? 08/16 amps 251, pmps 105 mg/dl , +2 354, can food be the reason?

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Sasha24

Sasha24

Member Since 2018
Today ken's sugar level is getting better. Currently he had 105 mg/dl. But what if it goes down further?.

The result is getting lower when he had this kind of meal schedule;
Meal time before amps preshot, + 3 and meal time before pmps pre shot, + 3 hrs. It has 8 hrs no feeding time. Is this okay?. Because i noticed that when he had meals 6 hrs before testing the result is too high.

Update: i checked his BSL +2 i was shocked the result came out 354 mg/dl. His last meal was after the preshot. Is this a food spike?. Should i change his food?. Friskies classic pate.
 
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Hiya Sasha,
I am sorry no one has answered your questions yet, so I wanted to comment and bump up your post. I'm seeing a lot of missing information on your spreadsheet. Have you only been dosing once per day? Lantus does best with consistent 12/12 hour dosing. Unfortunately, it will be hard to really gauge the effect the food is having on Ken's BGs without consistent dosing.
 
Hi amanda,
Sorry i wasnt able to update the chart but im consistently giving 1 unit every 12 hrs most exact time. I checked this morning for amps his sugar level was 295 mg/dl his last meal was around 21:15hrs. Im planning to change his food tonight to fancy feast. I also noticed that if his last meal is 6 hrs before his pre-shot test the result is quite high unlike if he had his meal 8 hrs before the preshot test is low. Like what i get yesterday PMPS 105mg/dl.
 
Some kitties are are more carb sensitive than others. Generally you want to feed the lowest carb food that your kitty will eat, but as long as you keep it under 10%, you should be fine. Since you're so new to the FD dance, I would ensure Ken has low carb food (which it sounds like he does) and not worry so much about food types unless it's causing other problems (vomiting, diarrhea, etc.). Most kitties do better with smaller meals multiple times a day. Meals can help stimulate the pancreas, and feeding more often can help bring down numbers. I personally feed my buddy Lou at preshot times, +3, +6, and +9. Others feed more during the beginning of the cycle and not as much towards the end. It all depends on your cat. When you start testing more often and getting an idea how Ken is reacting to the insulin, you can tweak meals/food as needed.

Would you be able to update the chart to show your tests and doses? Or is there an issue with the spreadsheet itself? If there's a problem with the spreadsheet, you could enter your information in a new one, but just remember to update the link in your signature so we can see. If there's another problem, we do have some spreadsheet gurus that could help. Just ask! :)
 
i just updated his chart :) , i had limited access to internet at home during this past few days that's why i unable to update the chart. may i know the portion of food you give to buddy lou? because it made me confused if i provided the right portion to ken. Like, i gave him 1/4 during pre-shot then almost half of can after +3 hrs. another question, if you are giving food to buddy in +9 hrs, will you be able to get accurate BSL before pre-shot?
 
Oh good deal! Thank you! I feed Lou a number of brands/flavors (he gets sick of flavors easily), but his primary is Fancy Feast, which comes in 3 oz cans. I give a 1/2 can (1.5 oz) every preshot and +3 meal (he has a tendency to drop during +3 and +6), and 1/4 can (0.75 oz) at +6 and +9. He doesn't do well going too long in between meals. He usually eats his 1/4 meals pretty quickly, but I sometimes move the +9 up to +8 to give him more time, depending on the situation. Regardless, I pick up any and all food 2 hours before preshot time so as to not effect that BG. :)
 
I will try your method! :) and will get more data tomorrow as i wanted to find his nadir. i saw your spreadsheet and noticed your really good at getting lou's BSL how do you manage getting her BSL without scaring her? ken is quite upset, his hiding when he saw me preparing the meter and insulin. i also noticed that i bruised him.
 
It will also be helpful if you can get some tests in between your shot times. Lantus dosing is based on the nadir -- the lowest point in the cycle. If you work outside of your home, then getting tests in the evening and on weekends is essential. You don't want to miss a dose reduction if you're not testing.

My best guess for the spike in numbers is due to the numbers below 200. If numbers drop too low, drop into a range your cat's not used to, or drop fast, it can trigger what we refer to as a "bounce." When this happens, the liver and pancreas release a stored form of glucose along with counterregulatory hormones which cause numbers to rapidly rise. It's possible that this is what cause the numbers in the 300s.

 
Sasha24 said:
I will try your method! :) and will get more data tomorrow as i wanted to find his nadir. i saw your spreadsheet and noticed your really good at getting lou's BSL how do you manage getting her BSL without scaring her? ken is quite upset, his hiding when he saw me preparing the meter and insulin. i also noticed that i bruised him.
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It's all about getting him used to things. Treats help immensely when checking BGs since many cats are food motivated. You would want to find a low carb option, like bonito flakes, dehydrated meat treats, cooked chicken, or something else. My Lou actually isn't really food motivated. We found (through good old trial and error) that he responds best to affection as a reward. I kiss his head to both let him know he did good and as a sign we are done. I've recently added bonito flakes as a treat afterwards, but for the longest time he would refuse treats, so the affection was something I could do regardless of what he thought, haha. Most people will perform the testing in the same spot, and feed treats during and/or right after the BG test is done.

Now as far as technique, you want to make sure you are trying to poke in the sweet spot. Ken may be having some issues bleeding, but thankfully, the more you poke, the more new capillaries will grow into that area, eventually making it easier and easier to get blood. Another trick can be to put some rice in a sock and tie that off. Heat it up for 10-15 seconds in the microwave (test it on the inside of your wrist to make sure it's not too hot), and heat the ear. It helps immensely in the beginning and in the winter. There are some more tips and tricks, as well as a picture of the sweet spot HERE. It's a process that is hard on both of you starting out. The first week with Lou and I was pretty awful, as we were both nervous and scared. But I think as Lou started to feel better (as his BGs started decreasing), he started accepting it more. Now I think he realizes this is all a fact of life. :D
 
Sienne and Gabby (GA) said:
It will also be helpful if you can get some tests in between your shot times. Lantus dosing is based on the nadir -- the lowest point in the cycle. If you work outside of your home, then getting tests in the evening and on weekends is essential. You don't want to miss a dose reduction if you're not testing.

My best guess for the spike in numbers is due to the numbers below 200. If numbers drop too low, drop into a range your cat's not used to, or drop fast, it can trigger what we refer to as a "bounce." When this happens, the liver and pancreas release a stored form of glucose along with counterregulatory hormones which cause numbers to rapidly rise. It's possible that this is what cause the numbers in the 300s.
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Thank you for the info, all this time i thought that the spike caused his food. Something new i learned. i can feel that you're right because everytime i got 100+ result it goes back to 300 more. What is the best thing to do?

After 6 hrs of preshot do i need to test him every hour?.
 
Amanda and a Loudogg said:
It's all about getting him used to things. Treats help immensely when checking BGs since many cats are food motivated. You would want to find a low carb option, like bonito flakes, dehydrated meat treats, cooked chicken, or something else. My Lou actually isn't really food motivated. We found (through good old trial and error) that he responds best to affection as a reward. I kiss his head to both let him know he did good and as a sign we are done. I've recently added bonito flakes as a treat afterwards, but for the longest time he would refuse treats, so the affection was something I could do regardless of what he thought, haha. Most people will perform the testing in the same spot, and feed treats during and/or right after the BG test is done.

Now as far as technique, you want to make sure you are trying to poke in the sweet spot. Ken may be having some issues bleeding, but thankfully, the more you poke, the more new capillaries will grow into that area, eventually making it easier and easier to get blood. Another trick can be to put some rice in a sock and tie that off. Heat it up for 10-15 seconds in the microwave (test it on the inside of your wrist to make sure it's not too hot), and heat the ear. It helps immensely in the beginning and in the winter. There are some more tips and tricks, as well as a picture of the sweet spot HERE. It's a process that is hard on both of you starting out. The first week with Lou and I was pretty awful, as we were both nervous and scared. But I think as Lou started to feel better (as his BGs started decreasing), he started accepting it more. Now I think he realizes this is all a fact of life. :D
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I need to find those low carb treats here in Philippines and hopefully its available. Otherwise i will need to cook chicken. I poked the sweet spot 2 days ago but i felt guilty because it goes through and bleed both sides. I am using the lancing device. I hope tomorrow everything will be okay for ken.
 
The bounces are normal. The more time Ken spends in closer to normal range numbers, the more his body will get used to being in that range again. As this happens, he should bounce less and he will clear the bounce more quickly.
 
Sienne and Gabby (GA) said:
The bounces are normal. The more time Ken spends in closer to normal range numbers, the more his body will get used to being in that range again. As this happens, he should bounce less and he will clear the bounce more quickly.
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How long it will take for him to adjust? Base in your experience. Today, i checked his BSL for amps the result was 121 mg/dl. It went down again. I feed him fancy feast last night.
 
Unfortunately, it takes them as long as it takes to settle down. Every cat is different, and you can't rush the process. Some cats don't bounce much, but some cats bounce for months before they settle down. If you look at Lou's spreadsheet, we started Basaglar May 29th, 2018. You can see that he bounced like nobody's business until only just recently. I imagine he may start again, but I'll stay hopeful that it won't be too extreme.
 
Amanda and a Loudogg said:
Unfortunately, it takes them as long as it takes to settle down. Every cat is different, and you can't rush the process. Some cats don't bounce much, but some cats bounce for months before they settle down. If you look at Lou's spreadsheet, we started Basaglar May 29th, 2018. You can see that he bounced like nobody's business until only just recently. I imagine he may start again, but I'll stay hopeful that it won't be too extreme.
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Thank you. This bounce really frustate me. Earlier everything went okay and tonight before doing his pmps the meter says that the bsl is too low. So i rushed give him food and delayed his shot after 1 hr i checked it came out 249 mg/dl but since i gave him food i waited again for another 2 hrs and the result went again 360. I suddenly realized that the meter might misdiagnosed the result because earlier i put some gel in his ear to heal up the wound. Argh.
 
Sasha24 said:
Thank you. This bounce really frustate me. Earlier everything went okay and tonight before doing his pmps the meter says that the bsl is too low. So i rushed give him food and delayed his shot after 1 hr i checked it came out 249 mg/dl but since i gave him food i waited again for another 2 hrs and the result went again 360. I suddenly realized that the meter might misdiagnosed the result because earlier i put some gel in his ear to heal up the wound. Argh.
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Unfortunately, this definitely happens. A good rule of thumb is any time you have a truly surprising result, too low or even weirdly high, you retest immediately. Sometimes the strip is bad, or sometimes you might underfill the strip (in the case of a weirdly low number). Regardless, especially if you have a LO result, please retest immediately. That also reminds me. I'm not sure if you've seen this, but please print it out and keep it handy: How to treat HYPOs. It's a great article that has everything you need to know in case Ken's BG goes too low. It's also good to have some high carb food and honey, karo, or maple syrup on hand at all times.
 
Sasha24 said:
I need to find those low carb treats here in Philippines and hopefully its available. Otherwise i will need to cook chicken. I poked the sweet spot 2 days ago but i felt guilty because it goes through and bleed both sides. I am using the lancing device. I hope tomorrow everything will be okay for ken.
Click to expand...

I am pretty new to this but I did read several articles that recommended not using a lancing device because you are more likely to go through the ear and some cats don't like the sound. Have you tried just using the lancet free hand? If you haven't, it might be worth a try. I also found that filling a small medicine bottle with hot water and placing that in the ear for about 20 seconds really increased blood floor (just make sure it's not too hot). It takes a bit of practice, but when I do it correctly, I have had better luck getting blood.
 
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