New Member - Low Number on PMPS; skip insulin again?

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Hannah and Neko

Hannah and Neko

New Member
Hi! I'm a new member, and I need to fill out the new member info, start my spreadsheet, make my signature, etc. still so forgive me!

My kitty Neko's pre-shot BG level is 86 mg/dL (on a human meter). I'm super new to taking BG tests (tonight was my third time being sucessful,) and I've been reading SO much in the forum (I'm so glad and thankful I found it!!). BUT Neko has been on Vetsulin for almost a year. He normally takes 1 unit OR 1/2 unit worth on a U-40 syringe. I always make sure to keep an eye out for how he's acting and do a big checklist before giving him a shot to avoid hypo from happening.

I'm sorry if this was bad/I'm being stupid, but because Neko's BG readings have been within the range they're supposed to for a healthy kitty, and I didn't know what I was doing yet, I've skipped a lot of his insulin doses that past few days. The overall Vetsulin guide in this forum said to hold off on giving a shot if you're new to doing BG readings and your kitty's BG is below 200 mg/dL. But I've skipped a lot of doses that past few days, so I don't know if this is bad for me to do for so long. He got a half dose last night, because I was nervous about skipping more. I wasn't concerned it would make him go hypo to get insulin (otherwise I would have definitely skipped it!) because I know how he reacts to Vetsulin. But I don't want to keep skipping insulin if that will mess up his system?

I finally have a human meter as of today (yay!), and the 86 mg/dL has me nervous.

Should I skip his insulin again or is that a bad idea?

Sorry again I don't have a lot of info! I'm in a hurry now- I had to feed him because I was already so late giving him dinner.

**Fixed grammar mistakes, sorry!
 
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Also for clarification:

July 14th BG level before dinner: 104 mg/dL (on a pet meter) Had no insulin this day.

July 16th BG level before dinner: 124 mdL (on a pet meter) Had no insulin prior to reading. Got a half dose after the reading though.

Neko is active, purring, has an appetite, laps up the water mixed into his food, is going potty, etc. He's a happy kitty and isn't acting out of the ordinary right now. He's been such a trooper with all this new ear poking too. He's always so patient <3

He has also been on a diet of Fancy Feast Classic Pate for a long time. Every since I found out he was diabetic about a year ago, he has been on a high protein/low carb canned food diet.

Edit: Oh! Also he is about 11 years old.

If someone can't reply in time to this, that's okay!!! No worries! I can figure out tonight, but I'm not sure what to do going forward if all his readings keep being like this. Now that I'm learning there's SO much I haven't been aware of, I'm really trying to fix it and I don't want to do the wrong thing and make Neko feel bad.
 
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Hi and welcome to the forum.
If the preshot is 86 I would definitely skip the dose, especially if it is vetsulin.
If you can get the spreadsheet and signature set up and fill in some data on the SS we can help you a lot more.
One thing I would suggest is if you are having to skip doses of insulin…it is a good idea to test the urine for ketones. This is because diabetic cats who are not getting insulin, and who need it, can form ketones in the urine and this can be dangerous.
This is just a precaution, so don’t get stressed about it, but I would test for ketones if he was my kitty. You will need a bottle of Ketostix from Walmart or a pharmacy and follow directions on the bottle.

get the SS set up and we can help you moving forward with dosing.
 
Ah thanks so much! I'll definitely be setting up my spreadsheet when I can!

And yes the ketones! I forgot to mention that was a concern. Sorry, I'm so exhausted right now haha, I completely forgot to mention it! I'm looking at getting a meter for testing it (and only using the meter for testing for ketones, and using my Relion meter for BG). I have another kitty and they share a litter box, and trying to test Neko's urine would be a nightmare to say the least.

Thanks again!! I really appreciate it! I feel so much better going to bed knowing it was probably best to skip the dose!
 
Okay, tested him again tonight, and his pre-shot BG level was 106 mg/dL.

I skipped his insulin again this morning. I didn't have time to test BG due to other crises IRL.

Should I skip his dose again tonight? He's continuing to act normal.
 
I’m sorry no one got to you earlier. 106 is too low to shoot especially with Vetsulin and without data. So I’m hoping you skipped. Have you tested for ketones yet.?
Can you get the spreadsheet and signature up and running please It is really hard to give data without those two.
What would be good is if you could get a second test done 3 hours after you have skipped and fed Neko so we can see what the BG is doing.
 
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