9/25 Molly: AMPS 239, PMPS 393, +1 409

Molly's Momma

Molly's Momma

Member Since 2023
Hi! I am a new member from the FD FB group, and I just wanted to introduce myself and my sugar cat, as well as ensure my signature shows as well. Molly is a 9 year old sugar cat, DX on Sept 7th 2023, intial dosage was 1u 2x daily of Lantus, however, with home testing and extremely helpful knowledge from another member, I have made some changes to her care and have learned a lot more. Glad to be here. Currently taking my time going through all the stickies. I'm very grateful for the sugar cat community!!
 
I've also never posted/communicated within a "thread/forum" before so please let me know if there's any "etiquette" or correct ways to make posts, comments, etc. Thank you so much!
 
Hi Bri and Molly, welcome to the LBL forum of FDMB! :-)

You're doing great on the Signature and Spreadsheet front. Not many members have those figured out before their very first post on the forum!

When did you start Molly on insulin? Was the first dose on 9/23? Or was that when you started home-testing? Did she get no insulin in the PM of 9/23 and AM of 9/24?


Bri said:
I've also never posted/communicated within a "thread/forum" before so please let me know if there's any "etiquette" or correct ways to make posts, comments, etc.
Click to expand...
I guess you must have seen this: POSTING GUIDELINES PLEASE READ

We request members to post a new thread for a new day. This ensures that the thread doesn't get too long to read - especially in time-critical situations like low numbers or a member stalling a shot. The thread title nomenclature is:
<Date> - <Kitty's Name> - <AMPS/PMPS number and any other BG numbers you may have for the day> - <Question, if any>
Use the the '?' prefix in the thread title if you have a question, so people know that it's not just an update.

For e.g.
"? 10/18 - Henry - AMPS 285 - Do I increase the dose?"

We also ask that you link your previous post to the current post - just paste the URL of your previous post in the body of your current post saying "Previous Post"
 
Bandit's Mom said:
Hi Bri and Molly, welcome to the LBL forum of FDMB! :)

You're doing great on the Signature and Spreadsheet front. Not many members have those figured out before their very first post on the forum!

When did you start Molly on insulin? Was the first dose on 9/23? Or was that when you started home-testing? Did she get no insulin in the PM of 9/23 and AM of 9/24?



I guess you must have seen this: POSTING GUIDELINES PLEASE READ

We request members to post a new thread for a new day. This ensures that the thread doesn't get too long to read - especially in time-critical situations like low numbers or a member stalling a shot. The thread title nomenclature is:
<Date> - <Kitty's Name> - <AMPS/PMPS number and any other BG numbers you may have for the day> - <Question, if any>
Use the the '?' prefix in the thread title if you have a question, so people know that it's not just an update.

For e.g.
"? 10/18 - Henry - AMPS 285 - Do I increase the dose?"

We also ask that you link your previous post to the current post - just paste the URL of your previous post in the body of your current post saying "Previous Post"
Click to expand...
Bandit's Mom said:
Hi Bri and Molly, welcome to the LBL forum of FDMB! :)

You're doing great on the Signature and Spreadsheet front. Not many members have those figured out before their very first post on the forum!

When did you start Molly on insulin? Was the first dose on 9/23? Or was that when you started home-testing? Did she get no insulin in the PM of 9/23 and AM of 9/24?



I guess you must have seen this: POSTING GUIDELINES PLEASE READ

We request members to post a new thread for a new day. This ensures that the thread doesn't get too long to read - especially in time-critical situations like low numbers or a member stalling a shot. The thread title nomenclature is:
<Date> - <Kitty's Name> - <AMPS/PMPS number and any other BG numbers you may have for the day> - <Question, if any>
Use the the '?' prefix in the thread title if you have a question, so people know that it's not just an update.

For e.g.
"? 10/18 - Henry - AMPS 285 - Do I increase the dose?"

We also ask that you link your previous post to the current post - just paste the URL of your previous post in the body of your current post saying "Previous Post"
Click to expand...


Bandit's Mom,

She has been receiving insulin since Sept 10th, when she went in for her initial hospitalization. I have been trying to home-test since she came home on the 14th, however, I wasn't able to get a reading until September 23rd, so that's when I started the spreadsheet. I'm currently trying to find a good schedule that works around my graveyard shifts to properly test + dose. Been reading over the TR guidelines and hoping to get a set-in-stone schedule by end of this week. Today was a little hard, I feel terrible not having the chance to test her between her AMPS and her PMPS. I'm currently working on showing my spouse how to properly test and dose her as well for when I am at work/she shows symptoms. The PM of 23rd she did get insulin, and the 24th AM she also got insulin. Because of my work schedule, the PM dose on the 23rd was *technically* her AM shot. Usually, I try to dose her at 11 AM but on the 23rd I was extremely late (completely my fault, I feel like a horrible sugar cat mom), but I am working on slowly getting her back to the 11 AM dose + 11 PM dose schedule. Any extra info/advice is greatly appreciated!!
 
JuliaandFiona said:
Welcome. This group has been my saving grace as my vet is not that knowledgeable in feline diabetes. They will help you. :)
Click to expand...

JuliaandFiona,

I agree. My vet has taught me the very bare minimum. I didn't even know about home-testing until I joined the FB group. He was having me do 1unit 2x daily despite me telling him she was having possible hypo episodes. The FB group and this forum have been an absolute lifesaver!
 
Hello and welcome. Was there a reason Molly was in the hospital for 4 days when first diagnosed?

When do you think you'll be able to next get a test in the +4 to +7 range? I'm a little worried that 0.75 units might be a bit much still. She had a big drop to +3 last night and could have gone lower. Do you have an autofeeder for her? It's a great tool for those who work, or just have lives outside of hovering over their sugar cats all day.

Bri said:
Also, does anyone know how I can change my name to say "Molly's Mom" ?
Click to expand...
On the top right of the page, you see something with your current user name, Inbox, and Alerts. Click on your user name, select one of the options, doesn't matter which I don't think - I didn't try them all. On the left side is a menu with Change UserName on the bottom.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
Hello and welcome. Was there a reason Molly was in the hospital for 4 days when first diagnosed?

When do you think you'll be able to next get a test in the +4 to +7 range? I'm a little worried that 0.75 units might be a bit much still. She had a big drop to +3 last night and could have gone lower. Do you have an autofeeder for her? It's a great tool for those who work, or just have lives outside of hovering over their sugar cats all day.


On the top right of the page, you see something with your current user name, Inbox, and Alerts. Click on your user name, select one of the options, doesn't matter which I don't think - I didn't try them all. On the left side is a menu with Change UserName on the bottom.
Click to expand...

Wndy&Neko,

She was hospitalized for a few days due to her not being able to hold down any food and she lost almost half her initial weight (10.14 - 6.4) and was barely able to stand (very wobbly, disorientated) so they gave her fluids and tested her 2x a day and dosed 1unit Lantus as needed while she was there. They then sent her home (she wasn't eating at the vet either) but she began to eat once she got home, however, the vet didn't have me start giving insulin at home until 3 days after she came home from the vet hospital. That initial dose was 1unit 2x daily without home-testing. She was showing signs of hypo the handful of times I actually did give her 1 unit 2x daily, and her vet wanted to actually increase her dose to 1.5unit 2x daily despite me expressing concerns over her behavior/health when just having the 1unit 2x daily. I then found the Feline Diabetes FB group and learned about home-testing, spreadsheets, and all this other cool and extremely helpful stuff!! I'm really glad I found the group and was referred to this forum, as well. It's been a very scary ride :'(

Her PMPS today showed 393, dosed .75u and then her +1 was 409. I will be testing again at +2. I will have to go to work at +2.5, however, I am going to see if my spouse is ready/comfortable enough to test her himself. I have not given her food since the PMPS which was about 1/4 can of Friskies Pate (eating during testing has been a big help in keeping her calm, but if this is counter-productive please let me know and I will figure out another way to keep her calm and as comfortable as she can be during testing/shot time.)

Would you care to link me some good autofeeders? That sounds like a fantastic idea!

Thank you for the info on changing the username!! Greatly appreciated!! :D
 
I used the Petsafe 5 autofeeder, but that was a few years ago. Ideally get one that has a few slots and rotates, plus has a spot underneath where you can put ice cubes or a gel pack to keep things cool. And is easy/quick to program when it'll rotate. For people who work, if they can get a +2 test before they head out the door, it's a helpful test to get. If the +2 is quite a bit lower than the preshot test, it'll be quite an active cycle with lots of downward movement in the blood sugar. If you see that, you can put higher carb food in the autofeeder for a few times, especially around the nadir, or the typical lowest point in the cycle, once you have enough data to figure out when that generally is. It varies a lot by cat, though typically +6 plus or minus. It can also vary somewhat by cycle.
Molly's Momma said:
She was hospitalized for a few days due to her not being able to hold down any food and she lost almost half her initial weight (10.14 - 6.4) and was barely able to stand (very wobbly, disorientated)
Click to expand...
Did the vets say what caused that? That's a huge weight loss for a short period of time.

Most of us feed at shot time, then a couple to a few more meals during the cycle. It's easier on a fragile pancreas, and the food nearer to her nadir or low points can help keep her safe. You could start out with a +2 mini meal as you head out the door, and give hubby the suggestion to feed at +4. At least that's a place to start until you get more information on how Molly uses the insulin.

Cat's cat eat during testing, but initially it's best if they don't eat for a couple hours before testing when you start out. That's just until you get enough data on how much of a numbers increase she gets from food. You don't want to shoot a preshot number influenced by food, unless you know where her numbers would be without that food. Having said that, cats don't get that much of a bump from food - it's more an issue when they are in lower numbers.
 
Hypo kit
Fancy Feast Gravy Lovers Gourmet Beef Feast in Gravy 20% High Carbs

Fancy Feast Gravy Lovers Gourmet Chicken Feast in Gravy 15% Med Carbs

Fancy Feast Gravy Lovers Turkey Feast in Gravy 15% Med Carbs

Fancy Feast Gravy Lovers Chicken and Beef in Gravy 15% Med Carbs

Good idea to mark the cans with magic marker how many carbs

Or any on the food chart. Doesn't have to be Fancy Feast just an example about the med and high carb foods
And some honey in the house

https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/dr-pierson-new-food-
11% -15 is medium carbs.

16- 24 is high carb.
fromThe Official Lantus, Levemir & Biosimilars Slang Dictionary
 
One of the things we request is that people post just once per day that they do post. That way it's easier for us to keep track of today's action. We have enough cats there that it just makes it easier to follow if all in one place. I've combined today's posts for you.

Good luck getting your spouse to test. It took a while for me to get my DH to test. For some reason he was OK with the shots, just not the test. But it really helps when you have a second tester in the house.
 
Molly's Momma said:
She has been receiving insulin since Sept 10th, when she went in for her initial hospitalization. I have been trying to home-test since she came home on the 14th, however, I wasn't able to get a reading until September 23rd, so that's when I started the spreadsheet.
Click to expand...
You want to add rows from Sep 10th to 22nd in your SS so that someone looking at the SS doesn't think that Sep 23rd was the first dose of insulin. I can help you do that if you'd like :-)

Do you know if she had ketones when she was hospitalized? If there is a history of ketones or DKA you want to add that to your Signature since that affects dosing decisions.
 
Bandit's Mom said:
You want to add rows from Sep 10th to 22nd in your SS so that someone looking at the SS doesn't think that Sep 23rd was the first dose of insulin. I can help you do that if you'd like :)

Do you know if she had ketones when she was hospitalized? If there is a history of ketones or DKA you want to add that to your Signature since that affects dosing decisions.
Click to expand...

Bandit's Mom,

Yes, please! I'm not very familiar with excel/sheets so I don't wanna risk breaking it LOL.

Her vet told my spouse that she diagnosed her with diabetes due to the ketones in her blood work. I called yesterday (9/25) requesting a copy of all her labs so I can add them to the spreadsheet. Still waiting on that email, hopefully it comes in tomorrow!
 
Diane Tyler's Mom said:
Hypo kit
Fancy Feast Gravy Lovers Gourmet Beef Feast in Gravy 20% High Carbs

Fancy Feast Gravy Lovers Gourmet Chicken Feast in Gravy 15% Med Carbs

Fancy Feast Gravy Lovers Turkey Feast in Gravy 15% Med Carbs

Fancy Feast Gravy Lovers Chicken and Beef in Gravy 15% Med Carbs

Good idea to mark the cans with magic marker how many carbs

Or any on the food chart. Doesn't have to be Fancy Feast just an example about the med and high carb foods
And some honey in the house

https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/dr-pierson-new-food-
11% -15 is medium carbs.

16- 24 is high carb.
fromThe Official Lantus, Levemir & Biosimilars Slang Dictionary
Click to expand...


Diane Tyler's Mom,

Thank you SO much for this info! I will be picking some of these up tomorrow. :D
 
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