BG drop in 7 hours

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MatJay N Haley

MatJay N Haley

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Hey peoples, another newbie question here. We've had quite a bit of trouble getting Haleys second BG test of the day. We finally managed to get one at +7 and it's reading 5.5mmol/L (99mg/dl). Before her 1u of Lantus 7 hours ago she was 14.9mmol/L. Quite a dramatic drop. Is this anything to worry about or is the insulin doing the job?
 
That is a dramatic drop. Not a scary number for the nadir (lowest point of the cycle) but it shows the insulin is certainly working. Have you recently changed to wet lo carb also?

You may get Lantus advice here on Health but most Lantus users hang out over on their forum. viewforum.php?f=9 You should read the stickies at the top of the page and then post. The stickies do have lots of good information about what kind of numbers to expect and which to react to or not. It will also help you to take a look at the spreadsheets of other members over there.
 
99 is a terrific "normal" blood sugar number

It would be good to test at +12 before you give the next shot and see where Haley's blood sugar is at that point.

The insulin is doing its job.

We just don't want Haley to go too low -- so testing is your friend -- try to make testing a positive experience for Haley -- most kitties get pets, loving and treats at testing time to make it more enjoyable.

If you are worried and stressed out, Haley will pick up on that and get stressed out also.

We adopted a 3 strikes and we're out rule --- if we don't get a good blood test after 3 pokes, we stop and take a break. Loving and treats are given as if the test was successful.

Then 20-30 minutes later, we try again.
 
Hi,

We haven't changed her diet-she is still on Purina DM canned.

Could it be that we just didn't get enough blood for accurate reading? We will try again at +12, but should we still give her another insulin injection if he BGs haven't changed?

So grateful for all your support :)
 
you may not be at the lowest part of your cycle just yet. lantus does'nt always work that way...and i don't think a reading with not enough blood would work at all. I don't think that would give you a lower number.
If the number has not gone up to 200 than you may want to reduce your dose for tonight. maybe .75
Are you one who will be up to test at night at given hours?
 
Maverick was started on 2.0 units and because of the big drop on the first day everyone told me to cut back, and work up.

You should make sure you have instructions on whether to shoot or not at the +12 mark. And make sure to do spot checks at night.

If its below 200 I wouldn't shoot unless you have specific instructions to do so. A lantus expert will be along shortly.

Do you have a hypo kit ready in case Haley goes low?
 
Also have you gotten tips on getting blood - a warmed rice sock worked amazing for Maverick. And two small pokes close together helps too - milk the ear to squeeze out the blood.
 
Some meters will give a false low reading if there's not enough blood. I use a Contour and it can happen. You need to re-test if you're not sure you had an adequate amount of blood.
 
Haley is still testing at 5.3 and she is at her 13 hour mark. Took quite a while to get a sample from her. Not much of a bleeder. Would anyone recommend giving her the full 1u or maybe just 1/2u and monitor overnight? Thanks
 
Personally? I would leave it for tonight, that's just too much duration for comfort...if you give insulin now who knows how long those numbers would go and for how long! Aren't you glad you are testing??? :)

for Lori, multiply by 18
 
i guess i agree since there is no data. +13 and still dropping
 
if you don't shoot tonight you might reduce the dose a bit tomorow morning by a bit. .75U ???
 
I just typed this and lost the post.

I just sent a PM to Sienne to come look at your condo.
I too, think you may be skipping tonight's dose. I would do whatever Sienne says. She knows a lot about Lantus.
 
You need more data than what you've got to shoot this low. I'd skip tonight's shot. I'd also start back at 0.5u tomorrow. It's easier on the nerves to work the dose up than drop the dose back.

Have you recently transitioned to low carb food? That can make a huge difference. (Sorry -- I'm dealing with other stuff on the Lantus board and didn't read your entire thread.)
 
We did switch her to low carb about a week ago. 90% wet food and 10% dry food (for some reason she won't eat the wet food without a bit of dry food). Other than that, we gave her the first shot of Lantus this morning with a BG of 268. 7 hours later she was at 99. 2 hours later she is at 94.5. We will skip the dose for now and keep testing every couple hours through the night. Would more dry food help us out a bit?

Thanks for everyone's input. Your all very helpful!

PS. Haley also has asthma, diagnosed at 3 years old. She is now 8 and has been receiving depo injections since 3 years of age.
 
Hi: Dry food stays in the system a long time. You could put some tuna water, chicken (boiled) cut up on the wet to encourage her to eat. I would follow Sienne's recommendation to start over at .5u in the morning and work your way up.

Here is the link to the food chart for canned and dry foods. Most of us use FF (under 10% carbs)
http://binkyspage.tripod.com/CanFoodNew.html
 
noooooooooooo, you don't WANT her bg's to rise...you don't try to raise them.
and as far as tonight i don't think this is the night you have to stay up testing. but that's just me. maybe one more test and call it a night. you'll start fresh tomorow
 
I think you meant to say that at +12 she was 95.
Once you've seen a couple (that means two) rising numbers, I think it will be safe for you to go to sleep. Like maybe the next test will be 100 and then maybe the next one will be 120.. like that.

You will want to lose the dry food completely. You will just adjust the insulin to be less if her numbers are too low.
If she is hard to get off the dry food, you can try taking 1 more kibble away each meal, or each day, until there are none.

Don't forget, to start over again at 0.5 (one half unit) tomorrow morning, as Sienne said. She may be a lot higher than tonight. If she is, that is called a bounce, and is normal. You do have syringes with the 1/2 units markings, right?

I hope to see you posting over in the Lantus forum, soon.
 
What kind of meter do you sue? I used Freedom Lite and it would beep when you got enough blood. Are you warming the ear? What size lancet are you using? Have you tried putting on a very small bit of vaseline (it helps the blood bead up so you can see it, and it doesn't go into the fur)
 
Hi there

We started at 1 unit yesterday, skipped last nights dose (low number), gave her .5 this morning. We just checked her BGs and it dropped a little to 121.

Today Haley is more cooperative and we seem to be getting better at getting enough blood :) Going to continue checking BGs every 2 hours.

Thanks!
 
I know absolutely nothing about Lantus--But that BG looks a little low to me for so early in the cycle. Have you posted in the LANTUS insulin support group? They have a lot of people there who know a lot about Lantus.
 
Glad Haley is cooperating today. Normal bg for a cat is 50-120. You said you will be testing today. That is great. That is information that is necessary to see where Haley is going.
 
Yes we have posted in the Lantus forum this morning and it was suggested to go ahead with half the dose of Lantus this morning. We are going to test her every 2 hours to see how it is working with .5.
 
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