03/11/20 Thomas J. AMPS 93, +3 59, +4 65, +6.25 60, +9 79, PMPS 78, +3 47/59, +4 67, +6 78

LilTurkey

LilTurkey

Member Since 2020
03/10/20
He did alright for his test and injection this morning. Good appetite.
Need to talk to the vet today and ask my questions. Hoping his surgery goes well tomorrow.
Hope everyone has a great Wednesday!:)
 
Good luck speaking with the vet today Britanny!! I hope you get all your questions answered, remember they are working for you, and your priority is keeping your baby safe.
It's really good to hear Thomas is playing!!! :joyful:
Have a great day!! :bighug::bighug::bighug:
 
Gave a good tablespoon of HC to raise that 59 so he doesn't continue dropping as that seems to be the case when I give a small amount maybe a larger amount will raise him a bit more.
 
I was about to call the vet since I was up and what would you know, they called me right when I was about to press dial lol. She was calling to confirm his appointment tomorrow and I said I wanted to ask some questions about his surgery and she said let me go grab a vet tech for you, I didn't even have to ask.
The vet tech said they'll have me give a half dose that morning then after surgery they'll do the other half. She said if he does drop really low by morning that I could just skip it. No food after midnight she said but of course he can have water. I'll need to keep him out of Hidee's food. I asked about his pain medication and antibiotics that I'll be taking home but I remembered that I actually have a print off of his estimate which I will link. She said that I could absolutely leave a t-shirt for him.
Need to write instructions for his insulin and syringes, I know they probably know how to do it already and could always look it up but I'd feel more comfortable leaving instructions if not just for peace of mind. Going to pack a couple cans of food. Should I give them HC or LC or both?
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I think she said they forgot to put a couple of things on there and something about the meloxicam I believe it was not being available and using something else or something like that but the cost should still be around the same or perhaps even less.
The picture shows up blurry for some reason.
 

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To be honest, with the numbers he's been showing the past day or two, plus the tendency of some cats to drop BG under anesthesia, plus not being able to eat... I'd be inclined to skip the dose entirely.

Are they going to test his BG before shooting a half dose after surgery?

If you do go ahead with having them shoot a half dose, I would also recommend pre-filling the syringe for them rather than just supplying syringes and insulin. Not the time for a 0.5U vs 5U error by a confused vet tech!
 
I would advise against meloxicam or any other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory. Meloxicam, in particular, has a black box warning from the FDA due to it causing acute renal failure in cats. Onsior, if used as directed (only 3 days), is safer. Also, if an antibiotic is needed, please indicate no Convenia. It's a long acting antibiotic and if Thomas has a reaction, it's in his system for over 2 weeks. My vet is a cat only practitioner and won't use either meloxicam (Metacam) or Convenia in her practice.

Giving half a dose of Lantus at AMPS and half a dose at some point later won't work with Lantus. You end up with 2 nadirs and your shot schedule will be a mess. It would be better to skip the shot and let the vet know you'll give the next shot when Thomas is home or if he has to stay overnight, let them know what your shot time is and he needs his insulin ever 12 hours. You really don't want to split the dose the way the vet tech was suggesting with a depot type of insulin.
 
Sienne and Gabby (GA) said:
I would advise against meloxicam or any other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory. Meloxicam, in particular, has a black box warning from the FDA due to it causing acute renal failure in cats. Onsior, if used as directed (only 3 days), is safer. Also, if an antibiotic is needed, please indicate no Convenia. It's a long acting antibiotic and if Thomas has a reaction, it's in his system for over 2 weeks. My vet is a cat only practitioner and won't use either meloxicam (Metacam) or Convenia in her practice.

Giving half a dose of Lantus at AMPS and half a dose at some point later won't work with Lantus. You end up with 2 nadirs and your shot schedule will be a mess. It would be better to skip the shot and let the vet know you'll give the next shot when Thomas is home or if he has to stay overnight, let them know what your shot time is and he needs his insulin ever 12 hours. You really don't want to split the dose the way the vet tech was suggesting with a depot type of insulin.
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That must be why they said the Meloxicam was unavailable. I don't see Convenia listed but I'll be sure to check with them.
I would rather just skip the dose. Maybe I could skip my morning dose and just let them give the half dose after surgery if they insist.
I doubt he'll stay overnight unless there are complications, she said we should be able to pick him up by 2-3 p.m. We drop him off at 8-9 a.m. and they said they almost always finish before 12 p.m.
 
Nan & Amber (GA) said:
To be honest, with the numbers he's been showing the past day or two, plus the tendency of some cats to drop BG under anesthesia, plus not being able to eat... I'd be inclined to skip the dose entirely.

Are they going to test his BG before shooting a half dose after surgery?

If you do go ahead with having them shoot a half dose, I would also recommend pre-filling the syringe for them rather than just supplying syringes and insulin. Not the time for a 0.5U vs 5U error by a confused vet tech!
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I really would rather just skip the dose. How would I go about prefilling a syringe. Would I put the caps back on afterward?
 
Nan & Amber (GA) said:
Just skip. Easier all around :).
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They seem to want to argue with me about it. Reminds of when I insisted on Lantus instead of Vetsulin and they kept trying to push me to use it because they preferred it.
I'll just say he's been dropping into low numbers and I don't think it'd be safe to give him any insulin when he hasn't eaten and probably won't eat while he's there. Do you think I should leave some HC food for him or LC? I think there's a higher chance of him having low blood sugar than high.
 
Have you shown them Thomas J's actual numbers? Most vets recoil in horror at diabetic cats in the 50s-60s-- they're used to the pet meter scale, and they often shoot for "regulation" in the 200's.

If they see his numbers, they might be less insistent on shooting that half-dose. Although from what you have said, I'd be a little nervous about opening the discussion, honestly-- they don't seem to "get" FD, who knows how they'd react....

If they don't use lantus, they won't have any on-hand to use unless you supply it, right?
 
Nan & Amber (GA) said:
Have you shown them Thomas J's actual numbers? Most vets recoil in horror at diabetic cats in the 50s-60s-- they're used to the pet meter scale, and they often shoot for "regulation" in the 200's.

If they see his numbers, they might be less insistent on shooting that half-dose. Although from what you have said, I'd be a little nervous about opening the discussion, honestly-- they don't seem to "get" FD, who knows how they'd react....

If they don't use lantus, they won't have any on-hand to use unless you supply it, right?
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I showed the vet on Friday and she was worried about the numbers under 60 but I told her I frequently monitored and gave him HC to raise him. I'm emailing his spreadsheet over so they can see but I'm not sure if they'll actually look at it. No one else has looked at his spreadsheet though.
That's correct, they don't supply Lantus since it's not FDA approved, only the Vetsulin and ProZinc.
 
I'm going to leave some HC wet food with him tomorrow. I just hope nobody tries arguing with me about skipping the dose as I really don't feel like having an argument with the staff who will be taking care of my cat during and after surgery. Wouldn't be very comforting, I'm sure they'll be professional though.
 
Even if the vet if familiar with Vetsulin or Prozinc, they are both dosed on a 12-hour schedule. If you remind them you do not want to have to give insulin late in the evening and not be able to monitor because you're asleep, maybe that will make some headway. Also, pointing out that some cats experience lower numbers as a result of anesthesia so giving insulin after surgery may not be ideal may help to make your point.
 
I agree with the others. Thomas J will be fine with a skip, and you'll be able to relax. Well, at least about that. In all my time here, I don't remember a single vet wanting to give half dose after the surgery. You can leave a small can of LC - he shouldn't need HC if no insulin. But maybe play that by ear and what his numbers are tonight. Whether or not cats experience lower numbers after anaesthesia depends on the type of induction drug used. Somehow I suspect this vet isn't up on the latest.:rolleyes:
 
Wendy&Neko said:
I agree with the others. Thomas J will be fine with a skip, and you'll be able to relax. Well, at least about that. In all my time here, I don't remember a single vet wanting to give half dose after the surgery. You can leave a small can of LC - he shouldn't need HC if no insulin. But maybe play that by ear and what his numbers are tonight. Whether or not cats experience lower numbers after anaesthesia depends on the type of induction drug used. Somehow I suspect this vet isn't up on the latest.:rolleyes:
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She wants me to give half the dose at my regular time and the other half after the surgery. The vet tech said it's because Dr.B likes to keep them regulated. Maybe with a fast acting insulin this would work but that's not what I'm using.
I was suggesting HC just in case they aren't checking his BG levels, worried he may drop low and no one will realize because he doesn't seem to exhibit signs of hypoglycemia. They said they'd do a couple glucose tests but I doubt they'll be monitoring him frequently. Thought it might keep him at a safe number if he even ate it anyway.
 
Another reduction for that 47. Gave some HC with his dinner. I'll give a snack at 11 p.m. but no more food after 12 a.m. Is it possible that he might be going into remission?
 
That low was a little soon after the last reduction. The 1.25 unit depot could still be influencing tonight’s cycle. You can take the reduction, but just be aware it may not hold.

Guessing about remission is really just guessing. It’s up to Thomas now.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
That low was a little soon after the last reduction. The 1.25 unit depot could still be influencing tonight’s cycle. You can take the reduction, but just be aware it may not hold.

Guessing about remission is really just guessing. It’s up to Thomas now.
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That makes sense. I will hold the 1 unit dose then. Thank you for the advice.:bighug:
If he is going into remission his surgery and healing will probably throw it off I'm guessing.
 
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