Hi Kris,
here I am as promised! :mrgreen:
So, I have this cat with multiple health issues. She is right about 18yrs old. She had ARF and now CRF for three years (1 semi functioning kidney). She has CP, IBD/lymphoma (no biopsy, so no confirmation on which), Metabolic Acidosis, FD (steroid induced and still on steroid), and multiple other issues that could be one of many things. She eats dry food, along with some wet because she is not a good eater AT ALL. She gets what she is going to eat, even if its a diet of baby food. She is still on a steroid. She has many, many variables involved when figuring out why her BG's are doing what they are doing.
After increasing her pred about 1 month ago due to excessive vomiting/not eating, I also increased her insulin. I did not have much time to collect data because of a horrendous work schedule headed my way for an extended period of time. I just assumed she would go higher with more of the steroid. I decreased her dose for a little bit during this time because she still was not eating great and I could not monitor. But all my spot checks were yellow and pink. So, I brought it back up. Then I started seeing red and black. I thought for sure it was the pred. But, in the back of my mind I wondered if she was going too low. She had NEVER hit these kind of numbers on such a regular basis before. In the meantime she developed a UTI (due to high numbers/pred, Im sure) and had some severe pain from back issues where she could not walk. Maybe this was contributing to higher numbers?!?!
Last week I caught what was going on. She can drop 100-150pts in 1hr ...multiple times and then bounce 200-300pts an hr after hitting her low. Crazy. Amy's winston, who was shooting pm's for me at one point caught her rise 150 pts in FIFTEEN minutes! :shock: Now, I dont need to see latte in the green because she will never go OTJ, and it is dangerous for her due to lack of appetite. All this time she was hitting red/black it was likely because of fast drops too low (for her). So I decreased a drop. Still a lot of red, and a splash of black...but getting very acceptable mid cycle numbers. Took another drop out. *knock on wood* *anti jinx*, the last 6(?) cycles is the longest she has gone without seeing black in a month. And she has only seen red once, I think. On top of that, she is STILL hitting perfectly acceptable mid cycle numbers for me.
This might not be the ideal strategy for most cats. Heck, I dont even know if its going to end up being a good thing, or biting us in the arse! But what we were doing was NOT working and made her feel like crap. So something had to change. It was worth a shot.
I think when dealing with well aged cats, who have multiple health issues you have to be a little more gentle. Bouncing around in the extremes like your Jane or my Latte may not be in their best interest. They are already dealing with enough, ya know? That said, YOU are the one to judge how these swings make Jane feel. Maybe it does not make one iyoda of a difference? In that case, maybe bouncing away for however long it takes...weeks, months, years is acceptable.
Regarding the diet...Latte can only have certain types of foods. I cant give any of the high carb foods so I have to use karo. I mix it in food if need be. I try to use it at times to "feed the curve", as mentioned. I think it helps quite often...to slow the drops. So, if you can use karo than it might be something to consider. The other thing is pinpointing where she is most prone to drop. That may take hourly testing for a day or so. The data can be invaluable, though.
Sorry for so much of the personal back ground. I just wanted you to fully understand why I am making the choices I am for Latte and her insulin needs, rather than just tell you what I think. Maybe some of it will applly for your Jane.