Head on over to the
Lantus forum and read the stickies there. LOTS of info to digest. Keep on asking your questions even if you get answers but don't understand. There's always someone willing to explain things.
You'll be asked to set up a spreadsheet with Henry's numbers and information once you start home testing.
You can read how to set it up here.
For now, I'll try to answer your questions but once you start testing and people start to get to know Henry, you'll receive much better more specified advice
How do you give a shot and make sure the cat has eaten enough food?
Every cat is different (ECID). Ming will eat half of his shot time meal and then I will shoot. Then 15 mins or half an hour later, he'll go back and eat the rest. It sometimes takes him up to an hour to finish 1 can of fancy feast. And that's okay for Ming because I know that's enough food for him. But I'd observe how much Henry eats in a day and make sure he's eating his normal amounts and also find out how much he should eat for his body weight (perhaps someone can direct you to a calculator or site that helps figure that out).
Like
@Lisa and Witn (GA) suggested, feeding smaller meals throughout the day is something you can do and is encouraged. And you may need to separate Henry from Remy during those feeding times and/or establish a routine. With time, your kitties will know when food time is and where food time is. Ming jumps on the table to get his blood tested when he knows it's dinner or breakfast time. Then he'll jump down from the table when I finish and wait at his food bowl for his meal.
You can also go fancy and buy those timed meal dispensers that only open for a specific cat.
Should I withhold food before insulin, if so for how long?
Generally, it's recommended to withhold food 2 hours before shot time so that the number you test before insulin is not food influenced.
Also, when do I test his glucose on a normal day. Before he eats? Then when???
Yes, it's important to test before you shoot to make sure it's safe to shoot. Again, once you start home testing and gather more data, you'll find patterns and figure out the important times to test for Henry.
I started testing every +2 because that's usually when Lantus starts to work. So if Ming's number at +2 is much lower than the pre-shot (before insulin) number, then I know he may drop later on in the cycle. I also found out that for Ming, +4 is a better indication as to if he'll be dropping low at Nadir or not. That's generally what people recommend: get a +2 and then get one at Nadir (the lowest point in the cycle) which can be anywhere from +4 to + 8. That you will need to find out with testing.
For now, I'd test as often as you're able to and gather as much data as you can from Henry.
