I don't know what all my Kitkat's numbers mean. Help!

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Kitkat mama

Member Since 2016
My beautiful 8 year old Kitkat was diagnosed with Diabetes last April. His numbers have always been high- 400+. He has had weekly visits to dr. and we believed we had it under control. He went from 16 lbs to 11lbs to 16 lbs. In the last week he has lost two lbs. I took him in two days ago and his numbers were LOW. 68 ish. Very scary. Now he is having trouble using his back legs. Haven't given him any insulin today. Went to vet this morning, number was 63 at 7:00 am this morning. He ate at 7:30, no insulin. checked again at 10:30 - 33.
gave corn syrup, food. at 3:23 his number was 22. More corn syrup, food. He is sleeping. Number is now 36. He is Not wanting to drink. He is still pottying. Vet said to keep him eating and drinking every few hours and check blood. Is it true it takes awhile to get him back on schedule. Am I being cruel to him? please help. I am desperate.
Thank you.
 
Hello. What kind of insulin are you using? What kind of meter are you using? How long has it been since his last shot?
 
With low numbers like you are getting, no insulin is warranted. You said he ate at 7;30. How about tonight? With the no drinking, try and water up his food. I put about 1/8 of cup of water in Bubba's meals as he does not drink water anymore. When he was first diagnosed and when he was throwing ketones, he drank a lot.

Keep offering him food as I am sure you are doing. As far as the back legs, it sounds like he has neuropathy which happens sometimes with the diabetes. It is reversible and a lot of peeps here use Zobaline or methylcobalamin both of which you can buy online. The results are amazing from what the beans report.

Can you give us some more information like when was he diagnosed, what insulin was RX and how many units. That will help us to help you.
 
As Bobbie indicated, if your kitty is walking on the hocks of his back legs, he could be suffering from diabetic neuropathy.

Diabetic Neuropathy: Merlin had this condition and it was really severe. The symptoms are walking on their back hocks. Severe conditions may also include their front feet. Merlin could never go more than a couple of steps before sitting down. We had to put down rugs all over the place so he wouldn't slip on the tile. To help this condition is to regulate the diabetes and to give them methyl B12; Zobaline. If you go with another product, you must make sure that there are no sugars. I tried GNC but had to contact the company to ensure they did not put sugar in it. Zobaline is a small pink pill (3mg per day) and can be crushed easily and put in his food. After about six months of Methyl B12, you couldn’t even tell Merlin had diabetic neuropathy. He could run, jump and walk on his tippy toes. Many other cats see results much earlier than six months. Here is a link to Zobaline. http://www.ilifelink.com/zobaline-for_diabetic_cats-3_mg_x_60_tablets.html Here is another source for Methyl B12 at Vita Cost: http://www.vitacost.com/Vitacost-Vitamin-B-12-Methylcobalamin-500-mcg-300-Capsules
 
My concern is if she hasn't had insulin today and her numbers are dropping like that, there may be something else going on

It's not normal for the BG to drop that low if there's no "extra" insulin on board....this may be something more serious
 
@Bobbie And Bubba - Yeah I am still a little concern because I don't know what kind of meter is being used or when the last shot was. So I probably would try to get him up a little higher not knowing all the information.
 
@Kitkat mama -

How long is it since you spoke to the vet?

If I was in your shoes I would want to get my cat physically examined by a vet ASAP. I suggest ringing your vets for an emergency consult and also to ask what to do for Kitkat while you're travelling. Be sure to let the vets know that Kitkat's hind legs were weak and also that he's sleepy.

If you wake him up does he have his normal level of responsiveness when you talk to him? Can you check?



Mogs
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thanks for all the replies. Kitkat has been receiving 10 units of Lantus for the last few months. It fluctuated from 7 - 12 and we finally had a good level at 10 for about two months. His numbers went drastically down on Thursday. He received 3 units at 8 pm on Friday night. He had 7 units this morning and had a doc visit at 8 am this morning. his glucose level was 63. Vet said check him all day as his body has started to produce insulin on its own and for the time being don't give him any. I have checked him 3 times since coming home 9 hours ago. he has had 33, then 22, then 36. I have laced his wet Hills Diet MD food with corn syrup and he is happy to eat. He is also eating a few MD kibbles at a time. He has had a bowel movement and urinated since being home. He does respond to my voice. The vet, whom we both love working with, said that it will take a lil bit to get him through this. When do I know what 'This" is and how long it will last. Thank you SO much.
 
OK....if he had insulin this morning and he's running that low, he's in very dangerous territory, especially with the AlphaTrak

If he were mine, I'd get him to an ER vet that can put him on a glucose drip and monitor him throughout the night

He's on a HUGE dose unless he's been diagnosed with acromegaly or IAA and Lantus can last a lot longer than just 12 hours...You could be fighting to keep him up all night long....and if he start seizing you may not have time to get him to the vet
 
Yes, that's much better but he may drop back down again

Karo brings them up quickly but it wears off quickly too so you'll need to continue testing for at least the next couple of hours
 
Yes please continue to test him. With an AlphaTrak, he shouldn't drop below 68, otherwise, it could be considered hypo. You did a great job catching the low numbers and for giving him karo syrup when you did. Looks like you might be up for a time tonight to ensure his safety. Please keep us posted.
 
Kitkat mama said:
Just checked and his number was 152
Click to expand...
Very relieved to see this update. :)

As Chris says, you need to keep monitoring and giving food/karo as necessary for the next few hours.

I think your vet may well be right that Kitkat's pancreas is getting in on the act.

.
 
You all are SO wonderful. Thank you. I will be keeping you all up to date throughout the night. We live just north of Seattle so it is only 6 pm our time. I will be up all night, but no worries iIf I don't hear back from you all. Sleep well and good luck with marathon, etc. He is drinking water right now. I will do another glucose reading at 7. Seriously, thank you.
 
Other members helped us in similar circumstances. Paying forward is big around here! :)

I'm about to sign off (I'm in the UK).

A couple of thoughts before I go:

1. The weakness in Kitkat's legs could be evidence of a symptomatic hypo. You need to let your vet know about this, and also that Kitkat seemed quite drowsy (plus any other signs or behaviours that seemed a little 'off' today).

2. Also, be aware that frequently cats who have experienced a symptomatic hypo become even more sensitive to insulin. I suggest increased caution when it comes to insulin now; doubly so because of the signs that Kitkat's pancreas may very well be producing more insulin now. I think you definitely need to speak to your vet about what to do regarding insulin, but I would also recommend you ask here for input from experienced members. As Chris said above, Kitkat has been on very high doses of Lantus, and it will take time for the depot to drain. HE MAY BE HIGH AT PRESHOT TEST - but this could be a bounce after the lows (body producing extra glucose to protect Kitkat) and it may also be influenced by the higher carbs he is getting this evening. Now, you very much need to look at how LOW the insulin is taking Kitkat, not what his blood glucose is when his next injection is due. Also, if he does bounce it may take several days for the bounce to clear (takes time for the body to come down from DEFCON 1).

Fingers and paws crossed for plain sailing from here on in. Please keep the BG test result updates coming as you get them: we do worry when we don't hear how things are going. :)


Mogs
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Critter Mom said:
Other members helped us in similar circumstances. Paying forward is big around here! :)

I'm about to sign off (I'm in the UK).

A couple of thoughts before I go:

1. The weakness in Kitkat's legs could be evidence of a symptomatic hypo. You need to let your vet know about this, and also that Kitkat seemed quite drowsy (plus any other signs or behaviours that seemed a little 'off' today).

2. Also, be aware that frequently cats who have experienced a symptomatic hypo become even more sensitive to insulin. I suggest increased caution when it comes to insulin now; doubly so because of the signs that Kitkat's pancreas may very well be producing more insulin now. I think you definitely need to speak to your vet about what to do regarding insulin, but I would also recommend you ask here for input from experienced members. As Chris said above, Kitkat has been on very high doses of Lantus, and it will take time for the depot to drain. HE MAY BE HIGH AT PRESHOT TEST - but this could be a bounce after the lows (body producing extra glucose to protect Kitkat) and it may also be influenced by the higher carbs he is getting this evening. Now, you very much need to look at how LOW the insulin is taking Kitkat, not what his blood glucose is when his next injection is due. Also, if he does bounce it may take several days for the bounce to clear (takes time for the body to come down from DEFCON 1).

Fingers and paws crossed for plain sailing from here on in. Please keep the BG test result updates coming as you get them: we do worry when we don't hear how things are going. :)


Mogs
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Click to expand...
DEFCON 1 !! love it LOL:D
 
Good morning from Seattle. Kitkat made it through the night with Karo Syrup and MD food. His numbers at 6:30 were 210. I haven't given him any insulin today. He has been 150 at 9:00 and 153 at 10:00. This has been a whirl wind of a weekend. I don't recall if my vet said that if his numbers get high again that I should give him some insulin or not. My vet is not an on call vet. I think he would want me to take him to the emergency clinic if I have questions. I did have concerns this morning when his number was 213. If his numbers go above a certain number should I give him some or just wait until tomorrow morning and I will take him to our vet?
I really can't thank you all enough. Each of you, and your responses are what gave me hope last night. I am so very grateful. You all have been such a blessing to Kitkat and myself. Thank you.
 
Generally, we say if they're above 150, they should get insulin.....but when it comes to Kitkat and the crazy high doses he's been on, I wouldn't have the first idea as to how much I'd suggest giving, so it may be best to just wait until you can talk to your vet

Has he ever been diagnosed with acromegaly or IAA? They're special conditions that have to be tested for separately and sent away for results. Usually if we see a cat that's been slowly worked up from a dose of about 1U to over 6U, we'll suggest testing for those two "high dose" conditions.....but the protocols we use here start our cats at between .5 and 1U and then doses are only increased in .25U increments
 
He hasn't ever been diagnosed with anything other than Diabetes. I guess I should just keep checking him numbers and if at regular dinner time he is really high I should give him some. He's so exhausted. He's been limping his way to the litter box, so he's walking as best he can. He's back to purring which is a great sign, or so I would think.
 
wow, poor you and Kitkat!
Such a high dose of insulin warrants questions to the vet: why? Usually there other complications/health issues like acromegaly if you have to give such a huge dose.
I have been so cautious with my cat that I asked the vet to run blood test for IGF-1 just to check for acromegaly although we did not see any signs of that and he was never on high dose of insulin. First test : the number was a little high but not high enough to diagnose this condition but second test was almost within the range so at least we know.
I am sending you best wishes and keeping my fingers crossed for resolving the situation.
Keep us informed, people who advise on this forum are truly amazing, always there for you. And if we all think about you and the health of your cat we are sending those positive vibes which are helping your cat to get better.
Lots of hugs, take care and pass on our love to KitKat.
Marlena
 
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