4/11 - Xander | AMPS 340, +2 296, +4 246 - Failed reduction?

[Brianna & Xander]

4/9/25

Missed a day again, but I'm back.

Yesterday was the last day that I gave him any Ondansetron and he seems to be mostly eating fine again. YAY for that! The vet prescribed us an extra round of Cerenia to have on hand, so that's great.

He actually had a really nice cycle yesterday AM (and a bounce overnight into today, it looks like). Just barely got a green, but there were no dives. It was a relatively stable (blue) surf and that feels more hopeful to me than if we'd had a dive and some greens. Stability, please, would be so nice. We can get the stable greens eventually but even stable blues right now would be better than the dives.

After the injections started getting hard again suddenly, I upped his 50mg of Gabapentin prior to shots to 75. He was originally prescribed 100 and it made him too dopey, so I had lowered it myself. I'm hoping to only need to keep him on the 75 until he chills out and remembers that the injections are no big deal.

Should I increase back to 3 tonight, or wait another cycle or two to see if he's bouncing from his blues yesterday?

Happy Friday!

 

[Brianna & Xander]

So sorry to have been late with these responses!!

Hi Brianna, I hope Xander will eventually get better with the injections.
I do remember in the beginning of our journey, Ivy was harder to give injections to, like Xander.
I do think eventually, as I got more used to giving the shots and intentionally tried to convey more calm and relaxed, intentional vibes, eventually things got somewhat better with Ivy.
I can remember there were times where she would run and hide from me and I would have to grab her and get my husband to hold her down so I could give the shot.

I think it was probably more about my anxiety and fears than hers as I look back and think about it.

I’ve learned to try to take a deep breath and calm myself and intentionally think about being calm and in control so that Ivy learned from me that it was going to be OK.
That sounds crazy I know, but I was mindfully calming myself down and actually taking a deep breath before I started the routine to try to get the shot.
(and making sure everything was very quiet and calm, no TV on, nobody talking to me, in a quiet room).

Maybe try that so that you are trying to actually feel yourself and think about yourself being calmer Hopefully, he will eventually feel your being more calm and will pick up on your vibe.

That was basically the problem for the first couple of months for us too! Eventually he got better and I was soooo relieved. That's when we started having problems with the Libres instead. Now that the Libres are good he's switched back lol

I do try to be as calm as I can and try to reassure him and make sure there's no noise or movement at the time! It helps, but sometimes he's just so panicky about everything that even that doesn't help. The extra gabapentin does seem to be helping now though, so hopefully it can be a little easier again...

Also, if he’s tired of the churus, I know Ivy loves plain baby food. You could take a teaspoon of that and see if he likes that as an alternative

Thank you for the suggestion! I do have a couple jars that I got when he wasn't eating. I haven't tried them when he feels well to see if they're exciting though.

One more thing, have you tried the roll method of giving injections?

For me, when I switched to doing that, it seemed to help as I was feeling like I wasn’t giving the shot well because Ivy doesn’t really have a lot of loose skin to pull up and “tent”.

Here’s some information on that method and more related information.
Maybe read through it and see if you think that might be helpful.

https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/testing-and-shooting-tips.85113/

I definitely remember reading about that! I think where I do them (the flank) there isn't quite enough skin to do that with and when I've tried to get that much he freaks out even more. But I'll keep it in mind to revisit if needed!

As always, sending you lots of good wishes for both of you
I know you both will get through this and things will get better. You’re only on this journey four months and I know it feels like forever, but it’s still really new for the both of you and you both have to really settle into this new reality. Hopefully, he will get more used to things and it will not be so stressful for him as it becomes more part of his life and yours.
(Maybe not forever….we can hope, right??)

Lots of hugs to both of you

It really does feel like forever. Thank you so much for your help, Staci! Always! You're such a light!

Staci, I just want to say how much I appreciate your advice and support to Brianna here (and elsewhere, to so many others too, myself included). We are so lucky to benefit from your experience, wisdom and kindness.

Brianna, I hope that you can find a way to give Xander his jabs with less stress for him and for you.

For many of us a big part of managing to FD is being flexible - everything changes, all the time. What works one day does not work the next. Got to just keep trying different things, til you find a way that works, and remember that that might change again down the line.

Staci is absolutely incredible and I am SO unbelievably thankful to her for all her help. And everyone else here! Everyone has been helpful and kind! Thank you, too, Helen!!

Things changing all the time and not working from one day to the next is definitely accurate (down to dosing)! I wish it were a even just little easier and more predictable!

 

[Angela & Cleo]

Should I increase back to 3 tonight, or wait another cycle or two to see if he's bouncing from his blues yesterday?

Such a good report .
I would hold another cycle or two.

 

[Brianna & Xander]

Such a good report .
I would hold another cycle or two.

Thanks, Angela! That's what I was thinking too. These cycles definitely aren't bad at least. Maybe they'll slide down a little more.

 

[Staci & Ivy]

I think where I do them (the flank) there isn't quite enough skin to do that with and when I've tried to get that much he freaks out even more.

Hi Brianna, is there a reason you use the flank? (I’m sure you must have a good reason)
I know when I tried that area with Ivy, she freaked out. She did not like that at all. I shoot in the shoulder area (not the scruff).

Anyway, lovely blues today for Xander!!

I’m so glad he’s doing well and eating well. And glad you got more meds to have at home (hoping you never need them!)

Hope you both have a very calm and peaceful night

 

[Charlie'sMom22]

I'm so glad he's eating well again! Weird question, but have you ever looked into that Feliway stuff that's supposed to help them relax? It's like a plugin with pheromones or something. A vet recommended it to me many years ago because my old cat had a litter box aversion from recurring urinary blockages. I never used it so I can't attest to it, but it might be worth researching.

I hope he keeps having stable surfs in the blues and starts surfing in the greens soon! Wishing you a restful night

 

[Brianna & Xander]

Hi Brianna, is there a reason you use the flank? (I’m sure you must have a good reason)
I know when I tried that area with Ivy, she freaked out. She did not like that at all. I shoot in the shoulder area (not the scruff).

Anyway, lovely blues today for Xander!!

I’m so glad he’s doing well and eating well. And glad you got more meds to have at home (hoping you never need them!)

Hope you both have a very calm and peaceful night

It was where the vet tech showed us, but originally I had planned to rotate between each shoulder and each flank just to make sure nothing got sore. It turned out that (when numbed), the flank was the only are where he didn't freak out. No idea why! Everywhere else upset him even before we could get a needle anywhere near there. One of those weird ECID things, I guess!

It was a really nice day for him! I know it's not greens, but it's just so nice to see a stable, gentle curve instead of the high dive he's been such a fan of! Was so excited that I got to shoot a relatively low blue tonight!

Thank you, Staci! I hope you and Ivy have a nice and restful night too.

 

[Brianna & Xander]

I'm so glad he's eating well again! Weird question, but have you ever looked into that Feliway stuff that's supposed to help them relax? It's like a plugin with pheromones or something. A vet recommended it to me many years ago because my old cat had a litter box aversion from recurring urinary blockages. I never used it so I can't attest to it, but it might be worth researching.

I hope he keeps having stable surfs in the blues and starts surfing in the greens soon! Wishing you a restful night

I have weirdly never actually looked into it, but it pops into my head almost daily, so I really should! Anything to make him calmer would be great.

Thank you so much, Jess! Hope you and Charlie have a safe and peaceful night too!