3.4 Rufus AMPS 87, +3 142!, +6 91, +9 79, PMPS 104, +2 106 (AT2)

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Glad he's feeling better, hope the numbers stay down. When is your next appt with the specialist? I'm sure they will be impressed with his progress.
 
Stacy & Asia said:
Glad he's feeling better, hope the numbers stay down. When is your next appt with the specialist? I'm sure they will be impressed with his progress.
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Appt is tomorrow at 3:30pm. Of course it's 45 mins away and we're supposed to get 5 to 8 inches of snow. Should be ok though. I have about a million questions for her tomorrow, hopefully I get good answers :)
 
+3 142! He was sleeping in the closet and I had to pull him out and had to prick about 10 times to get blood. Hoping that the number was higher because of a little stress?!
 
Maybe...maybe not. You need to give this new dose a little time. Technically, since this is the first shot at .75U, he's still got his 1U depot in play, so the reduction shouldn't have that big of an impact just yet. BGs just fluctuate a bit sometimes...just because they do. We'll see how things play out for a few cycles and go from there.
 
Amy&TrixieCat said:
Maybe...maybe not. You need to give this new dose a little time. Technically, since this is the first shot at .75U, he's still got his 1U depot in play, so the reduction shouldn't have that big of an impact just yet. BGs just fluctuate a bit sometimes...just because they do. We'll see how things play out for a few cycles and go from there.
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Just did a test. 91 on AT2 test strips and 105 on new Freestyle Lite strips. Not liking the discrepency, but it is under 20% variance. And really is 91 that different then 105?

Also, he only ate half of lunch at 11:30 so I would have thought the number be lower.
 
You will make yourself crazy if you try to compare the two meters! We've seen it happen many times...so you really don't want to go down that road. If you're ready to make the switch over to the Freestyle, then it's best to commit to it. If you do make the switch, be sure to note the changes in your signature and your SS, so that everyone checking on you knows. And, since we've all gotten used to you having the AT, I'd also make a note in your condos for a little while, too.

The AT does read lower than human meters - that's already a given. Because of that, your reference range is also going to change if/when you switch to the FreeStyle. With a human meter, we consider 50-120 to be the normal range; however, since you are doing SLGS because of the dry food in the picture, you "take action" number is still 90 even with a human meter. (Note: if/when you are ready, SLGS can be "customized", and if you feel more comfortable with lowering that "take action" number, you can do so - just be sure everyone knows you've made this change).

Many factors do come into play with BGs...food, carbs, etc. Unfortunately, though, it's pretty hard to consistently predict how any single factor might affect BGs. On some days, a smaller-than-usual meal may cause a big plummet; on other days, it may have no effect at all. (I know that's not very comforting...but it is just part of FD.)
 
I am still using the AT2 meter, just with freestyle strips. I was told that if I use the freestyle lite strips in the AT2 I would get the same numbers. Was supposed to leave the codes the same and it would be as if nothing changed? Hopefully I understood correctly.
 
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And I have noticed that if I do a AT2 test with 2 diferent AT2 strips, I can get a variance sometimes, too. I'll try it again with AT strip and FSl strip later and see what the difference is.
 
I've never known that you could use Freestyle strips with an AT2, but I also have no AT2 experience. I do know, though, that the main reason people don't like to use AT meters is because the strips are so expensive, so I can't imagine you could use Freestyle strips with the AT meter. The majority of the time, strips are not interchangeable between manufacturers, but I guess you never know. I'm going to ask around.
 
Amy&TrixieCat said:
I've never known that you could use Freestyle strips with an AT2, but I also have no AT2 experience. I do know, though, that the main reason people don't like to use AT meters is because the strips are so expensive, so I can't imagine you could use Freestyle strips with the AT meter. The majority of the time, strips are not interchangeable between manufacturers, but I guess you never know. I'm going to ask around.
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It is the same manufacturer. Freestyle is for humans, and alphatrak for pets. The test strips look identical. But the code on them are different. I was told to use the last code from the AT2 strips.

Here is the thread from @Kris & Teasel & @JeffJ http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/hello-just-joined-the-group.191564/#post-2142516
 
At the risk of opening up a can of worms: AT and Freestyle were/are Abbott products. Zoetis bought out the pet division of Abbott. I'll say no more ... For that reason the AT strips and FS strips are essentially the same except for special batch testing of AT strips so they read correctly at a given code on which the AT meter is set. There's no such animal coding for the FS strips so you leave the AT meter set on the last cat code you used and put FS strips into it. Always do several same blood drop tests with AT and FS strips in the AT meter every time you open a new vial of FS strips.
 
Interesting...did not know that. Admittedly I am old school...I’d be apprehensive about mixing meter and strip brands...
 
Kris is correct, Abbott USED to own both products. They no longer d0. At any whim, Zoetis could change something in manufacturing - better technology, more efficient manufacturing process, different supplier, cost savings. You are gambling by using Freestyle strips in a meter built by another company. Personally, I didn't like taking that kind of gamble with my cat.
 
Ok. Just did some test am not happy.

AT2 strip, At2 meter code 38 = 79
Freestyle strip, AT2 meter code 38 = 101
Code on Freestyle bottle is 16. 16 is not an option on AT2.
Freestyle strip, AT2 meter code 15 = 137
Freestyle strip, AT2 meter code 17 = 153

Not happy. Bought 400 strips off of ebay because I thought the number would be the same.

Guess I'll be going to a human meter now, and will have to buy a freestyle meter.
 
Sorry 2 posts today!

Had to buy a freestyle lite meter today, but don't have control solution for it. Is it ok to use my alpha trak2 solution? Or should I go to the store and buy a different brand human control solution?

Also, I'm confuse on the control solution range. Strip vial says
Low 30-60ml
normal 76-114
High 248.
When I runt the test where is it supposed to be then? AT2 it just needs to be 100 to 185

Please help! running out of at2 strips and would need to make a run for solution!
 
Sean & Rufus said:
Sorry 2 posts today!

Had to buy a freestyle lite meter today, but don't have control solution for it. Is it ok to use my alpha trak2 solution? Or should I go to the store and buy a different brand human control solution?

Also, I'm confuse on the control solution range. Strip vial says
Low 30-60ml
normal 76-114
High 248.
When I runt the test where is it supposed to be then? AT2 it just needs to be 100 to 185

Please help! running out of at2 strips and would need to make a run for solution!
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You need control solution for the FS meter. Look on the meter box or on Abbott’s website for a customer service 1-800 number. Call and ask for it. It should be free - but don’t say it’s for Rufus.
 
Kris & Teasel said:
You need control solution for the FS meter. Look on the meter box or on Abbott’s website for a customer service 1-800 number. Call and ask for it. It should be free - but don’t say it’s for Rufus.
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Omg. So annoying. You can't buy the stuff anywhere, you have to order it. How in the heck am I going to test now. Very low strips and no control solution. Ugh. Can any brand control sloution work do you know? or is it brand specific?
 
I don't know. The 79 and 101 are within the allowed 20% variance. I'd do some more tests before making any radical changes in your testing approach (although, it must be said, more people around here "speak" human meter numbers than do pet meter numbers, so making that switch will help more people give confident advice on Rufus).
 
The 101 is in 20% of the 79, but not vice versa. The only acceptable range would be 63 to 95. The 79 is the known "good" number, so it's almost 28% off. And if anything the number should have been lower then the 79 if using a human test strip. That is what has me worried.

The first test between the 2 was a 91 on AT2 with AT2 strip and 105 with Freestyle strip in AT2. Better results, but again I would think the human strip would need to be lower then the pet strip.
 
Sean & Rufus said:
I would think the human strip would need to be lower then the pet strip.
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Human meters read lower, it's true, but I'm not sure a "human" strip in a pet meter would be expected to act the same way. In other words, I don't know that it's the strip so much as the meter that causes the differential (by which I mean, I really don't know-- would like to understand this better!).
 
Nan & Amber said:
Human meters read lower, it's true, but I'm not sure a "human" strip in a pet meter would be expected to act the same way. In other words, I don't know that it's the strip so much as the meter that causes the differential (by which I mean, I really don't know-- would like to understand this better!).
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I get it. I just bought a freestyle meter and will use those strips in there. Just disappointed because I was told the strips would work and be same numbers.
 
Yes, I advised to buy the strips. Sean, I have been using them for over a year now. They are reliable. You want to keep the code at 38, which is the AT2 code for cats.

There was a thread in the last 18 months where a more detailed analysis was done. After reading that thread I converted. There is also a 20% variation in each test, regardless of strip manufacturer used. So:
An actual BG=100 could read as 80 or 120

These testers are not glucometers, but they are good for the spot tests we accomplish.
 
JeffJ said:
Yes, I advised to buy the strips. Sean, I have been using them for over a year now. They are reliable. You want to keep the code at 38, which is the AT2 code for cats.

There was a thread in the last 18 months where a more detailed analysis was done. After reading that thread I converted. There is also a 20% variation in each test, regardless of strip manufacturer used. So:
An actual BG=100 could read as 80 or 120

These testers are not glucometers, but they are good for the spot tests we accomplish.
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I'm not mad, just concerned. I'm just wondering if things have changed since the analysis was done.
 
I'm sorry you are concerned Sean. Like I said, I use them usually 3 or 4 times daily. They give consistent results. If I thought there was an issue, I would not have recommended them.

We are very cautious with Leo's health. Please realize that I drove him 2 days up, 2 days back to Ft Collins for $8k SRT. That's how much we care about Leo.
 
I trust you. No worries. It's not a huge difference in numbers, was just hoping they would be closer. I'm going to do so more test to make sure they are similar. And I do want to thank you for pointing me in the right direction on where to buy them! I got a pretty good deal I believe. 400 for $150.00 . Are your strips from Ireland? Do they say code 16 on them?
 
Price is always a concern when having to buy strips for FD kitties. This is what I used for Trix - $250 strips for $56. Of course you'd have to get the meter, too, but it's pretty much free in some of the packages they offer.

Arkray Strips

Things are often different from meter to meter, even if you're comparing two human meters. Like I said, it's a good way to drive yourself crazy. It's best to pick one meter and get familiar with how that meter's range works for Rufus. And, just because of how things have been with meters and strips, I'd really stick with strips that are designed for the meter - it gives you a leg to stand on if things don't quite jive.
 
Amy&TrixieCat said:
Price is always a concern when having to buy strips for FD kitties. This is what I used for Trix - $250 strips for $56. Of course you'd have to get the meter, too, but it's pretty much free in some of the packages they offer.

Arkray Strips

Things are often different from meter to meter, even if you're comparing two human meters. Like I said, it's a good way to drive yourself crazy. It's best to pick one meter and get familiar with how that meter's range works for Rufus. And, just because of how things have been with meters and strips, I'd really stick with strips that are designed for the meter - it gives you a leg to stand on if things don't quite jive.
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Thanks I look into this! I do have 400 of the freestyle strips now and I bought the meter. So I don't know where I'll go from here. I really wanted to stay with pet meter #'s, but cannot afford testing this much at $1 a time.
 
Believe me Sean. I would consider this a major failure on my part if somehow I jeopardized Rufus' life in any way. I always try to be helpful, and have helped many owners and kittehs on the forum.

Yes, the FS Lite strips I have are from Ireland - see 2 pics of my current strips, and they show code 16. I just bought 600 of them for $230, so you got a good deal. I refuse to pay $1 per test as well, it is just ridiculous.

In the pics - the AT2 meter is showing 38, as I put a FS strip in it and got the picture timing correct. We need to keep the code at 38.

Here is one of the threads analyzing FS Lite vs AT2 strips below. "MrWorfsMens Mom" (Linda) did an analysis. It also shows a side by side update from another member.
FS Lite vs AT2 strips - Feb 2017 thru Jan 2018
 

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JeffJ said:
Believe me Sean. I would consider this a major failure on my part if somehow I jeopardized Rufus' life in any way. I always try to be helpful, and have helped many owners and kittehs on the forum.

Yes, the FS Lite strips I have are from Ireland - see 2 pics of my current strips, and they show code 16. I just bought 600 of them for $230, so you got a good deal. I refuse to pay $1 per test as well, it is just ridiculous.

In the pics - the AT2 meter is showing 38, as I put a FS strip in it and got the picture timing correct. We need to keep the code at 38.

Here is one of the threads analyzing FS Lite vs AT2 strips below. "MrWorfsMens Mom" (Linda) did an analysis. It also shows a side by side update from another member.
FS Lite vs AT2 strips - Feb 2017 thru Jan 2018
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Thanks Jeff. Sorry if it came off as me criticizing or not trusting of you. That wasn't my intent. I was originally a little miffed at the situation, but I totally get the variance. Just wish the numbers were closer. And thank you for taking the time to answer my questions and for attaching the testing, I truly appreciate it :)
 
Ok, so this part is maybe why the numbers were 28% off: "All meters have an allowed variance in their results of up to +/- 20% and using the FS strips in the AT meter adds another variance into the picture so your results, while in the ballpark, may not be as accurate as is possible." The testing that Linda did had far better and closer numbers. I'll keep on testing too. I really want this to work. I also saw to try these codes: "(known codes are 07,08, 37, 38, 92 and 93)
 
It's no problem at all. My day job is corporate computer security. We should all be open to questions about stuff we advise on. I am glad I have been able to help, and to save you money.
 
Sean & Rufus said:
Omg. So annoying. You can't buy the stuff anywhere, you have to order it. How in the heck am I going to test now. Very low strips and no control solution. Ugh. Can any brand control sloution work do you know? or is it brand specific?
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Test yourself. If you’re around 90 (FS strip in FS meter) you’re good.
 
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