic responses; need for more BG data to visualize the ProZinc dose's action profile: onset/nadir/duration
That makes sense. I will do more spot checks on the weekend, and am also going to do a glucose curve next weekend, as my vet said she had to be on consistent insulin every 12 hours for at least 7 days before the curve would be reliable. Does that make sense?
complicating factor - asthma and its steroid treatment, both oral and inhaled.
Once she is stable on insulin and I have a feel for her numbers, we are going to try scaling the prednisolone back and using inhaled steroids plus bronchodilators, as this is probably better than oral steroids. Crossing my fingers she doesn't need to be on the prednisolone at this dosage at least.
