Should I give him insulin ?

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Ziggyloveforever

Ziggyloveforever

Member Since 2021
Hey everyone still trying to get the hang of so many new things. Ziggy has been testing normal since his first half unit dose of insulin two days ago on the 15th. Tonight just now he tested high via urine strip he tested normal or BG and urine strip all day. Everyone is asleep and I can not get ear prick alone should I give him half a unit ? The strip and Bg was normal all day but now within 30 seconds the urine strip was as dark as it could be ! This is so confusing if he hasn’t had insulin in two days will I harm him by giving it to him now ?!
 
Harold Kunzli said:
I dont feel experienced enough to give you advice, but I would definitely be cautious if you don't know there blood glucose level.
I will tag some people although I'm not sure who will be up because of time zones.
In the meantime, what insulin is he on?
@Bron and Sheba (GA) @JanetNJ @Chris & China (GA)
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He’s on lantus and the urine strip turned as dark as could be within seconds doesn’t that mean he’s high? The urine seems to match up with the BG monitor when I match throughout the day. His bg was 100 earlier and he hasn’t even shown traces of glucose on the urine strip until just now.
 
Ziggyloveforever said:
He’s on lantus and the urine strip turned as dark as could be within seconds doesn’t that mean he’s high? The urine seems to match up with the BG monitor when I match throughout the day. His bg was 100 earlier and he hasn’t even shown traces of glucose on the urine strip until just now.
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My worry is that the urine strip could be faulty if he hasn't shown any trace all day. Are you able to test again?
Also are you able to stay up and monitor kitty to make sure they don't show symptoms of hypo?
 
Harold Kunzli said:
My worry is that the urine strip could be faulty if he hasn't shown any trace all day. Are you able to test again?
Also are you able to stay up and monitor kitty to make sure they don't show symptoms of hypo?
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I have never tested my kitties urine at home so I really don't know how that all works.
 
Try for the ear prick alone. Take a deep breath get your supplies and stay calm. Wrap him in a warm blanket so he can't claw you. You've got this
 
Harold Kunzli said:
My worry is that the urine strip could be faulty if he hasn't shown any trace all day. Are you able to test again?
Also are you able to stay up and monitor kitty to make sure they don't show symptoms of hypo?
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I got a bg reading with the blood one earlier of 100 when he was showing no trace I’ve been trying to establish if it’s accurate and it seems to line up with the Bg blood meter I can absolutely stay up and monitor him I was told it peaks at 6 hours but he also needs to eat for me to dose right ?
 
Katsallday said:
Try for the ear prick alone. Take a deep breath get your supplies and stay calm. Wrap him in a warm blanket so he can't claw you. You've got this
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if you could see my poor cats ears right now I don’t got this and I’m really not comfortable doing it alone I’ve only gotten three successful ear pricks in the last 3 days and each took me atleast 15 minutes his ears had an adverse reaction to a transdermal medication last week and they’re already having issues I will put the picture of that as my profile pic because I don’t know how else to show you he only got his diagnosis two days ago this is all so new I can’t do the prick alone I can barely do it with someone holding him
 
It is all so very overwhelming at the beginning and I definitely don't want to make it worse for you.
Did he have ketones at diagnosis? And how many hours after you gave insulin did you get the 100 reading?
 
Ziggyloveforever said:
if you could see my poor cats ears right now I don’t got this and I’m really not comfortable doing it alone I’ve only gotten three successful ear pricks in the last 3 days and each took me atleast 15 minutes his ears had an adverse reaction to a transdermal medication last week and they’re already having issues I will put the picture of that as my profile pic because I don’t know how else to show you he only got his diagnosis two days ago this is all so new I can’t do the prick alone I can barely do it with someone holding him
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I went through the same thing, most of us here did. My tears drenched my poor cat as I tried to make him bleed for his own good. A few tips, try using the lancet sideways into the ear, that will help you feel like your not gonna pierce through. Have the strip halfway loaded into the device, when you get your blood drop hold the ear with one hand and use the other to push in the strip all the way so it doesn't time out and shut down. Use your breath to warm up the ears and do a little ear massage to get the blood moving.
 
I’m not comfortable doing it alone I’m going to hurt him his ears are already flopping over like a dog they’re impossible to get to bleed and he will not stay still for this is there anywhere else I can go ?
 
If I get the prick and his BG tests high I can feed him and give him insulin even though he hasn’t had a dose in 2 full days ?
 
Ziggyloveforever said:
If I get the prick and his BG tests high I can feed him and give him insulin even though he hasn’t had a dose in 2 full days ?
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Yes, if his blood glucose levels are high you can give insulin. Even if he hasn't had it for a few days. But, the dose may also depend on how high he is.
 
Harold Kunzli said:
You can poke the paw pad! I've never done it but others do. I would recommend wrapping kitty up like a burrito if you are going to attempt that.
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And if his BG tests high I can feed him and give him a half unit of insulin even though he hasn’t gotten insulin in two days ? I didn’t know it could work that way do some people here Miss days when their kitty tests normal ?
 
Harold Kunzli said:
You can poke the paw pad! I've never done it but others do. I would recommend wrapping kitty up like a burrito if you are going to attempt that.
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I did that before I ever went for the ear lol! To me it's harder but I was using terrible lancets back then
 
Harold Kunzli said:
It is all so very overwhelming at the beginning and I definitely don't want to make it worse for you.
Did he have ketones at diagnosis? And how many hours after you gave insulin did you get the 100 reading?
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No no ketones it’s been two days since he’s tested high 12 hours after first and only dose of insulin he was 146 then that same night he was 90 and today during the day he was 100
 
So I got the 100 reading almost a full 24 hours after I bet this same thing happened last night and I didn’t know he needs steroids for his severe IBD he gets a dexamethasone shot at 9pm every night could it be I need the insulin to offset the shot ?
 
Ziggyloveforever said:
No no ketones it’s been two days since he’s tested high 12 hours after first and only dose of insulin he was 146 then that same night he was 90 and today during the day he was 100
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Interesting, my cat is in remission with BG between 90-110. Don't push insulin without a BG, too risky for that track record. Hypo is very dangerous. What was the diagnosis BG?
 
Ziggyloveforever said:
So I got the 100 reading almost a full 24 hours after I bet this same thing happened last night and I didn’t know he needs steroids for his severe IBD he gets a dexamethasone shot at 9pm every night could it be I need the insulin to offset the shot ?
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The steroid can definitely increase the blood sugar. But Im mot sure if that means insulin the answer because it could be a short lived increase and the insulin can drop him to low.
In my very not experienced advice, I also would not give insulin.. Those are really good levels for a "diabetic" cat, although they are a little higher then a normal cats.
 
Harold Kunzli said:
The steroid can definitely increase the blood sugar. But Im mot sure if that means insulin the answer because it could be a short lived increase and the insulin can drop him to low.
In my very not experienced advice, I also would not give insulin.. Those are really good levels for a "diabetic" cat, although they are a little higher then a normal cats.
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The only time I've ever seen anyone here recommend pushing insulin without having a BG established is for the long hauler sugar cats with very experienced parents that understand their cat will need this forever. 2 days in and a fairly low BG track record in my opinion shouldn't necessitate pushing insulin blindly. I'm also not an advice giver but under these circumstances I think it's best to not push right now.
 
Harold Kunzli said:
Yes, if his blood glucose levels are high you can give insulin. Even if he hasn't had it for a few days. But, the dose may also depend on how high he is.
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Ok I got it on the paw pad machine turned off on me I thought I had it halfway loaded but I didn’t does that affect anything if I had to reapply the strip and it wasn’t the first few seconds ? BG saying 211
 
Ziggyloveforever said:
Ok I got it on the paw pad machine turned off on me I thought I had it halfway loaded but I didn’t does that affect anything if I had to reapply the strip and it wasn’t the first few seconds ? BG saying 211
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That’s too close to normal to shoot so no insulin or do you think I messed the prick up and I should try again ?
 
Ziggyloveforever said:
Ok I got it on the paw pad machine turned off on me I thought I had it halfway loaded but I didn’t does that affect anything if I had to reapply the strip and it wasn’t the first few seconds ? BG saying 211
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Ziggyloveforever said:
Ok I got it on the paw pad machine turned off on me I thought I had it halfway loaded but I didn’t does that affect anything if I had to reapply the strip and it wasn’t the first few seconds ? BG saying 211
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Congratulations on testing by yourself!!!! Good job!
And no that doesn't affect anything. Are you using a human or pet meter?
I wouldn't give insulin personally.
 
Ziggyloveforever said:
Ok I got it on the paw pad machine turned off on me I thought I had it halfway loaded but I didn’t does that affect anything if I had to reapply the strip and it wasn’t the first few seconds ? BG saying 211
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Did you have the blood on the strip and then loaded it fully?

211 is pretty low and if your not comfortable checking blood every few hours idk if you should risk pushing insulin. Hypo is terrifying, my baby went hypo 3 times and it's awful. When did u push the steroid? And do you have a spreadsheet?
 
Katsallday said:
The only time I've ever seen anyone here recommend pushing insulin without having a BG established is for the long hauler sugar cats with very experienced parents that understand their cat will need this forever. 2 days in and a fairly low BG track record in my opinion shouldn't necessitate pushing insulin blindly. I'm also not an advice giver but under these circumstances I think it's best to not push right now.
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Harold Kunzli said:
Congratulations on testing by yourself!!!! Good job!
And no that doesn't affect anything. Are you using a human or pet meter?
I wouldn't give insulin personally.
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it’s a human meter I got from Walmart because it takes a small amount of blood and some wonderful life saving woman who had a diabetic cat came over and showed me how to use it so I bought the same one she taught me on yes I agree no insulin especially if that doesn’t mess anything up I thought the blood had to go in super quick
 
Ziggyloveforever said:
it’s a human meter I got from Walmart because it takes a small amount of blood and some wonderful life saving woman who had a diabetic cat came over and showed me how to use it so I bought the same one she taught me on yes I agree no insulin especially if that doesn’t mess anything up I thought the blood had to go in super quick
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No, as long as the strip is all the way in and the meter is activated when you test it doesn't matter if it takes a few moments to get the blood. Sometimes Harold thinks poke time is play time and it will take me a minute or two to actually get blood on the strip.
 
Katsallday said:
Did you have the blood on the strip and then loaded it fully?

211 is pretty low and if your not comfortable checking blood every few hours idk if you should risk pushing insulin. Hypo is terrifying, my baby went hypo 3 times and it's awful. When did u push the steroid? And do you have a spreadsheet?
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I don’t have a speed sheet as of now because this whole diagnosis was only two days ago I’m definitely going to learn to navigate that as soon as possible unfortunately right now my life is filled with issues my grandparents are sick and my mother is helping them alone much of the time so I can care for my cat whenever I get any free time I try to help her too and learn to take care of my kitty with this new diagnosis I promise I will get to the spreadsheet when I can but I’m on overload right now with everything my kitty is like my child and I’ll do anything for him
 
Harold Kunzli said:
No, as long as the strip is all the way in and the meter is activated when you test it doesn't matter if it takes a few moments to get the blood. Sometimes Harold thinks poke time is play time and it will take me a minute or two to actually get blood on the strip.
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aww that’s so sweet my baby is so sick of being poked and pilled he’s got so many health issues and he’s only two it all started with the FIV he’s so young I really hope he gets better I hate putting him through all this
 
Katsallday said:
Did you have the blood on the strip and then loaded it fully?

211 is pretty low and if your not comfortable checking blood every few hours idk if you should risk pushing insulin. Hypo is terrifying, my baby went hypo 3 times and it's awful. When did u push the steroid? And do you have a spreadsheet?
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The steroid is given at 9pm daily he’s so severely IBD he can’t tolerate it orally I have to inject it
 
I'm sorry you are having to deal with so much at once. The diabetes diagnosis is a hard hurdle to get over all by itself.
I'm also sorry no one more experienced was able to help you tonight! I am however very happy you were able to get a blood test :) It is a hard thing to get the hang of and very taunting at first. I am hoping for you that this diabetes diagnosis was a little preemptive and perhaps could be solved with a lower/different steroid and perhaps a diet switch?
I will post the link for the spreadsheet below if you want to look over it. It is super easy to get the hang of if you know excel/sheets at all.
 
Harold Kunzli said:
I'm sorry you are having to deal with so much at once. The diabetes diagnosis is a hard hurdle to get over all by itself.
I'm also sorry no one more experienced was able to help you tonight! I am however very happy you were able to get a blood test :) It is a hard thing to get the hang of and very taunting at first. I am hoping for you that this diabetes diagnosis was a little preemptive and perhaps could be solved with a lower/different steroid and perhaps a diet switch?
I will post the link for the spreadsheet below if you want to look over it. It is super easy to get the hang of if you know excel/sheets at all.
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Oh you’re all amazing and experienced I know the urine strip isn’t recommended and I was just being a chicken because his ears had an adverse reactions to a transdermal not to long ago and thanks to the paw suggestion it went better than ever and thank god I have you all or I would be so lost I couldn’t ask for more
 
Harold Kunzli said:
I'm sorry you are having to deal with so much at once. The diabetes diagnosis is a hard hurdle to get over all by itself.
I'm also sorry no one more experienced was able to help you tonight! I am however very happy you were able to get a blood test :) It is a hard thing to get the hang of and very taunting at first. I am hoping for you that this diabetes diagnosis was a little preemptive and perhaps could be solved with a lower/different steroid and perhaps a diet switch?
I will post the link for the spreadsheet below if you want to look over it. It is super easy to get the hang of if you know excel/sheets at all.
Click to expand...
https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/how-to-create-a-spreadsheet.241706/
 
Ziggyloveforever said:
Oh you’re all amazing and experienced I know the urine strip isn’t recommended and I was just being a chicken because his ears had an adverse reactions to a transdermal not to long ago and thanks to the paw suggestion it went better than ever and thank god I have you all or I would be so lost I couldn’t ask for more
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I don’t know excel sheets for the life of me but I will learn if it helps you help him and I can’t learn without the link so I would really appreciate that hopefully I can have it up and running by the weekend
 
Ziggyloveforever said:
The steroid is given at 9pm daily he’s so severely IBD he can’t tolerate it orally I have to inject it
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I know how overwhelming it is, if you find my original posts here my cat was so overdosed on insulin his bg was shooting so low then spiking over 500 daily. I was having panic attacks, sobbing, everyone here will get you through this. I know these wonderful people got my kitty into remission, and we will all help you find a way to get through this worst part.

If the steroid must stay then it's likely the diabetes will stay as well. I think what we're seeing is the beginning of it. 100s is low, that's where remission is. 200 spikes after the shot that settle into the 100s sounds reactive. What food is he on?
 
Unfortunately I can’t change the steroid we’ve tried everything else he is so severely IBD he can barely handle any oral medication which is why we did transdermal on the ears that are now flopping over
 
Katsallday said:
I know how overwhelming it is, if you find my original posts here my cat was so overdosed on insulin his bg was shooting so low then spiking over 500 daily. I was having panic attacks, sobbing, everyone here will get you through this. I know these wonderful people got my kitty into remission, and we will all help you find a way to get through this worst part.

If the steroid must stay then it's likely the diabetes will stay as well. I think what we're seeing is the beginning of it. 100s is low, that's where remission is. 200 spikes after the shot that settle into the 100s sounds reactive. What food is he on?
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His diet need to be changed ASAP from what I’ve read he’s on hills I/d dry it was the only thing that worked for his IBD but im going to switch it to rayne nutrition wet they have half the carbs that hills does
 
Ziggyloveforever said:
His diet need to be changed ASAP from what I’ve read he’s on hills I/d dry it was the only thing that worked for his IBD but im going to switch it to rayne nutrition wet they have half the carbs that hills does
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Do you know how many carbs it has? My baby went into remission when moved him from 4-6% carbs down to 0-1%. That little change pushed him into the clear
 
Ziggyloveforever said:
His diet need to be changed ASAP from what I’ve read he’s on hills I/d dry it was the only thing that worked for his IBD but im going to switch it to rayne nutrition wet they have half the carbs that hills does
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You all already have helped me so much I don’t know what I would do without you guys thank goodness for people like you I wish more people cared about their animals the way people in these groups do IBD kitties have saved Ziggy more than the doctors have multiple diagnosis kittys are really tough and he’s so young I know we can’t stop or change the shot but I am looking to reduce it once we make a full switch to the new food too many things at once with Ziggy send him into an IBD flare and that’s a week minimum in the ER and it’s so hard on him so my plan is to slowly switch food this food he is on is 37% carbs the one he’s being switched too is 14% I’ll slowly switch that and if it doesn’t cause a flare by time he’s fully off the I/d dry I’ll wait two weeks and lower the steroid .5 with ultrasound monitor to see how his GI handles it
 
Ziggyloveforever said:
You all already have helped me so much I don’t know what I would do without you guys thank goodness for people like you I wish more people cared about their animals the way people in these groups do IBD kitties have saved Ziggy more than the doctors have multiple diagnosis kittys are really tough and he’s so young I know we can’t stop or change the shot but I am looking to reduce it once we make a full switch to the new food too many things at once with Ziggy send him into an IBD flare and that’s a week minimum in the ER and it’s so hard on him so my plan is to slowly switch food this food he is on is 37% carbs the one he’s being switched too is 14% I’ll slowly switch that and if it doesn’t cause a flare by time he’s fully off the I/d dry I’ll wait two weeks and lower the steroid .5 with ultrasound monitor to see how his GI handles it
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That sounds like you are very committed to your babies welfare! You got this sugar parent! I'm sure you'll see quite the difference! Wet food+less carbs is the way to go! Your baby is lucky to have you :bighug:
 
Katsallday said:
That sounds like you are very committed to your babies welfare! You got this sugar parent! I'm sure you'll see quite the difference! Wet food+less carbs is the way to go! Your baby is lucky to have you :bighug:
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I’m lucky to have him I rescued him from a hell whole a little over a year ago his original owner left him more than half dead rotting in a corner and groups like these have restored my faith in humanity I’m lucky to have you guys thank you so much for the kindness and knowledge you’ve given me I’ve found nothing but kindred souls in these groups all of them you’re all amazing pet parents thank you for taking the time to help me and my baby he’s my whole world and then some
 
Ziggyloveforever said:
I’m lucky to have him I rescued him from a hell whole a little over a year ago his original owner left him more than half dead rotting in a corner and groups like these have restored my faith in humanity I’m lucky to have you guys thank you so much for the kindness and knowledge you’ve given me I’ve found nothing but kindred souls in these groups all of them you’re all amazing pet parents thank you for taking the time to help me and my baby he’s my whole world and then some
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If someone leaves the link to the spreadsheet I’ll get to it as soon as possible
 
Ziggyloveforever said:
I’m lucky to have him I rescued him from a hell whole a little over a year ago his original owner left him more than half dead rotting in a corner and groups like these have restored my faith in humanity I’m lucky to have you guys thank you so much for the kindness and knowledge you’ve given me I’ve found nothing but kindred souls in these groups all of them you’re all amazing pet parents thank you for taking the time to help me and my baby he’s my whole world and then some
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That's exactly how I feel about this site. They saved me and my kitty and I'll be here paying it forward for the rest of my life. My vet told me my cat would be diabetic forever, this place got him in remission in less than a month. I love it here and you'll always find someone wanting to help. Btw your Ziggy is so cute! Your doing so good by him
 
Katsallday said:
That's exactly how I feel about this site. They saved me and my kitty and I'll be here paying it forward for the rest of my life. My vet told me my cat would be diabetic forever, this place got him in remission in less than a month. I love it here and you'll always find someone wanting to help. Btw your Ziggy is so cute! Your doing so good by him
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This group saved my baby too they told me to give insulin every 12 hours and had I done that he would be in big trouble right now he has so many health issues his body can’t handle hypoglycemia at all it’s amazing that everyone pays it forward when I finally get the hang of it I’ll do the same and when I do open my rescue I’ll be sure include diabetic cats in mine they’re always welcome I want to have a rescue dedicated to special needs animals in the name of my baby Ziggy your kitty is adorable also I love how much we love our babies
 
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