Cliff's first shot

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MiCo

MiCo

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Picked up the insulin from the vet after work and came home to test/feed/give insulin to Cliff. The whole process from start to finish was mildly stressful and took two humans 20 minutes from start to finish to complete. Gave him the 1 unit of prozinc after he ate a pretty good meal.

Now what? We're just sitting here, staring at each other. Got advice? :)

Also, one silly question abt the bottle of insulin. It came with what looked like a red plastic cap on it. I took that off to start/draw the insulin. Does this go back on, or stay off? I don't know.

Thanks in advance! Should I test more tonight or wait until AMPS?
 
Welcome MiCo! I just read your intro thread and it looks like you are very well prepared and got some great advice already. It's great that you're home testing from the start. I know a lot of members (myself included) were late to jump on that bandwagon and regret not having the data from those early days.

I work full time so most days I can only get an AMPS, PMPS, and then I do a +3/+4 test right before bed. Whenever I'm home, I try to get at least a +3 (to see how the cycle is starting off) and a +6 (her typical nadir -- low point of the cycle). Cliff's reaction to the insulin may be different; some cats hit their nadir earlier or later, you just have to test to find out! I think it's typical for ProZinc to kick in 2-3 hours after the shot. So, if you could get a reading at +3 or +4 that would give you an idea of how he's reacting so far. Then on the weekend (or whenever you are home from work) you can take more mid-cycle tests to get the full picture.

A lot of us like to keep a thread going to get daily advice on how our kitties' numbers look, and if we should make any dose adjustments. As you've already seen, everyone here is super helpful! It's so comforting to know that you are not alone in this journey.
 
MiCo said:
Picked up the insulin from the vet after work and came home to test/feed/give insulin to Cliff. The whole process from start to finish was mildly stressful and took two humans 20 minutes from start to finish to complete. Gave him the 1 unit of prozinc after he ate a pretty good meal.

Now what? We're just sitting here, staring at each other. Got advice? :)

Also, one silly question abt the bottle of insulin. It came with what looked like a red plastic cap on it. I took that off to start/draw the insulin. Does this go back on, or stay off? I don't know.

Thanks in advance! Should I test more tonight or wait until AMPS?
Click to expand...
I just discard the plastic cap from the new vial.

You'll get a lot more efficient with the whole process and will be able to do the whole thing solo. That's a good idea anyway in case one of you has to be away at test/shot time.

You might try for one more test just before bed to see if/how the insulin is kicking in.
 
Welcome home MiCo and Cliff,

It looks like you have made a good start. Ask any questions you want to. This forum is friendly, but small. If you ever have an emergency, post here and on Health so you will have more eyes. Have you seen the protocol and beginner's guide we put together? It is in my signature in blue.
 
@Kelly Howard and @Sue and Oliver (GA) thanks for the warm welcomes and the thoughtful replies. :)

@Kris & Teasel thanks for the reply about the cap and your continued encouragement!

Have a great evening!

------------------------------
Today I'm thankful for:
  1. This message board and its users
  2. My vet, who has been very supportive and responsive to all my questions
  3. My husband, who has been a great partner in this new adventure with our kitties
 
Quick question:
Do I need to feed/should I feed Cliff again before bed?

Cliff has eaten the following meals today (all Purina pro plan true nature chicken and liver entree):
  • 6A 2.5 oz
  • 4p 3.0 oz (hubby fed more than I wanted him to at snack time)
  • 6:15p 1.25 oz (PM insulin-first dose ever)
He also got treats after each poke/shot. Tonight was his first shot, 1unit.

Just don't want to do something wrong and go to bed. He seems fine right now. Plan to give next shot between 5-530a when Hubs goes to work. Updated #s in spreadsheet.

Thanks!
 
HI MiCo andCliff! Welcome!

Sorry you didn't get a reply last night. We tend to be less active as the evening comes on. Can I ask about how much you feed each day? Was dinner reduced last night due to the large snack?

Feeding times are different for each cat. Some feed small meals all day...some feed 2 per day. Some let cats graze, some don't. It depends on your cat and your schedule.

What time zone are you in?
 
MiCo said:
@Kelly Howard and @Sue and Oliver (GA) thanks for the warm welcomes and the thoughtful replies. :)

@Kris & Teasel thanks for the reply about the cap and your continued encouragement!

Have a great evening!

------------------------------
Today I'm thankful for:
  1. This message board and its users
  2. My vet, who has been very supportive and responsive to all my questions
  3. My husband, who has been a great partner in this new adventure with our kitties
Click to expand...
Hi MiCo,
I can tell that you have the best mindset/attitude to do well looking after Cliff. I hope that doesn't seem patronizing - not my intention. So much of this FD challenge - like other challenges - is easier to deal with if you can have a sense of humour and don't get hung up on setbacks. I always say, "Let the Universe unfold." And gratitude is always good! :)
 
Rachel said:
HI MiCo andCliff! Welcome!

Sorry you didn't get a reply last night. We tend to be less active as the evening comes on. Can I ask about how much you feed each day? Was dinner reduced last night due to the large snack?

Feeding times are different for each cat. Some feed small meals all day...some feed 2 per day. Some let cats graze, some don't. It depends on your cat and your schedule.

What time zone are you in?
Click to expand...

No worries about last night. I wasn't sure if my food question warranted a new thread. I was just stressing myself out a bit, so I posted. Sorry!

In terms of how much we feed them... that is going to be a learning curve... because BEFORE Cliff's Dx, it was a combo of wet and dry, and now there is no dry food to graze all day. This is really throwing the civie cat Stella for a loop, because she is used to food always being around. (I worry that she's not eating enough... just need to keep an eye on that and maybe sneak her a couple more feedings behind a closed door.)
  • I guess before it was 3oz of wet food each divided up into three feedings--AM, afternoon, and PM before bed. And a cup or two of dry food, with some treats.
  • Now, I'm shooting for 5-6oz of wet food each, with some treats. They are both about 12lbs. Stella is 12lbs, Cliff is 12.5lbs (but this is down from 16lbs+, and the vet has said to try not to let him get over 13#.)
I just need to come up with a plan (for my sanity) and also see what works for the kitties. They expect food AM/afternoon/before bed... so I might need to give them a tablespoon before bed just to make them happy, until they figure out the EARLY PM feeding is the new norm. :)

I'm in the EST time zone, btw. Thanks for your help!
 
Kris & Teasel said:
Hi MiCo,
I can tell that you have the best mindset/attitude to do well looking after Cliff. I hope that doesn't seem patronizing - not my intention. So much of this FD challenge - like other challenges - is easier to deal with if you can have a sense of humour and don't get hung up on setbacks. I always say, "Let the Universe unfold." And gratitude is always good! :)
Click to expand...

Thank you for the reminder about having a sense of humour! I tend to get a little serious when it comes to the kitties and their health. I'm very analytical. But the Hubs is wonderful at lightening the mood. I tend to surround myself with funny people with a good sense of humor, because I definitely lack in that area. THANK YOU!!
 
A timed feeder might help with the mid day snack. I love my PetSafe 5 - hard to break into and can be programmed for any time, not in just hour increments. It'd probably mean they'd have to share - not sure if that would work. You can freeze the wet food and have it thaw in the feeder, or if it is only a couple hours, it can sit in the feeder.
 
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