12/05 - Small Kitty - AMPS 374.40 - PMPS 415.80 +2 370.80

Status
Not open for further replies.
Photorecon

Photorecon

Very Active Member
Good morning my Lantus buddies !

Finally, seems we're going somewhere, 115 drop in 8Hs. This result,
374.40 is some sort of before increase from 1.5/1.5 to 2.0/2.0.

Can a bounce last for more than a few days ? Hope it is because it's
encouraging to see better results yesterday at +10 and AMPS even better.

Will keep you posted, leaving for work.

Thansk again to all for advise.

Sébastien
 
Bobbie And Bubba said:
Hi there and yes a bounce can last up to 3 days or 6 cycles. Hope he slides down for you soon.
Click to expand...
Hey Bobbie, seems you've taken Bubba on time, that a great SS you have. Small Kitty must have been in a 3 months downhill before
I went to a Vet office. Tough he was just capricious about sort of food and I would find the right one eventually. Early March he was on
the edge of having to be plugged to survive.

Since then I stopped calculating Vet expenses, I think will make Small Kitty in a better shape together.

Sébastien
 
Yes the calculating of the vet expenses is rather depressing. Glad you found us! We can help you with your journey. This is the best place you never wanted to be! ;) I learn something new everyday from the people here.
 
Sébastien, I am going to link your previous post here so that the people looking at todays will have a reference as to what is going on. Each day we start a new thread with the date and kitties name and then within the body of our post, we link yesterday's thread. I just finished looking through your post yesterday and I am so sorry that SK had DKA. It is very scary I am sure. This is quite a sugar dance this Feline Diabetes and we are so lucky to have each other with all the knowledge here.

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/...-536-40-pmps-577-80-2-608-40-4-489-60.157619/
 
Small Kitty seems to be feeling great, he was meowing sold and very hard for food when I arrived. He
doing his cleaning and all a normal cat should do. Numbers are what we are used to, no the best for
sure but better then yesterday.

Thanks for you all putting you tough into this. You're probably the only ones, everybody are telling
me I'm crazy keeping up with this. They can't understand.

Keep you posted
 
I have several people in my life that do not understand what I am doing to try to get Bubba better. You are in good company here! We all understand. Keep posting and keep asking questions so we can help you to help Small Kitty. Do your best to get as many test in as you can because that will help to fill in the missing puzzle pieces and to be able to understand how the insulin is working with SK and to know when to increase or decrease. You are doing a great job by first of all to be home testing and to be here seeking help. :bighug:
 
Regarding home test :

I know some of you guys and girls are doing o test every hour and it's probably very
good for the global picture. I'll run out of strips this week and will need to buy a new
Free Style package. That's 90$ here for 100 strips at the drug store, a little bit less if
you order online (http://www.diabetesexpress.ca/ : (76$ can + 10$ shipping). That
already borderline for the limit I had fixed myself. Is there a way to perform dual test
but at a different interval and still have something good ?
Those who are telling me I should have stop are not totally unsounds, that's quite a
lot of money I'm spending on this. I could have had an eyes surgery and be glass free
with all that. But decision making is my thing.

So is 2 tests a day a feasible plan; combined with a monthly GL curve ?

Christine told me the +2 is very important, but will a 2 tests a day setup bring a good survival rate ?

Thanks for advising, need to make this a viable business as well.
 
Last edited:
At the bare minimum, we'd really like to see at least 3 tests per day....Always at Pre-shot to make sure he's high enough for insulin, and at least 1 other test (and if that's ALL you can do, I'd get the "before bed" test on the PM cycle since most cats go lower at night)

You might want to seriously consider a different meter too. I know the Bravo meter is available in Canada and it's strips are a lot more affordable than the AlphaTrak

All of us here understand how to use the human meters, so you don't need to worry that our advise would be "wrong" if you use a meter that's more affordable!! That's the reason most of us use human meters!!

Also, if you're still feeding the Purina DM, you could save a lot of money going with just the Fancy Feast Pate's, Friskies pates or 9-Lives ground (pates)....there's no reason in the world you need to pay over $2 a can for DM
 
You're right Chris, Brovo test strips are extremely cheap. Sad they need .5 size dropplet. I hammered
a One Touch Ultra after wasting 5 strips due to different errors or lack of blood samples. The .3
required by the Alphatrack / Freestyle never made me lose a strip. Just a needle pin size
of blood and you're set.

Setup I have is not so bad, setting up the Alphatrack II to work with human strips is quite easy and,
as probably not lab level accurate is still very good. Your're probably right about the 3 times a day
but not life long I hope. Guess things will settle down one day, in my dreams.

A least Small Kitty is doing well. I've reenforced mezzanine fence I had put to close access to the straircase and still,
he was able to climb 5 feet and stand-up there on the edge while looking at me. :banghead:

Love this little beast :bighug:
 
We're also using Freestyle strips in an alphatrack. Don't know if this is an option, but I got a good price on ebay. I had to grab some strips at walgreens the other day and it was about $90 for 50. I about fainted. But, it's nice that I can grab some at the pharmacy in a pinch. I think that maybe though, maybe at some point we'll get to the point where we switch to a different meter.
 
smilelari said:
We're also using Freestyle strips in an alphatrack. Don't know if this is an option, but I got a good price on ebay. I had to grab some strips at walgreens the other day and it was about $90 for 50. I about fainted. But, it's nice that I can grab some at the pharmacy in a pinch. I think that maybe though, maybe at some point we'll get to the point where we switch to a different meter.
Click to expand...

Smileari, if you go on : http://www.diabetesexpress.ca/testing-supplies-test-strips-freestyle-test-strips-100box-p-944.html
you will get your strips at haft price. With the value of Canadian money you'll save a lot. 100 strips will cost you less then 70$, delivered at your front door.
 
I feel compelled to tell you that there have been many concerns expressed her about people mixing brands of strips and meters. Each meter is designed for the strips that go with it. When you mix and match, you may have inaccurate results. @smilelari and Sebastien

I'd encourage you to choose a meter whose strips you can afford. Most people use people glucometers - the strips can be as little as $0.25 US per strip - so 100 for $25. You don't need to go broke with the strips.

You don't need to test hourly. I tested at least 5 times a day, more when I thought punkin needed it. If the strips are cheap it's not such a big deal how often one tests.

Looking at SK's ss, my eye goes right to the yellow cells. Lantus dosing is based upon how low the dose can make SK's blood sugar go, so those low points are the most important. High numbers will pass if you get the low numbers in the correct range. If you could test a little more now, we could have some confidence about increasing his dose. When you get another yellow test, if you can, following it up an hour or two later to see if he's going lower could be really helpful.

With DKA in the very recent past, I'd want to get him to a dose sooner rather than later that gets his blood sugar into normal range. That requires testing more now if you can swing it. Cats that have had DKA can have it return, so being vigilant now is very important. As time goes by you'll be able to relax more.

Was SK treated for any infection when he had DKA? Antibiotics?

The "recipe" for DKA is "not enough insulin + not enough food + systemic stress/inflammation/infection." Cats don't develop DKA just from high blood sugar. I'm glad to see from the ss that he's regained weight - it's important that he eat enough. That eliminates one element from the recipe for DKA.

Not sure if I gave you this post last night - "Where Can I Find?" - take a look on there to see where you can find info on DKA. There is some info on the yellow boxed sticky on the Basics, near the bottom in the single topic posts. There are also some links in the second half of the thread under "My Cat May be ill/not feeling great/have a special condition." I'm sure you don't want it to return.
 
Photorecon said:
You're right Chris, Brovo test strips are extremely cheap. Sad they need .5 size dropplet. I hammered
a One Touch Ultra after wasting 5 strips due to different errors or lack of blood samples. The .3
required by the Alphatrack / Freestyle never made me lose a strip. Just a needle pin size
of blood and you're set.
Click to expand...

This may not be as much of a problem now as it was when you first started. As you poke, the ears grow in new capillaries and they become easier and easier to get blood from. .5 really isn't a lot more than .3
 
My mom uses a Freestyle meter and I know how expensive the test strips are but fortunately for her she gets them very cheap through the Veterans Administration. If I were you I would google your options for meters and test strips available to you in Canada. It's the test strips that are so darn expensive.
 
I use the Bayer Contour meter and I often find test strips as low as $11 US for 50 on e-bay.

Once you get Small Kitty closer to being regulated, you will have a better idea when it's important to test and when you don't need to. For now, I'd recommend at least 4 a day - before each shot and then some time in the middle of the cycle. You can change up when that mid cycle test is to see if you can figure out when he typically gets to the lowest point. Of course, being a cat, he might just change that, too! :rolleyes:
 
Thanks to all of you for taking you time replying. I might have to go on with .. yet .. another meter.
One day I might start a museum. I spent months reading about the subject and went on with the most
accurate and cat friendly ones. The ''Real'' Freedom light with it's strips is a mess. My first GL curve
was made with the Alphatrak and the Freedom Lite side by side, the Freedom light was just up and
down without any correlation with the good one. Using uman strips was complytly different. Testing
for a week, after calibration with the Alpatrak solution, results were pretty accurate, no less then 1 or .5
mmo-l.

I'll see.

Time to post daily results
 
julie & punkin (ga) said:
I feel compelled to tell you that there have been many concerns expressed her about people mixing brands of strips and meters. Each meter is designed for the strips that go with it. When you mix and match, you may have inaccurate results. @smilelari and Sebastien

I'd encourage you to choose a meter whose strips you can afford. Most people use people glucometers - the strips can be as little as $0.25 US per strip - so 100 for $25. You don't need to go broke with the strips.

You don't need to test hourly. I tested at least 5 times a day, more when I thought punkin needed it. If the strips are cheap it's not such a big deal how often one tests.

Looking at SK's ss, my eye goes right to the yellow cells. Lantus dosing is based upon how low the dose can make SK's blood sugar go, so those low points are the most important. High numbers will pass if you get the low numbers in the correct range. If you could test a little more now, we could have some confidence about increasing his dose. When you get another yellow test, if you can, following it up an hour or two later to see if he's going lower could be really helpful.

With DKA in the very recent past, I'd want to get him to a dose sooner rather than later that gets his blood sugar into normal range. That requires testing more now if you can swing it. Cats that have had DKA can have it return, so being vigilant now is very important. As time goes by you'll be able to relax more.

Was SK treated for any infection when he had DKA? Antibiotics?

The "recipe" for DKA is "not enough insulin + not enough food + systemic stress/inflammation/infection." Cats don't develop DKA just from high blood sugar. I'm glad to see from the ss that he's regained weight - it's important that he eat enough. That eliminates one element from the recipe for DKA.

Not sure if I gave you this post last night - "Where Can I Find?" - take a look on there to see where you can find info on DKA. There is some info on the yellow boxed sticky on the Basics, near the bottom in the single topic posts. There are also some links in the second half of the thread under "My Cat May be ill/not feeling great/have a special condition." I'm sure you don't want it to return.
Click to expand...


@Julie,

That is very useful information you're giving here. What I think happened before and into the DKA is the following :
- Antibiotic to fix urinary infection
- Too little Lantus Dose
- Lack of food / Water (was eating / drinking very little, had to feed him manually during DKA)
- Was depress and affected by my own ''fear'', frustration of getting nowhere.

He's now kind of depress again but for different reason. Small Kitty and Big Brother have been
cats allowed to go outside and play all night at the back of the building and those nearby for
their entire life. They are not confined and I see a difference in mood, their faces shows cats
feeling sad.

This week-end I'll give it a try releasing them again. Confinement made no difference in numbers,
witch I tough might have been affected by people around feeding them. Many told me this was not
a good idea but actions, freedom, fun, I beleive will help.

That's going to be just tonight as it's a good timing as it's Friday the 13th and they are black cats.
They'll propagate fear around and nobody will touch them :)
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top