New Spreadsheet needs views and advice

Status
Not open for further replies.
Hi and welcome to you and Buddy.
Great you have set up the spreadsheet and are hometesting.

Can you tell us what type of food you are feeding?
Are you testing, then feeding, then waiting 30 minutes before giving the dose of insulin?
Are you giving a couple of snacks during ALL the cycles as well as the 2 main meals.
With caninsulin I would give the snacks at +2 and +4

I would recommend you get at least one test in every PM cycle as cats often drop lower at night. A before bed test is a good habit to get into and it that test is lower than the preshot BG you would be advised to test again a bit later to see how low the BG is going and if Buddy is safe. At the moment we don’t know what is happening for 1/2 of the time.

With those black and red BGs I would say it is a combination of bouncing and lack of duration.
Caninsulin is not a good insulin for cats. It is a dog insulin. It does not last the 12 hours which is necessary, as cats have a faster metabolism than dogs.
I would suggest you look at swapping to either Lantus (which is my preference) or Prozinc. These are much more gentle, longer lasting insulins and cats do well on them.

I am going to tag @Suzanne & Darcy about the dose as she is a Caninsulin user.

BEGINNERS GUIDE TO CANINSULIN
 
Toeknee said:
Hi all, so I added the proper spreadsheet (I hope) and would really appreciate any information.
Click to expand...
So good you set up both! And it's just great you are willing to maintain both of these. ;) It will be well worth the extra effort!!:D Wishing you all the best for your future treatment of Buddy:)
 
Hi there,

Bron didn't tag me as I've been out with a baby but I have a chance to peek in. In addition to what Bron said about the extra testing and when to test, I would reduce the dose to 3U-3.25U both AM and PM for the time being (pick whichever of those you are comfortable with, and shoot same dose AM and PM). If you get an unusual preshot, stall without feeding and post in Main Forum for help.

Explanation - the 94 the other day means he was likely lower before that (given the way Caninsulin behaves in cats), which would be at least a 0.25U dose reduction. They also usually go lower at night, so the safer bet is 0.5U reduction. Given the different dosing and lack of PM tests, I would re-baseline at 3-3.25U until we have some PM tests, and tests closer to +4 for a few days while we wait for possible bounces to clear.
 
Bron and Sheba (GA) said:
Hi and welcome to you and Buddy.
Great you have set up the spreadsheet and are hometesting.

Can you tell us what type of food you are feeding?
Are you testing, then feeding, then waiting 30 minutes before giving the dose of insulin?
Are you giving a couple of snacks during ALL the cycles as well as the 2 main meals.
With caninsulin I would give the snacks at +2 and +4

I would recommend you get at least one test in every PM cycle as cats often drop lower at night. A before bed test is a good habit to get into and it that test is lower than the preshot BG you would be advised to test again a bit later to see how low the BG is going and if Buddy is safe. At the moment we don’t know what is happening for 1/2 of the time.

With those black and red BGs I would say it is a combination of bouncing and lack of duration.
Caninsulin is not a good insulin for cats. It is a dog insulin. It does not last the 12 hours which is necessary, as cats have a faster metabolism than dogs.
I would suggest you look at swapping to either Lantus (which is my preference) or Prozinc. These are much more gentle, longer lasting insulins and cats do well on them.

I am going to tag @Suzanne & Darcy about the dose as she is a Caninsulin user.

BEGINNERS GUIDE TO CANINSULIN
Click to expand...
Hi and thanks for the info.
He was always fed mainstream dry cat food, ie Meow Mix, but we switched him to raw stew/roast beef at the beginning of February when he had hardly any appetite for a few days and was only licking at his tuna. Was scrambling to get clued in about diabetes in cats and came across Dr. Pierson articles and this website. He was just drinking and peeing and was in bad shape at the time. He took to the raw meat and has been mostly eating raw beef and some tuna with a bit of mayo exclusively since then and eats heartily now.
AM shots are generals between 8 and 10am with feeding at 6am and pm shots are now general 12 hours later with meals given about a half hour to an hour before shot and after testing. Can't control morning feed time because I am not feeding the am meal. Giving him snacks at +2 and often anytime he wants to eat.
I do rarely test after pm shot unless I think I misfired. Will try to get some numbers going forward.
I am only speculating but my sense based on the numbers indicates that he is becoming more sensitive to the insulin and so the lower swings into the yellow and even the green with lower doses, and the resultant bounces as well.
Full vial of Caninsulin at this time and learning the ropes but from what I am reading I plan to swicth him eventually.
 
FrostD said:
Hi there,

Bron didn't tag me as I've been out with a baby but I have a chance to peek in. In addition to what Bron said about the extra testing and when to test, I would reduce the dose to 3U-3.25U both AM and PM for the time being (pick whichever of those you are comfortable with, and shoot same dose AM and PM). If you get an unusual preshot, stall without feeding and post in Main Forum for help.

Explanation - the 94 the other day means he was likely lower before that (given the way Caninsulin behaves in cats), which would be at least a 0.25U dose reduction. They also usually go lower at night, so the safer bet is 0.5U reduction. Given the different dosing and lack of PM tests, I would re-baseline at 3-3.25U until we have some PM tests, and tests closer to +4 for a few days while we wait for possible bounces to clear.
Click to expand...

Congrats on the baby ! I feel like I have one too now instead of an independant cat.
I have to agree with you. Based on the numbers it seems when I increase the dose past 3.5 I start getting yellows in the middle (and a unexpected green that scared the pants off me) and blacks at the edges and when I keep dosing at 3.5 it seems to show more pinks throughout the time range. I have been reacting immediately to a high number by increasing dosage and am seeing the results as large swings. Seems best to be more consistent. Will do, thank you.
 
Last edited:
Diane Tyler's Mom said:
You might want to read this
https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/beginners-guide-to-caninsulin-vetsulin.231587/
If you can fill out what we call our signature that would be great, it's at the end of everyone's post in gray letters , information about our kitties
https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/new-how-you-can-help-us-help-you.216696/
Tap on your name above and you will see the word signature add the info and tap save :cat:
@Toeknee
Click to expand...

Hi, had to put info in "My Information". Signature limit is reached with SS link, anything extra gives error - too many lines. Gave up as it is a revolving door of frustration.
 
Toeknee said:
Signature limit is reached with SS link, anything extra gives error - too many lines.
Click to expand...
I can't recall if this is exactly how I changed my SS name, I'm a big computer dummy.... but I think I just opened my spreadsheet, clicked on File and scrolled down to Rename..... and I just renamed it. ;) Then I could add info to my signature with the new space
 
Toeknee said:
Hi, had to put info in "My Information". Signature limit is reached with SS link, anything extra gives error - too many lines. Gave up as it is a revolving door of frustration.
Click to expand...
You can type "buddy's SS" in your signature and highlight the text. Then look for 2 images in the top line of your text formating. One looks like an intact chain link, the other is a chain link with a small x. Click the intact one and paste your spreadsheet link. This will make the text you highlighted a hyperlink :)
 
Diane Tyler's Mom said:
You might want to read this
https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/beginners-guide-to-caninsulin-vetsulin.231587/
If you can fill out what we call our signature that would be great, it's at the end of everyone's post in gray letters , information about our kitties
https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/new-how-you-can-help-us-help-you.216696/
Tap on your name above and you will see the word signature add the info and tap save :cat:
@Toeknee
Click to expand...
thanks, I made it work
 
Katsallday said:
Awesome! I'm curious if you've been checking ketones for your kitty?
Click to expand...
No. He was dehydrated from all the peeing before diagnosis and was given top up fluids in the back(drip) when diagnosed but balked at proper protocol as vet estimate was a few thousand to rehydrate for a few days. Just can't lay out that kind of cash. Vet said he probably still had ketones when I emailed after a week with results for advice. I guess that means he probably had them. I was feeding him Pedialite (figured it was worth a shot) and eventually he stopped peeing and drinking excessively. I am being optimistic and interpreting that as progress.
 
Toeknee said:
No. He was dehydrated from all the peeing before diagnosis and was given top up fluids in the back(drip) when diagnosed but balked at proper protocol as vet estimate was a few thousand to rehydrate for a few days. Just can't lay out that kind of cash. Vet said he probably still had ketones when I emailed after a week with results for advice. I guess that means he probably had them. I was feeding him Pedialite (figured it was worth a shot) and eventually he stopped peeing and drinking excessively. I am being optimistic and interpreting that as progress.
Click to expand...
If Buddy had ketones at ketones at any time you need to add that to your signature and the meter you are using
To check for ketones you can buy
ketostix,
Catching and testing urine tips
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1quta5WLEjdO0Y_t2dAYSwN84h-LNZWxOdtVsJDKZ16A/pub

I looked at your SS you need to test before you give insulin and you need to get some tests in during the PMPS cycle, cats usually drop lower at night
@Toeknee
 
Last edited:
If your kitty had ketones at diagnosis, it is important that you do check for them at least a couple of times a week, especially while he is unregulated as he is prone to them and ketones that are left and not acted on can lead to DKA which is a very serious disease and expensive to treat.
I would recommend you make sure he eats plenty of food, as food helps keep ketones away. Several small snacks during every cycle is a good idea, and add a teaspoon of warm water to each snack to help with hydration.
Also don't skip any doses of insulin, as insulin is the other thing that keeps ketones at bay.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top