Aug 14 - Reuben - AMPS/456; +3/298; +6/228

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Alexa and Reuben

Alexa and Reuben

Member Since 2012
Hi Everybody :-)

It is possible I did a good injection last night judging by: PMPS/467 +3/424.

He felt well this morning and I was sure that his AMPS was going to be at least in the 300's and was terribly surprised by the AMPS/467.

We desperately need to come down out of the red. Is it time to up our dosage?

I will post the question is a separate thread.
 
Re: Aug 14 - Reuben - AMPS/456

Hi guys .. ugh on the red! But at least reuben is feeling good other then that, that's progress! No dosing advice from me, and you don't have to start a new thread .. all questions about doses should be kept in your daily condo, it makes it much easier for the rest of us to track .. to get more eyes in here, just click the ? icon and change your post to something along the lines of dose question .. have a great day guys!
 
Re: Aug 14 - Reuben - AMPS/456

Hi Alexa! We link the previous condo (post) to our first one fo the day so here is yours' from yesterday
viewtopic.php?f=9&t=76995 (I see you did that yesterday...probably forgot today...so much to think about in the beginning, right?) :-D

As Devon just said, all our questions and updates go in our one condo for the day so just put a question mark in the title of your daily post if you have any questions that you would like answers to....there is a post icon with a ? (but try to leave the 911 icon for real emergencies..just so you know! ;-)

There is a lot to learn especially at first. But you will hear the word "Patience" a LOT and I am not going to be the one to talk about it to you. Others will say that you need to be "Patient" as you go up the dosing ladder until you reach the right dose that will start working on the BGs and bring them down.
But I am kinda IMpatient so I am not going to tell you all about being patient, ok? :lol:
You are in the right place to learn all about Feline Diabetes and I wish you and Reuben a wonderful journey with lots of success! :mrgreen:
 
Re: Aug 14 - Reuben - AMPS/456

Hi Alexa, Congratulations on learning to test and shoot and publish your spreadsheet, Reuben is in good hands! I can't advise on dosing, the gurus here will advise you if you edit your original post today to add the (?) icon. With these long acting insulins it takes time to get the full effect. The idea is to hold a dose long enough to guage the full effect, before deciding to make a dose change. Its hard to be patient I know, but the experts will help you figure out the best dosage for Reuben based on their experience applied to your data and observations.
 
Re: Aug 14 - Reuben - AMPS/456

Hey Thanks Guys!! ... for the advice, reminders and encouragement!! I just simply could not be doing this without you :mrgreen:

Good News!! Reuben`s +3 BG is 298!! It is amazing what happens when the insulin actually goes INTO him... ohmygod_smile


And, I FINALLY found a source for the ketone strips for my ABBOTT glucose/ketone meter!!! The problem is that i needed to find them here and not try again to send anything across the border (there is a box missing that was sent 6 weeks ago from the US full of supplies for Reuben - including ketostix, Forti-flora, Platinum Performance... etc etc.. :cry: ). So I literally just spent 3 days calling everywhere, following dead end 'leads', calling people back, searching the internet.. in short everything I could think of. Finally I found a place that will send me a box that will be here on Thursday. SCORE!!! Of course, I won`t stop worrying until they get here, but at least they are coming...

Yeah, so much to think about, and a soon as one problem is solved another comes up. Managing my baby`s pancreatitis at the same time is tricky, and just a big guessing game sometimes as too why he doesn`t feel well. Yesterday I switched from the liquid metoclopramide to tablets - having realized that the sugar content of the liquid was not doing us any favors. But he had a bad reaction to it, so we are back to the liquid version - but the +3/298 was good anyway, Yeay!!! I saw there is a Yahoo Feline Pancreatitis Group I think; I will go find it and join.

Thank you all sooo much for being here for us :smile:
 
Re: Aug 14 - Reuben - AMPS/456

Hi Alexa,

I'm glad to see that you had success giving the shot last night and today. :smile: It's just a matter of practice. Anytime you think you're having a problem with something just ask for some tips. So many of us have been doing this for so long that we've worked out little tricks that make things easier for us and someone is always around to help.

You should update your subject line with Reuben's +3 as soon as you can so everyone can see where he is. It's wonderful that he went all the way down to 298! You're starting to see nice results pretty quickly. :razz:

TTYL,
Melanie & Racci
 
Re: Aug 14 - Reuben - AMPS/456

Good news. Good news. I would keep a close eye on his numbers, as you are doing, just in case the pancreas suddenly starts to work better. It can happen fast sometimes.

We're sending you good vibes!
 
Re: Aug 14 - Reuben - AMPS/456

Hi Melanie :-)

How do I edit the subject line?

and his +6 was 228!

and so I`m nerrrrvous about doing it again.. injecting correctly i mean..
i'll just read your instructions a few times before-hand to get ready!

Thanks for the help, I really appreciate it :mrgreen:
 
Hey thanks Dale!! And that is a really encouraging thought about his pancreas... Just what we needed to hear right now!! :mrgreen:
 
Sorry I didn't get here in time for you but I see you figured out how to edit the subject line. Good job. I stopped leaving so much room in between the times & #s so I would have more space. You'll find that you're allowed limited space in the subject line. You can always go back and edit it again tho.

Don't be nervous about the shots. Pretty soon you'll be a pro at it. Just take your time and relax and so will Reuben. I always make a little backrub part of it for Racci so she relaxes. She's so used to getting medicine that we have a routine down pat. :lol:

Reuben is really doing great! Nice numbers!

Melanie & Racci
 
They were nice numbers, weren`t they! He pulled away from me tonight in the middle of the shoot though because it hurt him...or was cold? We'll try back rubs like you say, and go back to using tuna as a bribe. Soon we will be pros!

Thanks so much for being there for us, it reallly helps :mrgreen:

Alexa & Reuben
 
Hi Alexa,

I just finished with Racci's meds & shot. So was it a fur shot? When he pulled away did any get in or was it a complete loss? Sometimes when they pull away the syringe flies and they get nothing. It's still in the syringe. If you shoot in the wrong direction you can hit a nerve or muscle which will make them jump or if it's cold Lantus can sting or if he wasn't expecting it he could have gotten startled. There are a lot of things that could have made him jump.

Do you give the shot and test in the same spot every time and is it a quiet spot where the two of you can bond while you do the routine? Treats, pets, telling him how good he is, etc. Most of the cats come to love the attention the get at test and shot time. I sit on a big ottoman with Racci right next to me.

I just remembered something else I used to do with Racci in the beginning that may or may not help depending on Reuben. It helped Racci. I used to show her the syringe when I was ready to give it to her so she knew what I was about to do. That will only help if he's not afraid.

You're very welcome. It gives me a chance to pay it forward for all the help I received from others here. You'll be able to do the same.

Have a good night.

Melanie & Racci
 
Hi Melanie,

I think some maybe got in.

I didn`t tell him well that I was going to do it, this was part of the mistake... We do have a spot where we test, and now I can also just go find him and test wherever he is, too. But we never established a routine and a location for the injection. At the beginning it was either on top of a dresser or in the testing spot on the couch, and then he stopped hanging out on the dresser and I don't know why I stopped using the couch spot.

I`ll re-establish the testing spot as the injection spot too, and use tuna bites as treats. Is there an injection tutorial on you tube video you would recommend? I like Ramses' video, (but he has no hair, how easy is that!?!?!) Oh yes, I`ve been meaning to ask you if you part Racci's hair to shoot into skin and not through fur?

I do hope I will be able to help a newcomer some day! :-)
 
reuben'smom said:
I like Ramses' video, (but he has no hair, how easy is that!?!?!) Oh yes, I`ve been meaning to ask you if you part Racci's hair to shoot into skin and not through fur? I do hope I will be able to help a newcomer some day! :-)
Click to expand...

Hi Alexa! Jane here.

Here's a photo of what we used to do when Karre got his shots, tenting the fold of skin, then parting his fur there and patting it down to see the skin and watch the needle go in:

228479_10100310823843933_827499912_n.jpg


I like Ramses's video too, but your're right, the no-fur benefit makes it easier for his Bean. There are a number of other videos you might find useful - two of them are shown in this FDMB thread by Ashley and Sushi. Let me know if you'd like to see some others, or if those are helpful enough. :mrgreen:

Jane
 
Hi Jane,

Thank you so much!! I`ll check out the videos; and, it looks like your tent is horizontal to the shot - I'll try that this morning. Maybe that is the 'roll' people talk about?

He doesn`t want anything to do with testing even right now, hmmm!! I`ll make a cup of coffee, relax, and we'll work it out.

Thanks again :mrgreen:

Alexa
 
Hi Alexa

You're welcome. I'm not sure what you mean by "horizontal to the shot" - let me clarify the photo just in case: We take a "roll" of Karre's skin and tent it (pull it up gently) so that it is parallel to the spine (a few centimetres away from the spine, on either side thereof). Then we align the syringe and needle, so that it, too, is parallel to the spine and near-parallel to the cat's body surface. We shoot into the little spot of skin exposed previously by parting and patting down the fur.

Does that make sense?

Hang in there!
Jane
 
Hi Alexa, We do what Jane describes, sorry I dont have a picture. Andy and I are right handed so we shoot Jasper as he lays down facing to our left, often face in food bowl. Using left hand we pull up a tent above his spine between his shoulders and his front elbows (or are they knees?) My fingers are on Jasper's right side away from me, thumb is on his left side toward me. The ridge line of the tent runs parallel his spine, from head to tail direction. If we pull up the tent further down his back, or closer to his head or off center, he bites, so we use the place where he accepts it. The tent is longer than the needle so it wont go all the way through. We shoot with syringe in the right hand, insert the needle into the tail end of the tent so the needle points towards the head end of the tent. I can't feel the needle go in, so when I feel the hilt of the syringe is against his skin I push the plunger to give the dose. The needle is always parallel to his spine. I practiced shooting a damp cloth to get a sense how the syringe feels when its all the way in, and how to quickly press the plunger. Hope this helps, good luck! You will have this mastered before you know it.
 
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