6/15 Bear – 111 PMBG (new dx, lowest reading ever)

Tami & Bear

Tami & Bear

Member Since 2022
Hi team Lantus! I’m just getting my sea legs here and could use your help.

Bear was dx’ed 5/19 and is just recovering from pancreatitis (just started eating again Sunday/Monday). He gets 1, 2oz Fancy Feast naturals at shot time and >1/4 cup Purina DM dry for the work day/ overnight, but we're just getting back into that groove.

Got home tonight and he didn’t finish the dry food potion. PMPS is 111. This is the lowest reading he’s ever had. My sheet is a little all over the place after moving back and forth between gastrointestinal food slurries, anything else he would eat, ER visits, and meter issues over the past 2 weeks. I am inclined not to shoot. Interested in more experienced thoughts on what to do and what the heck is going on.
 
Hi, thanks for writing back. I know I've been all over the place. I was trying to sort out what to do when he wasn't eating and I wasn't able to get the meter to work reliably (I figured out what I was doing wrong with the meter).

Unfortunately I did feed him. I also tested twice to make sure it wasn't a fluke. He should have gotten his shot 90 minutes ago.
 
Okay. Put NS in the dosing box and change your title to PMBG since you skipped. Have you had a chance to look at the SLGS METHOD? I think you should go back to 1.5 and hold it for 7 days unless there’s a bg under 90 which would cause a reduction.

Max had chronic pancreatitis for a few years before becoming diabetic. It’s a tough one to handle until you learn what works for your cat. I knew when he might have an episode because he would always become inappetent. I used ondansetron for nausea. If it didn’t get him eating enough after a day I used cyproheptadine as an appetite stimulant but usually that wasn’t needed once he got the right dose of ondansetron. He also blocked when he was 5 and I almost lost him as a vet pierced his bladder. Then she wondered why she could not see the bladder. . He was on Hills CD way too long but it did prevent another blockage. Then I switched to canned food but the ones he liked were high carb. I suspect that and pancreatitis led to his eventually becoming diabetic. Once he became diabetic he strangely was willing to eat the pates. He had once been a dry food junkie. Also not great for blocking.

Is Bear taking any medication now?
 
Edits made, thanks! He just stopped taking Cerenia on Monday and wrapped up gabapentin and subq fluids yesterday. He was also on rx gastrointestinal food through Sunday's breakfast.

I should have clarified, the doses I have been giving him, with the exception of the lower doses I gave when I couldn't get a read and he wasn't eating, were from the vet. She has us coming in once a week and is making calls on increase based on what he reads there. She has him on 2u in the morning and 1.5u at night. Seems strange to me to not have even doses for each cycle, though.

Bear was on Hills CD for 5 years. I wish I'd better understood what smarter options would have been back then.
+2 hr reading at 158
 
Tami & Bear said:
Edits made, thanks! He just stopped taking Cerenia on Monday and wrapped up gabapentin and subq fluids yesterday. He was also on rx gastrointestinal food through Sunday's breakfast.

I should have clarified, the doses I have been giving him, with the exception of the lower doses I gave when I couldn't get a read and he wasn't eating, were from the vet. She has us coming in once a week and is making calls on increase based on what he reads there. She has him on 2u in the morning and 1.5u at night. Seems strange to me to not have even doses for each cycle, though.

Bear was on Hills CD for 5 years. I wish I'd better understood what smarter options would have been back then.
+2 hr reading at 158
Click to expand...
Testing at the vet is always stress induced therefore unreliable and wrong in so many ways for dosage decisions… you can test at home and follow as Elise recommended SLGS method, here is a link for your convenience.
 
Sounds like Bear is a lot like my Max. Do you really need to drag him in weekly? They are usually stressed at the vet and run higher. It seems a waste of money too now that you are testing at home successfully. We have found that consistent dosing is key to regulation.
 
Marina & Chico said:
Testing at the vet is always stress induced therefore unreliable and wrong in so many ways for dosage decisions… you can test at home and follow as Elise recommended SLGS method, here is a link for your convenience.
Click to expand...

Yes, we have been testing at home now that I have the meter sorted out. Thanks for the link!

tiffmaxee said:
Sounds like Bear is a lot like my Max. Do you really need to drag him in weekly? They are usually stressed at the vet and run higher. It seems a waste of money too now that you are testing at home successfully. We have found that consistent dosing is key to regulation.
Click to expand...

I agree, Bear is definitely stressed by the vet visits... and I'm not getting any additional guidance from the in-office time beyond being told to change his dose based on that single reading. I like your suggestion of going back to 1.5u 2x daily and holding with close monitoring.

I'm committed to more consistency at home! I know I need more reliable data before I can use it effectively. We were just getting into a groove when the pancreatitis hit, then we've had two pretty good days, so seeing such a low pre-shot number freaked me out. Tomorrow morning we're all in on SLGS. Thanks for the help <3
 
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