Charlie update. He's feeling better!!

[EllieKozak]

Hello friends! We've had a good last few days. Hoping the trend stays! I've increased his lantus to 4u and he's now getting 2 u r bid at am and pmps. And what makes me so happy is that he's starting to act like his young old self. Playing like he used to before he got sick etc. Still eating like never before but no more diarrhea since on metro. One more week to go on that. His GI PANEL results are back and everything was negative (pancreatitis, malabsorption, etc). Still baffled about the appetite and not able to put on weight. Is this a symptom of the dz? Appt w the internal med specialist is in 12 days. Starting him on Compounded tylan (chicken marshmallow flavored!)
Although he's acting better his amps is still usually in the red. Can't feasibily give r on the wee hours. Any suggestions?

 

[Deborah & Shasta]

I have no answers for your fantastic questions, but I just want to say YAY! Soooooo happy that Charlie's feeling like his old self! Congrats, Ellie & Charlie!

 

[MollynSkooter]

The smile on my face.....oh I wish you could see it....

I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO happy to hear Charlie is feeling better!!

The only concern I have is with the marshmellow flavor part of that. is there a lot of sugar in it? I am sure someone with more experience can chime in if it is even an issue, but wondering if that might effect his numbers.....


Again....I am soo soo soo soo soo happy Charlie is doing well....you have done amazing with him!!!!

HAPPY DANCE!!!!

 

[julie & punkin (ga)]

so glad to hear he's feeling better! yes, he's still got some high numbers, but they'll come down.

Of course it looks worse with the AT numbers. Great job getting in mid-cycle tests the last couple of nights. With that data, I think it's safe to suggest a 0.25u increase. His 253AT nadir is equivalent roughly to 188 on a human glucometer. We want to get him to the point where you're not having to use R to bring his blood sugar down on a daily basis.

From the TR Protocol:

Increasing the dose:
Hold the dose for 3 - 5 days (6 - 10 consecutive cycles) if nadirs are less than 200 before increasing the dose by 0.25 unit.
if your cat is new to numbers under 200, it is recommended to hold the dose for at least 8-10 cycles before increasing.
when your cat starts to see nadirs under 100, hold the dose for at least 10 cycles before increasing.

His AMPS is highest at least partially because of Dawn Phenomenon.

Molly's got a good question there about the marshmallow flavored compounding. You might give the compounding pharmacy a call and ask if there are any sugar components in his prescription. It sounds like it's a liquid, and unfortunately, those often have some kind of sugar in them. They can compound it without sugar, or you could continue to give it - do you have one more week of that too, or just the metronidazole? When that prescription is done his BGs may go down. It will be something to watch for.

Any updates on ketones? You probably still need to check for those twice a day.

 

[Marje and Gracie]

I'd take the compounded liquid question one step further.....are there any sweeteners.....artificial or otherwise. Whenever I have Gracies meds compounded, I tell them no sweeteners including artificial ones like maltodextrin or sorbitol.

I'm so glad to hear Charlie is doing better!!! You are a great mom, Ellie!

 

[Tricia Cinco(GA) & Harvey]

I was so happy to see your subject line. It's such a relief when they start acting like their old selves.

I hope you can get Charlie's numbers to start coming down, now that he's feeling better. Keep up the good work!

 

[Sienne and Gabby (GA)]

Great news!

I had the same thought about the Tylan. From what I understand, it can come in powdered form that's mixed with confectioner's sugar although, it sounds like it's mixed into food "straight" with dogs and cats. One FYI, it's use for dogs and cats is off label. It's used primarily with farm animals.

In response to your question, it is not atypical for an unregulated diabetic to lose weight and to eat like they are always starving. The reason is that they are starving. In fact, you may run across diabetes betting referred to as the starving disease. Insulin allows glucose to move from the blood stream into the cells where it provides nutrition. With diabetes, there isn't any or enough insulin to allow this process to occur. Instead, glucose is floating around in the blood and not entering the cells. As a result, not enough calories are getting into Charlie's cells, he's losing weight, and he's hungry. Once you start seeing his numbers being reliably lower, his appetite should begin to slack off.