4/23 Darcy Not Good News From Vet

That's a beautiful green start to the day!

Have you asked @Wendy&Neko to advise you on how to handle lower pre-shot numbers for your high-dose boy?

I'd usually say 'shoot low to stay low'...but with this fellow, things may be different? I've tagged her here this morning but she's a west coaster so might be a while before you hear from her.

I hope it works out - he's sure looking like he's feeling better! Nice numbers! Finally!!!
 
Sue and Luci said:
That's a beautiful green start to the day!

Have you asked @Wendy&Neko to advise you on how to handle lower pre-shot numbers for your high-dose boy?

I'd usually say 'shoot low to stay low'...but with this fellow, things may be different? I've tagged her here this morning but she's a west coaster so might be a while before you hear from her.

I hope it works out - he's sure looking like he's feeling better! Nice numbers! Finally!!!
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Oh yes, @Wendy&Neko is my Guru! It's just that with an acromegaly cat who is on Cabergoline and is becoming very unpredictable... it's anybody's guess as to how he will respond these days. I shot 8 units. There's really no way to predict how he will respond to that. One day I cut his dose in half and he went lime green on me. Yesterday he was bouncing from that lime green, I believe, and so I cannot tell what the 12.5 units did that day. Yesterday evening, I cut it to 10 units and he started dropping on me. I PUT A STOP to that by giving him Karo syrup because I didn't want him going any lower (he was at 82) and I wanted to go to bed. And I wanted to prevent another bounce. As it was, I still set alarms all night at first half-hour, then hour, then 1.5 hour intervals all the way up until 5 a.m. when I had to decide what to shoot. I kept examining the "trends" if you can call wackiness a trend... trying to decide what to do. To top it all off, I have to take him to the vet this morning.
 
Suzanne & Darcy said:
How do you print out your spreadsheet. I never have had great luck printing mine out before (to show to the vet.)
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Pull the spreadsheet up, click on "File" at the top left, scroll down and click on "Print" at the bottom. A screen will pop up on the right. Make sure it is set for "Landscape" and "Wide Margins". Then click the "Next" button on the top right. Wait a few seconds and another screen will pop up. Make sure you select only the pages you want. Otherwise you will get over 20 pages printed. Make sure you are set for color. I hope this works for you.
 
Summer and Susie said:
Pull the spreadsheet up, click on "File" at the top left, scroll down and click on "Print" at the bottom. A screen will pop up on the right. Make sure it is set for "Landscape" and "Wide Margins". Then click the "Next" button on the top right. Wait a few seconds and another screen will pop up. Make sure you select only the pages you want. Otherwise you will get over 20 pages printed. Make sure you are set for color. I hope this works for you.
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Thanks, Summer. You are always so helpful. I got it to print ... color on a legal size piece of paper. It's tiny, but it's all there!
 
I hope things well went with the vet. :bighug::bighug: I know it's almost like you should earn frequent flyer points there. :rolleyes:

As for dose, pick one, stick with it. If it's 8 units, so be it. Only by six cycles in a row at that dose can we see if it's too much, or just right, or too little. The other thing to keep in mind when you see green preshots, Levemir nadirs are often around +12, especially for those flatter cycles. It does mean you have to get used to shooting lower than you are used to. It was super common for Neko to give me her lowest number at preshot. The upside was that I had 5 hours until onset to get food into her.

Last night you might have seen the effect of a couple things. One, bounce breaking giving downward motion, two - a couple cycles after a skip can also be active.
 
Very bad news at the vet today, I'm afraid. They ran some bloodwork and his kidneys are not good at all. His phosphorus is off the charts at 16 and the other numbers are not good either (I'll update later but just wasn't up to asking for the bloodwork today... I was so upset that I thought I'd better wait until tomorrow because I usually pour over my bloodwork analyzing everything). BUN and Creatinine not good either, but I don't remember anymore what they were... I was stunned. I knew he was drinking too much even with his lower numbers. I should have taken him in earlier. And the poor appetite. He must feel awful. And the plantigrade stance... all caused by the high phosphorus no doubt. So sad for him.

So, he spent the day on IV fluids at the vet. I picked him up at 6 p.m. and he just looked soooo much better in the face and was a lot perkier. He as so excited and happy to see us! He was head butting the carrier door for pets and meowing! I am to give him Aluminum Hydroxide with every meal (fortunately I had some here at home). I have gotten him settled now. Instead of giving him the renal food, I gave him the Weruva BFF PLAY pate with the phosphate binder before eating. I did have to put some of the Sheba Broth with Tuna (low phosphorus that I have left over from my dear Tabitha) to get him to eat. It seems fishy things are about the only things he will eat now.

He will go back to the vet for hooking up his IV again at 7 a.m. tomorrow morning. They close at 1 p.m. so I hope that will be enough and maybe they can do bloodwork to see if his kidney values have come down. They are closed on Sunday. If necessary, I will take him back on Monday to do the same again before I have to report for the jury selection process ... OBTW, I did get a letter from my chiropractor saying that I should not sit for prolonged periods of time because it would aggravate my back.

I have been very depressed today. This came on so suddenly. I mean, he's had LOTS of regular bloodwork and his kidneys were good. Tomorrow, I will look it all up. I decided against asking for my copy today because I was just going to get really upset looking at it. I hope to have better numbers to compare it to tomorrow.
 
:bighug::bighug::bighug::bighug::bighug:
Something to ask the vet about, I've seen at least one acro diagnosed with diabetes insipidus. Symptom is tons of dilute urine, in spite of decent numbers. Not sure about the P numbers though. There is a test (and treatment) for it.
 
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Wendy&Neko said:
:bighug::bighug::bighug::bighug::bighug:
Something to ask the vet about, I've seen at least on acro diagnosed with diabetes insipidus. Symptom is tons of dilute urine, in spite of decent numbers. Not sure about the P numbers though. There is a test (and treatment) for it.
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Thanks. I will ask about this tomorrow. He sure does pee a lot... I just thought it was because he was (1) a big cat; (2) diabetic; (3) an acrocat.
 
I am so sorry, Suzanne. I wish I had other words/advice to offer. Just know that all of us are rooting for Darcy. And don’t play the shoulda/coulda/woulda game about getting him in earlier. The important part is that you got him in and he’s feeling better already. My previous kittie Simon was a kidney cat. I know what you mean about pouring over reports and numbers. Big
 
Howiesmom said:
I am so sorry, Suzanne. I wish I had other words/advice to offer. Just know that all of us are rooting for Darcy. And don’t play the shoulda/coulda/woulda game about getting him in earlier. The important part is that you got him in and he’s feeling better already. My previous kittie Simon was a kidney cat. I know what you mean about pouring over reports and numbers. Big
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Thank you so much, Tracy.
 
Oh my goodness, Suzanne. I am so dismayed to read this news. I know with kidney disease things can change very suddenly, so please do not blame yourself. You've been as attentive as you could possibly be to Darcy's needs. Sending healing vines and loads of courage. :bighug:
 
Suzanne I'm so sorry to hear about Darcy. My Perry had kidney disease , he was Tyler's brother.
I had to let him go on 10-6 20. I have almost a half a jar of aluminum hydroxide binder left. Good till 2023. Why I kept it I don't know
You are welcome to it. If you want it just PM me your address and I will get it
out to you. I also have him fluids at home. If I remember correctly I was giving him fluids every 3 days. He was stage 2 for about almost 5 years
He was 12 when I let him go.
I also joined the CKD group
https://www.felinecrf.org
They were very helpful
I was also giving him the Methyl B-12 they advised me to give 500 mchs per day and Jarrows B-Right which the group
suggested. You can read about everything on her site
You can have the Jarrows pills also
You are supposed to divide them into 10 equal portions and mix it in the food
But on the group they told me to buy mini measuring spoons and use the one that says Drop Dose and that is close enough
You can read about it on their site also
I will show you the spoons I ordered
I have to say between the fluids and the vitamins they really helped
Prayers for your girl ♥:bighug::bighug::bighug:

https://www.amazon.com/Norpro-Stainless-Measuring-Spoons-smidgen/dp/B0009X1P9S/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI8qWH-YGK7gIVY-W1Ch2HKAMCEAMYAiAAEgKPmPD_BwE&hvadid=176929908428&hvdev=t&hvlocphy=9003521&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=5433688460810469795&hvtargid=kwd-14396730323&keywords=norpro mini measuring spoons&qid=1610029157&sr=8-1&tag=googhydr-20
Here are the spoons I got
 
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Suzanne, my heart goes out to you. I am so very sorry to hear this. Why don't you ask the vet if you can do the Sub-Q fluids at home. When Simon had kidney disease it really, really helped him feel better and eat a little more and I wasn't taking him back to the vet all the time. I is not hard to do but it helps to have someone hold him in the beginning while you get the needle inserted. You have been a rock for me on this site and I just wish there was something I could do. Please keep us informed. Prayers for your boy and for you and don't beat yourself up. You did take him in when you first knew he was not right.
 
Summer and Susie said:
Suzanne, my heart goes out to you. I am so very sorry to hear this. Why don't you ask the vet if you can do the Sub-Q fluids at home. When Simon had kidney disease it really, really helped him feel better and eat a little more and I wasn't taking him back to the vet all the time. I is not hard to do but it helps to have someone hold him in the beginning while you get the needle inserted. You have been a rock for me on this site and I just wish there was something I could do. Please keep us informed. Prayers for your boy and for you and don't beat yourself up. You did take him in when you first knew he was not right.
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Thank you, Summer!! I am an old pro at giving sub-q fluids (unfortunately). When you have as many cats as I have/have had... they get sick and lots of them have needed sub-q fluids. I was even giving them to Darcy last year and earlier this year when his ketones were elevated. I have about 7 bags of Lactated Ringers solution here at home in my "stores." No doubt I will be giving them to Darcy. I will NOT, however, give him at any time more than 100 mL per day. I think I may have said this before to someone but I was advised by a vet in one of my kitties to give her 200 mLs per day at the end and it was way too much... more than her heart could take. She ended up with a pleural effusion. She didn't make it. She also had cancer though and wasn't going to last long anyway, but I frequently get on my soap box with people on the chronic kidney disease groups about not giving too much fluid.

And luckily for me, Darcy is the best of any of the kitties that I have ever had to give fluids to. He sits down on his pillow and just stays still the entire time. I don't even really have to distract him with food as I have with other kitties.

I'm so glad you're on this group, Summer! I hope Susie's increase will start to kick in today and give her some lower numbers.
 
Suzanne & Darcy said:
Thank you, Summer!! I am an old pro at giving sub-q fluids (unfortunately). When you have as many cats as I have/have had... they get sick and lots of them have needed sub-q fluids. I was even giving them to Darcy last year and earlier this year when his ketones were elevated. I have about 7 bags of Lactated Ringers solution here at home in my "stores." No doubt I will be giving them to Darcy. I will NOT, however, give him at any time more than 100 mL per day. I think I may have said this before to someone but I was advised by a vet in one of my kitties to give her 200 mLs per day at the end and it was way too much... more than her heart could take. She ended up with a pleural effusion. She didn't make it. She also had cancer though and wasn't going to last long anyway, but I frequently get on my soap box with people on the chronic kidney disease groups about not giving too much fluid.

And luckily for me, Darcy is the best of any of the kitties that I have ever had to give fluids to. He sits down on his pillow and just stays still the entire time. I don't even really have to distract him with food as I have with other kitties.

I'm so glad you're on this group, Summer! I hope Susie's increase will start to kick in today and give her some lower numbers.
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That is wonderful that you know how to do the fluids. I don't remember how much I was told to give Simon but will remember your strong words about not giving too much. Hopefully, I will never have to do them again but glad that I know that I can. I'm sorry about the kitty with the pleural effusion and cancer. Sounds like you have had your fair share of sick kitties. Bless you for taking care of them. Do not expect the worse. You don't have an actual diagnosis yet and it is quite possible that you caught whatever it is early. Thanks for the well-wishes for Susie. I just hope this is NDW and not glucose toxicity. I'll wait to see what your vet says.
 
Suzanne....I just saw this and wanted to also say I'm so sorry to hear the news. You've been such a support to Fred and me, and so many others. Now I hope we can be of support to you!

I know how hard news like this hits, but hopefully (and I haven't checked the latest thread yet) you will indeed get some better news on the kidney values after the fluids. And as with anything, now that you know, you can treat! We all know you will give him the best of care! :bighug::bighug:

P.S. Good luck with the jury duty selection. I've been called several times, but the most interesting time was when I was called in NYC. It wasn't a good time for me to serve, so I purposely dressed as sharp as I could. They took one look at me at sent me packing. On my way out of the room, one of the lawyers said, "Are you a lawyer?", and I said no. He said, "Well, you look like one"...and that's why I was dismissed! I got a good laugh at that one. (and I was only in my early 20s at the time)
 
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