Canadian- new to home testing

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J

Janesk8

Member Since 2013
Hi there!
My cat beau is newly diagnosed. He is 9yrs old.,
I live in a canada, and so the numbers most members use in their posts mean very little to me, as they area different units in Canada vs. USA.
We tested for the first time tonight, it happened to be after his insulin, because we had just gotten the machine and watched a video.. I will test tomorrow before I give him his insulin.
Anyway, I am wondering about numbers.. What is the range when I should give hi no insulin, 1 unit, or 2 units? To avoid hypo?
Thanks!
J
 
Hello to you and beau,

I live just outside of Toronto. The numbers our US neighbors mg/dl use can be changed into Canadian ones mmol/l by simply dividing theirs by 18. I regularly switch back and forth as most of the advisors here are American and I want their eyes on my boys. But my meter is of course showing Canadian numbers.

What insulin are you using? Dose depends on insulin type but generally we don't advise newbies shoot at all under 200mg/dl (which is ~12mmol/l in Canadian numbers) . We advise that because until you have data, do don't necessarily know how he is going to react to the insulin. FYI a normal cats levels are 2.8-7.2mmol/l.

The dose you give depends on the insulin so let me know..

Wendy
 
Hello and welcome! I'm glad you've found this board; you'll learn a lot here that will help you look after Beau! I'm in Winnipeg - how about you? What's your name, I'm assuming it's Jane?

Can you give us a bit more information so we can answer your questions? What kind of insulin are you using? (Many people here use Lantus). What are you feeding your cat? How much insulin have you been giving? Without knowing a bit more it's hard to answer your questions, but for safety's sake I will say that for people new to home testing we do say don't give insulin if you get a reading of 200 in American numbers (divide by 18 for the numbers your meter shows, which would be 11.1).

Ah yes, the numbers . . . all the world except the US uses mmol/L like Canada does, but expecting Americans to convert their mg/dl numbers goes over about as well as stepping over the border and trying to tip a waiter with toonies :lol: However there's an easy way around it; everybody here sets up a spreadsheet on Google Drive to track their cats' numbers where everyone else can see it. Those of us not in the US use a version that keeps track of our international numbers on one page and then converts it into numbers the Americans are familiar with on another page. You'll need to get the equivalent numbers from the American page and use them to post here just to make sure everyone understands what you're talking about. Instructions to set up a spreadsheet are here. It may seem complicated but it's a really useful tool and you'll wonder how you did without it!

Please let us know about what food and insulin you're using and don't hesitate to ask lots of questions! Again, welcome!
 
Hi J and sugarkitty Beau and welcome to the FDMB. Lots of experience here to help you.

We'll be waiting for some of your answers to the questions before we are able to help you. Not enough information yet to give you any good responses.
 
Hi there.

We are using 2units of caninsulin 2 times per day.
Bau was on dry food, but I have switched to fancy feast pâté .
He loves his new food. A few weeks after the food switch and insulin, he had what I think was a small hypo attack. We put him down to 1 unit. Then a couple weeks ago we noticed his symptoms of diabetes had come right back (frequent urination, thurst etc). The vet did a curve hat showed high numbers, . Heis back n 2 units and has bounced right back to himself.

My vet is onboard with my home testing. He even said if I wanted I could come in so he, or the tech could teach me how to do it.

All in all things seem to be good, but I am interested in ensuring they are going well.
When I took his blood sugar last night abut 2 hrs after his insulin and good, it was 11.2 (Canadian measurements) . Which I think is a bit high.

I understand from reading a lot n here, and on a Facebook site, many people don't like the insulin I am on. So far it seems to be going well with beau, it is also not very pricey. I understand the biological reasons why lantus may be better. However as of now, I do trust my vet.

I am living in St. John's Newfoundland . Lived in Ontario previously (Brampton and Kingston ) . I have a 3 year old little girl (human) Charlotte and a 4 month old little boy, Spencer. We also have an 8 year old dog, named Casey.
Thanks
Jane
 
Thats good about the food and the testing - you are making some good moves. I love that your vet supports home testing.

However you are right about the insulin, I think your vet might be a little out of date because Caninsulin works well in dogs but not so much in cats. In cats it is harsh on them - it hits fast and wears off too fast. It is hard to manage properly and even with those caretakers that have the time to micromanage their cats, we have seen remission rarely on this insulin.

However Lantus now seems to be the insulin of choice (or levemir or prozinc) if you want better regulation and remission. A recent study said 84% of cats can achieve remission with a low carb diet (which you have), home testing (which you are doing ) and a good insulin like Lantus - and we see remission a LOT on this board with Lantus - my own cat is one of many! But the timeframe for remission is tight - only six months from diagnosis. I have provided study info below you can print and give to your vet.

Also Lantus isnt that expensive. You can get a pack of 5 Lantus Glargine Solostar pens (pens last longer than vials) for $100 in Costco and each pen will last up to six months if you keep it in the fridge.

Share these with your vet and discuss....
American Animal Hospital Association diabetes treatment guidelines ( 2010) http://www.felinediabetes.com/AAHADiabetesGuidelines.pdf
The Tight regulation protocol(article published in the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery.) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19592286

Wendy
 
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