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losgatos-cats

Member Since 2011
Hello!

Last week, our 4 year old Bombay cat, Stinky, was diagnosed as diabetic and gave us quite a scare. We missed the warning signs and feel terrible about it, but are moving on with his treatment now. Stinky was in DKA when we took him to our vet and they had him for 3 days in intensive care with oxygen tent, nasal feeding etc. What an emotional time for all of us! He's been home about a week now and is making great progress and is showing more energy and behaving more like his old self every day.

He's been on 1u of Lantus 2x per day and is scheduled for his first curve testing this Thursday with the vet. We don't want to bring him. Our vet is awesome and we're very grateful for the care they gave Stinky, but we are hesitant to subject him to the stress of being at the vet all day and have read about elevated BG levels due to stress. Also, we feel leery of dosing him without a clue to what his actual BG levels are.

So that brings me here. I've read through several threads where the FDMB community have provided guidance and helped many newbs like us through the home testing process. We would be very grateful for some assistance!

First, we would like to purchase some home testing supplies ASAP and at least try to determine if Stinky will tolerate it. I've read about Accuchek and Contour as good meters. What would you recommend for a meter?

The next part, I'm kind of lost at... I can create a shared spreadsheet and hope to obtain BG readings and marked intervals. Is there a protocol or standard to follow?

Finally, (and this part makes me nervous) how do we manage Stinky's insulin dosage based on the findings of home testing?

Sorry for the long post, but I'm just trying to include as much information as possible.

EDIT: I forgot to include his current diet. Previously he was on dry Science Diet kibbles, but since he's been home he's been mostly eating freeze dried chicken, Gerber baby food because we want to reduce his carb intake while keeping his protein levels up. We would love to get him on some wet food but haven't found anything he likes yet.

Thanks,
Allen
 
Where are you located (nearest city and state/province - not your exact address)? A member may be nearby, to give you a hands-on demonstration and some starter help.

The two meters you've read about are good. Do you have a WalMart nearby? If so, the ReliOn Micro or ReliOn Confirm are both good and very inexpensive. More importantly, the strips are inexpensive, and that's where the cost really comes in. Also, both of them take the smallest possible amount of blood (.3 microliters), which will help you a lot when you are learning to test.

Personally, I use the Freestyle Lite, which also takes that tiny amount of blood. The strips for that are more expensive (but not at all unaffordable if I buy them online). My preference for Freestyle instead of ReliOn is just personal preference.

Pretty much any meter you get (except ones with names beginning "True" - like TrueTrack) is just fine. Some people even have good luck with the "True" meters, but on the whole they seem to be less reliable.

You're right to be leery of having the curve done at the vet's and also to wonder about giving insulin without testing.
 
Thanks for the reply.

We are located in Los Gatos, CA. Bay Area.

Yes, we have a WalMart nearby. I'll stop by there after work and see if they have the ReliOn meters. Thanks!

Jean and Megan said:
Where are you located (nearest city and state/province - not your exact address)? A member may be nearby, to give you a hands-on demonstration and some starter help.

The two meters you've read about are good. Do you have a WalMart nearby? If so, the ReliOn Micro or ReliOn Confirm are both good and very inexpensive. More importantly, the strips are inexpensive, and that's where the cost really comes in. Also, both of them take the smallest possible amount of blood (.3 microliters), which will help you a lot when you are learning to test.

Personally, I use the Freestyle Lite, which also takes that tiny amount of blood. The strips for that are more expensive (but not at all unaffordable if I buy them online). My preference for Freestyle instead of ReliOn is just personal preference.

Pretty much any meter you get (except ones with names beginning "True" - like TrueTrack) is just fine. Some people even have good luck with the "True" meters, but on the whole they seem to be less reliable.

You're right to be leery of having the curve done at the vet's and also to wonder about giving insulin without testing.
 
I think it's great and very important that you do hometest, especially with the DKA.

Will your vet work with you on this if you do test at home and not do the curve there? I ask only because I want to make sure you can get your insulin prescription refills when needed. I'm sure it will be fine, but do tell your vet that you're going to hometest and that you'll supply them with the BG levels.

Since Stinky likes the freeze dried chicken, maybe you could try some Fancy Feast Gourmet Classic Chicken and crumble some of the freeze dried chicken on it to coax him to eat that.

When you go to Wal-Mart go to the pharmacy section and pick up some ketone sticks to check urine. Since you had a DKA, let's try to prevent one in the future. Ketodiastix, I think they are called, check both ketones and sugar or just get plain ketone strips, the pharmacy should be able to point them out to you. We can help you when you're ready to try them out.

Have you read up on hypoglycemia, the sticky about keeping a hypo took kit? It's always good to have honey or corn syrup on hand, plus dry food and higher carb gravy canned food, just in case blood sugar goes too low.

Looking forward to learning more about you and Stinky.
 
Hi Jennifer and thanks for the info!

Here's a pic of Stinky when he was in the IU
smugshot4416320-S.jpg


Normally, he looks like this:
smugshot5684814-S.jpg


Working with the vet is the tricky part at the moment. Stinky's appt. for curving is this Thursday. We are planning on getting the supplies today and *trying* them out to see if it's possible to home test him. If so, then our plan is to call the vet and ask if they are willing to work with us on his numbers because we are concerned about his prescription too. If we can't test him, then will just bring him in as scheduled. If the vet is unwilling to work with home testing, then I feel strongly enough about us taking ownership of Stinky's health that I will find a vet who will work with us. That's the plan.

Thanks for the tip on Fancy Feast. We will definitely give it a try!

I will pick up the keto sticks while at WalMart too. Thanks.

Yes, we read about hypoglycemia and have printed out the sticky and have our kit ready. Going hypo is one of the biggest reasons we are pushing for home testing. Just doesn't make sense to be giving him insulin without knowing his BG. Also, I think the vet is letting his BG ride higher than it needs to be but we will see.

Is there a spreadsheet format you guys use for charting insulin and BG?

tuckers mom said:
I think it's great and very important that you do hometest, especially with the DKA.

Will your vet work with you on this if you do test at home and not do the curve there? I ask only because I want to make sure you can get your insulin prescription refills when needed. I'm sure it will be fine, but do tell your vet that you're going to hometest and that you'll supply them with the BG levels.

Since Stinky likes the freeze dried chicken, maybe you could try some Fancy Feast Gourmet Classic Chicken and crumble some of the freeze dried chicken on it to coax him to eat that.

When you go to Wal-Mart go to the pharmacy section and pick up some ketone sticks to check urine. Since you had a DKA, let's try to prevent one in the future. Ketodiastix, I think they are called, check both ketones and sugar or just get plain ketone strips, the pharmacy should be able to point them out to you. We can help you when you're ready to try them out.

Have you read up on hypoglycemia, the sticky about keeping a hypo took kit? It's always good to have honey or corn syrup on hand, plus dry food and higher carb gravy canned food, just in case blood sugar goes too low.

Looking forward to learning more about you and Stinky.
 
Welcome Allen!

Welcome to the board you never wanted to see! This is an amazing bunch of people. There is plenty of information and support is available around the clock.

AccuChek Aviva is my meter choice for my 7 diabetic cats and also for myself. It is small, quick and accurate, although the strips may cost a little more. Great support as long as you register it for a human and don't mention cats.

As Jennifer said be sure to pick up the ketostix when you get your meter. As to food, Binky's List will give you lots of options under 10% carbs. Since you are in a transition phase, some kitten canned like ProPlan chicken or Wellness kitten food might help. The other one I've used to tempt them is Merrick's Cowboy Cookout which is higher in protein than most canned foods. It is the nutrient equivalent of a mouse so they say.

Try sprinkling parmasaen cheese or FortiFlora lightly on the canned food. Will entice the cat to eat.

I am aware of someone living fairly near you. If you would like, I will PM her to contact you. Let me know.

Good luck with the sugar dance with your kitty,

Claudia
 
hi there, just wanted to say welcome!

if you find you need any local help, post and put something like "help in San Jose/Santa Cruz, CA" in your subject line.

i know there's several members up your way, chriscleo and Lisa & Merlyn are closer to san francisco if i remember correctly but Carol & Yoshi is in Santa Cruz (that's not too far away is it?) along with Howdygirl in the San Jose area 'cept I think she moved? not sure on that one. either way if you put it in your subject line, they will see it :-)
 
Ain't that the truth! When the vet told us he was diabetic and in such bad shape, we literally could not believe it at first. After searching the Internet and landing here, it started to sink in. Reading other people's stories and following their progress from shock to ownership has helped us find our way through this. This forum is fantastic!

Stinky would not eat at the vets so they released him to us hoping he would eat at home. He didn't. They gave us some appetite stimulant pills which seems to work but they made him very edgy and cranky so we stopped them. He continues to eat on his own but needs prompting sometimes. Hopefully we will find some wet food soon that appeals to him.

Thanks for your advice! I will try the diet suggestions and if we are unable to home test him, I may have to take you up on your offer for someone locally to help. I have a feeling it will be okay though since he doesn't mind the injections one bit and I'm not squeamish about drawing a bit of blood from him. If it were my own finger, I would pass out instantly!



cjleo said:
Welcome Allen!

Welcome to the board you never wanted to see! This is an amazing bunch of people. There is plenty of information and support is available around the clock.

AccuChek Aviva is my meter choice for my 7 diabetic cats and also for myself. It is small, quick and accurate, although the strips may cost a little more. Great support as long as you register it for a human and don't mention cats.

As Jennifer said be sure to pick up the ketostix when you get your meter. As to food, Binky's List will give you lots of options under 10% carbs. Since you are in a transition phase, some kitten canned like ProPlan chicken or Wellness kitten food might help. The other one I've used to tempt them is Merrick's Cowboy Cookout which is higher in protein than most canned foods. It is the nutrient equivalent of a mouse so they say.

Try sprinkling parmasaen cheese or FortiFlora lightly on the canned food. Will entice the cat to eat.

I am aware of someone living fairly near you. If you would like, I will PM her to contact you. Let me know.

Good luck with the sugar dance with your kitty,

Claudia
 
Thank you!

Cindy + Mousie said:
hi there, just wanted to say welcome!

if you find you need any local help, post and put something like "help in San Jose/Santa Cruz, CA" in your subject line.

i know there's several members up your way, chriscleo and Lisa & Merlyn are closer to san francisco if i remember correctly but Carol & Yoshi is in Santa Cruz (that's not too far away is it?) along with Howdygirl in the San Jose area 'cept I think she moved? not sure on that one. either way if you put it in your subject line, they will see it :-)
 
His personality. He's such a stinker. Our other cats can't stand him. Haha.

There we go! Thanks for the spreadsheet link. I will publish it later if we can get some readings. Wish us luck. :smile:

tuckers mom said:
Stinky is so handsome. How did he get his name?

There is a spreadsheet most folks use, but I think there have been some problems with Google recently.

Here's the link to how to create one, hopefully others can let us know if there is something more recent:
http://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=18207
 
Hi Allen!

There have been problems with the spreadsheet lately, so if you can't get it to work in the link above, try these instructions to get the spreadsheet: http://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=46476&p=499037#p499037, and then follow the instructions for putting it in your signature in the link above.

To answer one of your questions, yes, there is a dosing protocol with Lantus. You can find that here: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=1581

I would also urge you to check out the stickies in the Lantus forum, because there's a lot of really useful information there: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewforum.php?f=9

Once you start testing and get your spreadsheet up and running, you can post there for dosing advice if you need it. There are very experienced Lantus users there that can help you out!
 
Welcome!!
Stinky - what a great name! And what a handsome guy (but then I have an affinity for black cats :-D )
Just one word of advice from me - don't get discouraged while you learn to poke. The ear flaps tend to 'learn' how to bleed (I can't get blood out of Jesse's right ear to save my life :-D )

So glad you found us and looking forward to seeing Stinky get back to his gorgeous self!
 
Tons of information there! Will take me a bit to digest all of that.

Thank you!

Julia & Bandit said:
Hi Allen!

There have been problems with the spreadsheet lately, so if you can't get it to work in the link above, try these instructions to get the spreadsheet: http://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=46476&p=499037#p499037, and then follow the instructions for putting it in your signature in the link above.

To answer one of your questions, yes, there is a dosing protocol with Lantus. You can find that here: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=1581

I would also urge you to check out the stickies in the Lantus forum, because there's a lot of really useful information there: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewforum.php?f=9

Once you start testing and get your spreadsheet up and running, you can post there for dosing advice if you need it. There are very experienced Lantus users there that can help you out!
 
if you go for the relion, get either the micro or confirm. they take less blood than the older one(ultima) and sip so much faster
 
Thanks! I was going to pass along your compliment to Stinky, but he couldn't tear himself away from the mirror to be bothered. :lol:

I was just reading your spreadsheet on Jesse. Am I reading that correctly, that he was off insulin for almost two years?!?! What causes a relapse? Is it just one-of-those-things that we never get to know? Fantastic job with Jesse!


carolyn & jesse said:
Welcome!!
Stinky - what a great name! And what a handsome guy (but then I have an affinity for black cats :-D )
Just one word of advice from me - don't get discouraged while you learn to poke. The ear flaps tend to 'learn' how to bleed (I can't get blood out of Jesse's right ear to save my life :-D )

So glad you found us and looking forward to seeing Stinky get back to his gorgeous self!
 
Did you get cyproheptadine from the vet as an appetite stimulant?
It does make some cats hyper-active.

There is another one, Mirtazapine, which you only give every 3 days. Ask your vet
about that.

Other things to try:
- Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top of food.
- Put a dab of chicken baby food on top of other food...smear it around so he must dig it out.
- Get freeze-driedpure-meat chicken treats in the DOG section of a pet-food place. (Dog treats are cheaper, but same
thing as they sell for cats). Chop it up find and sprinkle the 'dust' on top of his food. Again, push it
down in a bit so he has to dig a bit.


Gotta chuckle that you live in Los Gatos---Spanish for "The Cats"

The name Los Gatos is Spanish, meaning the cats. The name derives from the 1839 Alta California land-grant that encompassed the area, which was called La Rinconada de Los Gatos, ("Cat's Corner"), where "the cats" refers to the cougars that are indigenous to the foothills in which the town is located. The name has been anglicized to /lɔːs ˈɡætəs/ (lawss-gat-əs),[1] although one also hears pronunciations truer to the original Spanish, /loʊsˈɡɑːtoʊs/ (lohss-gah-tohss).
 
Yes, Jesse was OTJ (off the juice) for quite awhile. With Jesse, I'll probably never know why he's back on the insulin (except that he is pretty tubby now :oops: ) Other reasons are infections (especially dental) and steroid use. There are several of us back after being OTJ. That's okay though, it's just going to take a little longer to get him OTJ again ;-)

You can learn a lot by reading spreadsheets (when you're ready!) Plus all the "stickies" in the Lantus group.

Good luck with the pokies (meaning poking Stinky's ear :smile: )
 
Just got back from WallyWorld with ReliOn micro, Ketone strips, and lancing strips. Here we go!

dian and wheezer said:
if you go for the relion, get either the micro or confirm. they take less blood than the older one(ultima) and sip so much faster
 
Yes, it was cyproheptadine but he is no longer taking them and seems to be eating enough now. My wife works from home and is able to feed him every hour or so as he will eat if prompted. I just got some Fancy Feast and will try that tonight with some parmesan cheese.

Stinky loves the freeze dried chicken and we do buy it in the dog section of our pet store. He eats quite a bit of the dried chicken on his own.

Los Gatos is a cat-loving town with many statues of our friends around. There are also some big kitties running around in the foothills that will gladly devour our pets if given the opportunity. We see wild cats like mountain lions and bobcats on our local trails. Very cool creatures!

Karen & Smokey(GA) said:
Did you get cyproheptadine from the vet as an appetite stimulant?
It does make some cats hyper-active.

There is another one, Mirtazapine, which you only give every 3 days. Ask your vet
about that.

Other things to try:
- Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top of food.
- Put a dab of chicken baby food on top of other food...smear it around so he must dig it out.
- Get freeze-driedpure-meat chicken treats in the DOG section of a pet-food place. (Dog treats are cheaper, but same
thing as they sell for cats). Chop it up find and sprinkle the 'dust' on top of his food. Again, push it
down in a bit so he has to dig a bit.


Gotta chuckle that you live in Los Gatos---Spanish for "The Cats"

The name Los Gatos is Spanish, meaning the cats. The name derives from the 1839 Alta California land-grant that encompassed the area, which was called La Rinconada de Los Gatos, ("Cat's Corner"), where "the cats" refers to the cougars that are indigenous to the foothills in which the town is located. The name has been anglicized to /lɔːs ˈɡætəs/ (lawss-gat-əs),[1] although one also hears pronunciations truer to the original Spanish, /loʊsˈɡɑːtoʊs/ (lohss-gah-tohss).
 
Welcome! You are doing great! I have been here for 2 months and have gotten lots of help from the great group here. I use the Relion micro and actually need to go get more strips! I use 28 gauge lancets that I bought at Target. The needle is "capped" which you pull off and can get back on before putting it in the biohazzard container (alos from Wal-Mart). Changed his food to Wellness & Evo - buy both from pet Supermarket and Wellness only at Pet Smart. I have been wary of going back to Fancy Feast, since Cedric was eating that before (with Blu Buffalo Weight control - he's about 17 lbs and almost 6).

great to hear your wife works at home. She could do a curve on Stinky! I have taken Cedric to work to do them, but not everyone has an office that can allow that.

beautiful photos! My dad has a black cat nammed Sammy (and I can't figure out why HE'S not diabetic, he's so over fed!). My co-worker terry has a diabetic black cat, but has issues testing his ears. Maybe a flashlight might help. I stink at getting blood from cedric's ear myself!

Again Welcome!
 
Hi and welcome! We're neighbors as I'm just over the hill in Santa Cruz. When I saw your Los Gatos sign in name, I had a feeling you were there so had to check, lol.
 
Thanks! I was just reading Cedric's spreadsheet. Amazing! Congratulations, that must feel sooo good! I know what you mean about Sammy, as our other cat, Batman, is 18yo and heavy. He's only ever eaten dry food and has always been healthy. We've recently transitioned him to wet food after learning more about diabetes though.

So, we just did our first home testing which went pretty good. Got the sample on the 2nd try and Stinky didn't seem to mind a bit. He's clicker-trained so the noise of the lancet didn't affect him. Yay!

His 12hr PM reading was 400 and I entered it into his spreadsheet. I'm surprised how high his BG is but feel a sense of relieve knowing what his true BG level is. I guess from here, I need to study the protocol and decide what to do next. I'm thinking of doing a curve this weekend.

He wouldn't touch the Fancy Feast, even with parmesan cheese or bonita flakes. Oh well...

Any suggestions are welcome!

doombuggy said:
Welcome! You are doing great! I have been here for 2 months and have gotten lots of help from the great group here. I use the Relion micro and actually need to go get more strips! I use 28 gauge lancets that I bought at Target. The needle is "capped" which you pull off and can get back on before putting it in the biohazzard container (alos from Wal-Mart). Changed his food to Wellness & Evo - buy both from pet Supermarket and Wellness only at Pet Smart. I have been wary of going back to Fancy Feast, since Cedric was eating that before (with Blu Buffalo Weight control - he's about 17 lbs and almost 6).

great to hear your wife works at home. She could do a curve on Stinky! I have taken Cedric to work to do them, but not everyone has an office that can allow that.

beautiful photos! My dad has a black cat nammed Sammy (and I can't figure out why HE'S not diabetic, he's so over fed!). My co-worker terry has a diabetic black cat, but has issues testing his ears. Maybe a flashlight might help. I stink at getting blood from cedric's ear myself!

Again Welcome!
 
Hi neighbor!!

We're always in Santa Cruz for mountain biking. Usually UC, Wilder, or Coe. Beautiful there!

Carol & Yoshi said:
Hi and welcome! We're neighbors as I'm just over the hill in Santa Cruz. When I saw your Los Gatos sign in name, I had a feeling you were there so had to check, lol.
 
Allen,

Glad Carol and Yoshi caught up with you Gives you local support.

Hope your dracula attempt goes well today. Welcome to the vampire club. Any problems, let us know. We have lots of tricks.

Claudia
 
Thanks Claudia. So cool and comforting to have Carol and Yoshi as neighbors.

This morning's test went fine and I updated the spreadsheet. Stinky tested negative for ketones too.

I'm studying the protocol now and figuring out what the next steps are. :smile:
 
Hi Allen, glad the testing went good - you've gotten over one big hurdle!

It's good that you will be reading the Lantus protocol (read all you can, I say :-D ). One thing to note is that when beginning with insulin, you want to hold the initial dose for 5-7 days in order for the "shed" to fill. Once the shed is filled, Lantus has an overlapping effect and needs dosing consistency.

Whenever you feel conforrtable, go ahead and start posting in the Lantus group; that's where you'll get the most specific dosing help. If you check out some of the posts, you can see the way we set up our "condos" - one condo per day.
 
losgatos-cats said:
Thanks! I was just reading Cedric's spreadsheet. Amazing! Congratulations, that must feel sooo good! I know what you mean about Sammy, as our other cat, Batman, is 18yo and heavy. He's only ever eaten dry food and has always been healthy. We've recently transitioned him to wet food after learning more about diabetes though.

OMG! My co-worker's black diabetic cat is named Batman!!!
 
Yeah, your name drew me in too - I'm in Morgan Hill. PM me if I can help! It sounds like there are some others around here too... maybe it's time for a mini-Reunion! :mrgreen: (or first meeting I guess!)
 
Yup! Stinky has been on insulin for a little over 7 days now and is really starting to act and look like his old self again. :smile: Thanks for the encouragement.


carolyn & jesse said:
Hi Allen, glad the testing went good - you've gotten over one big hurdle!

It's good that you will be reading the Lantus protocol (read all you can, I say :-D ). One thing to note is that when beginning with insulin, you want to hold the initial dose for 5-7 days in order for the "shed" to fill. Once the shed is filled, Lantus has an overlapping effect and needs dosing consistency.

Whenever you feel conforrtable, go ahead and start posting in the Lantus group; that's where you'll get the most specific dosing help. If you check out some of the posts, you can see the way we set up our "condos" - one condo per day.
 
Hey, another South Bay cat lover!

Joanna & Bix (GA) said:
Yeah, your name drew me in too - I'm in Morgan Hill. PM me if I can help! It sounds like there are some others around here too... maybe it's time for a mini-Reunion! :mrgreen: (or first meeting I guess!)
 
Motor and I are in San Jose! Not that I'm much help at this point, but it is good to know there are a few of us close together!

jaimie
 
We just wanted to thank everyone here at FDMB for the fantastic advice and help you've given us. This forum is such a great resource, filled with kind and generous people that are willing to take time out of their day to help other cat-lovers. I truly believe that without your help Stinky would still be chowing dry food and enduring daily pokes and injections. Yesterday was Stinky's 14th day OTJ and he continues to look and act better than he has in years! He is so much more active and peppy now that we are just amazed every time we see him romping around and acting like a kitten. Big lesson for us that we need to put as much care into our pet's diet as we do for ourselves. Duh!

Good with the bad they say. Last week our older cat, Batman, was diagnosed with CRF. We caught it in the early stages and have him on a regimen of meds and sub-Qs to help him feel better. With some care and luck, we are hoping to prolong our time together while making him feel more comfortable. He's 17yo and we've had some great times together, but hoping for just a bit more.

So once again, THANK YOU!

stinky-1-M.jpg
 
NICE Stinky is OTJ! Amazing what can happen with a good diet, eh? Leaves you with more time for your CRF guy and mountain biking :-D

Yoshi was also fortunate in needing insulin for only 6 weeks before going OTJ. I'm so happy for you!
 
Hi Everyone!

It's been 4 years with Stinky OTJ!

Unfortunately, he's back on Lantus as of this morning. We're not exactly sure why or what happened, but the vet thinks it may be related to some dental disease. The vet said that it could be causing his BG to rise as he tested at 250 this morning.

So, we took him in for an antibiotic shot and are giving him insulin again with the hope of bringing his BG down so that he can have dental surgery. It's very confusing for us at this point.

I've updated his spreadsheet and hopefully we can get him back OTJ again.
 
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