1/20 Kitten 371 +8 210

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LILandKIT

LILandKIT

Member Since 2012
Yesterday's Adventure

So after my "fun find of doubling blood sugar" at 1:30 am, it seems like we are on the road to repeating the same cycle again. It surprised me yesterday that his +8 was higher than his +12....I really wish I could come home earlier and see what was going on at that +4-+7 mark....so happy that its Friday so I can get some info in tmr and sunday!!!

Today I'm definitely sleepy. Even though its approaching exam time at school, and things should be easier, kids are tiring me out more than normal. I can't blame them for being nervous....and we have a laugh when I say, "Guys, please please please keep it down today...i'm so tired from being up at at random hours of the night testing my cat's blood sugar levels".

Guess we'll see what's in store this evening!! But for now, it's definitely NAP TIME!

PS. Kit's starting to hate his insulin shots....we used to shoot him on the kitchen counter, but then he got annoyed and was fidgety. So we quickly moved to the shoot while he's eating. Totally worked for a couple of weeks. Now all of a sudden, as soon as I pet him while eating, he jerks upwards and then lies away from me....and then starts eating with his paws!! Like he'll put his paw in his food and then lick/eat off of his paw. It's like he's saying, "I know you're waiting until I have my face in my food, HA! see if you can get me now!" and if you approach him with the needle and even come close to his skin he'll jerk backwards. Weird. Only recently. Maybe he's sick of my continuous poking?
 
Where are you shooting him? In the scruff or the side/flank? Musette use to do that to me as well when I was shooting her scruff, now I shoot in her side and she doesn't even look up from her dish. I have noticed that a lot of adult cats don't like their scruffs lifted and messed with..it is almost like they are saying "Hey! I'm not a baby anymore..stop that!" I also work with all of my cats when we are just cuddling to let me tent all over their bodies without ever giving a shot so that when they do need them it isn't something that is new and scary. My vet loves my cats because they are model patients. But then again they have had mom lifting their lips to look at teeth, they have their toes messed with to check nail beds and pads, they have had mom mess with their ears and look in them so everything a vet will do to them mom as already done a hundred times before.

When my Onyx first got his food allegies and had to have his face shaved to have a skin scraping done, my vet couldn't believe not only was Onyx just laying on the table for it, but was purring..lol But he had heard clippers before so the noise didn't upset him and he could see mom..if mom is there and not stopping it then it must be okay.

Mel, Maxwell, Musette & The Fur Gang
 
Hi, LIL ~

Will be interesting to see if you get another blue PMPS for Kitten. That +8 looks good for him coming down from that bounce. LIL, do you plan to do a curve for Kitten over the weekend? Would be nice to catch numbers at times you're not usually able to test during the work week to get a fuller picture of how the insulin is working for him.

" 'Guys, please please please keep it down today...i'm so tired from being up at at random hours of the night testing my cat's blood sugar levels'." -- How funny! Do your kids all think you're nuts? :-D

Eva

P.S. Kitten is a darling, LIL. What a precious face on that furboy!
 
You know depending on the age of the kids you teach, perhaps you could do a lesson plan talking about diabetes and bring Kitten in to show how to test and give shots, while talking about how humans just like cats can get diabetes and need to be tested and get shots sometimes, and then things to do if they have a diabetic friend that might be going into hypo, like getting them fruit juice or a candy bar...or even a peanut butter sandwich...perhaps tie it into a lesson of good nutrient and why it is important to be able to avoid diseases like diabetes. Just a thought. That is kind of what Maxwell and I do at the local hospital except the kids we work with are already diabetic. But I know I always hear how scared they are that their friends won't understand why they can't have things like birthday cake and ice cream or will be freaked out if they have to take their shots or test in front of their friends. However, I have also noticed since Maxwell and I have been going to talk to the kids that they respond so well to him, animals seem to be able to get through to kids where adults sometimes don't.

Mel, Maxwell, Musette & The Fur Gang
 
I think you might consider shooting the full dose if you get something like a 196 again if you'll be home to monitor things, or at least try something between 1.5 and 1.25. That's a fairly big reduction. Kitten's numbers are consistently fairly high, so you're actually probably looking for a dose that will bring down the pre-shots to something like that reading. Even with the testing to show that she was holding steady and not rising, you're ultimately trying to keep her BG level. It looks like once the previous shot wore off there wasn't enough in the lower dose.

With Celle, it's not all that unusual to see a pre-shot that is lower than previous values, even though that isn't the "normal" pattern for her. I'm also seeing that she often continues to rise after the shot, so I've gotten more comfortable with shooting values lower than normal. You never know how Kitten will respond, so of course only do what you're comfortable with. I just wanted to say that if Celle got those values I would not have decreased the dose. I have some data for Celle to back up that decision, which you don't yet have, but it's something to keep in mind as you move forward.
 
Eva: Yup, my kids think I'm wacko...but I think they thought that before the cat came into our discussions lol. I will definitely get a curve in tmr and then go from there....I still have a feeling that the dose will need to be upped to 1.75, but its better to get a curve in there first right? I just want to make sure that if i'm upping a dose that its on the weekend when i'm home to see how things go. Yeah Kit is a cutie pie...and he's a big suck which is funny given his size. Its hard to stay mad at him when he gives you those eyes....

Mel: This semester I'm teaching gr 10 and 11 biology. Which is super cool cuz we actually talk about diabetes, etc...but its so different when you experience it rather than just having points memorized from the textbook. I thought I had a background, instead I really didn't - just memorized facts. So my science geekiness really comes into play with Kit b/c I'm constantly trying to figure out why everything is happening and it amazes me how much i'm learning and how much I really didn't know. My kiddies love hearing about him and his numbers and his reactions. I would love to bring him in but being that he runs if I sneeze, there would be no way in the world that I'd be able to even take him out the front door. I admire all that you do...that is so lovely to hear that you guys go and speak with the children at the hospital. So wonderful. You have a big heart - the world needs more people like that. Oh and today's shot went perfectly! I think I have to catch him as soon as the food is brought out...when all he's thinking is "food food food" and is stuffing his face. If I wait until he's calming eating and taking breaks, then I lost the "moment".

Melissa: I totally understand what you're saying. I think yesterday I just got a bit nervous being that it was my first time. With a lot of reading on here and the advice directly from you guys, I know that I shouldn't be nervous for something that I'm actually trying to achieve! Had I gotten that number today, I would have done the full shot and then kept an eye. "It looks like once the previous shot wore off there wasn't enough in the lower dose" -- that makes PERFECT SENSE! Everything is slowly coming together for me. Thanks for the advice and hope you and Celle are doing great!
 
Lil,

If he is super skittish and shy how about taking videos and making slides of him as visual media for the diabetes stuff? One of the reasons I'm suggesting working him into your teaching is because I'm a full time college student for Vet Tech, but I take my classes thorough an online college because of where I live in relationship to the closest college that teaches it..One of the things that I found that helps me really learn and retain what I have learned is to teach it to others. My poor DH now knows more than he ever wanted to about biology, genetics, and platypuses (yeah platypuses because I found is fascinating that while they are mammals and nurse their young, the females don't have any nipples and the babies lick the milk off their mom's fur..see now you know more about them than you ever wanted too. ohmygod_smile ) ...lol But there is something about teaching what you are learning to others that allows you to intergrate what you know on paper to what you need to know in practicality. It just seems to make it stick better.

Mel, Maxwell, Musette & The Fur Gang
 
The fact about the platypuses is definitely the coolest thing ever!!! That's great that you're pursuing Vet Tech...with all the Fur Gang and your drooler, I'm sure you have such a wealth of knowledge under your belt already! You're definitely right about making lessons engaging for students...Im actually going to take your advice/idea and use a video or pics of Kit and put it with my ppt when we do our diabetes lesson next semester. I have 2 gr 11 bio classes next semester so it will fit in beautifully. I have a DH that has to listen to all my bio stuff too....lol.
 
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