Eratic blood glucose levels

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jupiter_waltz

Member Since 2012
Hi Guys,

I haven't been on here for a while because my cat Sabrina has been doing well and I haven't been able to log on but it seems the new board is more user friendly for retrieving a forgotten password.

Sabrina has been doing well and her blood glucose levels have been getting lower and lower to the point now where she only needs 1/2 a unit of Lantus. Even this seemed to much lately so after several sugar curves at the vet, it was suggested she go off insulin all together because she was in apparent remission. I did a couple of curves myself lately. These results are in Australian measurements. I'm not quite sure what the conversion to US is.

14 December on no insulin:
9am = 9.8
12noon = 7.8
3pm = 10.3
6pm = 10.6
9pm = 11.7

27 December given half a unit of Lantus after 10am testing because she was high:
10am = 24.2
1pm = 16.4
5pm = 4.4
9pm = 3.5 (no nightly dose of insulin given because of the low levels)

28 December given half a unit of Lantus after 9am testing because she was high:
9am = 24.6.

I'm not sure what to do with these results as in the morning she requires insulin being high but by dinner time she is too low to give insulin. Im thinking maybe just giving her the morning dose and omit the dinner dose. I can't give her a smaller dose than at present because half a unit of Lantus is hard enough to measure now even using BD Ultra Fine 0.3ml (31G).

Thanks
Brad.
 
Last edited:
I'm in Canada and use the mmol/L measurements that you do. To convert to the US ones, just multiply by 18.

I too use the BD Ultra Fine syringes, but ones with .5u markings. There are a couple of options for getting smaller doses. One is to get a pair of digital calipers, measure a one unit dose, then use that measurement to calculate out smaller doses. The other option is to use a set of paper rulers. If you look at the very bottom of the Tight Regulation Protocol Sticky there is an attached PDF document called Management of Diabetic Cats. If you download that document, on page 258 (8 page into the document) there is a picture of how to use paper rules and a link to a document you can print that has the rulers.
 
Magnifiers are your friend.
There is also drop dosing. Take a syringe and fill 0.5 with a colored liquid.
Practice squeezing out equal sized drops until you can get the same number of drops each time.
Once you can do that, you can adjust the dose by drops.
 
Thanks guys,

I might give the paper ruler a try seeming they are designed for the same syringes I am using.

My other problem is that Sabrina has just been diagnosed with stage 3 renal failure which requires a whole different diet than that which is beneficial for a diabetic cat. Actually quite the opposite because I have to cut out proteins and all her favourite foods and feed her a Vet supplied carbohydrate diet which she will not eat because she is very fussy.

Thanks
Brad.
 
You might find it helpful to go the Feline CRF and do some reading there.
You may not need to change the food as much as you think, as newer research suggests maintaining quality protein intake helps delay muscle loss in CRF cats. It may be more important to control the phosphorus intake.
Also, cooked egg white is low phosphorus, and quality protein.
 
BJM said:
You might find it helpful to go the Feline CRF and do some reading there.
You may not need to change the food as much as you think, as newer research suggests maintaining quality protein intake helps delay muscle loss in CRF cats. It may be more important to control the phosphorus intake.
Also, cooked egg white is low phosphorus, and quality protein.
Click to expand...

Thanks BJM,

Looks like you've just given me a whole lot of reading to do.
 
There is also a phosphorus binding powder you can put on food. I have that for my dog. They use it for horses too. I bought a bunch online from a horse place to save money as the vets charge real high for it. There are different types of phosphorus binders too. You can ask which is best for cats.
 
TamanduaGirl said:
There is also a phosphorus binding powder you can put on food. I have that for my dog. They use it for horses too. I bought a bunch online from a horse place to save money as the vets charge real high for it. There are different types of phosphorus binders too. You can ask which is best for cats.
Click to expand...

Hi TamanduaGirl,

Does the Phosphorous binding agent help with increasing the cats appetite or is that for just lowering their Phosphorous levels.

Thanks
Brad.
 
The binder lowers the blood phosphorous level. Cats tend to feel terrible with a high phosphorous level and lowering it tends to make them eat better. That happened to my Stewart. Also, the binder tends to cause constipation and I gave Miralax
 
Yeah what Larry said. I also have used alternative/experimental therapies and she is doing great. People who see us on walks have even comented how much better she is acting but I haven't had her back yet to get her blood checked to see the real proof or not in numbers. Here's a thread on what I am using and the study links http://www.raskbb.com/sybilsden/viewtopic.php?f=86&t=11865 Might be worth discussing with your vet at least.
 
Hi,

What is the lowest levels of blood sugar levels do you recommend not to give insulin. Sabrina just ate her dinner and is 6.2 Australian or 111.6 US and is due for her insulin. She is on such a small dose of less than half a unit so not even thinking it is even making a difference. She is usually around 10 Aust or 180 US when I give her lantus.

Thanks
Brad.
 
Hi Brad - I've recently had to start dealing with low pre shot numbers so I get how confusing and sometimes scary new low numbers are!

Check out the link below re handling low numbers.
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/sticky-lantus-levemir-shooting-handling-low-numbers.147/

It's important to know how both food and insulin onset looks in your kitty - do you have a spreadsheet? Most experienced members will shoot anything above a rising 50 (2.7) but do so after keeping data on kitties insulin cycle.

I've popped a link re setting up a sheet below :).
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/...te-a-ss-and-link-it-in-your-signature.130337/

I'm sure one of the more experienced members will be along to give more pointed advice but I hope the stickies give you some info!!
 
That is a normal number without insulin.
If you are giving insulin, and are new at it, we would suggest you stall 30 minutes without feeding and re-test.
If rising and over 150 mg/dL (8.3 mmol/L), and you'll be available to monitor around +5 to +7 hours post-shot, you might shoot 0.25 units
 
Could you add a few details to your signature, including the insulin? It'll help us give you feedback.

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Add any other text, such as
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