Cat has really low BG - won't rise

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Sorry I didn't post earlier. Waking up during the night to test made me sleep in for work so I had to rush out of here in a hurry. I ended up leaving work early anyway cause I'm sick :(

I gave lil kitty a can of high carb wet food last night. During the night his numbers were 3.4,3.9 and the latest (20 mins ago) was 5.9. It is now +28 hours since his last injection

I called the vet last night when I got my first low reading, they told me not to give him a shot unless he goes over 10 so I havent given him anything since yesterday morning at 5:30am.

He just finished eating from a can of 0 carb food. It should be interesting to see where his numbers go from here.
Hopefully this is a sign of remission!

Thanks again for all your help and support through this. I am so happy I checked his BG yesterday when I got home from work. Who knows where we'd be now if I hadn't.

I will keep you posted when I check his BG again.
I managed to get some more strips from my coworker so I should be good for the next little while
 
What great news, sorry about u being sick, but glad you tested.... I am thinkin I take the 5.9 x 18 - sb 106 - that is great! not that high at all.
gooood job :smile:
 
Welcome, Ellen.

It seems like you got a baptism by fire last night. I'm really glad you had some experienced Lantus (glargine) users like Deb/Spot and several others to lend you a hand. Getting low numbers like that, especially when you haven't had much experience with testing, can be cause for a panic attack! It sounds like you did incredibly well and yes, it was nothing short of a stroke of genius that you tested when you got home from work. Please get a few spot checks today. Low numbers like you encountered last night can linger with Lantus. Once the high carb wears off, numbers can drop. It is likely that numbers will start rising but I'm also wondering how much insulin your cat actually needs. It usually takes about 5 -7 days for Lantus to be at a level where you start seeing results. However, if it was 3 days at the vet's office, your cat may have been very stressed and that stress may have caused higher numbers. Your cat may be on a dose that doesn't reflect where his numbers really are. Your initiative in switching your cats to low carb, canned food also suggests that your cat may be on a very quick road to becoming diet controlled.

Just so you have the information handy, we have a post on the Lantus board to walk you through how to handle low numbers. We likewise caution someone new to this process to not shoot if numbers are below 150 (8.3). Once you get into the swing of things, there are other options like stalling to wait for numbers to rise, that may make sense.

Based on the dosing protocol we use on the Lantus board, you will want to check with your vet but a drop below 50 (2.7) would warrant a dose reduction. You may want to look over the Tight Regulation Protocol and discuss this with your vet. There are additional links in the post to the formal version of this protocol including the article that was published in one of the leading veterinary journals. For a newly diagnosed cat, this approach to managing feline diabetes offers your cat the best chance at remission.

Please let us know if you have questions or if there's any way we can be of more help.
 
Hi everyone,

So far today lil kitty has only eaten his 0 carb food and I just checked him again and he is at 4.8 (down from 5.9 this morning)

Right now it is +36 hours since his last injection. Because his numbers are lowering even without an insulin shot today, is it possible for him to get hypo again tonight?

PS I have started my hypo kit. Hopefully I won't need it!!
 
I would not think so, but I will leave that answer to those that are familar with the insulin... I used PZI..
 
As long as you didn't give any insulin, he will not go hypo on you! For now, I would suggest that you continue to give the 0% carb food and get those occasional checks to see how his bg's are doing w/o insulin on board. Who knows, lil kitty may be going OTJ!
 
It looks like you have some pancreatic action going on and may soon be diet controlled. That is a great number for +36. :RAHCAT

Keep feeding the low carb food. You are doing a great job.
 
Hi everyone,

Just wanted to give a quick update on lil kitty. He is doing great! He is currently +62 hours since his last shot. I have continuted to feed him and the other cats the 0% carb food.
I tested him last night before bed and he was at 6.7 (120.6) and I was worried that it was creeping back up again.
I checked him again this morning and got 6.3 (113.4) and then I checked him again just now and got 4.5 (81)!

Would he be conisdered to be in remission now?
I cant wait to call the vet tomorrow and tell him! (especially since they were trying to get me to come in this week and pay $300 for another curve!)
I will also bring the vet a copy of Janet and Binkys food chart and suggest that he give it to people if they can test at home. I am sure that that is what made the difference in all of this.
If it was up to the vet, my cats would still be on dry food and lil kitty probably still diabetic. Thank god for this forum!

P.S. I know otj means remission, but what does it stand for?

Thanks again to everyone for all your support and advice!
 
OTJ = Off The Juice (insulin) = diet controlled diabetic.

You need about 2 weeks of no insulin to be officially off the juice. Its looking positive.
 
Great news!

You might also want to consider sharing your SS with the vet. Let him know that all his patients who could test at home could do the same thing, and that all he'd have to do is go to googledocs and look at them when it was convenient for him to do so.

Carl
 
WHAT A GREAT THING TO READ!!!! AND WHAT A WONDERFUL MOMMABEAN (YOU).
You have done a great job testing, feeding low carb and taking control of your baby.....
Maybe your hypo kit can be passed on after a bit to someone NEW that might need it :razz:
I am dusting my party hats for Mr. Lil Kitty.......Sugar Bean and Civvies: Slappy & Ittle Sista will be there donning the hats and whistles and of course - cat nip party_cat drinking24 party_cat drinking24
 
Hey All, Hello Ellen!

Wanting to check in and see how your kitty is doing... As I read ur post, I felt like I was having Deja-vue! You are right! You did come to the right place!
I too am so grateful and blessed that I found FDMB. Keep us posted. Pam, Po-Kitty and all my other Fur-babies
 
YEAH!!! WOOO HOO! LOL, :RAHCAT I guess I was typing when u were updating us!!!! Thank Goodness! MIRACLES Do HAPPEN! I am a firm believer in that! <3

Makes my Heart smile, when I see how much a newbie to Feline Diabetes comes in here and desperately needs help and advice, and with the support of you all, helps
guide us/them thru the process of getting our kittys back on track, I will make sure I re-read all the post and save all important info. to my Diabetes Folder.

And like the others stated, sharing with your vet is a must, I know I do, because my vet is not up to par on F.D. , And i want to help her , help others.

Goodnight Friends, Pam
 
hi ellen - great to see this!

just to make sure you know - once a cat has been diabetic and go off of insulin, you still need to feed him as though he is diabetic. he is simply diet-controlled. so the low-carb canned food diet is forever. you also want to test the BG every so often, especially if you see any signs of diabetes like the excess thirst or urination. if a cat develops an infection or pain it can cause the BG to rise. you just don't want something like that to sneak up on you.

best of luck to you! congratulations!
 
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