Am I being too optimistic?

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Gill & Mac (UK)

Gill & Mac (UK)

Member Since 2020
Hi
Mac has been on his injections for 7 days now of 1iu twice daily.
Despite it being very small doses and not long we feel like we can see an improvement already.
Some of it may be due to the temperature cooling down I suppose from the freaky high (compared to the usual UK temp) of a fortnight ago. But he is no longer drinking so much water - he has always liked to drink from the bathroom tap but it was getting that he wanted in the sink every 5 minutes ( made brushing my teeth fun!). He still moans for food when you venture near the kitchen but it seems to be more like his usual "it's worth a try" than the pitiful desperate cries he was doing.
Finally he seems to have more energy - well as much as he ever does as he has always plodded around rather than sprinting - as I say that may be the cooler weather but he has also been coming to us for fuss time again.
Sorry that this has gone on a bit but what I was wondering is am I being optimistic to think we are seeing an improvement already after so short a time on such a low dose? Are we are fooling ourselves?
Ps in case anyone asks we don't have a BG comparison yet as the vet asked us to hold off until we see him Monday unless we thought there was an issue (he would have advised differently if it were a larger dose) as he finds constant monitoring at the start has stressed his new owners & their cats) so when on a low dose for a big cat he prefers to let you settle into your routine first) the vet has been so good and open to things that we are going with it for now.
Whoops got offtrack again - So back to my questions am I being too optimistic / imagining improvements that aren't real?
Thanks in advance for any input. PS I did this as a new thread - is that the right thing to do or should I have added to my new member post as wouldn't that get very long ?
 
Gill & Mac (UK) said:
Despite it being very small doses and not long we feel like we can see an improvement already.
Click to expand...
Hi Gill, it is entirely possible to see an improvement early on.
Because Mac has insulin in his system that enables the glucose from the blood to get to the body's cells, and so he may be feeling better...

The RVC's Dr Stijn Niessen says that when we start to inject insulin the exhausted pancreas has a chance to get a bit of a 'spa break', and can begin to rest and hopefully heal. And having insulin in the system means that the cat's body is able to make better use of the food that it is eating, because more of that precious nutrient can get into the cells.
I noticed an improvement in my first diabetic quite early on even though his blood glucose was in awfully high numbers, so 'something' must have been going on to make that happen...

Since you are planning to hometest but are not yet doing that this is the perfect time to get Mac used to the idea of it.
You can get him used to having his ears touched and making that an 'ordinary' thing to happen. When stroking or cuddling him, you can just include the ears in that, just for a second or two.
And you can go to wherever he is in the house, stroke him and talk to him, then just hold or massage an ear for a second or two and immediately reward with a treat.
If you have your meter (I think you have Alphatrak?) then you can get him used to the sounds of that too. You can rattle the test strip vial, or click the lancing device a few times (it can be used a bit like a training clicker) and then immediately reward with a treat. The cat can quickly get to associate these sounds with something pleasant just like they do when they hear a can being opened...
I did these things with my diabetics maybe 6 or 7 times a day at first, every day for a couple of weeks. It's quick to do, only taking a couple of minutes each time, or even only a number of seconds, but it is that repetition that is key; repetition, repetition, repetition...

It can often be helpful initially to test in the same place every day. With my first diabetic that was on a table top, and with my current girl it's in her favourite armchair.
At times when I wasn't trying to get a test I'd pop my diabetic boy up onto a table, and reward him with treats and praise. And I'd call my current girl to the armchair, rattling a treat packet, and then reward her with a treat and a little brushing session. Make the testing spot a 'happy place' where nice things happen.
If you can get your kitty to your testing spot, hold or massage an ear for a second or two, and reward with treats and praise, you are most of the way to being able to test.

BTW, vets often greatly overestimate the amount of stress that a cat is likely to feel from being tested at home. Vets test in their clinics, and that is a very much more stressful environment...
And most of the stress that cats may feel when we test at home is the stress that they pick up from their humans. So it is really helpful to try to approach testing in a calm 'matter of fact' fashion (even if you don't feel it you can still 'fake it' at first....)
It is entirely natural to feel a bit stressed about the idea of testing initially. We've all been there! ...None of us ever thought this was something we'd ever have to do. And some of us actually thought it would be completely impossible, haha! :smuggrin: ...But it is amazing how quickly it can become 'the norm'. Honestly.

If you've not yet tried your meter I do suggest that you just try it out on yourself (side of a finger tip) to get the idea for how it actually works. Then if you do need to use it in a hurry you won't have to go through that learning curve at the same time. It's actually very straightforward, but it's helpful to go through the process. ...Someone just a few days ago had to learn to use her meter during a hypo situation and that is something of a baptism by fire! Fortunately the cat was fine. It's as well that she did start testing though, because her kitty hasn't needed insulin today and it looks like he's going into remission...

Eliz
 
Last edited:
Elizabeth and Bertie said:
Hi Gill, it is entirely possible to see an improvement early on.
Because Mac has insulin in his system that enables the glucose from the blood to get to the body's cells, and so he may be feeling better...

The RVC's Dr Stijn Niessen says that when we start to inject insulin the exhausted pancreas has a chance to get a bit of a 'spa break', and can begin to rest and hopefully heal. And having insulin in the system means that the cat's body is able to make better use of the food that it is eating, because more of that precious nutrient can get into the cells.
I noticed an improvement in my first diabetic quite early on even though his blood glucose was in awfully high numbers, so 'something' must have been going on to make that happen...

Since you are planning to hometest but are not yet doing that this is the perfect time to get Mac used to the idea of it.
You can get him used to having his ears touched and making that an 'ordinary' thing to happen. When stroking or cuddling him, you can just include the ears in that, just for a second or two.
And you can go to wherever he is in the house, stroke him and talk to him, then just hold or massage an ear for a second or two and immediately reward with a treat.
If you have your meter (I think you have Alphatrak?) then you can get him used to the sounds of that too. You can rattle the test strip vial, or click the lancing device a few times (it can be used a bit like a training clicker) and then immediately reward with a treat. The cat can quickly get to associate these sounds with something pleasant just like they do when they hear a can being opened...
I did these things with my diabetics maybe 6 or 7 times a day at first, every day for a couple of weeks. It's quick to do, only taking a couple of minutes each time, or even only a number of seconds, but it is that repetition that is key; repetition, repetition, repetition...

It can often be helpful initially to test in the same place every day. With my first diabetic that was on a table top, and with my current girl it's in her favourite armchair.
At times when I wasn't trying to get a test I'd pop my diabetic boy up onto a table, and reward him with treats and praise. And I'd call my current girl to the armchair, rattling a treat packet, and then reward her with a treat and a little brushing session. Make the testing spot a 'happy place' where nice things happen.
If you can get your kitty to your testing spot, hold or massage an ear for a second or two, and reward with treats and praise, you are most of the way to being able to test.

BTW, vets often greatly overestimate the amount of stress that a cat is likely to feel from being tested at home. Vets test in their clinics, and that is a very much more stressful environment...
And most of the stress that cats may feel when we test at home is the stress that they pick up from their humans. So it is really helpful to try to approach testing in a calm 'matter of fact' fashion (even if you don't feel it you can still 'fake it' at first....)
It is entirely natural to feel a bit stressed about the idea of testing initially. We've all been there! ...None of us ever thought this was something we'd ever have to do. And some of us actually thought it would be completely impossible, haha! :smuggrin: ...But it is amazing how quickly it can become 'the norm'. Honestly.

If you've not yet tried your meter I do suggest that you just try it out on yourself (side of a finger tip) to get the idea for how it actually works. Then if you do need to use it in a hurry you won't have to go through that learning curve at the same time. It's actually very straightforward, but it's helpful to go through the process. ...Someone just a few days ago had to learn to use her meter during a hypo situation and that is something of a baptism by fire! Fortunately the cat was fine. It's as well that she did start testing though, because her kitty hasn't needed insulin today and it looks like he's going into remission...

Eliz
Click to expand...
Thanks Elizabeth - there are some great tips there. We have been playing with his ears to get him used to it but the idea of getting him pre-used to the click of the lancer hadn't occurred to me so will definitely be trying that.
Kind regards
Gill
 
Remember when you try the meter on yourself...Its gonna hurt. But cats dont have nerve endings in the area of the ear where you test. So dont think you are hurting him. You are not.

Improvements embrace them!:bighug:
 
Gill & Mac (UK) said:
I did this as a new thread - is that the right thing to do
Click to expand...
Absolutely perfect, Gill. :)

Gill & Mac (UK) said:
I'm too much of a coward to try it on me - I'll practice on the husband instead !
Click to expand...
I like your style, Gill. :smuggrin:

Gill & Mac (UK) said:
he is no longer drinking so much water - he has always liked to drink from the bathroom tap but it was getting that he wanted in the sink every 5 minutes ( made brushing my teeth fun!).
Click to expand...
LOL! :D

Great to hear that Mac's clinical signs are already improving. Saoirse's water consumption started to decrease straight from her first insulin dose (she had been putting away a litre and a half per day...).


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