Help at my wits end

Kya’s Mom 1983

Kya’s Mom 1983

Member
took Pre shot 328. Ate most of her breakfast so I decided to give her 1.5 units. So far so good until 1000 got down to 77 now I just took it at 11 it’s 53. At 77 I even gave her temptations treats to try to boost back up. What am I doing wrong.
 
Novolin insulin tends to work fast and bring numbers down quick which is why you see the big drop so soon after the shot. The nadir ( lowest number) "typically" is betwen +4-+6 (each kitty is different though) so she "may" drop a bit more. She may also already be at the nadir point but you would need to test again.

If you have any higher carb wet food..something with gravy...give her a bit of that. Retest again and if the numbers are still dropping you could give her a drop of karo, honey, pancake syrup etc on her gums. This should bring the numbers up quickly, but doesn't last long so a higher carb food should be given.


The best approach would be to only give 1 unit at each shot ( every 12 hours) and see how Kya responds to that.


ETA The preshot was so high because of doing only one shot each day. Kya has no insulin coverage for the 12 hours before the AM preshot test. Doing 2 shots daily at 12 hour intervals will keep the numbers from going so high.
 
Have you done another test and if so how long since the +4 test is it?

Will she eat the Fancy Feast? You can always give a small spoonful of FF with a drop of syrup of whatever kind. You only need to do this if the numbers are still dropping.
 
Novolin is an 'in and out' insulin. Once the effects of this shot are wearing off, the numbers should start rising on their own.

The 1.5 unit dose is dropping Kya's numbers too fast, which is why the suggestion of starting with 1 unit at each shot was given. By giving two doses each day it will keep the numbers from getting so high. You can try doing 1 unit TWICE each day and judge from there whether she needs more or less.
 
I gave honey by itself a little bit ago. Just tested again and at 73. The only thing I can get her to eat right now is the temptations treats. I’m giving her a bunch of those so I’m hoping it will help. They are high carb. I’m also gonna call around for a new vet I think. She wasn’t having this problem till they told me to up her to 3 units.
 
Kya’s Mom 1983 said:
I gave honey by itself a little bit ago. Just tested again and at 73. The only thing I can get her to eat right now is the temptations treats. I’m giving her a bunch of those so I’m hoping it will help. They are high carb. I’m also gonna call around for a new vet I think. She wasn’t having this problem till they told me to up her to 3 units.
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Honey will usually wear off in about 15-30 minutes. The Temptations are high carb and will keep he numbers up. You should only give a few high carbs treats at a time so that they don't spike the numbers too much and so that Kya will still be hungry if you need to give more. The numbers are not in any sort of danger zone so you don't have to worry about that. You might want to test again at +6 to get more data on how the novolin works with Kya.

The problem with the dosing your vet has advised is that novolin is NOT meant to only be given once a day with kitties. The duration of novolin in kitties does not last much more than about 10 hours ( again..every kitty is different). By not giving a second dose Kya is spending half her time with no insulin assistance, which is what is causing the numbers to get so high by the morning. To keep Kya safe the best approach is to do 1 unit TWICE a day and monitor her responses. If she is still too high then increases of 0.25 unit can be done. Dosing changes would be based on how high the preshot is how low the nadir is. However this DOES require twice daily shots.
 
Some information from the AAHA (American Animal Hospital Association:

"NPH (U-100 human recombinant; Neutral Protamine Hagedorn Humulin N, Lilly or Novulin N, Novo Nordisk) is an intermediate-acting insulin that is used in dogs. The Task Force does not recommend use of this insulin in cats due to its short duration of action. The duration of action of NPH in dogs is often <12 hr. "

https://www.aaha.org/guidelines/diabetes_guidelines/insulin_therapy.aspx


As stated because the duration in kitties is short Novolin is not the first line choice in treating FD. There are other good options available depending on what country you are in. Prozinc..another in and out insulin but with a longer duration, Lantus or Levemir...two long acting insulins are good choices for kitties and have shown good results
 
Kya’s Mom 1983 said:
What about starting with .5 2x a day?
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Certainly!!! You can choose a lower starting dose as long as you do the shots twice daily. You can always increase if the numbers do not show a good enough improvement. It is better to start lower if you are concerned and then raise as you need to.
 
B G has come back up but still concerned that she is not really wanting to eat that much or drink anything. Has only peed 1x today and pooped a couple times. I’m thinking vet visit tomorrow?
 
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