Charlie amps 457 +8 501. Just gave 1.5u R

[EllieKozak]

Hello friends. Not sure what's going on with Charlie but his numbers are sky high again and his body is laughing at the lantus increase. I wonder if I should increase to 8u at pmps or is it too early? I just got home from work (+8) and have him R. I'm sad that we are having to rely on that again but as high as his numbers are he's still negative for ketones. Anyone also have any advice for extra calories without the carbs? He's up to 10 cans daily now which is causing him to be bloated/gassy I'm thinking because he can't digest it faster than he's eating it. His hunger is insatiable. I'm glad he's eating but I don't think it's good the amount that he's eating. The specialist wants to see him again for a recheck. Drew blood for the insulin immunity test today. If he indeed has that condition are there ways around this? Been very discouraged lately even though he seems to be feeling well but the fact that he's on so much insulin and not lowering bg at all. The vets don't even want to discuss him with me anymore basically "save the questions for the specialist" approach which is frustrating. I'm not giving up on him because he's still fighting but wish the food issue would resolve just a little. He MUST have a constant tummy ache.

 

[MartinJA527]

Sending prayers and healing vines for you and Charlie. I hope you find some answers ASAP! I am very new to all this myself so I won't offer any advice but I will be keeping you in my thoughts. What is it that you're feeding now? Have you considered raw? Again I don't know your kitties other conditions to give advice, it was just a thought..

 

[Wendy&Neko]

Has Charlie been on 7.5U for only two cycles? Your spreadsheet shows a 7.25 in there too.

As for food, have you tried some plain cooked chicken breast? I know you said you've tried raw, but maybe another protein would work. Some kitties go wild for red meats like venison. Also, some wet foods like Wellness are higher calorie without being higher carb.

If a kitty has IAA, we can change the dosing strategies. I don't know if you've looked at Sandy's BK's SS, but he had extreme IAA and went OTJ.

 

[EllieKozak]

Sending prayers and healing vines for you and Charlie. I hope you find some answers ASAP! I am very new to all this myself so I won't offer any advice but I will be keeping you in my thoughts. What is it that you're feeding now? Have you considered raw? Again I don't know your kitties other conditions to give advice, it was just a thought..

Thank you! He HATED the raw. I will try chicken meat. He's currently on purina DM savory bites. He wasn't crazy about wellness but I'll give it another shot. Thanks again

 

[EllieKozak]

Has Charlie been on 7.5U for only two cycles? Your spreadsheet shows a 7.25 in there too.

As for food, have you tried some plain cooked chicken breast? I know you said you've tried raw, but maybe another protein would work. Some kitties go wild for red meats like venison. Also, some wet foods like Wellness are higher calorie without being higher carb.

If a kitty has IAA, we can change the dosing strategies. I don't know if you've looked at Sandy's BK's SS, but he had extreme IAA and went OTJ.

Thanks for the reply Wendy! He did get they one day of 7.25 then I bumped him to 7.5. Tonight was his 4th shot at 7.5. I'll try the wellness again with him but he turned his nose up at it last time. If he will eat the venison, do I just give it raw just as it comes from the store? Thanks for your help!

 

[Sandy and Black Kitty]

Hi there

Negative ketones - \M/
Feeling well \M/

Any change in weight?

Been very discouraged lately even though he seems to be feeling well but the fact that he's on so much insulin and not lowering bg at all.

I know the feelings of discouragement that arise in the face of relentless & unyielding high BGs, in spite of larger and larger insulin doses.
Take a good look at BKs ss.
He had his first green number on 08/06/2008 - it took 6 months worth of increases to a dose of 9uL plus 8-9uR each cycle to see green.
It lasted all of two hours and did not return until 7 weeks later when he was up to 12uL plus 5-12uR per cycle.
In spite of eventually reaching some 45u daily, combined L plus R (crazy high) it was a year before he tasted HC.

I encourage you to keep your eyes on the positive incremental changes that can build on each other (neg ketones and Charlie feeling better) and help move Charlie farther down the path to recovering his general health. The amount of insulin it takes is the amount it takes.

Drew blood for the insulin immunity test today.

Wonderful. It will measure the amount of IAAs in his blood and the result will be expressed as a percentage. Anything over 20% is considered positive. The higher the percentage the greater the resistance. If he tests positive, the percentage will provide guidance in dosing and peace of mind as you shoot more and more insulin.

If he indeed has that condition are there ways around this?

There is no way around it, you must push until it stops.
Being that it is a self limiting condition basically the goal would be to give enough insulin to keep your kitty BG below the renal threshold while waiting it out.
I strongly recommend simultaneously looking for and addressing any source of infection.

As Wendy pointed out, BKs IAA eventually ended and sensitivity to insulin returned and much to everyone's surprise (yours truly included) the last cat that anyone thought would go OTJ did just that.

He is only 1cat and ECID, however he is living proof that overcoming extreme (84%) IAA can happen.

He did get they one day of 7.25 then I bumped him to 7.5. Tonight was his 4th shot at 7.5.

I see 7.0uL on 10/12/AM - sounds like that's a typo as well. Please update also adding the ketone test results to your ss remarks. If tonight is indeed the 4th cycle on 7.5u, increase by 0.5u in the AM. At the same time I encourage you to shoot R every 6 hours according to the last R scale, if the numbers warrant. You can't rush the L any faster so it's critical that you us the R to in effect cast an upper safety net, until the day comes when the right L dose for Charlie is reached.

 

[Wendy&Neko]

Nature's Variety Instinct makes a raw venison (zero % carb), lamb (1% carb) and a beef (5 % carb) and they are 65 calories an ounce. Maybe try venison or lamb first because some cats have an allergy to beef. My boy kitty prefers the red meat raw proteins to the white meat (poultry) and I know other people have found the same. You can buy sample packages of their raw food. Just thaw and serve. I usually add a bit of warm water to warm it up. Just try a little at first, maybe a tsp, and you can try it mixed in with his regular food. Some cats need a slow transition to eating raw. Or if he doesn't want it raw, you can pan fry it in a little water and try serving it cooked. Lamb is generally a higher calorie meat. Rad Cat also makes a raw lamb that is 2%b carb.

There are other foods that are higher calorie/low carb like Wellness. For example, Ziwipeak does lamb (2 % carb) and so does Natures Variety (2%) and both are similar calories per can as Wellness. Just check out the food chart.

 

[Peg and Toby]

I know how you are feeling with Charlie my Toby is on 8.75 Units of Levermir and just starting to show signs that it is working.
I think we are going to have to increase more before he gets the right dose. It just seems like it is never going to end. I just
keep thinking he's feeling better. His hair has a shine now and he is playing. So just look for the positive things for now.
Good luck with Charlie, Peg and Toby

 

[Tiger(GA) and Ruth]

Hi Ellie, I am sorry to hear Charlie's tummy is not well- poor little guy! I have long wondered about a raw diet for my Tiger, but she didn't care for Nature's Variety. I have toyed with the idea of making her food as suggested by Dr. Lisa Pierson, but am afraid she would turn her nose up at that too. :?

I am happy to hear neg ketones for Charlie, that is a big plus and I know how discouraging itis with high numbers, we probably have a high dose condition here too, but hang in there, this forum is a good support system!

Sandy, your Black Kitty's SS is totally amazing!!! :shock: :shock:

 

[MartinJA527]

Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. My cat's have been on a variety of Weruva and Nutro foods and now mainly raw. I make it myself with the recipe given on the catinfo site. I even bought the grinder and supplements now because they chow it down every meal, every day. I will say some of the nutro foods (natural choice) are higher in calorie and supposedly they have 0-1% carb. This rings true to the ones I have verified with them and they are more than happy to discuss as fed values with you via telephone. The few max cat ones I have tried are low carb options with a high fat content. I mostly stick with weruva for my canned food nowadays (and my kitties specific needs) but they really enjoy the taste of the raw and I like knowing what I'm giving them. I do it the way the website suggests... grinding the bones raw.. and cooking the meat partially so it's mainly still raw. My cats devour it this way. Good luck in finding a food you like for them... the quest was a long one for me.