? Dosing Advice Needed

Status
Not open for further replies.
JC&Yuki

JC&Yuki

Member Since 2020
Hi Everyone! My cat Yuki was diagnosed back in May of this year and I posted a couple of months ago. Since then I've learned how to do home testing and wanted some advice on whether or not we're moving in the right direction. For some background, Yuki is around 9 years old and was diagnosed on 5/19/2020. She was immediately started on 1.5 units of Lantus. Her dosage has not changed since then, but yesterday when I got her AMPS and PMPS numbers I was worried they were a little too low (97;90). They were so much lower than the numbers that my vet gave me when they conducted a BG curve in June, but I am using a human meter and I'm not sure what meter my vet uses. I've been reading so many conflicting things online about what her BG numbers are supposed to be and I'm not sure what to believe, especially since I'm using a human meter. I also have an Alphatrak 2, but the strips are so much more expensive and I noticed that almost everyone on this forum uses a human meter.

My boyfriend and I conducted a BG curve today, so any insight on her numbers would be greatly appreciated. I've also been pretty concerned about a few other health issues she's been having. She started grinding her teeth about a month ago and since then I've taken her to the vet twice. The vet said that there was some inflammation, but we decided to wait it out to see if it improves. She went back a week after that initial visit and the vet said that there was some improvement and her grinding also became quieter and turned into more of a clicking sound (she only does it when she's eating). She recently got her teeth cleaned at the vet and they had to remove a few teeth, so I'm not sure if that has something to do with it? I also wanted to know if it's normal that her pee spots are rather large in comparison to my other cats. Apologies for the long post and please let me know if this belongs on another forum or if there are any formatting issues with my post! Thank you in advance.
 
The Alphatrack does read differently to a human meter (higher) but the difference is more pronounced at higher numbers. When the numbers are lower the difference between the readings on an Alphatrack and a human meter is smaller.

Dentals can make a huge difference to a kitty’s diabetes and some will even go into remission. The numbers you got on your curve are lovely but they are numbers that need watching. How often are you able to test, i.e. around your work and other commitments?

Did you reduce the doses on the advice of the vet?

Kitties can have different bladder size but diabetic kitties often do larger more frequent pees trying to expel sugar. So I’m thinking maybe Yuki didn’t do that in the last day or two since she didn’t have excess sugar :D

If you edit the title of your thread and add the ? prefix then people will know you have questions :)
 
Dental... Lovely GREENS? ..GOOD THING!

GO YUKI GOOOOOO!

Vyktors Mum (Please forgive me I cant remember your name) has given excellent advice and information.
jeanne

ETA ...SERRYYN :bighug:
Wish I could say my failed memory kicked in but I cheated. Saw you mentioned in Ghengsis' victory video:bighug:
 
Last edited:
Vyktors Mum said:
The Alphatrack does read differently to a human meter (higher) but the difference is more pronounced at higher numbers. When the numbers are lower the difference between the readings on an Alphatrack and a human meter is smaller.

Dentals can make a huge difference to a kitty’s diabetes and some will even go into remission. The numbers you got on your curve are lovely but they are numbers that need watching. How often are you able to test, i.e. around your work and other commitments?

Did you reduce the doses on the advice of the vet?

Kitties can have different bladder size but diabetic kitties often do larger more frequent pees trying to expel sugar. So I’m thinking maybe Yuki didn’t do that in the last day or two since she didn’t have excess sugar :D

If you edit the title of your thread and add the ? prefix then people will know you have questions :)
Click to expand...

Thank you for your response! I didn’t talk to my vet before reducing Yuki’s dose. I mainly did it out of panic and out of fear that her numbers were dipping too low. I’m currently at home all day, so I am able to test her but she gets aggressive when she needs to be restrained or if we need to do anything to her. I’ve only been able to get her numbers with help from my boyfriend who is at work all day): we’ve been burrito wrapping her and watching all of the videos on how to restrain an aggressive cat but no matter what she just sticks her front paws out and tries to back out so it’s never a snug enough burrito. I will try my best but any tips on testing a grumpy cat are more than welcome!
 
JanetNJ said:
Wow her numbers look great! I am glad you reduced
Click to expand...
Thank you! I’m so relieved. I wasn’t sure if her numbers were getting too low as she’s a generally low energy cat and I’ve only recently started home testing.
 
JC&Yuki said:
Thank you! I’m so relieved. I wasn’t sure if her numbers were getting too low as she’s a generally low energy cat and I’ve only recently started home testing.
Click to expand...
If you had continued blindly shooting 1.5 she may have had trouble today. You are doing a great job.
 
Have you had a look at the post on Hometesting Tips and Links in the Health Links/FAQ about Feline Diabetes forum?
Also no fair you haven’t updated Yuki’s spreadsheet I was trying to stalk her to see how she’s going :cat:
 
Vyktors Mum said:
Have you had a look at the post on Hometesting Tips and Links in the Health Links/FAQ about Feline Diabetes forum?
Also no fair you haven’t updated Yuki’s spreadsheet I was trying to stalk her to see how she’s going :cat:
Click to expand...
Apologies for the delay! I've updated her spreadsheet with the last number I was able to get on 10/11, prior to her insulin and dinner. I wasn't able to get any readings from yesterday as I'm still trying to navigate how to get a reading on my own and her ears seemed like they needed some time to heal. Yuki can get pretty aggressive when she's being handled, and I'm sure it doesn't help that she can smell my fear haha. My boyfriend and I will get a couple of readings this afternoon and evening (hopefully) and I am waiting to hear back from her vet about her BG curve. I will definitely check out all of the advice on the Hometesting Tips and Links page, so thank you for pointing me in the right direction!
 
Can you put the information on the spreadsheet for Oct 12th? It's fine if you couldn't test, but important for us to know if you shot insulin. If you didn't shoot, just write Skip or NS (no shot) in the units amount. The information helps us determine what sort of Lantus depot is in effect.

Teeth grinding can also be a sign of nausea. Is she eating OK?

Smelling fear is real! Try singing to her when you test. Sounds odd, but it relaxes you too.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
Can you put the information on the spreadsheet for Oct 12th? It's fine if you couldn't test, but important for us to know if you shot insulin. If you didn't shoot, just write Skip or NS (no shot) in the units amount. The information helps us determine what sort of Lantus depot is in effect.

Teeth grinding can also be a sign of nausea. Is she eating OK?

Smelling fear is real! Try singing to her when you test. Sounds odd, but it relaxes you too.
Click to expand...
Hi Wendy! I will try out the singing thing when I attempt to test her tonight. I've updated my spreadsheet for 10/12 and will be sure to have information on my chart for each day. Her appetite has been normal, which for Yuki is starving. I suspected that her BG levels weren't regulated because since she was diagnosed she just seems desperate for food throughout almost the entire day, but I guess that isn't the issue? I'm taking her back to the vet in a couple of weeks and she'll likely be put under anesthesia so they can take x-rays and more closely examine her teeth because between the grinding and excessive hunger I just want to make sure there isn't another underlying health issue.
 
Excessive hunger can be a sign of too much glucose but it can also indicate low numbers. I’m worried that Yuki might be getting too low post dental which is particularly worrisome when you can’t always get tests. I’m thinking that a reduction from the 1u might be in order. Can you please update your thread title to request dose advice. Also are you shooting with a pen or with syringes?
 
I agree with Serryn. If you had lots of data and much more experience, these would be very desirable numbers to shoot. But at this point in the journey, I think for Yuki's safety it would be good to try 0.5 units as a new dose.
 
Vyktors Mum said:
Excessive hunger can be a sign of too much glucose but it can also indicate low numbers. I’m worried that Yuki might be getting too low post dental which is particularly worrisome when you can’t always get tests. I’m thinking that a reduction from the 1u might be in order. Can you please update your thread title to request dose advice. Also are you shooting with a pen or with syringes?
Click to expand...
I have updated the title and just got off of the phone with my vet. She recommended that we stay at the 1 unit of Lantus every 12 hours with another glucose curve done on 10/24. I am shooting with syringes, so I can adjust the dose in smaller increments.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
I agree with Serryn. If you had lots of data and much more experience, these would be very desirable numbers to shoot. But at this point in the journey, I think for Yuki's safety it would be good to try 0.5 units as a new dose.
Click to expand...
I just spoke to my vet who recommended that I switch back to using the Alphatrak and she agrees that Yuki's numbers are on the lower side. She suggested that I continue to give 1 unit of Lantus every 12 hours and then do another BG curve in a couple of weeks. I do feel a lot more comfortable trying 0.5 units for at least this week and then conducting another BG curve this weekend to see where she's at (I'll also be attempting to get a few readings during weekdays). Do you think in this case it's best to go against my vet's advice for this week? Do you think 4-5 days would be enough to time to see how the .5 units are affecting her?
 
4-5 days, if you get enough tests, is plenty of time to see how 0.5 units is doing. Our saying here "you hold the syringe". Trust your gut, you are there with the cat.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
4-5 days, if you get enough tests, is plenty of time to see how 0.5 units is doing. Our saying here "you hold the syringe". Trust your gut, you are there with the cat.
Click to expand...
Thank you for the reassurance! I will try .5 this week to see where she is at. Yuki and I greatly appreciate the guidance!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top