1/26 Garfield, AMPS 145, +4 94, PMPS 148, +3 53, +5.5 84 Dosing help/ideas?

Chris & China (GA)

Chris & China (GA)

Member Since 2013
Hey guys! Long time, no see! (well no ask anyway, but I'm at a loss and need some fresh brain cells).

I don't know what to do with Garfield lately. He has a habit of dropping fast (always has) and I've tried all the usual tricks like front-loading his food, feeding higher carb food, and so far, nothing seems to work.

Before his last asthma attack, his numbers were much more stable, but of course when I had to put him on Prednisolone, his BG went up so his dose did too, but he's been off the Pred for quite awhile now and his Pre-shots are high(er) than I want them to be but his nadirs are still great.

I tried decreasing from 3 to 2.75 just to make sure that once the Pred should be out of his system, that 3 was a little too much, but that didn't work. (Dec 19-26, 2025)

Any words of wisdom? I'm open to anything at this point.
 
I have nothing to offer other than a bump to the top of the list :-) I'll be interested to hear any advice you receive.

I see other kitties on the forum that seemingly have higher peshots with nadirs too low to really leave much room for an increase. It's frustrating, I know.

Curious: are your lighter blue numbers those in the 100-120 range?

Also, I'm kind of fascinated by how certain events can transpire and their responses to the insulin seem to shift, and they respond differently afterward. Jude had (I suspect) an FIC flare a few weeks ago, and now since then, out of the wild blue yonder, he's surfing as flat as I've ever seen (but a bit higher than I'd like).

Hope you get some useful feedback, Chris!
 
What % food are you feeding him now? What % higher carb food did you experiment with and what time did you give it? When you front loaded food, when were you feeding it, and what carbs?

What reduction criteria are you using? Once under 40 or a week in green? Do you consider him a cat that doesn't hold reductions well?

I suspect the premature reduction to 2.75 units may have let some glucose toxicity creep in. Always good to follow what the numbers tell you to do instead of anticipating.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
What % food are you feeding him now? What % higher carb food did you experiment with and what time did you give it? When you front loaded food, when were you feeding it, and what carbs?
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His "normal" foods are 6.4% ME, and 2.8% ME. He's also VERY picky and usually will only eat 3 types of food. One flavor of Weruva, one BFF and one Wellness Core so it's been challenging.

I've tried "normal" food (usually the 6.8%) at PS, +1, +2, +3, and I tried feeding 8-9% at PS, and the 6.4% at +1, +2, +3. The biggest problem is finding food he will eat though. I know he loves the "gravy" part of the gravy lovers so may have to see if I can add some of the gravy to his "normal' food and see if he'll eat it.

Wendy&Neko said:
What reduction criteria are you using? Once under 40 or a week in green? Do you consider him a cat that doesn't hold reductions well?
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He's a long-term diabetic. Diagnosed in 2021 so going for 3 under 50 for reductions.
Wendy&Neko said:
I suspect the premature reduction to 2.75 units may have let some glucose toxicity creep in. Always good to follow what the numbers tell you to do instead of anticipating.
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Yeah I went back and forth on that for several weeks before trying it and then it was only because I thought it might be possible that since the Pred was out of his system, 3U might have been too much, but as soon as it was obvious it wasn't making any difference, I went back to 3.0.

I was a little leery of going up to 3.25 with his fast drops and good nadir numbers and now I'm out of ideas so hoping new brain cells might have some ideas for me!
 
Chris & China (GA) said:
He's a long-term diabetic. Diagnosed in 2021 so going for 3 under 50 for reductions.
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Clarification. The long term diabetic rule is one under 40, or a week in greens. Any cat, long term or not, that don't hold reductions well can do the 3 times between 40 and 49 on three separate days. For other lurkers: Reminder: *earning* reductions and starting OTJ trials

Have you tried "normal" food at PS, then higher LC or low MC at about +1.5. That's assuming his onset is about +2 - do you agree? Getting a bit more carbs in before he drops might do something.

How late in the cycle does he have access to food? Is he a grazer or hoover? Just wondering it the higher preshots are as a result of loss of duration. Those types of higher preshots can also set up big drops.
 
He hasn't earned a reduction since the Prednisolone so I couldn't really tell you if he holds them or not.

Wendy&Neko said:
Have you tried "normal" food at PS, then higher LC or low MC at about +1.5. That's assuming his onset is about +2 - do you agree?
Click to expand...
No, haven't tried that combination yet. The problem will be finding a higher LC or MC he will actually eat. May do some math and see if I can make some of my own by adding some HC gravy to the LC food. Onset?....As fast as he drops, probably +1.5/2 but he sure takes a nosedive

Wendy&Neko said:
How late in the cycle does he have access to food? Is he a grazer or hoover? Just wondering it the higher preshots are as a result of loss of duration. Those types of higher preshots can also set up big drops.
Click to expand...
He's not a Hoover. For a cat his size, he doesn't usually eat more than about 7.5-8 ounces in 24 hours. (around or slightly less than 200 calories) He gets most of his food in the first half of the cycle, but usually comes looking for a snack to hold off imminent starvation about +8/9. If he's not too pushy, I try to hold him off with a few crushed up Orijen freeze dried treats. It usually works (but not always)

I hadn't thought about loss of duration. Good thought!
 
Mary & Jude said:
So what do you do in the case of a loss of duration?
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First you have to see if there is a reason he is losing duration, such as snacks after nadir. The insulin effects fades after nadir and carbs can make it wear off even faster. Sometimes it's just that the type of insulin being used doesn't last quite as long in that particular cat. Lots more in this post:
 
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