Hope I'm doing this right.

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Ross's mom

Ross's mom

Member Since 2016
I just wanted to say thank you to everyone and Marjie and Gracie for helping me with the spreadsheet were still learning how to do everything over here Ross is doing great with his test I mean not his favorite thing to do but we're learning together, I am a bit concerned at how high his am and pm readings are is this normal for just starting insulin? I will start more regular testing thru the day to see how he does at other times and info or advice is wonderful thanks again.
 
What kind of insulin? Food? It'd be helpful to put that in your signature so we don't ask you each time.

3 units is a high starting dose. We usually suggest starting at one unit and increasing slowly as your data indicates. Did the vet say why he was started on that dose? Is he on meds? Any kind of an infection?
 
Sue and Oliver (GA) said:
What kind of insulin? Food? It'd be helpful to put that in your signature so we don't ask you each time.

3 units is a high starting dose. We usually suggest starting at one unit and increasing slowly as your data indicates. Did the vet say why he was started on that dose? Is he on meds? Any kind of an infection?
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Sorry he's on Royal canin canned cat food his insulin is caninsulin, that's just what the vet told me to do and I'm all very new at this but his numbers are still very high it is only day 10 that we started the new food and insulin so I started to test at home after finding this site about one week in so I don't have much data with numbers for him yet, but I'm hearing good things about lantus and it having a better chance at remission, but I'm just wondering if he's just so high still due to it all being new any input is great!
 
Most Royal Canin is very high in carbohydrates, too much so for a diabetic cat. Your vet probably isn't aware of this; they get very little training on feline nutrition in veterinary school, and when salesmen come to the practice selling food that's "perfect for diabetic cats", the vets say, sure, great, of course we'll stock it! Where are you located? Since your kitty was started on Caninsulin, I am figuring you are not in the US. If we know where you are we can help you with links to low carb canned food that is readily available in your part of the world, that won't cost an arm and a leg!

Caninsulin is one of the harsher, fast-acting insulins. It has two components that work to bring down blood glucose; the first one starts to kick in early in the cycle, and can cause very sudden, steep drops in BG, while the second one works later to affect a slower, smaller drop. Many feel that they don't get a full 12-hour duration from Caninsulin. I used Vetsulin, the US equivalent, for many months; my cat did reasonably well on it, and I did not experience any problems with duration. However, I have recently changed to Lantus and my kitty and I are much happier with it.

Without having more data it is impossible to say why your cat may still have high BG, but I feel pretty certain the Royal Canin may be at least one of the culprits. If you transition your kitty to a low carb diet it needs to be done gradually, mixing portions until kitty has been completely switched to the new food. One very important caveat: you MUST be home testing and in a position to closely monitor your cat during and just after the transition! A cat's BG can drop as many as 200 pts due to this type of diet change. This can result in hypoglycemia, a very serious and potentially deadly condition.

You can learn more from the following links:

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/transitioning-your-cat-from-dry-to-wet-food.956/

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/how-to-treat-hypos-they-can-kill-print-this-out.15887/

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/jojo-and-bunnys-hypo-tool-box.2354/

Kudos to you for mastering home testing so quickly! You are doing a great job! :):):)
 
Ross's mom said:
I am a bit concerned at how high his am and pm readings are is this normal for just starting insulin?
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The bucket-shaped BG response you're getting is typical of Caninsulin. Steep drop, lower for a bit, then steep climb. If the pattern persists I'd suggest asking your vet about switching to a longer-acting, gentler insulin.

How are Ross's clinical signs?


Mogs
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Critter Mom said:
The bucket-shaped BG response you're getting is typical of Caninsulin. Steep drop, lower for a bit, then steep climb. If the pattern persists I'd suggest asking your vet about switching to a longer-acting, gentler insulin.

How are Ross's clinical signs?


Mogs
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He's seems to be doing much better gaining his weight back as he lost alot before I found out he's diabetic he had no other problems as for infection or anything like that, is it going to hurt him jumping up and down in numbers like that today I tested at 3-6 hours after his shot I added it to my spreadsheet today was the Lowest number I have received from him but he's definitely bouncing around. His attitude is great he's a lovely kitty and he's coming back to being my big sucky
 
Squalliesmom said:
Most Royal Canin is very high in carbohydrates, too much so for a diabetic cat. Your vet probably isn't aware of this; they get very little training on feline nutrition in veterinary school, and when salesmen come to the practice selling food that's "perfect for diabetic cats", the vets say, sure, great, of course we'll stock it! Where are you located? Since your kitty was started on Caninsulin, I am figuring you are not in the US. If we know where you are we can help you with links to low carb canned food that is readily available in your part of the world, that won't cost an arm and a leg!

Caninsulin is one of the harsher, fast-acting insulins. It has two components that work to bring down blood glucose; the first one starts to kick in early in the cycle, and can cause very sudden, steep drops in BG, while the second one works later to affect a slower, smaller drop. Many feel that they don't get a full 12-hour duration from Caninsulin. I used Vetsulin, the US equivalent, for many months; my cat did reasonably well on it, and I did not experience any problems with duration. However, I have recently changed to Lantus and my kitty and I are much happier with it.

Without having more data it is impossible to say why your cat may still have high BG, but I feel pretty certain the Royal Canin may be at least one of the culprits. If you transition your kitty to a low carb diet it needs to be done gradually, mixing portions until kitty has been completely switched to the new food. One very important caveat: you MUST be home testing and in a position to closely monitor your cat during and just after the transition! A cat's BG can drop as many as 200 pts due to this type of diet change. This can result in hypoglycemia, a very serious and potentially deadly condition.

You can learn more from the following links:

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/transitioning-your-cat-from-dry-to-wet-food.956/

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/how-to-treat-hypos-they-can-kill-print-this-out.15887/

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/jojo-and-bunnys-hypo-tool-box.2354/

Kudos to you for mastering home testing so quickly! You are doing a great job! :):):)
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I'm in Ontario canada and totally open to finding the right food and treatment I'd love some food suggestions if I'm paying a tonne for food that might not be the best then what's the point I'd rather have something that works well with him . And thanks to all of the ppl here I decided to try my hand at the testing at home and I'm glad I did its not a guessing game now I know for sure how he is!
 
Ross's mom said:
His attitude is great he's a lovely kitty and he's coming back to being my big sucky
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That's a good sign. Some cats, my own included, have a very hard time with the BG roller coaster that Caninsulin treatment can be. Other cats do OK on it.

Ross's mom said:
I decided to try my hand at the testing at home and I'm glad I did its not a guessing game now I know for sure how he is!
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Makes the world of difference, doesn't it! Now that you're testing, Ross will be your best guide to which treatment choices work best for him. :)


Mogs
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Critter Mom said:
That's a good sign. Some cats, my own included, have a very hard time with the BG roller coaster that Caninsulin treatment can be. Other cats do OK on it.


Makes the world of difference, doesn't it! Now that you're testing, Ross will be your best guide to which treatment choices work best for him. :)


Mogs
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I'm hoping he's going to do great I'm trying everything to treat him the best I can the vet is helpful but I have been doing allot of reading and talking with ppl about different options, now just to figure out the right food I know high protein low carbs but I don't seem to know what I'm looking for on the actual can
 
Ross's mom said:
I'm hoping he's going to do great I'm trying everything to treat him the best I can the vet is helpful but I have been doing allot of reading and talking with ppl about different options,
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You've found the best place possible to help you with that: the things I've learned from members here (and also Tanya's Site - Saoirse has early stage renal insufficiency) has made such a difference to my ability to help Saoirse. I'm glad that our vets tend most of the time to work in partnership with me on Saoirse's care, but if I'd had to rely on vet input alone I don't think things would have worked out as well for her. I'm beyond grateful to the people who so generously share their knowledge and experience to help so many kitties.


Mogs
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Ross, there are defiantly some other Canadians that are on this site that can help with Canadian food. If you are close enough to the boarder you can also look at hoping over to the US for ours as well. (FWIW I'm in the reverse and will be crossing for insulin if Fern is ever switched to human Lantus)
 
Mogs posted a Canadian Food Chart above - per the chart, many of the President's Choice cans of cat food could work and are a great price. Another plus - you can earn PC Points (if you collect them). I buy it for my civvie and I've started getting PC Points offers on it every few weeks.

If you do end up switching to Lantus, you can buy it without a prescription in Canada - just ask at the pharmacy counter. I'm in Ontario as well and I found Costco to be the best for both insulin and supplies. Real Canadian Superstore pharmacy was also pretty good.

Hope that helps - best of luck!
 
Another Canadian here from Ontario. The Canadian food chart is great but a word of warning re: the Boreal canned food. It does not have any taurine (unless the formula has changed recently) so while fine for an occasional meal, it is not a complete diet for daily use. Funny enough Boreal's kibble which is WAY too high in carbs but claims to be low glycemic, does have taurine in it.
 
Ok I think I've figured out what kinds of food will be better it's still hard with three cats and feeding but only two weeks in and I'm starting to feel like I can do this just fine having this place is nice to have other ppl that understand what I'm dealing with.
 
Critter Mom said:
Canadian food chart:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet...0KlRA2ZVTk_tYNVRaoG_3Dfy64/edit#gid=964479244

(Not bad going for a UK-based paddy, eh! ;) )


Mogs
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Hey not trying to piggy-back onto this thread but I have a quick question:

Are any of the foods on that list more holisitc/non filler? I know PC is President's Choice so I know that is kind of like Friskies or FF.

I ask because in a year's time when we move back to Canada I'd like to keep Carter on a more premium food. He is in love with Tiki Cat, I'm wondering if I could order it online to Canada as well? Currently ordering from Chewy, pretty sure they only deliver to the US though.
 
I have no idea why FF has got such a bad rap. As far as I am concerned, most FF pates (pates only and depends on the flavour) are just as good as Tikki cat. I have been feeding FF Turkey and Giblets to my cats for years and never had a problem and they have all lived well into their late teens. It's a modestly priced food that does not sound like a chemistry experiment as so many others do. IMHO I think a lot of the new foods such as Tikki are higher priced and nothing more than marketing hype. Where are you moving to in Canada? If you were to go with FF for instance, it's readily available at PetSmart, PetValu and Walmart. Tikki is available at Global Pets. All of these retailers have a lot of locations. PetSmart has online ordering in Canada. Not sure about PetValu and Global.
 
MrWorfMen's Mom said:
I have no idea why FF has got such a bad rap. As far as I am concerned, most FF pates (pates only and depends on the flavour) are just as good as Tikki cat. I have been feeding FF Turkey and Giblets to my cats for years and never had a problem and they have all lived well into their late teens. It's a modestly priced food that does not sound like a chemistry experiment as so many others do. IMHO I think a lot of the new foods such as Tikki are higher priced and nothing more than marketing hype. Where are you moving to in Canada? If you were to go with FF for instance, it's readily available at PetSmart, PetValu and Walmart. Tikki is available at Global Pets. All of these retailers have a lot of locations. PetSmart has online ordering in Canada. Not sure about PetValu and Global.
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I'm moving back home to Vancouver, BC from Alabama.

I just prefer to not feed food with a lot of by-products, corn, soy, etc and always have. Carter (before we adopted him) was on FF and Friskies his whole life and I really don't believe it did his body any good. He was almost 19 pounds when we saved him, which is odd enough because he was extremely neglected and bare. He also has bad skin allergies that drastically improved with a food change, only thing that is still kind of irritated is around his eyes but that's being treated with Vetropolycin gel. But I by no mean that I knock anyone else for their choice in food for their pet. :) Just preference.

Carter had never had wet food and though he tolerates the pate (Merrick, Instinct, etc.) he devours the Tiki Cat. I actually found a forum where people said a couple places sell it (kind of out of the city) but if I can special order large amounts it's no big deal. That Boreal on the list looks promising too but my phone won't load their website lol
 
Boreal looks great but is not a balanced diet. There is no taurine in their canned food....it is in their kibble which while labeled as low glycemic is WAY too high in carbs (29%). The Boreal canned would be fine for the odd meal but not a regular diet.

Obviously in the end it's what your cat will eat and if that happens to be Tiki Cat that's great. I just don't understand why FF has such a reputation when the ingredients are pretty good. There are meat by products in the FF Turkey and Giblets....it's the 3rd ingredient but no soy, corn, grain of any sort or any other fillers. First two ingredients are Turkey and liver. Turkey broth and Poultry giblets are fourth and fifth and then it's just vitamins/minerals. And best of all, no carrageenan which is so prevalent in many of the higher priced "boutique" brands.
 
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