3/31 Floyd AMPS 406, +2 279, +3 156, +6 153, +7 227, +9 584, PMPS Hi, +2 Hi

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Janine & Floyd (GA)

Janine & Floyd (GA)

Member Since 2018
Condo

406 this morning. Cycle 5.

Yesterday we talked about feeding. Any suggestions on tweaking Floyd's schedule? I'm open to trying the automatic feeder for 4-5 meals, but what about timing?

Current schedule is:

AM: cats wake me up for food around 6:30 am, feed Floyd 2 patties, immediately test AMPS when Floyd has finished. There is no chance of getting PMPS before he eats!! Shoot at 7 am.

PM: Test at 6 pm (+11), feed patties around 6:30pm, test PMPS around 7 pm, then shoot.

His food is ground chicken thighs, chicken liver and egg whites frozen into small patties. No idea how many calories.

Any insights greatly appreciated!

ETA: I just read the info about using food to manipulate the curve, so I'll be looking into that. :)
 
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How much do you feed at 6:30pm, or is that when you feed the 3 patties instead of after PMPS?
Would it be possible to teach him to be tested before eating? For example, try giving him 1 pattie before PS and test and then give him the rest, and slowly make the first bit smaller and smaller?

Based upon the amount I think you are feeding (2 patties in AM and 3 patties in PM), you could try 1 pattie at AMPS, 1/2 at +2 and 1/2 at +4 in the morning, and then 1.5 at PMPS, 3/4 at +2 and 3/4 at +4. Or because he gets a larger portion at PMPS you could maybe do the smaller 3/4 meal at +3 and the other at +5. It depends upon your cat, and when he tends to need food to get him into a flatter surf, and this may change along the way and sometimes day to day. These are just general suggestions.
 
Dyana said:
How much do you feed at 6:30pm, or is that when you feed the 3 patties instead of after PMPS?
Would it be possible to teach him to be tested before eating? For example, try giving him 1 pattie before PS and test and then give him the rest, and slowly make the first bit smaller and smaller?

Based upon the amount I think you are feeding (2 patties in AM and 3 patties in PM), you could try 1 pattie at AMPS, 1/2 at +2 and 1/2 at +4 in the morning, and then 1.5 at PMPS, 3/4 at +2 and 3/4 at +4. Or because he gets a larger portion at PMPS you could maybe do the smaller 3/4 meal at +3 and the other at +5. It depends upon your cat, and when he tends to need food to get him into a flatter surf, and this may change along the way and sometimes day to day. These are just general suggestions.
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Dyana, I just fixed the PM schedule - test, feed 3 patties, test, shoot.

I think I can try to train him for testing, and I will look at your feeding suggestions. Thank you!
 
I would re-test in 30 min and see what's going on and feed some LC if he keeps dropping. I'd re-test in another 30 min and then decide if you need to add more carbs to get Floyd to slow down, especially if you have to leave in a bit.

His food is ground chicken thighs, chicken liver and egg whites frozen into small patties. No idea how many calories.
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Are you adding any supplements to Floyd's food? If not, this is not a nutritionally complete diet. Among other things, cat's need taurine and calcium in their diet. (I understand if you didn't want to list out all of the supplements in Dr. Lisa's recipe but I did want to make sure that Floyd was getting all of his "vitamins!")
 
Hey Janine, sounds like Floyd is a hungry boy in the AM and wants that food ASAP. :eek: Dividing up his calories through several meals a day will help with that especially since he'll be getting a small meal later in the PM cycle. I like Dyana's food schedule especially because when Floyd drops it is early on and the little meal at +2 will soften the drop and allow the curve to flatten out some to reduce the chance of bouncing. It is a good starting point for you and you can tweak it according to Floyd's patterns.
 
Sienne and Gabby (GA) said:
I would re-test in 30 min and see what's going on and feed some LC if he keeps dropping. I'd re-test in another 30 min and then decide if you need to add more carbs to get Floyd to slow down, especially if you have to leave in a bit.
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I fed him a tsp, and I'll test in 15 min. I feel like he is very carb-sensitive, which is one reason I switched from LC FF to the home-cooked, which is essentially 0 carb.

Sienne and Gabby (GA) said:
Are you adding any supplements to Floyd's food? If not, this is not a nutritionally complete diet. Among other things, cat's need taurine and calcium in their diet. (I understand if you didn't want to list out all of the supplements in Dr. Lisa's recipe but I did want to make sure that Floyd was getting all of his "vitamins!")
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Yes, he has all his vitamins/minerals/fish oil added in, thanks for checking. :)
 
So, here's another monkey wrench..... I had been testing his ears, but after several days they became bruised (despite holding pressure after each sample), so I switched to paw pads. No problem, good sample. However:

This morning,
AMPS - paw - 406
+2 - ear - 279
+2.25 - ear - 193
+3 - paw - 273
+3 - ear - 156

Whoa!!! That much difference between paw and ear???? I'm following the ear reading for now and feeding a bit more to be safe, but has anyone else seen this??
 
I have no experience with paw pad testing nor seeing BG tests compared between paws and ears.
I used to use the Neosporin with Pain Relief cream, just a teeny spot of it, on J.D.'s ears when they would get sore. Maybe every other day, or once at night. I used to test one ear for 2 to 5 days, depending, and then switch to the other ear, and would often lightly apply a teeny bit of the cream to the recently used ear. I also tested the insides of J.D.'s ears as they had less hair and were white so easier to see the blood drop.
 
Never tried paw testing. The ears will calm down after a time. I firmly squeeze a washcloth around Asia’s ear after each test, when I did it lightly, she would get a bump there after a time, I found applying more pressure was the key. I also rotate the sweet spot, I kind of make a rainbow, start on the outside tip, work my way to the middle and then over to the other side so I’m not poking the same exact spot repeatedly. Dyana beat me to it, I was going to suggest testing on one ear and then resting it and testing the other. Rather you use paws or ears, probably better to stick with one since the results seem a bit inconsistent.

Good work on feeding that drop. I hope Floyd surfs for you in blue all day long! :cool:
 
The bounce has begun. He had 4 hours in blues. :cool: The more he starts getting used to being in lower numbers the less he'll bounce. Although, one cat I remember bounced all the way into remission.

Let's hope he won't be too high at PMPS. So at PM +2, if he is dropping again, feed the curve to soften it out.
 
It was a decent run in blues and almost a green, hopefully it will be less scary for him the next time.

Come down soon, Floyd!

IMG_2826.JPG
 
Yikes, Floyd! When you bounce, you BOUNCE! Time to get off the trampoline, dude.
bouncing-smileys.gif~c200


I feel Dr. Lisa's recipe too, and I'm curious about how big your "patties" are. I freeze mine in mason jars and thaw one about every other day. My two civvies get 1.5 oz each 3-4 times a day. They just turned a year old, so until recently, they sometimes got five servings a day. As their growth slows, so does their appetite. I'm trying to figure out what their regular amount should be now. They are Siberian, so will be big cats and not done growing for at least another year.
 
Tricia Cinco(GA) & Harvey said:
Yikes, Floyd! When you bounce, you BOUNCE! Time to get off the trampoline, dude.

I feel Dr. Lisa's recipe too, and I'm curious about how big your "patties" are. I freeze mine in mason jars and thaw one about every other day. My two civvies get 1.5 oz each 3-4 times a day. They just turned a year old, so until recently, they sometimes got five servings a day. As their growth slows, so does their appetite. I'm trying to figure out what their regular amount should be now. They are Siberian, so will be big cats and not done growing for at least another year.
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I took her recipe, multiplied by 5 to make a big batch which should last 40-45 days. I made 30-gram (about 1 oz) patties and flash-froze them on freezer paper on trays; the weight is going to vary based on how much water you add, so it's hard to gauge how much to feed by that. I transferred the patties to gallon ziploc bags and keep them in my chest freezer. Every other day, I put 10 patties in the fridge to thaw.

I figured out how many patties I had and based on how long the recipe should last, started feeding 4 patties/day. After 6 days, he lost weight, so I increased him to 5 patties/day. He's now gaining weight.

Floyd has always been a lean cat, never overweight. He lost a bunch of weight when he became diabetic and I've been struggling to get the weight back on, but of course until he's better regulated that's not going to happen. He's about an 8.5 lb cat at his ideal weight.

Interestingly, our civvie (15 yr old) is a 10.5 to 11 lb cat (also never overweight - not in my house!) and they have eaten the same food in the same quantity for 10+ years. So you never know! I think monitoring their weight and adjusting the amount fed based on body condition is the best way.
 
Janine & Floyd said:
I think monitoring their weight and adjusting the amount fed based on body condition is the best way.
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I weigh them weekly. After re-reading Dr. Lisa's instructions for the 30th time, I decided to remove less skin with this last batch, because they had not only stopped gaining weight, but lost a little (just fractions of an ounce, but they should be getting bigger). They refuse to eat on a schedule, so I have to watch for signs they are hungry and feed them then. When I try to give them food at a set time, they often refuse it, and I have to dispose of it, since you can't let raw sit out. They are still very high energy and when they eat, it's with gusto. They just don't like to be predictable! :rolleyes:

I also do a big batch - I quadruple everything. With these two, it lasts me about three weeks. It's a lot of work, but they are worth it. Do you use the fish oil capsules, or liquid?
 
Tricia Cinco(GA) & Harvey said:
I weigh them weekly. After re-reading Dr. Lisa's instructions for the 30th time, I decided to remove less skin with this last batch, because they had not only stopped gaining weight, but lost a little (just fractions of an ounce, but they should be getting bigger). They refuse to eat on a schedule, so I have to watch for signs they are hungry and feed them then. When I try to give them food at a set time, they often refuse it, and I have to dispose of it, since you can't let raw sit out. They are still very high energy and when they eat, it's with gusto. They just don't like to be predictable! :rolleyes:

I also do a big batch - I quadruple everything. With these two, it lasts me about three weeks. It's a lot of work, but they are worth it. Do you use the fish oil capsules, or liquid?
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My cats eat like they've never eaten, then would eat again if you let them!!

I use fish oil capsules.
 
Tricia Cinco(GA) & Harvey said:
I have arthritis in my hands, so squeezing 30 capsules is really hard for me. I tried putting them through the grinder, but the casing doesn't chop up enough and the cats don't like biting into it, so I tried the liquid.
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It's nice when you have cats that will eat literally ANYTHING. I just throw the capsules in as I'm grinding and they don't care. :D

I also wouldn't bother squeezing and would use the liquid if needed.
 
I think it's a good idea to work on being able to test before feeding. I know it's hard - Neko wasn't fond of waiting either. But she could be bribed with enough FD treats. At some point you will be presented with a preshot number that will be below your comfort zone. (yes, it will happen!). When that happens, you may want to stall, without feeding, to see if his numbers are rising. My kitty liked to give me under 50's in the morning. :rolleyes:

I like Dyana's suggestions of feeding. It gets some fresh food on board before onset and spreads the food out. Whenever you do food changes, it's an experiment to see what works for your cat. Try something for a week or two and see if you notice any changes before trying another experiment.

Some cats do better with some carbs instead of no carbs. Here's a post from the old forum that talks about it. Having some carbs can slow down the steep drops at the beginning of the cycle which can also cause bounces. I fed Neko manufactured raw that had 3-5% carbs, depending on the protein. Kangaroo is higher carb - who knew?
 
Wendy&Neko said:
I think it's a good idea to work on being able to test before feeding. I know it's hard - Neko wasn't fond of waiting either. But she could be bribed with enough FD treats. At some point you will be presented with a preshot number that will be below your comfort zone. (yes, it will happen!). When that happens, you may want to stall, without feeding, to see if his numbers are rising. My kitty liked to give me under 50's in the morning. :rolleyes:

I like Dyana's suggestions of feeding. It gets some fresh food on board before onset and spreads the food out. Whenever you do food changes, it's an experiment to see what works for your cat. Try something for a week or two and see if you notice any changes before trying another experiment.

Some cats do better with some carbs instead of no carbs. Here's a post from the old forum that talks about it. Having some carbs can slow down the steep drops at the beginning of the cycle which can also cause bounces. I fed Neko manufactured raw that had 3-5% carbs, depending on the protein. Kangaroo is higher carb - who knew?
Click to expand...

I will work on testing before feeding in the AM.

I will adjust feeding schedule starting with Dyana's suggestions and working from there.

For now, am I correct in thinking that I should stay on the current dose and see if adjustments in diet will help smooth things out? I would need to wait another 2-4 cycle before changing dose anyway, correct? Since he's gone so low on the AM cycle today.

When you say wait a "week or two" to see if "food changes" do anything, do you mean changing diet altogether or even just adjusting the feeding schedule?
 
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