New LB thread

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@JanetNJ this is so silly, but I just read in another thread that the video in your signature is YOU & CC! :) I guess when I watched the first few times, the names didn’t even stick. Thank you so much for that video! It has helped me (and I’m sure countless others) immensely. It is also nice to put a face & voice with your name. :cat: CC seems like such a sweetheart!
 
Little Bit’s Mom said:
@JanetNJ this is so silly, but I just read in another thread that the video in your signature is YOU & CC! :) I guess when I watched the first few times, the names didn’t even stick. Thank you so much for that video! It has helped me (and I’m sure countless others) immensely. It is also nice to put a face & voice with your name. :cat: CC seems like such a sweetheart!
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Ha ha yep. I really should make a new one that someone else holds the phone for. It's like SUPER close up. I'm glad you've found it helpful. CC really is the best cat.
 
Hey Olivia! I checked out some of those Orijen Cat Treats you mentioned in your previous thread. Lots of organ meats, which can be higher in carbs. So I ran a couple of the flavors through the carb calculator I like to use, with the guaranteed analysis numbers from the companies website. They came out as 13 and 14% carbs.
http://www.scheyderweb.com/cats/catfood.html

So be cautious how many you give to Little Bit. It's possible they could be raising her BG levels a bit.
 
Deb & Wink said:
Hey Olivia! I checked out some of those Orijen Cat Treats you mentioned in your previous thread. Lots of organ meats, which can be higher in carbs. So I ran a couple of the flavors through the carb calculator I like to use, with the guaranteed analysis numbers from the companies website. They came out as 13 and 14% carbs.
http://www.scheyderweb.com/cats/catfood.html

So be cautious how many you give to Little Bit. It's possible they could be raising her BG levels a bit.
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Oh my goodness! Thank you so much for checking. Those treats could certainly have affected some of his numbers. I will give the rest out sparingly and will not order more. They are also the treats that LB regurgitated at one point and they were almost like plastic; I couldn’t pull the chunks apart. Since then, I’ve crumbled them before feeding him.
 
Jan D & Squeaky said:
Yes I'm around! Feel free to ask. I'm still a newbie at this...... will answer what I can....
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Thank you for replying! I was on the feline asthma group a little while ago researching Cushing’s and saw a post pop up from you. Long story short, I’m afraid LB has developed iatrogenic Cushing’s. :( He has symmetrical fur thinning and thin skin. His appetite and energy are normal, though.
Have you had this trouble with Squeaky? I’m afraid that I’m giving him too much Flovent; but, there’s a fine balance between too much Flovent and not enough. :/ He is at the max dose, so I’m thinking I will bring him down to one puff AM and hopefully be able to taper from that. He was on oral prednisolone for about three years and never developed symptoms during that time, so I can only come to the conclusion that the Flovent is too high of a dose and causing too much cortisol output.
All this could be *causing* his diabetes and explain why he’s a bit difficult to regulate.
@JanetNJ @Deb & Wink I would appreciate any wisdom you ladies have, as well. I am worried and upset. Janet, I know Cushing’s is related somehow to acromegaly, correct?
 
Little Bit’s Mom said:
Thank you for replying! I was on the feline asthma group a little while ago researching Cushing’s and saw a post pop up from you. Long story short, I’m afraid LB has developed iatrogenic Cushing’s. :( He has symmetrical fur thinning and thin skin. His appetite and energy are normal, though.
Have you had this trouble with Squeaky? I’m afraid that I’m giving him too much Flovent; but, there’s a fine balance between too much Flovent and not enough. :/ He is at the max dose, so I’m thinking I will bring him down to one puff AM and hopefully be able to taper from that. He was on oral prednisolone for about three years and never developed symptoms during that time, so I can only come to the conclusion that the Flovent is too high of a dose and causing too much cortisol output.
All this could be *causing* his diabetes and explain why he’s a bit difficult to regulate.
@JanetNJ @Deb & Wink I would appreciate any wisdom you ladies have, as well. I am worried and upset. Janet, I know Cushing’s is related somehow to acromegaly, correct?
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Oh yikes. I don't know anything about Cushings, at all. However Squeaky has been losing some fur on his ears, not the area where I poke him (the back of the ear) but the front.

However I will email your message to my vet and see.

The inhalers have much less steroids in them than the oral meds; and they only target the lungs. Should be pretty safe. How much of a dose are you giving him of the Flovent?
 
Jan D & Squeaky said:
Oh yikes. I don't know anything about Cushings, at all. However Squeaky has been losing some fur on his ears, not the area where I poke him (the back of the ear) but the front.

However I will email your message to my vet and see.

The inhalers have much less steroids in them than the oral meds; and they only target the lungs. Should be pretty safe. How much of a dose are you giving him of the Flovent?
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Thank you! Would love to hear what your vet has to say. He gets 250 mcg inhaler two puffs twice daily.
 
If you want to try cutting down, get 125 mcg inhalers and cut one of the times first to 125. See how that goes for a couple of weeks, and if there are coughing episodes. If not, then cut down the second dose to 125. That would be a good way to ease down.
 
Unfortunately reduced adrenal function is listed as a side effect. I’m sure that’s much more likely to occur with too much of the medication. I’m praying he can get by on a lower dose.
 
Little Bit’s Mom said:
Thank you! Would love to hear what your vet has to say. He gets 250 mcg inhaler two puffs twice daily.
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Oh wait, two 250 twice daily? that's 500 twice daily? Wow you surely can reduce by a lot. Start 250 am and 500 pm. Then reduce to 250 am and 250 pm and see how that goes. Then try what I suggest in the other message.

500 twice a day is A LOT.
 
Jan D & Squeaky said:
If you want to try cutting down, get 125 mcg inhalers and cut one of the times first to 125. See how that goes for a couple of weeks, and if there are coughing episodes. If not, then cut down the second dose to 125. That would be a good way to ease down.
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I certainly will decrease his dose. Hopefully Lourdes has a 125 mcg inhaler she can loan me if it takes awhile for one to arrive from Canada.
 
Little Bit’s Mom said:
How many breaths do you have Squeaky take? LB is so laid back, he doesn’t mind his aerokat at all. Our rx says 10-15 breaths/puff, so he takes all 15 most times.
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Yes it's easy to use and my Squeaky doesn't mind much either. I hold him on my lap like a baby and give him a full body massage each time before his puff. He loves it and it's our bonding time. And it gets him used to being touched all over. He loves it when I hold his toes.

I think ours says 15 but I do 20. I order ours from Vanuatu and it's called Flixotide. I think it is a little less strong than Flovent but still works great.

Okay so maybe I'm not so clear today. Try decreasing 125 mcg once a day, say in the morning. Then after 10 days, try another decrease of 125 mcg in the evening. Then decrease 125 in the morning again. Etc.

My understanding is it take 10 days for a dose to take full effect. And just monitor for coughing episodes. Sounds like you have lots of room for decreasing!
 
Jan D & Squeaky said:
Yes it's easy to use and my Squeaky doesn't mind much either. I hold him on my lap like a baby and give him a full body massage each time before his puff. He loves it and it's our bonding time. And it gets him used to being touched all over. He loves it when I hold his toes.

I think ours says 15 but I do 20. I order ours from Vanuatu and it's called Flixotide. I think it is a little less strong than Flovent but still works great.

Okay so maybe I'm not so clear today. Try decreasing 125 mcg once a day, say in the morning. Then after 10 days, try another decrease of 125 mcg in the evening. Then decrease 125 in the morning again. Etc.

My understanding is it take 10 days for a dose to take full effect. And just monitor for coughing episodes. Sounds like you have lots of room for decreasing!
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Unfortunately I only have 250 mcg inhalers, so I will have to decrease his AM dose by 250 mcg, not 125.
I order from Canada, but I think it comes from Vanuatu too.
 
Little Bit’s Mom said:
@JanetNJ @Deb & Wink if y'all have a chance, I would like to hear your opinions regarding his symptoms with how the diabetes regulation has been challenging. It seems to me that he is not “regulating,” is that correct?
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Two things that can potentially feed into a high AMPS:

1. Dawn phenomenon.

2. Cat drops into a lower range at night and the AMPS might be a little 'bouncy'.

It's been observed here that, for some cats, the last thing to come into range when tightly regulating/going into remission is the AMPS.


Mogs
.
 
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Critter Mom said:
Two things that can potentially feed into a high AMPS:

1. Dawn phenomenon.

2. Cat drops into a lower range at night and the AMPS might be a little 'bouncy'.

It's been observed here that, for some cats, the last thing to come into range when tightly regulating/going into remission is the AMPS.


Mogs
.
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Very good information to know, thank you for sharing that with me, Mogs!:D
 
Critter Mom said:
Hi Olivia,

Maybe have a word with your vet about assessing clinical signs and to see whether a urine creatinine/cortisol test might be worth considering (free catch sample at home):

https://www.marvistavet.com/testing-confirming-cushings-syndrome.pml

According to the above a positive test is not definitive for a Dx, but a negative test definitively rules it out.

More Cushings topics from MarVista:

https://www.marvistavet.com/siteSearch/view/277964_SiteSearch.pml


Mogs
.
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Thank you, Mogs! I intend to call my vet tomorrow and discuss his symptoms. I’m afraid it’ll turn into a vet visit and they won’t let me back with him. That’s a huge fear as LB does not have a rabies shot due to getting ill after one and he’s an inside-only cat. I hate to make him sick and/or put chemicals in his little body that aren’t necessary. He can get sassy and bite others; if he did that, I don’t even want to know what would happen. Hoping my vet will be open to a FaceTime “visit” just to see the thinning fur. I do think his cortisol levels are being raised too high from his Flovent dose.
I will check out those links—thank you!
 
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