Can 1.75 actually be measured?

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tonimarmalade said:
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/finding-the-magic-number.134478/
I am staying sober and eyeballing the measurement. Any better suggestions?
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It definitely can be measured. I use calipers. Marje made a video that shows how to use them. In the meantime you can make paper calipers or measure as best you can and then fill a used syringe with the dose you are giving and use it as your guide. I make changes by .15mm so calipers are a necessity.

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/dosing-with-calipers-updated-w-videos.79851/
 
The half-unit syringes do make it easier! The main thing you want is consistency when drawing your dose - that your 1.75 today is very close to your 1.75 tomorrow. That's why some people do use calipers - to help with that consistency. When Trix was on the juice, I did eyeball it. It's a matter of what you're comfortable with....I was OK with eyeballing it, and others are more comfortable with the calipers.
 
I try to measure with a white background, to see better. That and a good overhead light and a magnifying glass. Marje uses a light table to lay the syringe on. You can get magnifying head lamps to help with the task. To get consistency, you can fill an old syringe with colored liquid (juice, tea) to the desired dose, and compare against that each time. I use calipers, that also help with consistency as the BD's I use hardly ever have a consistent zero line.
 
I can't get half unit syringes. I use the sample syringe method. I take a bit of time getting that one right using coloured water - you can also use cold tea or coffee - and then it's much faster and more consistent drawing up each dose.
 
Walmart pharmacy special ordered mine for me. They also have a short needle which I like. Worked well today. Now if Marmy would just cooperate and get her numbers lower.
 
I am discouraged by Marmy's chart. Does anyone have any suggestions besides testing her at night. That is a tough one for me for reasons I can,t go into. Is she once again reacting / rebounding ? to the couple low scores yesterday?
 
It is hard to say for sure without the evening tests, but I would guess that she is doing some bouncing, given yesterday's daytime numbers.

Numbers are only part of the picture....it's also important to take into account how Marmy is feeling and acting, too! I see you noted she's lethargic and sneezing...today...do you think she has a URI?
 
URI upper respiratory infection? Don,t know. What should I look for? She is eating well just not as active as usual.
 
Yup - upper respiratory infection. Sneezing, coughing, etc....a kitty cold, basically. They are usually viral, but you do need to keep a close eye - it can mess up appetites and such.
 
Hope she keeps eating so I can give her her shots. I am letting her rest this afternoon since the +5 wasn't exciting. Thank you so much for your guidance. I am adding a little chicken broth warmed to all four cats' meals since it has gotten so cold again here. Come on Spring and green numbers!
 
I have found some inconsistency in the starting line on syringes - some as much as .5u from the top of the barrel. When I draw up the insulin, I pull what I THINK is the right dose, then pull it back to about 5u and eyeball exactly where it is (1.5u). This has proven to explain why I sometimes get such varied responses from (what I thought were) the same dose.

Especially with the smaller doses, you can practice with a used syringe and some leftover coffee or water and see how many bubbles of which size you can flick off the needle of a syringe with 1 or 2 units in it. Somewhere there was a picture of the "drop method"... with different sized drops. Maybe someone can post a link??? By seeing how many drops you get in a unit... say 4 large or 8 small drops, you can fine-tune and get to that 1.75 or .3u dose. It takes a little time to master this, which is why I try to pull the plunger back and eyeball. Some people will also use an ultra fine-point Sharpie to draw 1/2 or 1/4u markings on the syringe. Good lighting and one of those clamp-type magnifiers works well for "seasoned" eyes! :)
 
Many people use the calipers that tiffmaxee (Elise) gave you the link for above. Marje did a science experiment and found that syringe markings can be off by as much as 0.5u. They print the markings on the syringes, but they don't seem to all start at the same place. If you look at 5 syringes and compare them, you'll likely notice the same thing. After she did that many people went to calipers. They are as cheap as $5, and you use them to measure instead of the markings on the syringes. So if you have trouble measuring, or you find your syringes are inconsistent to each other, you might think about calipers.

As far as Marmalade's dose - what a nice cycle during yesterday's day! I think because you aren't able to get night cycle tests, knowing that so many cats have their lowest numbers at night, i'd be a little cautious on increasing the dose - just do it a little bit more slowly so you have more data to rely on, even if it is all in the day cycle. Yes, I think she's bouncing. Which means she might be high for as many as 3 days after yesterday - so mid-day Saturday. She might clear the bounce sooner, too.

Does she have access to food (low carb canned) at night in case she needs it? In your situation, it might be well worth it to have a timed feeder going off every couple of hours during the night. Here's a brief discussion on them - look in this "Where Can I Find?" post, scroll to the bottom and look for feeders, timed.
 
She is fed around 11pm by my sister and around 3am again. Dr. Pierson said to hold to the 1.75. She feels that being a little sneezy and lethargic might have things off a bit right now. The timed feeder won,t work here because of Marmy's fatty sister who would be there waiting or our old guy, Mystic who has health issues which make him ravenous.
I am managing much better With my measurements with the 1/2 unit syringes and a high intensity light against a white background.
As always, thanks for all advice. Just good to know you are all out there with a lot more knowledge to guide us through this maze.
 
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