My cat midnight has been on prozinc since January 2021. We just had a vet visit to check her levels and they were low. I only check them at home when I feel like something is off. Since her vet has said about the low numbers they want me to take her to see a specialist. Until I can get her in, I’ve been checking her numbers. I just don’t know when to give her a shot or if I should give her less of her dose. Her dosage is 2.1 twice a day.
Hello and welcome! Do you mean her blood glucose levels are low? Like what number (s) and what kind of meter was used to record those numbers? A pet meter or a human meter?
Yes, I went in for routine check for midnight and they said her glucose level was really low. They told me her levels was 10 but I was confused by that. I checked them myself using a human meter. When I checked last night her level was at 112.
112 is not a bad number. It is not too low. It will not cause hypoglycemia. Now a 10 on a human meter…. I doubt if any cat would live through that — so I do not think that could be what they meant.
Okay, so the only way that you actually know if it’s safe to give insulin is to test at home with your meter. Not all cats will show signs/symptoms of hypoglycemia- which means that you can’t necessarily tell by just looking at them.
Since you know how to test, I would start tracking her numbers on a spreadsheet. We can help you get set up with a spreadsheet. If you have back data for the last few weeks or even the last few days it would be helpful.
I do have a question about that 112 reading… what time in her cycle was that taken? Was it a pre-shot number, how many hours after her shot?
To answer this question you need data on her blood glucose (BG). I am hoping that you at least have a handwritten log of her BG. Doses are based upon the nadir, which is how low a certain dose takes the cat. A cat may start out high, dip down before returning up to a higher number. It’s very important to know that nadir number.
The 112 reading was pre shot. I decided that I didn’t want to chance so I didn’t give her the shot. I checked her levels again a few hours later and they went to 177.
I’m gonna try to get it set up, I have it on my phone my only issue is that there are times were I have to close at work and my dad helps with giving her the shot but I already know he won’t be able to check her levels for me. That is my only issue right now. I can check them when I get home but I’m worried it might be really low, it would be 4 hours after her shot when I get home.
That’s a bit of a problem, yes. Because if it wasn’t safe to shoot to begin with - if the BG were too low - then she could be really low at +4. Any chance you could adjust your shot times? Or any chance you could get a Freestyle Libre sensor put on her so that your dad could get a reading on her before he shoots the insulin?
Well since the 112 was a pre-shot number I wouldn’t shoot that either unless I was going to be around to monitor my cat’s blood glucose glucose. If I had enough data to know when my cat’s insulin kicks in (onset time) and when my cat typically nadirs, then I might be able to shoot.
I was just thinking about adjusting her times but either time I think of it still in rises and issue with work. I can ask my vet about that at least until I can see a specialist.
