Feeding schedule and some questions

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Chris & Mally

Chris & Mally

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On 12/31/09 I received a phone call from my old vet telling me that the results of the blood test he had done on Mally the previous day indicated that she was diabetic. He told me to remove all dry food and start feeding her Fancy Feast. After receiving the diagnosis, I immediately got on the internet and started researching FD. I found Dr. Lisa's webiste and Janet & Binky's site with the lists of canned food. I already had some Fancy Feast on hand because my cats had been feed dry food during the day and Fancy Feast at night. I took Janet & Binky's list shopping that day and all four cats were switched to a low carb canned food diet on 12/31/09.

Since the cats always liked their canned food, having it all the time was like one big party to them. For the first few days of the wet diet, Mally ate constantly. Now I know why. I made sure there was always canned food out for her so she could eat whenever she was hungry.

I have four cats eating a low carb canned food diet so I have four bowls - one for each cat. In the morning I put a full can of Fancy Feast in each bowl and add a little warm water. The cats eat but they never finish the full can. I leave the food down so they can come in throughout the day and have small meals. Whatever is not finished in the evening is dumped and I put down four fresh bowls of food with one full can of Fancy Feast in each, again with a little bit of water added. I usually go to be around 1:00 AM so if the bowls are empty, I take one can of Fancy Feast and divide it among the four bowls for a snack during the night. This schedule seems to be working well for the cats.

Mally is now on Lantus. Yesterday she only had one 1 unit dose in the AM per my new vets' instructions. Today I am starting her on .5 BID. I've read that you should test/feed/shoot. This morning I tested her, fed her, and then she got her shot. Mally will have her second shot today at 9:00 PM. I'm assuming I should test her, feed her, then shoot. Correct me if I'm wrong here. Since there is typically food in the bowls at 9:00 PM, should I make sure she eats before I shoot, or just go ahead and shoot and let her eat when she feels hungry?

Thanks!!!!
 
with lantus you have a bit of leeway because it doesn't kick in for awhile, whereas with the older insulins you need to ensure that food is onboard prior to injecting. test/feed/shoot is a reasonable order but don't stress it if you just test and shoot and she eats a bit later.
 
the reasoning behind test feed shoot is to get a reading at end of any cycle of insulin you might have already given to make sure that they are not too low for an injection. The feeding comes next to make sure the cat eats. If the cat does not eat, you should not give insulin. Then shoot to make sure there is food on board.

If you have a routine where the cat eats earlier, and this works for you, your testing numbers will be a little skewed from the earlier food intake, but if that is your habit then you will be used to that and you will get used to what happens with the insulin.

Do not stress yourself or the cat out about this. What is important is that you have a routine, and that you and your cat are comfortable with it. test/feed/shoot works for most of us because we generally feed our cats 12 hours apart.

The less you have to stress, the better for both of you.

Connie
 
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