08.01.22 Chispa, AMPS 370, 348 +3, 468 PMPS+3

Hi Karen, can you get a test before bed every night? Preshots are not an indicator of how low he is going. Also some cats go low at night and bounce in the day.

If you are going to stay with the higher carb food, you might want to look at a higher dose to bring his numbers down. It's not ideal, but the longer he stays in higher numbers the greater the chances of glucose toxicity setting in. When a cat stays in high numbers for too long, its body gets used to higher numbers and treats them as normal. It then requires much more insulin to break through to lower numbers.

Tagging @tiffmaxee about a dose increase.
 
I just read your intro post. I’m sorry for the loss of your other cat. I lost one from lung cancer that was diagnosed the day I had to say goodbye. She didn’t act sick until the night before but was on prednisolone for undiscovered issues. The vets, three of them, missed it. So others may have a different opinion but I would tread carefully with a food change since all other issues are stable and follow TR and increase. If substituting some lc for some of the hc help then great. If any symptoms occur I would stop the new food.

Tagging others for their opinions. @Wendy&Neko @Bandit's Mom @Sienne and Gabby (GA)
 
KD is not a novel protein and so I do suspect the prednisolone is what’s keeping your kitty stable. I’d go up to 1.5 if you can get a second test every cycle.
 
Thank you both for weighing in. Until now, she been getting a token amount of dry food (a tablespoon +/-) as a treat in the morning, but I've stopped that. Right now she is getting about 75-80% k/d and 20-25% Weruva low carb in hopes of transitioning completely to low carb. But you are right: her many issues have been very stable on the Hill's k/d and its Royal Canin equivalent. We lowered the pred from 5mg to 2.5 mg/day as of 07/19 and so far, knock on wood, she seems to be doing fine.

My other reason for wanting to transition her to Weruva is the much higher protein content. She's not getting anywhere near the recommended >50% protein from the kidney diet; it's more like 22%. And the carbs, of course, are much too high at 27%.

I've emailed the vet about transitioning to the low-carb food before changing the insulin dose --- but maybe that is not such a good idea, since we don't yet know how well she will tolerate the new diet.

@Bandit's Mom , I can definitely do a test before going to bed at night (as long as her ears cooperate). I've been feeding her immediately after each dose, and then a few hours later, which I imagine offsets the effect of the insulin -- but the goal is to keep the numbers stable throughout the day and night, correct? (in addition to lowering the overall BG level, of course). She is used to six small feedings per 24 hours, generally about four hours apart (I have an automatic feeder for overnight). I think it makes it easier on her digestive system.

@tiffmaxee , I am so very sorry about the kitty you lost to lung cancer. I can't imagine how shocking and difficult that must have been.

I still miss Chulo every day. cat_wings>o

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Well … I’ve failed. For the first time ever, I couldn’t get a driop of blood out of her before giving the shot. I tried four times, and each time she yelped and flinched. Either her ears hurt because they are all full of tiny holes, or she’s anticipating pain and reacting no matter what. Bottom line, I gave her the shot because it needs to be done and at this point we know that 1 unit isn’t going to send her too low. But four pokes (plus two earlier unsuccessful tries) and no data … maybe I should get the Freestyle Libre after all?

This is supposed to get easier … but when??
 
I'm sorry that happened, Karen. It can get so frustrating not to get the pokes easily. Are you seeing the actual capillaries in some way before you poke?

A Libre can make things easier too, although sometimes you would need a manual meter to back up its numbers.
 
Thanks, @Ben&Squirrel. I don't have an appropriate flashlight (yet) and can't see the capillaries without one, though I do see the peripheral vein clearly. Sometimes one poke is all it takes, and other times, it doesn't matter how many times I poke -- nothing comes out.

Here's a looming issue: I'll be going out of town (or at least, I had planned to) from August 24 through 31. My boyfriend usually takes care of Chispa when I'm away, and I think he could do the shots with no problem, but I don't know if I can properly train him to do the testing, since haven't been so successful myself. We could place the Libre to coincide with my being away so that he wouldn't have to manually test, but is that too long to wait?
 
Update: I borrowed a better flashlight from a neighbor, and I can't see a single capillary. Not one. I do see where there are several bruises from past pokes ... I aimed for one of those and was able to get enough blood to test just now.
 
Sorry to hear that. Sometimes it takes a while for the blood vessels to enlarge, but that is probably no comfort. I wish it were easier right now!

I won't advise you about vacation practices, because I needed a ton of help from @tiffmaxee and @Bandit's Mom when I left town last month. I used the Libre myself during that time, because I also find that the testing is harder than the insulin shot and I wanted to make things easier for the catsitter. I did use a lower "vacation" dose, a higher bg number to determine when Benny would get or skip the shot, and gave him some MC rather than only LC. It kept him in a safer range. Other people may have a different plan. The experts can help you arrive at what is right for you given your own circumstances.
 
Ben&Squirrel said:
I used the Libre myself during that time, because I also find that the testing is harder than the insulin shot and I wanted to make things easier for the catsitter. I did use a lower "vacation" dose, a higher bg number to determine when Benny would get or skip the shot, and gave him some MC rather than only LC. It kept him in a safer range. Other people may have a different plan. The experts can help you arrive at what is right for you given your own circumstances.
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This is SO helpful ... it sounds like the perfect solution for monitoring while away. I'll ask for an appointment to have it placed the day before I leave. Thank you!!

I took a look at Benny's spreadsheet and felt happy to see his gradual but clear progress over the last four months. Yay, Benny! You're a champ -- and so handsome, too! :bighug:
 
When you get closer to leaving we can help with a vacation dose. We generally do that no sooner than a week before depending on how the cat is doing. A lot can change in 3 weeks! Start a new thread for today please.
 
Karen and Chispa said:
I took a look at Benny's spreadsheet and felt happy to see his gradual but clear progress over the last four months. Yay, Benny! You're a champ -- and so handsome, too! :bighug:
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He sends his thanks. :D But it was very difficult and scary for quite a while; his numbers were unstable and high. I felt pretty frustrated and hopeless at first. It does get better...maybe not on the timeline that we want, but it does get better. ;)
 
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