02/17 Boomer Update

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Judy and Boomer

Judy and Boomer

Member Since 2014
Hello, I've been trying to update Boomer's spreadsheet but it's loading with all zeros! I can view it from a previous posting but can't edit it. :(

Boomer's levels seem to be going up. They are not terrible....reading a few minutes ago (3 hours after food) was 7.4 which I think is 133 (using US reading)? I depend on the spreadsheet to do the calculation for me !

We took him to the vet for urine test/blood work. All results are good. The dr is doing a culture and there was a time previously when the lab result came back negative but the culture was positive. We should have the culture results today or tomorrow.

Boomer had dental cleaning etc in November; dr said on Wednesday that there was a wee bit of inflammation but not terrible.

Boomer has been eating the same four fancy feast pates since being diagnosed a year ago. Those 4 were chosen based on their carb % (i.e. the lowest four I could get). I've recently had to add two more kinds to his diet because he took a dislike to a couple of the original four. These two new ones are slightly higher in carbs at 5.45%. This is a very recent addition though and his levels have been gradually increasing for a few weeks.
I am concerned but I don't know what to do about it because we can't find the cause. He is a bit overweight; he's been on a diet for quite some time now (based on the dr's advice that on a reducing diet he should be getting 240 calories per day) and it's done no good...he is still the same weight. I can't do much about his weight right now....leaving on vacation in 4 weeks and cat sitter comes in twice a day to feed and has to leave enough out for two cats (we used timed feeders so they eat every 4 hours).

Does anyone have any ideas? If his levels stay where they are now I'd be happy but I'm afraid they will continue to increase.
 
His culture could possibly give you the answer. We just went through an odd thing with Trix where her urine looked fine, her WBC was normal, but her culture did show she had enterococcous bacteria in her urine. We're just finishing up a 4 week course of ABs.

Also, some kitties just are very carb sensitive (Trix is one of those)...it's possible that even a tiny carb increase could cause his BGs to go up a bit, too.

And, the other unfortunate possibility is that sometimes a kitty's pancreas just gets tired again and they fall out of remission just "because".

Hopefully you will find an answer that will let Boomer stay at The Falls, but if not, we'd love to have you visiting again!
 
Max too needs to lose weight but isn't. While frustrating, I'd rather have that than weight loss. I hope the tests give you some answers.
 
I agree the answer may be in the culture since we know infection can cause the BG to increase

As for the weight issue....if Boomer isn't losing weight on 240 calories per day, that's a good indication that 240 is too many. If you have a plain bathroom scale you can weigh yourself, pick Boomer up and do the math to see how much he weighs. Reweigh once/week and if he's not losing, reduce the amount he's eating

Cats are like people...depending on metabolism they have different caloric needs to maintain weight.... 2000 calories a day might maintain Uncle Joe's weight, but if Grandpa Fred eats 2000 calories, he's going to gain....lol

If you can find something he really likes to play with (China loves "Da Bird") adding some exercise will help burn extra calories too
 
Hi Judy - sorry you had to come back for a visit for the reasons you did. Looks like you've got the SS going. It's usually the US tab that has the zeroes. I was able to read the World tab just fine.

For the weight issue, there are some lower carb foods that are lower calories. Maybe some of the Merck ones? I just remember people here saying they couldn't feed certain foods because they wanted their kitty to gain weight. If you can find a food that is lower calorie but similar volume, then the kitties won't feel as deprived.
 
Hi everyone....thanks for your ideas! I sent the vet a message earlier asking about the culture but I haven't heard back yet. Funny...I think it's the first time ever that I've had a cat whose blood/urine work came back perfectly fine! And this time I was hoping for a urinary tract infection :)
Chris and China....Boomer does play....he loves his mouse and his ball. And he does like playing laser; we could play that more often with him.

Once I am back from vacation end of March I will reduce his food a bit to see if I can get him to lose a wee bit of weight. He's been doing so well on the fancy feast; I hate to change his food.

So....assuming his levels continue to increase...at what point do I take steps i.e. insulin? I would of course consult with the vet and this board again before actually giving him any insulin....but at what BG level do I need to actually start considering this option? I should mention also that he has no other clinical signs of diabetes (except maybe large pees but that has never changed all that much). His appetite has not increased, he is definitely not losing weight, I never see him drinking, he is acting perfectly normal.
 
Have you tried testing, feeding and retesting about 3 hours later? That can be useful in seeing if his pancreas is kicking in

I'm not sure if there's an exact number to watch for, but I think if he starts to routinely be over 150 or so (and there's no other reason for it) I'd consider getting him back on insulin sooner rather than later since getting a 2nd remission is a lot harder than the first
 
fat is the enemy of diabetes - I would definitely focus on a very slow weight loss, both through increasing the exercise and decreasing his calories as soon as you can get that going.

Numbers over 120 are considered out of normal range. He should still be pretty much all green numbers. When you get a blue number, feed him a couple of teaspoons of food and recheck him in 3 hrs to see if his pancreas has kicked in and the blood sugar has dropped back into green numbers.

Fingers crossed for you guys - i'm glad to see you but not for this reason. Let's hope it's something transitory.
 
Well Boomer's urine culture came back negative.
He is due to eat in about an hour so I will test him pre-food then 3 hours after. Fingers crossed!
 
Boomer's level pre-meal was 117 and 3 hours later it's 110.
Not sure what, if anything, this tells me when the level stays the same.
I think I will try this a couple more times this weekend.
 
You've marked GA on the title to your post, which means Guardian Angel or deceased.
If you go to your 1st post in this thread, click on the tiny drop down arrow to the right, and select edit Title, you can remove it.
 
So I'm determined to get to the bottom of this :)
I introduced a new food a few weeks ago and another one within the last 2 weeks. They are slightly higher in carbs than the ones he was eating previously. So I am removing them from the "food rotation" effective today. Hopefully his levels will go back down and then I will know.
 
So I've decreased Boomer's food just slightly.
And tested him before his morning snack....much better....86!!! Mommy is very happy right now. Pending test in 3 hours.
 
So....pre morning snack 86, 3 hours later 95 but I discovered that Boomer was given a little treat of some turkey so now we'll try this again!
Pre lunch BG 61 will retest 3 hours after his lunch.
Can't complain an awful lot about his levels today so far!
 
So today Boomer's levels were 95 pre-meal then 122 three hours later. I know if his pancreas is working his level should be down 3 hours after eating. So is this a sign of things to come? Does the pancreas stop working very gradually? Of course, those of you who were here with me last April to June know what stress Boomer caused me with very low numbers and that "he doesn't play by the rules" :)

Your thoughts on the above? I was thinking of testing him once each day (at 3 hours after mealtime) for the rest of the week then going back to once a week...or maybe twice a week.
 
I think I'd stick to twice/week for awhile unless he starts to come back down...if he's going to come out of remission, the sooner you catch it, the better it'll be
 
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