JINX 11/1/21 +5: 92

Georgie and Jinx

Georgie and Jinx

Member Since 2020
Hello everyone,

I'm seeking some dosage advice for my kitty Jinx tonight. I increased his dose today and he went low for the first time ever and now I am a little confused as to what I should do tonight. Could someone please have a look at Jinx's numbers and offer any advice. I'm still learning and would really appreciate it.

Jinx bounced back from his low quickly today with food but has thrown up his dinner tonight. I increased his dose by .50 this morning and also used 3m syringes for the first time instead of the Lantus pen. Could the syringe or pen had an impact on his dosage or insulin absorption? Should I maintain the 3.5 or reduce tonight? Jinx was DKA so I know I shouldn't skip a dose.

Trying to figure out what changed today as he has been running high and unregulated since diagnosed late December. Here is Jinx's spreadsheet. Thanks so much in advance! Georgie and Jinx
 
Will you be able to monitor him tonight? You are right in that with DKA in the picture you should not be skipping his shot.
 
My vet advised to increase him to 4U yesterday as we had seen no change in the 3U dose. I questioned the approach but he was quite stern with me, and I questioned myself and went half way. I can stay up with him tonight to monitor. He has eaten a small amount of mince.
 
Also, I see that you haven't been getting any night time tests for the last week. He could be going low at night and bouncing during the day - which is why you are seeing high numbers during the day. TR requires at least 1 test per cycle in addition to the pre-shot tests.

In future, at pre-shot, you test, feed and then shoot. If you get a lower than anticipated pre-shot, you stall, do not feed and post here for advice. The next time you get a unexpected low number mid-cycle, you want to retest to see if it was a bad strip.
 
Bandit's Mom said:
Also, I see that you haven't been getting any night time tests for the last week. He could be going low at night and bouncing during the day - which is why you are seeing high numbers during the day. TR requires at least 1 test per cycle in addition to the pre-shot tests.

In future, at pre-shot, you test, feed and then shoot. If you get a lower than anticipated pre-shot, you stall, do not feed and post here for advice. The next time you get a unexpected low number mid-cycle, you want to retest to see if it was a bad strip.
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Thank you - I didn't know bad test strips could alter his numbers. I will keep that in mind, I have two BG monitors so have been using that to sense check as well. Earlier today he was low on both machines.

I will resume night tests, his been so exhausted at night and had heavy breathing at times (he does also sometimes snore so have been watching closely) I assumed he was still running high and didn't want to wake him and put him through more needles. Can I ask, if I was in a position where I couldn't monitor him tonight - what would be the alternative? Lucky I had the foresight to take this week off work to help him.
 
Looks like he is bouncing from the lows today. Expected. I would get one more test before bed. No need to stay up testing since he will probably be higher but just get a test before your normal bed time for the record.

I would ask that you monitor him closely for the next few days. His dose has been increased from 1U to 3U without enough tests and therefore with no idea how low he is going. Even 3U might be too high for him.

To answer your question on what you could do if you cannot monitor, you could give a token dose which could be anywhere between 10% to 75% of his usual dose. The exact dose would depend on his numbers. Stalling without feeding and testing after 20 mins can give you a good idea of whether he is flat, headed lower higher. Most cats, in the initial days, will bounce after a dip below 50 - enabling you to shoot the full dose. With DKA in the picture you would want to avoid skipping shots.

@tiffmaxee
 
Georgie and Jinx said:
My vet advised to increase him to 4U yesterday as we had seen no change in the 3U dose. I questioned the approach but he was quite stern with me
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I'm glad you 'questioned'...many vets just don't understand FD nor the best course of treatment - it's unfortunate but true. They aren't given enough training in vet school about FD, and they don't have time while they're in practice treating a variety of other animals and many other issues to delve into FD as much as the folks on the forum have. Papers have been written...there's so much information in the stickies for you to read and learn.

Try not to consult with your vet about Jinx's diabetes if/when you can. When I take Luci to the vet I tell them she's a diabetic, but she's typically there for other issues...I listen to their 'advice', nod and say thank you...pay my bill and leave. And come right back here to the forum for questions/advice and information on how best to treat her diabetes.

Bhooma has given you some great advice...just go slow and easy with increases - best for you and Jinx. :bighug:
 
Bandit's Mom said:
Looks like he is bouncing from the lows today. Expected. I would get one more test before bed. No need to stay up testing since he will probably be higher but just get a test before your normal bed time for the record.

I would ask that you monitor him closely for the next few days. His dose has been increased from 1U to 3U without enough tests and therefore with no idea how low he is going. Even 3U might be too high for him.

To answer your question on what you could do if you cannot monitor, you could give a token dose which could be anywhere between 10% to 75% of his usual dose. The exact dose would depend on his numbers. Stalling without feeding and testing after 20 mins can give you a good idea of whether he is flat, headed lower higher. Most cats, in the initial days, will bounce after a dip below 50 - enabling you to shoot the full dose. With DKA in the picture you would want to avoid skipping shots.

@tiffmaxee
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Thanks @Bandit's Mom and @Sue and Luci, I've done a couple of more tests this evening and he is gone down to 191. I'll monitor him closely with more testing and continue asking questions while I'm home with Jinx this week. I've read a lot of content on the stickies but its difficult when every cat is different and I'm in panic mode - my ability to think rationally seems to go out the window. Thanks for the advice and support :bighug:
 
Wow. That is quite a drop from +1 to +2.

Feel free to ask as many questions here and if ever in doubt about dosing or whether to give a shot, post her and someone should answer quickly. You could tag some of us:

@Bron and Sheba (GA) is in Australia
@Sue and Luci is in Florida and is one of the first on the Board in the morning
@tiffmaxee is in LA
I am in India.

Between us, we have most time zones covered. :-)
 
Georgie and Jinx said:
@Sue and Luci thanks - I just tested him then and he dropped to 65 at +4. He just had half a tin of kitten food. Will stay up with him until he turns around.
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I could be wrong but I am worried that he is being "over dosed". If he drops below 50 today, we will need to take a call on how to change his dose going forward.

Please get a +5. He seems to be headed down at good speed!
 
Bandit's Mom said:
I could be wrong but I am worried that he is being "over dosed". If he drops below 50 today, we will need to take a call on how to change his dose going forward.

Please get a +5. He seems to be headed down at good speed!
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@Bandit's Mom I was just discussing this with my boyfriend, I think you are right. We've discovered there was something wrong with our Lantus pen we were using to shoot with. I think the mechanism is broken, it appears to be administering half doses and not clicking properly. This could explain the overdosing today as we changed to syringes this morning. Could we go down a whole unit tomorrow potentially? I will get a +5 and let you know how he goes. He is running around chasing my siamese at the moment - really good sign.
 
Georgie and Jinx said:
Could we go down a whole unit tomorrow potentially? I will get a +5 and let you know how he goes. He is running around chasing my siamese at the moment - really good sign.
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Let us see how this cycle plays out and take a call. Okay?
Do you have a sense of how long the pen has been acting up and what the actual doses given are?

Do you have syringes with half unit markings? We increase and decrease doses in multiples of 0.25U so as not to bypass the good dose.

Could you please combine the 2020 and 2021 sheets in your SS? With only 10 days in 2020, you don't need a separate sheet. Would be easier for us to see his BG numbers from the start to now in one page. I can do this for you, if you'd like.
 
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@Bandit's Mom sounds good, he is on his way up! 5+: 92

I don't have syringes with half unit markings unfortunately, I have 0,3mL (30 unit) syringes which arrived today from America. I couldn't seem to find half unit syringes that shipped to Australia..
 
Georgie and Jinx said:
@Bandit's Mom sounds good, he is on his way up! 5+: 92
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That's good. Do not feed and get one more test to see if he is rising even after the food bump wears off. You could either get a +6, or set an alarm for +7. :)

Georgie and Jinx said:
I don't have syringes with half unit markings unfortunately, I have 0,3mL (30 unit) syringes which arrived today from America. I couldn't seem to find half unit syringes that shipped to Australia..
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If you're getting syringes from the US, you could get those with half unit markings the next time. Easier to dose fractional units.
 
Bandit's Mom said:
That's good. Do not feed and get one more test to see if he is rising even after the food bump wears off. You could either get a +6, or set an alarm for +7. :)

If you're getting syringes from the US, you could get those with half unit markings the next time. Easier to dose fractional units.
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I'll stay up to get the +6. I won't be able to sleep any way - its been one hell of a day. I will have a search for fractional unit syringes now.
 
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