2/17 Kismet PMPS 110, +2 85, +3 51

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Courtney and Kismet

Courtney and Kismet

Member Since 2012
Good Afternoon LL,

Posting a little later today because we all slept in this am! I set an alarm to get up to test, shoot, and feed, and then we crawled back into bed for an extra 2 hours. Kis curled up on my chest and tucked his head under my chin and purred the morning hours away happily. It's the coldest it ever gets here in South Florida, a chilly 40 degrees this morning, and now it is a absolutely stunning, sunny 55! When we woke up, we snuggled in bed and did the Sunday crossword (Kismet helped, he loves to lay on paper and play with pens) and watched an old Kirk Douglas movie on the tv.

We're off to a blue start for Kis today, so fingers crossed that the dose decrease will prove to be the right decision. I guess we'll see how he goes the next few cycles and will bump him up if he needs it. All 5 ps in order today. So far, no wheezing or coughing. I'd love to open the windows and enjoy this weather, but if he is allergic to something outside, I don't want to risk exposing him to contaminants. Our Beautiful purple bougainvillea is in bloom, and the neighbors poinciana is, too.

Happy OTJ Day to Honey and a very Happy Birthday to Gizmo! We've needed some good news and something to celebrate in LL. Here's to hoping that the new week is a good one!

Yesterday's Condo

Recap:
Yesterday 2/16
AMPS 112
+2--- 75
+3--- 56
+3.5- 53
+4--- 48 Fed Tsp LC
+4.3 ASTHMA ATTACK. 2 puffs of albuterol
+4.5--60
+5--- 75
Resting
+9 --Tsp LC
+10---Vomit
+10.5 147

PMPS 132
+2--- 120
+4--- 87
+4.5- Urine Test: Negative Glucose/Negative Ketones
+6--- 63

Today 2/17
AMPS-147
+2--- 118
+5--- 61
+6--- 55
+7--- 63
PMPS 110
+2--- 85
+3--- 51 fed 1 spoonful of FF LC
 
Re: 2/17 Kismet AMPS 147, +3 118

Morning Courtney, sounds like a nice morning sleeping in for you and Kismet. Your weather is similar to ours today. It was 45 earlier and now mid 60ish right now. I hope Kismet and you both have a restful day.
 
Re: 2/17 Kismet AMPS 147, +3 118

Hi Ann, thanks for dropping by our condo. It was a very nice morning; I really needed to catch up on some rest! My week days are hectic, and Sunday is the only day I really get any R&R. Your weather sounds lovely, too! We're not going to make it into the 60s today, but that's ok by me. I love cooler weather! It's been feeling more like Summer lately, so this is a nice break. Perhaps I will be able to convince to DH to take a walk later. I hope you and Maggie have a good day.

Libby, thanks for stopping by! I hope we get some lower numbers here soon. I'm anxious to see the nadir :mrgreen: Thanks for your help yesterday!
 
Re: 2/17 Kismet AMPS 147, +3 118

Hi Courtney,

Kismet looks good in blue, and especially when he's on his way down. Isn't it wonderful to snuggle with a kitty on a day off?

I had to Google poinciana. Wow, what a spectacular tree. The flowers in one pic, reminded me of our trumpet vine.

I hope you're enjoying your Sunday :-D
I hope Kismet's asthma isn't bothering him again today. What a shame you have to consider that, when you'd like to open windows. My sis has same problem with her own asthma. That's why I thought it was weather related. I forgot it's the inhaled allergens.
 
Re: 2/17 Kismet AMPS 147, +3 118

Sorry to hear Kismet is having asthma problems. Ugh. We know those all too well. Nice blue numbers today. Have a great day Courtney!!
 
Re: 2/17 Kismet AMPS 147, +3 118, +5 61

Hi Barb, the poinciana is truly a beautiful tree! One of my favorite trees in S. Florida. I've opened up so windows, and so far, no incidents. We have never had any problems leaving the windows open before, so I have no idea if he has seasonal allergies or what. The first asthma attacks he ever had were in September-- so it doesn't seem likely . His cat tree is right near a window, and he will sit up there for hours enjoying the fresh air and watching the neighborhood kitties play outside. In fact, he's up there right now. The window has been open for about 2 hours now, and so far, so good. He just gave me a beautiful +5, too!

Melissa, it really is no fun :( Thanks for stopping by!
 
Re: 2/17 Kismet AMPS 147, +3 118, +5 61, +6 55

Hi Courtney! I thought I would answer you here.

Tarragon has had asthma for about 8 years and diabetes for 2 years. His diabetes is a result of the steroid shots for his asthma. Tarragon is on Flovent 250, 2 puffs, twice a day and 5 mg of prednisolone once a day. We also use the albuterol if he is in a flare before his Flovent. This last chest X-ray a few months ago, it did show that his asthma has worsened over the last couple if years, but that is not unusual. That is when we had to start the prednisolone. He is pretty much cough free most of the time, e precept allergy season. Then we up him on his prednisolone.

As far as his BGs affecting his asthma, I don't think it does directly and we have never been told that. When he has lower numbers, he is a little more active and may cough because of it. The more he plays and gets rowdy, the more likely it is he will cough. When he is having a flare, which is coughing multiple times in a day, his BGs will go up. There are a couple of reasons for that. When they are in a flare, there is inflammation in their airways. Inflammation will raise BGs. He also panics when he can't breath and stress is a big one for Tarragon and his BGs.

I am concerned that your vet is saying no Flovent. Albuterol and Flovent are two different things, which I know you are aware. The albuterol is a rescue inhaler and is just getting Kismet through the moment, but not treating the underlying inflammation. Until the inflammation is gone, Kismet will continue to cough. Also, the albuterol increases their heart rate which always scares me but T also has HCM. The Flovent is a steroid and will help reduce the inflammation. It is important to give the albuterol before the Flovent so the airways are opened up enough for the Flovent to get in if they are coughing a lot. Even though Flovent is a steroid, there is no issue giving it to a diabetic kitty because it is an inhaled steroid and does not get into the blood. Sometimes, they have to use prednisolone short term to kick the inflammation if the Flovent isn't doing the trick. This is also doable with a diabetic kitty. Tarragon's asthma is advanced and, like I said, he is on prednisolone daily. It just took some tweaking of his insulin. However, we opted for that since chances are he will never be OTJ.

Please let me know if you have any questions at all or need anything. Asthma is very scary. I watched your video and it is classic asthma. Poor Kismet and poor you. Big huge hugs!!
 
Re: 2/17 Kismet AMPS 147, +3 118, +5 61, +6 55

One other thing we learned. For some reason almost all vets under prescribe the Flovent dosage. You really need to be on 250 if the kitty is coughing daily and vets usually prescribe 110. It does not hurt the kitty to be on the higher dose and gets rid of the inflammation faster. We buy our inhalers from 4cornerspharmacy.com, a Canadian company. The Flovent is about $50 for a 250 inhaler vs $250 at the US pharmacies. It takes about a month so if you need one to get you through, I do have extras I can send. Just let me know!
 
Re: 2/17 Kismet AMPS 147, +3 118, +5 61, +6 55, +7 63

Hi Melissa, Thanks so much for your response! I'm sorry that Tarragon has it so bad... it is really scary and awful. Poor baby.
When Kismet was first dx, he was getting a nebulizer treatment 2xs a day (we had to put him in his carrier inside a garbage bag and pump it in... how he hated that!), prednisolone 2 xs a day, and theophylline. He was dx with diabetes shortly thereafter, and we also think it was due to the steroids.

We do have the Flovent 250mcg (from Canada also $60!) He went to the vet last week when I noticed the recurrence of both asthma and diabetes. At the time, he hadn't had a full on asthma attack yet. The vet recommended we treat the attacks with albuterol, and if we saw an increase in frequency, then we would consider starting the flovent again. I think 5 attacks in a week is fairly frequent and warrants the flovent, so I will put a call in tomorrow and probably start him tonight, since it takes about 2 weeks (if I remember correctly) to start working. Thanks again, so much, for stopping by and for the advice. I hope he starts feeling better soon... poor baby has to deal with the sudden onset of both conditions at once. :sad:
 
Re: 2/17 Kismet AMPS 147, +3 118, +5 61, +6 55, +7 63. PMPS

Thanks for the vines, Melissa! They seem to be working. No asthma today and a really nice AM cycle to boot! I hope his PM cycle is just as nice. Last time, once we got the diabetes regulated, the asthma stopped on its own. I think I am going to hold off a few more days before trying Flovent to see if it clears up on its own. I am hoping we won't need it, after all.

I hope everyone has a great night!
 
Looks like it's going to be a busy night for us with this +3 51. It's 1 am here (we feed at 10 and 10) and I have got to get some sleep for work tomorrow. I fed that +3, will check again in 30, and will feed again.
 
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