Doing my first curve and could use some advice

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MaryT & Cocoa

MaryT & Cocoa

Member Since 2012
Due to my crazy work schedule and my inability to draw blood from my kitty I am in the process of finally starting to test my Cocoa's BG. I am attempting to do my first curve today.
I started at about 7:45 this morning and plan to test every 2 hours throughout the day. Until yesterday when I finally got blood I have just blindly been giving 1 unit of Lantus every 12 hrs per my vets advice. Now I am not sure if I should be doing that. Last night her BG was only 95 so I did not dose. First test this morning (2 hours before I would normally dose her) it was 174. She was fed at that time. At her usual time her BG was 142 so I am uncomfortable dosing her this morning. Was planing to test again in 2 hours and see where we are at. Should I give her a small dose or just keep testing without insulin until i start to see numbers rise? Also as I am doing the curve how should I be feeding her. I work the night shift and do not get home until about 9AM so my husband feeds the cats about 1/2 a (FF size) can of food each at about 7-7:30 to get them to stop begging. Then when I get home around 9 I split another can between them and as they are eating give Coke her insulin. They were free fed when they were on dry so after that we just kind of feed them again when they come looking for food but make sure Coke eats at about 9PM when I give her PM dose. I know we have to work towards a set feeding schedule but until I get her regulated just want to feed her when she thinks she needs it.
Thanks for any advice.
 
Right now I would just go without insulin and continue the curve today to at least give you a baseline on what her BGs are throughout the day, it is very possible that on the diet switch alone you may have a cat headed for remission...Yes, she may be higher tonight for going without insulin today, but at least you will know what her average is for today and then we can help you figure out a dose that will work for her. Right now she seems like 1u is too high of a dose, and the fact that she dropped some on her own with food, could signal that her pancreas is starting to wake back up again and produce her own insulin again.

My Maxwell went into remission in just two weeks of insulin and a diet change. But I was already an experienced diabetic caregiver so I was able to handle shooting lower numbers. Where you are just starting out we advise if below 200 skip the shot, as you don't have the data to back up shooting low, as well as if you give her a token dose right now, or when her numbers start going up later today you are re-setting her 12 hour cycle, so it may be wiser to skip today than say end up shooting today at late afternoon and completely throwing your shot schedule off kilter.

Mel, Maxwell, Musette & The Fur Gang
 
MaryT said:
Due to my crazy work schedule and my inability to draw blood from my kitty I am in the process of finally starting to test my Cocoa's BG. I am attempting to do my first curve today.
I started at about 7:45 this morning and plan to test every 2 hours throughout the day. Until yesterday when I finally got blood I have just blindly been giving 1 unit of Lantus every 12 hrs per my vets advice. Now I am not sure if I should be doing that. Last night her BG was only 95 so I did not dose. First test this morning (2 hours before I would normally dose her) it was 174. She was fed at that time. At her usual time her BG was 142 so I am uncomfortable dosing her this morning. Was planing to test again in 2 hours and see where we are at. Should I give her a small dose or just keep testing without insulin until i start to see numbers rise? Also as I am doing the curve how should I be feeding her. I work the night shift and do not get home until about 9AM so my husband feeds the cats about 1/2 a (FF size) can of food each at about 7-7:30 to get them to stop begging. Then when I get home around 9 I split another can between them and as they are eating give Coke her insulin. They were free fed when they were on dry so after that we just kind of feed them again when they come looking for food but make sure Coke eats at about 9PM when I give her PM dose. I know we have to work towards a set feeding schedule but until I get her regulated just want to feed her when she thinks she needs it.
Thanks for any advice.
Click to expand...

OK, great call on your part to NOT shoot!

Last nite, that 95 was good and did not need a shot.
This morn, when she was 175, fed and tested 2hrs later and found a LOWER BG of 142 lets you know that Cocoa's pancreas is working how it should be working.... and that's a great sign.
Sometimes, cats have a little issue and all that's needed is a diet change and maybe a short bout of some insulin to give the pancreas some time to heal. Also, if a cat is sick or maybe has some dental problems, your cat's BG could be high.

I think doing a curve is an incredible idea, and you will be able to see just how well that Cocoa's doing on the 2 skipped shots. With your tossing out the dry food, it may be all that was needed to show you have a diet controlled kitty! You may quickly find you don't need to give insulin, but you WILL need to continue with the low carb wet foods.
As for a schedule for feeding, I did not have much of one. The only rule was to pick up all foods 2hrs before shots to be sure I got true readings, and then it was just plunk down their LC wet food for them to eat when they like. you can have a daily limit/total for the foods, but I liked to leave something down all the time just in case the numbers went low ....many cats will go to food if they go low.
:thumbup
 
I'm having trouble with regulating my kitty's right now, so I share your frustration. I keep skipping evening shots and am trying to figure out what do.

I'm thinking a lot of it is because my Frodo is still losing weight and healing from a high-carb diet. When you change to a low carb diet it has instant affects on your cats' blood sugar levels and insulin needs. But there are also longer term affects on blood sugar levels and insulin needs as your cat's body adjusts to the new diet (and body fat loss) over weeks or months. It takes humans at least 3-4 weeks to adjust to a species-appropriate, lower-carb diet with important changes still happening over months (It took me almost four months to heal my reactive hypoglycemia and to get my own fasting BG levels down to a healthy level). I imagine these longer term changes are especially important if your kitty has insulin resistance and that resistance is starting to heal on the low carb diet.

Anyway, just food for thought . . . Maybe you'll be one of the lucky ones who is able to control the diabetes with diet alone!
I hope so!
Heidi
 
Thanks for the responses. It is defintely a learning curve for me, now that I have finally been able to get blood I have to figure out what to do with the numbers. I had gestational diabetes with both pregnancies and it was a very different process. Every evening I took a longer lasting insulin injection then every morning I took my fasting BG, ate, then 1/2 hr after every meal tested again. Based on those numbers (and the guidelines she had given me) I would decide if I needed to take a faster acting insulin too. So when my vet said "go home, give her 1 unit every 12 hrs and bring her back in 2 weeks for another fructosamine test, which will tell us everything we need to know" I was floored. And she told me "don't worry you won't have to do any testing at home, we will take care of that every 2 weeks when you come in here". My OB had stressed to me how important it was to never miss a finger poke and she had me poking myself non-stop, or at least it felt that way. I remember thinking as I walked out of the vets office that I wished I hadn't donated my meter and syringes after my last pregnancy, because I wanted to get it out and test her myself. 18 yrs ago you couldn't get a meter/strips over the counter, you needed a prescription and I didn't realize that had changed.
I can't tell you how glad I was to find this site and to find out I wasn't crazy for wanting to test her BG. And I could get the supplies with or without a vets approval.

As far as free feeding is it ok to just leave the wet stuff out? It won't spoil?

Thanks again!
 
I free feed all of mine, since I'm home with them all day I put out fresh 3-4 times a day, but that is more to keep out 97lb garbage disposal know as the dog out of it. lol

Mel, Maxwell, Musette & The Fur Gang
 
Hi, Mary ~

"she must be a bloodless zombie!!!" -- smiling at this note on Cocoa's spreadsheet. We've all been there, thought that :-D .

How exciting to see you getting such good bg readings for Cocoa so soon, Mary! Looks like her pancreas is sputtering...that's great.

Eva
 
Today was looking really good but I think it really stressed her out. After a 3 hr fast and dragging her out from under 2 beds, I had to poke both ears several times before I could get any blood for a reading. And her sister has become very jealous of all the attention and started hissing and swatting at her. Not sure if that is why her 9PM was so high or if it was being off the juice for over 24 hrs but she got her PM dose and a promise that we weren't going to do that many pokes in one day again. Hope I can keep that promise.
 
Good Morning, Mary ~

WOW! 100 last night for Cocoa with no insulin. Very interested to see what kind of number you get for her this morning, Mary. I'm not sure how long the shed from your last 1.0U dose carries over.

So wonderful to see how well Cocoa's doing, Mary!

Eva
 
Hi Eva,
I am really happy with Cokes numbers! And how much happier and more active she seems.

I am SO SO SO grateful I found this site and started testing her. She is doing so well just on the diet change and that initial insulin. Looking at her numbers I think if I had continued to just blindly give her insulin without testing that she would either be dead or in the hospital right now.

I am eternally grateful to everyone who has helped me get through these first days and the journey ahead.

Mary T
 
Very nice 124 for Cocoa this morning, Mary! Maybe her numbers will continue to come down more as she's on her new low carb diet longer.

"I am SO SO SO grateful I found this site and started testing her." -- I feel the same way, Mary. I believe members of this forum helped save my cat Willie's life in 2007, and I'll always be so grateful.

Eva
 
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