4/8 Charlie AMPS 307, +2 272, +3 256, +5 226, +8 230, PMPS 227

Charlie'sMom22

Charlie'sMom22

Active Member
Yesterday's post

Not much to report. Just hangin out. He had a blue when I first increased but nothing since. Does that mean I should increase him again tomorrow if I don't get a blue with tonight's cycle? Or can I hold even though it's just one blue?

A somewhat related feeling I've been having lately: I feel like it takes him a bit longer than 3 days to show me what he's going to do on a dose. Like I want to hold. I don't really have any data to back this up, it's just a feeling. Have other people experienced this? Is it legit or am I just resisting the increase because the number is big and scary?

Thanks for your input, and have a nice, safe day everyone!
 
Some cats do take more than 3 days to show you what they can do on a dose, but I'm not sure if that is the case with Charlie. Considering his history with glucose toxicity, I would not risk him being stuck in higher numbers by holding a dose unless the numbers are where you want them to be.

Today is day 3 on the dose. Unless you see more blues today, I would be tempted to increase him tomorrow. You got one fleeting blue on this dose but other than that, he's been over 200 so far. If you do see blues today, I would still increase after 8 cycles if his nadirs are at the higher end of blues.

Let's see what he does today?
 
Bandit's Mom said:
Some cats do take more than 3 days to show you what they can do on a dose, but I'm not sure if that is the case with Charlie. Considering his history with glucose toxicity, I would not risk him being stuck in higher numbers by holding a dose unless the numbers are where you want them to be.

Today is day 3 on the dose. Unless you see more blues today, I would be tempted to increase him tomorrow. You got one fleeting blue on this dose but other than that, he's been over 200 so far. If you do see blues today, I would still increase after 8 cycles if his nadirs are at the higher end of blues.

Let's see what he does today?
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Okay, that makes sense. Thanks for the gut check Bhooma, as always! I think my brain is just making stuff up because I’m subconsciously scared of the big dose and the inevitable NDW.
 
It can be frustrating when kitties give us a hint of nice numbers, then those numbers go away. When Neko first saw greens, it'd take her another two increases before she saw green again. At one point it took 4 increases !! before she saw green again. This was clear evidence that there was some insulin resistance going on in her.

Typically when cats get up to six units of insulin, we suggest that they get tested for a couple of secondary conditions that can mean a cat needs more insulin. The two conditions are acromegaly which is a benign tumour on the pituitary gland that sends out excess growth hormone, which causes the diabetes. The second condition is call IAA or insulin auto antibodies, which you can think of as the cat's body reacting to the injected insulin as a foreign body. Neko had both conditions, some cats have one or the other. Recent studies showed one in four diabetic cats have acromegaly, though not all get up to six units in dose. There is another condition called Cushings that can also mean more insulin is needed, but it is less common. Tests for acromegaly (IGF-1 test) and IAA are blood tests that are sent to MSU, Michigan State University. If a cat is positive for one or both of those conditions, we might do some tweaks to dosing. There are treatments for acromegaly, but IAA you pretty much have to wait it out as it's supposed to be self-limiting over time.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
It can be frustrating when kitties give us a hint of nice numbers, then those numbers go away. When Neko first saw greens, it'd take her another two increases before she saw green again. At one point it took 4 increases !! before she saw green again. This was clear evidence that there was some insulin resistance going on in her.

Typically when cats get up to six units of insulin, we suggest that they get tested for a couple of secondary conditions that can mean a cat needs more insulin. The two conditions are acromegaly which is a benign tumour on the pituitary gland that sends out excess growth hormone, which causes the diabetes. The second condition is call IAA or insulin auto antibodies, which you can think of as the cat's body reacting to the injected insulin as a foreign body. Neko had both conditions, some cats have one or the other. Recent studies showed one in four diabetic cats have acromegaly, though not all get up to six units in dose. There is another condition called Cushings that can also mean more insulin is needed, but it is less common. Tests for acromegaly (IGF-1 test) and IAA are blood tests that are sent to MSU, Michigan State University. If a cat is positive for one or both of those conditions, we might do some tweaks to dosing. There are treatments for acromegaly, but IAA you pretty much have to wait it out as it's supposed to be self-limiting over time.
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Thanks Wendy. I think this is exactly why I was subconsciously resisting increases lately. I was really hoping he would be one of those cats that just gets a handful of increases, gets under control, and comes back down in dose. I’ll give the vet a call tomorrow to see if they can do a blood test. I wish they could do it at my house, ugh. He hates the vet so much.

What do the tweaks to dosing generally entail? Is that why I see a lot of “custom dose:do not follow” disclaimers in folks’ spreadsheets?

I’m a bit worried and nervous now, though I admittedly don't know anything about either condition and what that would mean for us.

I just tested and got 206. He’ll probably go into blues tonight, but not long enough to warrant holding the dose I don’t think. I’ll plan for an increase in the morning.
 
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