ATTN Newbies, Sweet Max has been doing the Sugar Dance for

years. A few days ago, I was exhausted, and knew I could predict his BG, so I was just going to give him his "normal" amount of insulin, and not "bother" testing his BG (blood glucose). Deep down I know that cats are cannot be predicted, so thankfully I tested his BG before giving him the insulin. His BG was 42!!! If I had given Max the "normal" amount of insulin without testing him, I would have killed him.

So please, please always test the BG before injecting the insulin.

And in contrast, a few days after the low number, the meter read "HI". The first "HI" I've seen in a long time, and quite frankly that scared me too because the ketone monster visited us way too many times in the past.

Hugs and Healing,

Cat, Sweet Max, and gang

 

Wow - how I agree with you on this one. I never know what Dude's #'s will be - at test time or between shots - sometimes he comes and sits by the test kit and just looks at me - other times, he "warbles" loud and clear. At this point, I can never ignore him. Sometimes he just wants something eat - such as the bit of chicken he gets after checking - but at other times, he will be in the 40's and has been lower. So it's a chance i can't take.

You are so right - I never give a shot without knowing what his numbers are. And he's been getting insulin for 6+ years now.

Emmy & Dude (& Mittsi too)

 

Good catch. I occas skip the test but now I won't. Donna

 

Now that's scary, and similar to a lot of things I've heard people say lately. I know Rufus must have gone into dangerous patches before, but we've never had a vet that recommended hometesting. I wish I could find someone who considered Diabetes their specialty (and rightly so)! I guess the key is to become the specialist yourself... well, as much as any layperson can - which I'm learning is quite a bit!

Glad everyone on your side is safe!

 

Good catch. I agree, always test before you shoot. I don't know how many times I have had too low of a number to shoot just randomly show up between days & weeks of higher PS numbers. With Witn and Spot, it was at least once a week. With Ricky about once a month. I just never know when it is going to happen.

My vets always thought I was nuts even when I would show them the data. They finally believed me and became supporters of my hometesting, when I had to board Witn and Spot with them for a week. Fortuantely they also followed my strict instructions that they were not to get insulin unless they were tested with their own meters before every shot. And of course, both cats gave low PS numbers during the week.

So, always test before every shot.

 

There really has only been one time that I figured I would skip a test but then I thought of posts from years past where owners had gottem complacent, knew they could read their kitty, and skipped testing and HYPO time. Heck, I panic if I go out and remember that I forgot to do a spot check before leaving. Just a few minutes, when you have a meter to use, could save a life. Good post, Cat.

 

I'm new to this whole thing, but can attest to home testing be the most vital part of the care. I just learned to home test and got a reading of 59. If I had shot blindly, it would not have been a pretty picture. So, even though I might not have to shoot again (fingers crossed, eyes crossed, toes crossed -- 4 days and counting no insulin), I will ALWAYS test daily and never make any changes to his diet without testing.

Linda
Nutter and Boo's Mom

 

What had his bg been before that? Do you have any ideas why it dropped so low this time?
New and just trying to learn.
RuthV