Advice needed re: insulin

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Sarah and Buzz

Sarah and Buzz

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I didn't even know how to condense this enough to fit in the subject line! ;)

Buzz went OTJ on December 10th and has been doing great. She's been in the 70s on average. We went out of town over Christmas and she was 150 when we came back but figured that was stress due to various elements. Tested a few days later and she was 97.

Yesterday I tested her and she was 255! I took 3 tests to be sure. So I waited, thinking it might be a fluke. This morning, 285. :( Her appetite is the same as ever, she's acting the same (slightly more hungry, I assume due to the raised BG), and doesn't appear to be having any health problems. I looked in her mouth and didn't see a whole lot but I don't really know what I'm looking for, so I'm not sure on that one.

My normal solution would be to give her a couple drops of PZI (that was the last dose we had her on) and watch and see. HOWEVER. I looked at our PZI this morning and it's no longer good. When Lantus was having the free offer, I got the SoloStar pens for this exact reason. We were going to switch Buzz to Lantus but then she went into remission so I didn't, but I went ahead and got it anyway in the case that she would need insulin again. And here we are!

My questions are:
1. Should I take her to the vet to rule out infection before giving any insulin?
2. Should I give her Lantus? If so, how do I know how much? Should I ask in LL?
3. Should I just wait it out, no vet and no insulin, and see if it gets better in the next <period of time>? If so, what time period? If it doesn't come down, then what?

Ugh! :-x

Thank you all for your advice and help! I posted this on PZI but am posting here to get more eyes.
 
I take it that your PZI is expired? That doesn't mean you can't use it...

Personally? I'd consider giving a tiny dose of insulin, testing urine for ketones, and watching her behaviour like a hawk. It may be a blip or there may be something going on...
 
It's well past expired, I guess, but we had been using it up until she went OTJ. Now, however, there are floaties in it. We've had the bottle since August 10th, so it's 5 months old.
 
In the first 8 months that Sundance was OTJ, she had 3 infections. All three times I knew about them early because I was testing her BG and it was near 230 when it was usually 63.

If it were me, I would rule out an infection first before giving insulin. That's just because, in my experience, UTI and infections she got from eating a plant did make her BG rise drastically. And the BG came down within a few days of the antibiotics.
 
Thanks, everyone! :)

I think I am going to give a microdose of the PZI; as Jen said, it can't hurt. If no improvement by tomorrow mid-day, I will take Buzz in to the vet. I'm just not really sure what else to do, so that's the plan of attack.
 
You are doing exactly what I was going to suggest. Scratchy is off insulin, but for occasional blips, usually after he has been boarded. For instance, he was boarded for a week at Christmas, and last week, even after a few days back home, he tested at 250. He got a few doses of insulin, and seems back to normal now.
 
I thought if it had floaties that meant it wasn't safe to use? I.e., not just that it might be more dilute or something, but actually unsafe? I don't know why I thought that, just an obedient reader of warning labels I guess. @-) Does anyone know for sure though?
 
I believe that if the insulin has floaties in it, it should not be used at all. If this was me, I would go to the vet to roll out any medical reasons.
 
Sarah,
So sorry to hear of this complication. I have no expertize with which to advise, but if you are considering Lantus, it seems to me a good idea to post there for advice. (in addition to here and PZI)
Good luck!
 
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