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Tim & Pookey

Tim & Pookey

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Hi there!

My name is Tim, and my cat Pookey has recently been diagnosed with feline diabetes. He's 12.5 years old and weighs 17lbs.

Pookey traditionally has had food available to graze, which I understand now is not the best scenario. But with the diagnosis and 2 units twice per day insulin injection recommendation from the vet, we will be changing to a strict feeding schedule. Along with the change in eating schedule, we were advised to change food from typical store food to a higher-protein food. I can get the brands if needed.

We started the injections tonight, after limiting food during the day today and serving the food 15 minutes before injection. Pookey had 1/4 cup of the new half and half mix of food. Based on that I did just shy of 2 units.

Glucometer is scheduled to arrive tomorrow morning.

So my question is, with all these changes in food and schedule, is there anything I should look out for with these first few injections?

Sorry if this is not in the correct format, please correct me if so. Thank you!!

Tim
 
Twilliams11 said:
Hi there!

My name is Tim, and my cat Pookey has recently been diagnosed with feline diabetes. He's 12.5 years old and weighs 17lbs.

Pookey traditionally has had food available to graze, which I understand now is not the best scenario. But with the diagnosis and 2 units twice per day insulin injection recommendation from the vet, we will be changing to a strict feeding schedule. Along with the change in eating schedule, we were advised to change food from typical store food to a higher-protein food. I can get the brands if needed.

We started the injections tonight, after limiting food during the day today and serving the food 15 minutes before injection. Pookey had 1/4 cup of the new half and half mix of food. Based on that I did just shy of 2 units.

Glucometer is scheduled to arrive tomorrow morning.

So my question is, with all these changes in food and schedule, is there anything I should look out for with these first few injections?

Sorry if this is not in the correct format, please correct me if so. Thank you!!

Tim
Click to expand...
@Bron and Sheba (GA)
@Wendy&Neko
@tiffmaxee
@Angela & Cleo
Hi ladies I would respond to Tim, but I have such a headache from being on here all day. I need to try and get rid of this headache
Can you please help Tim out

Thank you :bighug:
 
Welcome to the FDMB. I’m sorry but based upon experience your vet is wrong about the need to feed twice a day and have a strict feeding schedule with lantus. The older insulins no longer recommended fur cats required that type of feeding. Many of us feed several small meals sure as our over the first half of the cycle and others free feed.

Please tell us what foods you will be feeding. You do want low carb food and canned or raw is best. Have you been feeding any dry food? What were you feeding before? If it was high carbs the food change can have a dramatic impact and you might be starting on too high a

It’s really important to test before each shot to make sure the bg is high enough to shoot. Lantus is a depot insulin so it will take 5-7 days for the initial depot to build. You will dose based upon how low it takes your cat. That often occurs between 5-7 hours after injecting but can occur sooner or later.
 
tiffmaxee said:
Welcome to the FDMB. I’m sorry but based upon experience your vet is wrong about the need to feed twice a day and have a strict feeding schedule with lantus. The older insulins no longer recommended fur cats required that type of feeding. Many of us feed several small meals sure as our over the first half of the cycle and others free feed.

Please tell us what foods you will be feeding. You do want low carb food and canned or raw is best. Have you been feeding any dry food? What were you feeding before? If it was high carbs the food change can have a dramatic impact and you might be starting on too high a

It’s really important to test before each shot to make sure the bg is high enough to shoot. Lantus is a depot insulin so it will take 5-7 days for the initial depot to build. You will dose based upon how low it takes your cat. That often occurs between 5-7 hours after injecting but can occur sooner or later.
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Thank you for the information! That will make things easier, I have noticed he hasn’t wanted to eat all the food in one portion so far. So maybe I will try his old eating habits or smaller portions.

Old food was Meow Mix Original Choice and new food is Purina Pro Plan Dietetic Management. Typically no wet food.
 
Created the speadsheet and posted my first reading. 562 mg/dL. This aligns with the numbers the vet saw a couple days ago. He was pretty stressed with the BG check and shot procedure this morning though. Continue on the 1 unit strategy?
 
@Twilliams11
Hi Tim
the dry you are feeding
The Purina Pro Plan DM Dry it's 18% carbs, it's too high for a diabetic kitty.
If Pookey won't eat any wet food at all you can feed lower carb dry food


If you must feed dry food these are about 5 or 6% carbs

About the kibble
Here are some low carb dry foods ,they are about 5 or 6% carbs
None of them are cheap
You need to order them online they are not cheap
Dr Elseys you can buy on chewey site
https://www.chewy.com/dr-elseys-cleanprotein-chicken/dp/146269?utm_source=google-product&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=12791446238&utm_content=Dr. Elsey's&utm_term=&show-search=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI0PvU2Zj79wIVRIdbCh3JawEkEAQYASABEgIInfD_BwE

Young again on their web site
https://www.youngagainpetfood.com
Take a look at the young again zero or the zero mature. Some members have said the Young Again caused stinky poops

In the past I have used The Dr Elseys and had no problem

Dr Elsey's also at Walmart
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Dr-Elsey...ViI3ICh0suwO_EAQYAiABEgJrOPD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Dr Elsey's Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FCJHDPR/ref=twister_B09GHFJY65?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

the Dr Elsey's comes in different size bags
None of these can be bought in stores

Also
Wysong Epigen 90

If you call they will send you samples
Phone: 877-311-2287… Dr Elsey's

PHONE:
800.311.6646. Young Again

1-800-748-0188 •Wysong Epigen 90
 
Diane Tyler's Mom GA said:
@Twilliams11
Hi Tim
the dry you are feeding
The Purina Pro Plan DM Dry it's 18% carbs, it's too high for a diabetic kitty.
If Pookey won't eat any wet food at all you can feed lower carb dry food


If you must feed dry food these are about 5 or 6% carbs

About the kibble
Here are some low carb dry foods ,they are about 5 or 6% carbs
None of them are cheap
You need to order them online they are not cheap
Dr Elseys you can buy on chewey site
https://www.chewy.com/dr-elseys-cleanprotein-chicken/dp/146269?utm_source=google-product&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=12791446238&utm_content=Dr. Elsey's&utm_term=&show-search=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI0PvU2Zj79wIVRIdbCh3JawEkEAQYASABEgIInfD_BwE

Young again on their web site
https://www.youngagainpetfood.com
Take a look at the young again zero or the zero mature. Some members have said the Young Again caused stinky poops

In the past I have used The Dr Elseys and had no problem

Dr Elsey's also at Walmart
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Dr-Elsey...ViI3ICh0suwO_EAQYAiABEgJrOPD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Dr Elsey's Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FCJHDPR/ref=twister_B09GHFJY65?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

the Dr Elsey's comes in different size bags
None of these can be bought in stores

Also
Wysong Epigen 90

If you call they will send you samples
Phone: 877-311-2287… Dr Elsey's

PHONE:
800.311.6646. Young Again

1-800-748-0188 •Wysong Epigen 90
Click to expand...
Diane, thank you so much for the thorough reply. That's odd the vet would send home Purina Pro Plan DM... I will do some research on your recommendations and get started on one of these food choices.
 
Read all the yellow stickys here about Lantus
https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/forums/lantus-levemir-biosimilars.9/
There are 2 dosing methods to follow for Lantus. SLGS or TR . You will have to follow SLGS method since you are feeding kibble. You will read about in the stickys. Please add SLGS to your signature and spreadsheet up top. I would also add after you have Dry Food in your signature Pro Plan DM . If you change to one of the ones I suggested you can just put the name of it.
Definitely try and get some tests in after the AMPS and PMPS tests .
Lantus usually doesn't kick in until around +2

Oh don't feed any food 2 hours before you test Pookey's AMPS or PMPS because you don't want it to be influenced by the food.
 
Twilliams11 said:
Diane, thank you so much for the thorough reply. That's odd the vet would send home Purina Pro Plan DM... I will do some research on your recommendations and get started on one of these food choices.
Click to expand...
Vets just go by what the manufacturers tell them
Some vets don't have a clue lol
We have had many members that fed the DM and then switched
 
With SLGS you need to reduce the dose if the BG drops under 90 with whatever meter you are using.
I know the test strips are expensive for the Alpha Trak. I used that in the beginning, then switched to a human meter. Most of us use human meters since that's what our numbers are based on.
If you like the Alpha Trak that's fine
In case you want to save money I'll give you the name of the human meter that most of us use

Relion Premier Classic Meter at Walmart for 9 dollars
https://www.walmart.com/ip/ReliOn-Premier-CLASSIC-Blood-Glucose-Monitoring-System/552134103

The tests strips are 17.88 for 100
https://www.walmart.com/ip/ReliOn-Premier-Blood-Glucose-Test-Strips-100-Count/575088197
At least if you need more test strips you can run into Walmart and pick them up or if you're running low you can just order them from Walmart
 
Diane Tyler's Mom GA said:
Read all the yellow stickys here about Lantus
https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/forums/lantus-levemir-biosimilars.9/
There are 2 dosing methods to follow for Lantus. SLGS or TR . You will have to follow SLGS method since you are feeding kibble. You will read about in the stickys. Please add SLGS to your signature and spreadsheet up top. I would also add after you have Dry Food in your signature Pro Plan DM . If you change to one of the ones I suggested you can just put the name of it.
Definitely try and get some tests in after the AMPS and PMPS tests .
Lantus usually doesn't kick in until around +2

Oh don't feed any food 2 hours before you test Pookey's AMPS or PMPS because you don't want it to be influenced by the food.
Click to expand...
Awesome, just made those corrections. That could explain the high reading this morning. I fed, took AMPS reading, then shot.

That's OK though, I'm still learning and getting a handle on everything. Hopefully this thread helps someone else getting started too.
 
Twilliams11 said:
Awesome, just made those corrections. That could explain the high reading this morning. I fed, took AMPS reading, then shot.

That's OK though, I'm still learning and getting a handle on everything. Hopefully this thread helps someone else getting started too.
Click to expand...
That's ok, we all had to learn everything in the beginning. If you do switch to the lower carb dry food do it slowly each day . Switching to a lower carb food can drop the BG by 100 points so you want to be sure you monitor Pookey as much as possible.
If it wasn't for the experienced members here giving me their advice I know Tyler would have never gone into remission for 3 years and 4 months . Unfortunately I had to let him go on 8-26-24 due to cancer . :(
His brother passed 4 years ago from kidney disease , my poor babies .
Pookey is adorable Tim . Love orange kitties

Just keep asking questions , if I can't answer them I will tag someone for you or you can even tag them yourself :cat:
 
Diane Tyler's Mom GA said:
That's ok, we all had to learn everything in the beginning. If you do switch to the lower carb dry food do it slowly each day . Switching to a lower carb food can drop the BG by 100 points so you want to be sure you monitor Pookey as much as possible.
If it wasn't for the experienced members here giving me their advice I know Tyler would have never gone into remission for 3 years and 4 months . Unfortunately I had to let him go on 8-26-24 due to cancer . :(
His brother passed 4 years ago from kidney disease , my poor babies .
Pookey is adorable Tim . Love orange kitties
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OK, will do. I will get a couple BG readings throughout the day today just to get a better understanding and report back. Maybe +5 or +6 after AMPS and PMPS.

So sorry about Tyler and his brother. I'm sure they loved having you as their mom and you gave them the best life possible.
 
Twilliams11 said:
OK, will do. I will get a couple BG readings throughout the day today just to get a better understanding and report back. Maybe +5 or +6 after AMPS and PMPS.

So sorry about Tyler and his brother. I'm sure they loved having you as their mom and you gave them the best life possible.
Click to expand...
Sounds good, also vary the test times
Maybe one day test at +3 and +6 then
+4 and +7
You can read about it in the yellow stickys
I know you probably work so whatever you can do will be great.
 
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If you ever need to tag someone you would do it like this
@then type the person you want to tag , like I tagged those members for you. The first couple of letters of the members name will come up then pick the one you want. If you do it correctly it will appear in blue
Like this
@Twilliams11
 
Diane Tyler's Mom GA said:
If you ever need to tag someone you would do it like this
@then type the person you want to tag , like I tagged those members for you. The first couple of letters of the members name will come up then pick the one you want. If you do it correctly it will appear in blue
Like this
@Twilliams11
Click to expand...
Thanks Diane. Do you know of any good users speadsheets using SLGS I can look at for decisions they made on shooting, feeding, etc?
 
Twilliams11 said:
Thanks Diane. Do you know of any good users speadsheets using SLGS I can look at for decisions they made on shooting, feeding, etc?
Click to expand...
Not really because each cat is different, they may have to feed more often if the BG drops to low with med or higher carb food.
You can always use the DM if you have to bring Pookey's BG up since it's 18 % carbs , that's if you switch to the lower carb dry food I gave you
 
Just a little tid bit I found on our site posted by one of our members
Generally, we find that feeding a cat on Lantus after +6 or so shortens the duration of the insulin so it doesn’t stretch the full 12 hours. But, I have seen some members here that free feed their cats throughout the cycle with LC food and never have an issue.

How do we tell if the duration is shortened? If the numbers shoot up really fast over a short period of time but then come back down after the next shot is given, then the duration of the previous shot was shorter than it should have been.


By me if you ever have to bring Pookey's BG up then of course feed after +6
 
Diane Tyler's Mom GA said:
Just a little tid bit I found on our site posted by one of our members
Generally, we find that feeding a cat on Lantus after +6 or so shortens the duration of the insulin so it doesn’t stretch the full 12 hours. But, I have seen some members here that free feed their cats throughout the cycle with LC food and never have an issue.

How do we tell if the duration is shortened? If the numbers shoot up really fast over a short period of time but then come back down after the next shot is given, then the duration of the previous shot was shorter than it should have been.


By me if you ever have to bring Pookey's BG up then of course feed after +6
Click to expand...
Thanks Diane!! I work from home so feeding schedule isn't that big of a deal. I'm willing to do whatever is best for him. But the auto-feeder sounds like a nice solution.

I'm doing some reading of feed schedule with Lantus. It sounds like some people free feed, others do 3-4 meals per day, of course pulling the food 2 hours before a BG check in either scenario. And that Lantus is a friendly insulin, meaning it is not as critical to get a huge meal before taking the shot if he has been having smaller meals throughout the day.

I think I will try the scheduled approach, he is heavy and could probably use more control over his diet anyways...
 
Hi Tim, as you are unsure if there were ketones at diagnosis, I would recommend you get a bottle of Ketostix from a pharmacy and test the urine for ketones, especially while the BGs are high. There should not be any ketones in the urine so please let us know if there are any. More than a trace and I would tell the vet.
Is Pookey eating well?
 
Bron and Sheba (GA) said:
Hi Tim, as you are unsure if there were ketones at diagnosis, I would recommend you get a bottle of Ketostix from a pharmacy and test the urine for ketones, especially while the BGs are high. There should not be any ketones in the urine so please let us know if there are any. More than a trace and I would tell the vet.
Is Pookey eating well?
Click to expand...
I’m looking through the vet papers and there was glucose in the urine at diagnosis. I have not done research on ketones yet. He appears to be eating and drinking well. Acting normal overall.

I’m hoping the vet would have mentioned this in the blood and urine tests they did. I will call and check with them tomorrow.
 
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Twilliams11 said:
did just order the stuff to home test. How often would you recommend we test?
Click to expand...
I would test daily until the BGs are lower. It’s a good insurance policy and will allow you to intervene immediately if any ketones appear.
Make sure Pookey is eating well with snacks during the cycles. Are you swapping to low carb wet?
Keep posting so we can see how the BGs are responding to the dose. :)
 
Bron and Sheba (GA) said:
I would test daily until the BGs are lower. It’s a good insurance policy and will allow you to intervene immediately if any ketones appear.
Make sure Pookey is eating well with snacks during the cycles. Are you swapping to low carb wet?
Keep posting so we can see how the BGs are responding to the dose. :)
Click to expand...
We’re not planning on wet food right away. We did start mixing in the low carb dry.
 
Twilliams11 said:
Would you recommend a daily post over there? Still new to how things work here. Thank you!
Click to expand...
I think we have got you pretty much sorted over here and I think you can head over to the Lantus page now where there are lots of people who will be able to help you. I would post daily over there so you become a regular and people will get to know you. Look at the “new to the group” stickie which will tell you how to post over there. It’s a little bit different to posting on main. And you won’t need to post on main again unless you have other issues unrelated to Pookeys diabetes. Does that make sense?
I’ll tag @tiffmaxee and @Bandit's Mom so they can keep an eye out for you. :)
 
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