? 2/22 Stormy PMBG 50 AmBG 56

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StormysMom

StormysMom

Member Since 2017
Hello and thanks AGAIN in advance for your help. I think my diabetic kitty is broken. She doesn't work right!!:banghead:

Yesterday: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/...-looking-for-dose-advice.173519/#post-1901132

Last night we skipped the PM dose because it was 118. Well we used the last of our test strips so we also skipped her AM shot today because I couldn't test first. With her low numbers I figured no big deal. We got a Relion micro & strips from Walmart on the way home from work and tested immediately. Her result was 50!!! She has not had insulin since yesterday morning!!! Any idea what in the world is going on?

Side note: should I start two different spreadsheets for when I test relion v. Alpha trak or can they live on the same sheet?
 
StormysMom said:
I think my diabetic kitty is broken. She doesn't work right!!:banghead:
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Actually I think she is working very well. ;) I do wonder if some of those blues were a result of her going lower in the cycle and bouncing. @Marje and Gracie can help convert your SS to read the Relion and keep it all on the same sheet if that's what you'll be using from here on out.

You'll want to continue testing her at AM & PM and keep posting. I've seen cats go OTJ this way but sometimes they needs a little more support with insulin at that .1u dose I showed you yesterday. Time will tell. :D:D:D
 
Doodles & Karen said:
Actually I think she is working very well. ;) I do wonder if some of those blues were a result of her going lower in the cycle and bouncing. @Marje and Gracie can help convert your SS to read the Relion and keep it all on the same sheet if that's what you'll be using from here on out.

You'll want to continue testing her at AM & PM and keep posting. I've seen cats go OTJ this way but sometimes they needs a little more support with insulin at that .1u dose I showed you yesterday. Time will tell. :D:D:D
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I actually plan on using the relion for daily checks and the alpha trak for our curves (and the vet).
 
StormysMom said:
alpha trak for our curves (and the vet).
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With any luck you won't even need to do that again. Once Marje changes your SS, if you use AT just make a note in your comments. Lets see how she does the next few days. If she continues this then we'll give you the OTJ trial instructions. Don't shoot without posting...ok?
 
Doodles & Karen said:
With any luck you won't even need to do that again. Once Marje changes your SS, if you use AT just make a note in your comments. Lets see how she does the next few days. If she continues this then we'll give you the OTJ trial instructions. Don't shoot without posting...ok?
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Is this real life?!? I can't even imagine! Fingers & toes crossed! I'll probably test her at least one more time tonight to confirm those numbers. Maybe right before dinner and then an hour later. See if she spikes?
 
StormysMom said:
Is this real life?!? I can't even imagine! Fingers & toes crossed! I'll probably test her at least one more time tonight to confirm those numbers. Maybe right before dinner and then an hour later. See if she spikes?
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Usually we say if the preshot is green on a human meter no further testing is needed. However you might get another test but I would wait a few hours after eating.

If the preshot is blue then we say feed and test again around +3 or +4 to see if they are green. If so, their pancreas is working.
 
You can use the same spreadsheet, but it helps if you put a blank line before you start the new meter, so it's easy to spot the change.

Time will tell if your diabetic kitty is broken. :p It will take a couple more cycles before the depot is gone and we see how she's doing without the training wheels.
 
I just HAD to test pre-dinner. It was killing me to confirm that low number. She was 63. She's eating now, I'll test before bed which should give us a +3 and we'll see what happens! I made sure to give her the best low carb food we have for optimal results. ;)
 
It may be too early but wanted you to have the instructions below. Please read them carefully. Congrats on that 56 this morning. Could you also update your signature with the Relion meter please?

If he/she is green at your normal test times, no need to test further until the next "PS" time; just feed small meals and go about your day. If he/she is blue at your normal "PS", feed a small meal and test again after about 3 or 4 hours. If his/her number is lower 3-4 hours after a meal, then the pancreas is working!

Post every day so we can monitor your progress and see if any tweaks are needed. He/she may have a sporadic blue number. Don't panic but post before you decide whether to shoot so we can have a discussion.

After 14 days of no insulin, we have a party!!

Sometimes the trial doesn't work the first time and we have to give a little more support in the form of resuming insulin. It's not the end of the world if that happens; we just give him/her the support needed. Our goal is a strong remission and it's better to take our time to get that than to rush into remission just to have it fail later on.

Good luck with the trial!!!

Once he/she is through the trial successfully, you enter a new phase. Your cat is still diabetic but has now become diet-controlled. Continue feeding low carb food in the manner successful for your kitty. If you decide to change his/her feeding schedule, let your meter be your guide to the best times to feed. Avoid medications with sugar in them and steroid medications unless they are medically essential. Continue testing blood glucose weekly for the first month and then monthly forever. It's a good idea to weigh him/her monthly. Weight should remain stable. If he/she seems "off" or sick, or is showing signs of diabetes (excessive drinking, eating, urinating, weight loss), test his/her blood glucose right away. Keep the teeth and gums clean and healthy; dental issues can bring a cat out of remission. If you see rising blood glucose numbers, it's time for a visit to the vet!
 
Thank you! We will certainly continue to test and let you know what happens.

I don't want to sound ungrateful AT ALL. I am so grateful for her progress, but I am also super confused. She was just diagnosed a month ago. She's only been on insulin for a month. Is it normal for them to go into remission (or anything resembling remission) so quickly? Could it be some other underlying health issue or is this something you see from time to time?
 
StormysMom said:
Is it normal for them to go into remission (or anything resembling remission) so quickly? Could it be some other underlying health issue or is this something you see from time to time?
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Can you remind me....did she eat dry food before diagnosed? If so changing that diet alone, catching diabetes early and treating her properly early...yes, we've seen kitties come off insulin pretty quick.
 
Doodles & Karen said:
Can you remind me....did she eat dry food before diagnosed? If so changing that diet alone, catching diabetes early and treating her properly early...yes, we've seen kitties come off insulin pretty quick.
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Yes, she ate Iams Lively Senior dry food only. No wet food although she was known to get into people food pretty often. We had a cat with IBD so changing food was very challenging and if we found something that worked for him we stuck to it for all of them. As it happened, we lost our IBD kitty to cancer 3 days before Stormy's diagnosis. Now all 3 of our kitties are following the high protein wet food only diet.
 
StormysMom said:
Yes, she ate Iams Lively Senior dry food only. No wet food although she was known to get into people food pretty often. We had a cat with IBD so changing food was very challenging and if we found something that worked for him we stuck to it for all of them. As it happened, we lost our IBD kitty to cancer 3 days before Stormy's diagnosis. Now all 3 of our kitties are following the high protein wet food only diet.
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Sorry for your loss :bighug::bighug::bighug: Stormy is going to rock this trial now that the dry food is out. So to answer your question, no in this case we've seen it happen quite often.

In fact there was a kitty on 5.5u of insulin and the owner found out that he was sneaking kibble in the house. After finding out, removing dry from the house, the kitty went into remission in a very long, daunting 24hour ish period. So from 5.5u to nothing by removing dry. Below is Scooter's story if you're interested.

Scooter's Thread
Scooter's SS Look at Feb 19, 2013
 
FWIW, I would stick with one meter. The AT is calibrated a bit differently than a human meter (the numbers run slightly higher). You will make yourself crazy going back and forth between meters.

Nice numbers for Stormy!!
 
StormysMom said:
Thank you! We will certainly continue to test and let you know what happens.

I don't want to sound ungrateful AT ALL. I am so grateful for her progress, but I am also super confused. She was just diagnosed a month ago. She's only been on insulin for a month. Is it normal for them to go into remission (or anything resembling remission) so quickly? Could it be some other underlying health issue or is this something you see from time to time?
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Same thing happened with Glen! Take a peek at his spreadsheet. He took himself off kibble the beginning of December. He loves his kibble which was super weird. He had a major flare of his arthritis, he lost weight and was drinking a ton & his teeth needed to be done. We dealt with the arthritis and diabetes. Once he was feeling better we had his teeth done. 13 teeth were removed!

Now he's back to his usual self. He is on werfood exclusively now. His sugars have been great!

I gave my civvie some kibbles to entice him to eat. He dropped a bunch of weight with his broken canine, removal and subsequent infection. He's super picky with wet food so kibble it was. Now that he's gained his weight back he is off it again. Glen went into prey mode for that kibble when Thompson was eating it! Guess he's over not wanting it anymore! We just keep trucking along!

Good luck!
 
Islandmomma said:
Same thing happened with Glen! Take a peek at his spreadsheet. He took himself off kibble the beginning of December. He loves his kibble which was super weird. He had a major flare of his arthritis, he lost weight and was drinking a ton & his teeth needed to be done. We dealt with the arthritis and diabetes. Once he was feeling better we had his teeth done. 13 teeth were removed!

Now he's back to his usual self. He is on werfood exclusively now. His sugars have been great!

I gave my civvie some kibbles to entice him to eat. He dropped a bunch of weight with his broken canine, removal and subsequent infection. He's super picky with wet food so kibble it was. Now that he's gained his weight back he is off it again. Glen went into prey mode for that kibble when Thompson was eating it! Guess he's over not wanting it anymore! We just keep trucking along!

Good luck!
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Thank you! I'm cautiously optimistic!
 
Ok. So I got my alpha trak strips in the mail today and did a test with each meter. The Relion says 60 -- the alpha trak says 111. Thoughts?
 
StormysMom said:
The Relion says 60
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We go by the Relion readings here per the protocol. 111 is a normal number on AT though. For your trial it would be easiest if you just stick to the relion since that's the language we speak here.

AT normal numbers are believed to be 60-130/140
Human Meter normal numbers are 50-120. We've had cats not on insulin test in the 40's so don't panic if you see that. If she's not on insulin there's no worries.

It's also helpful if you start a new condo each day and just link this one too it. Congrats on another green trial day :D:D
 
Doodles & Karen said:
It's also helpful if you start a new condo each day and just link this one too it. Congrats on another green trial day :D:D
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Curiosity was killing me...had to do the comparison with AT - haha! And I was actually going to ask about starting a new thread so thanks for mentioning that too. Another green number - Woohoo!
 
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