Libby and Lucy
Member Since 2009
Last condo: viewtopic.php?f=9&t=16466&hilit=jazzy
I’m posting my lesson learned so everyone can benefit from it.
I almost didn’t do a before bed test last night. I had fallen asleep on the couch, woke up at almost 1am and got up to test, feed, and go to bed. I almost didn’t test Jazzy. She is so flaaaaaat, why take the extra time to poke a hissy growly kitty just to add another yellow or pink to the spreadsheet? But no, this is one of the most important tests of the day, and she did have one of her best PS numbers last night on an increased dose. Better check, it just takes a minute.
Good thing I did – my flat pink kitty dropped to 99!!!! But dangit, now I have to wake up the brain at 1am. I have Jazzy scheduled for acro/IAA testing next week. I think acro is a strong possibility for this cat. If she is acro, then LC food won’t stop the drop, and in fact can make her drop faster (acros have a functioning pancreas, so food can stimulate the pancreas and drop the numbers, much like in an OTJ kitty). But I don’t KNOW that she is acro. What to do? This would be so much easier when I’m awake. I fed her usual bedtime LC meal and tested in 30 minutes. Dropped to 80. It’s now almost 1:30, so I went the safe route and gave a little HC. Whew, she is carb sensitive, or else the bounce is starting, up to 120 after ½ hour. Decided to pretend she really is acro, for safety sake since I was not awake, gave more HC, tested in about 15 minutes and got 141, and went to bed at about 2:00. Of course she bounced this morning, but it’s not so bad. Was the HC overkill? Probably, but in my sleepy mind there were too many unknowns to risk it in the middle of the night. I don't recommend HC-ing most cats at 80 and 120! I don't even necessarily recommend HC-ing THIS cat at 80 and 120, but that's what I did.
Side note: Jazzy is using an AlphaTrak meter, which according to Dr. Rand earns a dose reduction at 80 instead of 50. She notes that the AlphaTrak runs about 30 points higher in this range than human meters. However, on the test Jazzy hit 80, I retested the same blood drop with my Freestyle meter and got 70. I’m not reducing Jazzy’s dose yet.
Lessons: DON’T skip the bedtime test, even if your kitty is boring. If I had, I would have seen the 371 this morning and thought she was just still being her normal yellow/pink self. Also, if you have reason to believe your kitty might be acro or IAA, get the testing done as soon as you reasonably can. I would have been a lot more comfortable last night if I had known for sure whether I was treating an acro, or just a high dose cat.
Note about Jazzy and acro: Normally I wouldn’t assume a cat at 6.5 units is acro. I might start thinking about it at that point, but wouldn’t be concerned enough to alter treatment patterns. We’ve seen other cats who have hit breakthroughs at this dose. The reason I am a bit more concerned about Jazzy is that she has been on insulin for almost a year, on several insulins and at doses up to 10 units BID, and has never come anywhere near regulation. Also, she does have some of the typical physical characteristics of an acro – she has a pot belly, she has a slightly protruding lower jaw, she has an unbelievable appetite, and she snores. On the other hand, some of her responses last night indicate that she might not be acro, so we’ll definitely do the test.
I hope she’ll pull this trick on me again this weekend, when I am awake and can run her on LC to see what happens.
I’m posting my lesson learned so everyone can benefit from it.
I almost didn’t do a before bed test last night. I had fallen asleep on the couch, woke up at almost 1am and got up to test, feed, and go to bed. I almost didn’t test Jazzy. She is so flaaaaaat, why take the extra time to poke a hissy growly kitty just to add another yellow or pink to the spreadsheet? But no, this is one of the most important tests of the day, and she did have one of her best PS numbers last night on an increased dose. Better check, it just takes a minute.
Good thing I did – my flat pink kitty dropped to 99!!!! But dangit, now I have to wake up the brain at 1am. I have Jazzy scheduled for acro/IAA testing next week. I think acro is a strong possibility for this cat. If she is acro, then LC food won’t stop the drop, and in fact can make her drop faster (acros have a functioning pancreas, so food can stimulate the pancreas and drop the numbers, much like in an OTJ kitty). But I don’t KNOW that she is acro. What to do? This would be so much easier when I’m awake. I fed her usual bedtime LC meal and tested in 30 minutes. Dropped to 80. It’s now almost 1:30, so I went the safe route and gave a little HC. Whew, she is carb sensitive, or else the bounce is starting, up to 120 after ½ hour. Decided to pretend she really is acro, for safety sake since I was not awake, gave more HC, tested in about 15 minutes and got 141, and went to bed at about 2:00. Of course she bounced this morning, but it’s not so bad. Was the HC overkill? Probably, but in my sleepy mind there were too many unknowns to risk it in the middle of the night. I don't recommend HC-ing most cats at 80 and 120! I don't even necessarily recommend HC-ing THIS cat at 80 and 120, but that's what I did.
Side note: Jazzy is using an AlphaTrak meter, which according to Dr. Rand earns a dose reduction at 80 instead of 50. She notes that the AlphaTrak runs about 30 points higher in this range than human meters. However, on the test Jazzy hit 80, I retested the same blood drop with my Freestyle meter and got 70. I’m not reducing Jazzy’s dose yet.
Lessons: DON’T skip the bedtime test, even if your kitty is boring. If I had, I would have seen the 371 this morning and thought she was just still being her normal yellow/pink self. Also, if you have reason to believe your kitty might be acro or IAA, get the testing done as soon as you reasonably can. I would have been a lot more comfortable last night if I had known for sure whether I was treating an acro, or just a high dose cat.
Note about Jazzy and acro: Normally I wouldn’t assume a cat at 6.5 units is acro. I might start thinking about it at that point, but wouldn’t be concerned enough to alter treatment patterns. We’ve seen other cats who have hit breakthroughs at this dose. The reason I am a bit more concerned about Jazzy is that she has been on insulin for almost a year, on several insulins and at doses up to 10 units BID, and has never come anywhere near regulation. Also, she does have some of the typical physical characteristics of an acro – she has a pot belly, she has a slightly protruding lower jaw, she has an unbelievable appetite, and she snores. On the other hand, some of her responses last night indicate that she might not be acro, so we’ll definitely do the test.
I hope she’ll pull this trick on me again this weekend, when I am awake and can run her on LC to see what happens.
I am usually surprised at what he did during the night. I really don't like it so much myself and I am sorry to hear that you are going to have to get used to it again... :-|
