Andy Update 1/19 - still perplexed

[Yvonne & Andy &BJ (GA)]

Last night we tested to see what was going on at night vs daytime. He dipped into the low 100's by +8 so I figured he was going to bounce anyway and gave him a low carb snack and went to bed. I am pretty sure he did bounce as he was 408 at amps. Now the only differences I can think of between his am and pm cycle are we usually give him some type of Fancy Feast lower carb in the am and usually Instinct 95% in the pm. But he always gets a snack at abt pm +4 or +5. He does not always get a mid day snack but if he does always low carb.
I think I will lower his pm shot to see if this helps to even him out more. This bouncing is masking our ability to determine what he really needs for insulin. I have been reading about the 2 diff kinds of bounces but have not been able to determine how to prevent this. Any thoughts on this or more advice anyone can offer is greatly appreciated. Thx!

 

[Sue and Oliver (GA)]

Yep, looks like the night time cycle is lower and the amps is a bounce.

I think there are two schools of thought. Lower the dose a little and even out the numbers or keep the dose and let their body get used to the lower ranges. As his lows are not dangerous lows, I think I might try to see if he will adjust. (Some people call it liver training). My thinking is that you have given lower doses and we haven't seen much. If he was dipping into the 70s, I might go the other route.

You might try increasing the am dose a smidge and see if he drops out of the pinks in the daytime, while keeping the pm dose the same.

I know he is a bouncy cat and this approach may not work at all. You may be right about lowering the dose. There is no right way - just two different ideas. I might try one a few cycles and then the other. He does seem to take more than a cycle to clear a bounce. An increase/decrease might help or hinder this. The only way to know is to try.

 

[Yvonne & Andy &BJ (GA)]

Yep, looks like the night time cycle is lower and the amps is a bounce.

I think there are two schools of thought. Lower the dose a little and even out the numbers or keep the dose and let their body get used to the lower ranges. As his lows are not dangerous lows, I think I might try to see if he will adjust. (Some people call it liver training). My thinking is that you have given lower doses and we haven't seen much. If he was dipping into the 70s, I might go the other route.

You might try increasing the am dose a smidge and see if he drops out of the pinks in the daytime, while keeping the pm dose the same.
(I did try at 1/14-1/17 but those #'s were wacky too.)


I know he is a bouncy cat and this approach may not work at all. You may be right about lowering the dose. There is no right way - just two different ideas. I might try one a few cycles and then the other. He does seem to take more than a cycle to clear a bounce. An increase/decrease might help or hinder this. The only way to know is to try.

I don't know - looking back at his ss, his amps and pmps #'s were better at 1u - it seems when I try to increase, he gets worse. But we were not testing as much at 1u so it is hard to tell where he was mid-cycle. I sent my vet a copy of the ss and he thinks he may need 2u which scares me to death. At 1.5u he was like a rubber ball! I am more comfortably trying the downward course for a while and building up again. I think those very large doses he had been on are still influencing how his little body reacts to any change. He is also very, very hyperactive as compared to all my other cats - just wondering if that is affecting things too.

 

[Sue and Oliver (GA)]

I think that sounds good. Remember that your gut is an important part of this process.

Activity is thought to lower the levels. Maybe he needs some laser pen time in the middle of the day?

 

[Merlin]

Getting Andy to exercise also aids his digestion and ensures that he is hungry around shot time too. Glad Andy is so active!

 

[Yvonne & Andy &BJ (GA)]

Getting Andy to exercise also aids his digestion and ensures that he is hungry around shot time too. Glad Andy is so active!

No problem with Andy being hungry - he is always voracious LOL - I feel so sorry for him - but he eats more calories than he should for his weight. And he is always "foraging" for food - have to make sure no plastic bags are around etc. I've been giving him a few spoons of plain chicken broth w his meals to help.