10/06/11 Clydey PMPS 330, 2u, x2

Status
Not open for further replies.
Richie & Clyde

Richie & Clyde

Member Since 2011
Clydey's PMPS 330, he has been on 2u Since last Saturday's PM shot. My job has been crazy so I really can't take the time to get more & steady tests to see how he's doing during the day. Gonna see what the weekend brings & try to get more testing during the day. His vet was pleased w/ his condition & overall health. He is now down to 17.3 lbs. Still eating a all wet diet, Friskies Classic or Fancy Feast Classic. He even surprised me by jumping up on our dryer, which is higher than our countertops, he never has done that. Silly boy!!
 
that's a pretty good report! it's so great to see our kitters feeling better - and he must be feeling pretty good to make it to the top of the dryer!

when you get some mid-cycle tests you'll know if it's time to increase his dose. i didn't look at his spreadsheet yet, but are you getting a right-before-you-go-to-bed test? that can be helpful when you can't get the mid-day test.

eta: i looked at his ss - you really need to always get tests preshot as well, richie. as he continues on the lantus it's very possible his numbers will change even on the same dose. i'd be very concerned that you're shooting without testing enough. it looks to me like he needs more insulin overall - in following the protocol you don't want to linger too long on a dose with their numbers staying high because their bodies seem to get used to it. but without more tests it's really not safe to increase. just something for you to think about if you want to keep him safe and see some better numbers.
 
I can appreciate a crazy work schedule but you really need to get a pre-shot test every single time you want to give an injection. It's really dangerous to shoot blind. While many vets may think it's ok, let me put this in a different context. When I first joined FDMB, I lurked on the Health board for a bit. Someone was fussing about why pre-shot tests were important given that her vet said she didn't need to test. What stuck with me was the response. If this was a child that was diabetic, would you give a shot of a potentially lethal drug without testing first when the test would tell you whether or not your could safely give an insulin injection? I turned off the computer and went and bought a glucometer.

If you can't get tests during the day due to your work schedule, please do what you can to test at night. Given that Lantus dosing is based on nadir, getting spot checks is important. Both pre-shot tests and spot checks will keep Clyde safe.
 
Thanks all for the responses.When Pre-shot testing, & I get a high number, the 2 u dose is fine, correct? But if I get a low #, say in the low 100's, what then? Cut back his dose? This is where I'm having trouble understanding.
 
perhaps the biggest question after a low preshot number is, will you be around to monitor him and do you have supplies to handle any low numbers that come your way?

have you read the "how to handle low numbers" sticky at the top of the lantus page? basically you want to be gathering information during this phase to tell you how clyde is responding to lantus. you want enough data to tell you when he usually drops during the cycle and how fast, and what the low point might be. in other words, as much as possible you want to be able to predict what he will do after the shot.

at some point everyone has to learn to shoot lower numbers. don't do it until you have that information above and are ready to monitor him. the path to lowering their BG numbers, and subsequently the dose, includes shooting lower numbers.

until you have the data to predict, you can either 1) wait a little bit for the numbers to rise to a number you are comfortable shooting (say 15-30 minutes and retest) without giving any food - that's important - don't feed while you are stalling; 2) you can give a partial shot or 3) you can skip the shot.

probably your best bet if you are confronted with a lower-than-normal preshot BG is going to be to post here and in your subject line ask for help making that decision. don't feed while you're waiting. if no one is around to walk you through it, read the sticky on low numbers and make the best decision you can.
 
There isn't a 'one size fits all' answer to your question regarding what to do if you get a low pre-shot number. Much of what you can do depends on how data ready you are to shoot progressively lower numbers.

The options (in brief) are to:
  • shoot
  • stall without feeding until numbers rise
  • shoot a reduced dose
  • skip the shot
The details of each of these options are outlined in the Shooting & Handling Low Numbers sticky. At this point, you aren't data ready to shoot low numbers so, you would be dealing with the other options. Which option may be viable will depend on whether your schedule can accommodate a stall since you will need to give the next dose 12 hours from when you actually shot. As Julie noted, monitoring and having supplies are also concerns that factor in to a decision.
 
And I would add to all that great information that we dose primarily based on the nadir, not on the pre-shot. If you don't have data, then you do need to stall, shoot a reduced dose, or skip. But when shooting a reduced dose BECAUSE you don't have data or can't monitor, unless the kitty has already earned a reduction, you would go back up to the current dose before the stalled/skipped cycle.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top