I'm so scared...my Dweezil has Diabetes

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Since you're having so much trouble with the blood testing, can you get some KetoDiaStix from the pharmacy and test his urine?
It isn't as precise as blood glucose, but you will know if either glucose or ketones have spilled into the urine since the previous void, and that is good to know. Ketones, if more than a trace, can indicate diabetic ketoacidosis, a medical emergency, and glucose spilling is an indicator of less control than you may want. See my signature link Secondary Monitoring Tools for tips on tesing urine, plus other assessments.
There is an older protocol using water drunk, and urine testing, plus vet data to adjust insulin doses.
 
If you're freehanding with the lancet, try going in at an angle. Double-check that you have the lancet the right way round - bevelled side facing upwards. Try warming the ear even longer (it felt like it took forever to warm Saoirse's ear enough in the early days).
 
Dweezy's ear was SO hot when we have tried testing him, as he was in the sun. :) He mustn't be a bleeder. I think he was holding onto his blood on purpose. LOL.

Anyway, we are going to get some urine sticks on the weekend and do that, and also try his ear again on Wednesday.

Ahh, and yes, Lyn, we can definitely AFFORD to book him in for the whole day at the vet for a proper curve...he DID actually go to the vet three weeks ago at 8am, to be picked up at 5.30pm, but...they got the first test...and then that's it. They put him in the cat ward out the back between testings, and when they came back for the second one, he freaked out, had what they called a major psychotic episode, was bashing himself against his cage, screaming and yowling, hissing, frothing, and had soiled himself and the walls of his cage with both pee and poop, from the intense fear he was experiencing. Whenever anyone came into the doorway, or he heard their voices just outside the doorway, he'd start screaming. They couldn't get near him.

My partner and her mum went to pick him up at 5.30pm and were given a large dog cage to bring home with him for everyone's safety if he was still freaking out. Once he left the cat ward, he was ok though. Very anxious (when he got home, he was sniffing my face all over and HUGELY clingy, with all wide black eyes) but calm. He was fine since then. No issues.

But this is why we are so concerned, because we don't know anything. He never got a curve done. We can't get any blood from his ear.

I think our options are...

1. Just keep trying the ear, keep him plied with endless treats, and also use the urine sticks
2. Get our vet to come to our house and take blood from the leg vein (I have heard that this is much less traumatic than trying endlessly to get blood from an ear if it's not working, and also taking blood from the neck vein)
3. Take him to the vet (which we are in 10 days anyway for his annual checkup and vaccinations), have them try to get blood from him (not the ear) and if that works and he's not freaked out, see if they can somehow do a proper curve WITHOUT him being put in that cat ward.

He's freaked out in similar ways before when he's seen neighbourhood cats outside our balcony doors / windows. He hasn't been SO scared, but he screams and you can't calm him until the cats have gone. He then will get scared and attack his brother Monty if he gets too close, as he doesn't recognise him. We once had to separate them for 8 days. We have had wrapping paper stuck to the bottom half of our windows for the last two years so he can't see any other cats. We are on the ground floor in an apartment block and cannot stop other cats from walking by or sitting on our balcony (the other day a little girl cat was grooming herself on our bench on the balcony. I had to quickly shut the glass doors and draw the curtains so Dweezy wouldn't see her. I can't go out there and shoo her away as then my boys will get out, especially as they'll want to see who's out there).

So maybe being in the cat ward with other cats nearby, being uncomfortable, having blood drawn, being shaved on his neck, and also remembering his previous times there (he'd been there before for surgery on his nose as well as his cornea, as he had been scratching them both due to a skin irritation), was just too much for him, poor little boy. He is ok in the other areas of the vet. The waiting room with other cats (in cages) and dogs...the vet consultation room he's ok. He's also fine when he goes to the cattery whenever we go away. He's been going there for six years with his brother. They can't see the other cats there, but they can hear them.

Anyway...yeah. lol
 
Thank you so much.

So if urine glucose is 3, we are safe to up his dose from 1 unit (every 12 hours) to 1.5 units? I actually feel (based on some knowledge and intuition about my baby) that 1.5 units would be ideal for him. He was on 2 units for the first week. Got his blood glucose down from 35 (off the charts) to 13. And that 13 was taken at the vet on the day of the failed curve where he freaked out, so his levels were likely lower. Because of this, we reduced the dose to 1 unit.

That was about three weeks ago, and over the past week, he's lost 100 grams, his fur doesn't look QUITE as lush as it did the two weeks prior, he's eating more, drinking more and peeing more. Otherwise he seems like a happy cat. But yes...I feel that his levels have risen and 1.5 units would be great for him.

Do the urine sticks show the measurement in terms of 1-4? Will they show anything if there are no ketones though? We don't want to increase his dose if it's not needed (though I think it is).
 
KetoStix test only for ketones.
DiaStix test only for glucose.
KetoDiaStix test for both.
They typically have a set of color ranges for comparison, which might be categorized as 1, 2, etc.
There are generic versions of these. You may have to find them online.

We suggest dose adjustments be in the 0.25 (eyeballed) unit amounts so you don't miss an optimal dose.
 
You need to measure the water you put down and subtract what is left when you refill it at least daily, if not twice daily, in addition to the urine testing.
See my signature link Secondary Monitoring Tools for some tips on these assessments, as well as other checks you may wish to make, such as dehydration.
 
I had a look at that link before, and was pleased to see that Dweezil is good with his neck skin hydration levels, and his 5 Ps are all good.

We have two water bowls that both cats use (though Dweezil uses one 70% of the time and Monty uses the other about 70% of the time) and have been meaning to start monitoring Dweezil's one. We refill it three times a day as both tend to slop a bit over the edge when drinking. We will have to put a wide dish down underneath to catch that slopped water and add it to the water left UN-drunk, when measuring.
 
Just read your post about Dweezil's day at the vets'. Poor little fella! :( It's awful to feel really, reallly scared like that. (((Dweezil)))

I really hope that you'll get a breakthrough with testing soon.
 
Thank you! I think the vets there think he's a highly anxious individual. But he really isn't! He is SO smart and very aware of things, but he's relaxed at home. He just doesn't like being out of his comfort zone. He pants in the taxi going to the vet. He is ok in the waiting room there. Once a huge dog came up and sniffed at Dweezil's cage and Dwee didn't bat an eyelid, heheh. He's good in the consultation room too. He wanders...rubs his face on the computer keyboard...explores the stuff on the desk. Head butts us.

When he's at home, in Summer he likes to stretch out on the glass coffee table and also lay beside the balcony doors for the nice breeze. In Winter he always snuggles on the couch with me. Usually at my feet where he licks the top of my ankles and feet, heheh. It's a glorious foot massage. lol. If I wear a certain fluffy shirt type thing, he comes up into my arms for snuggles (I often wear that shirt. In fact, I always do, just so he'll come for snuggles. lol)
 
Aw, bless! He's a real sweetie. :D

Thanks for telling us more about Dweezil. It's lovely to hear about more than just the BG numbers. I love getting to know the kitties here, albeit from afar. :) I even give scritches to their avatars. (What am I like!)
 
HAHAHA!! I love that!!

At my work desk here, I've got several pics of my babies pinned up in my cubicle, and I sometimes kiss my hand and touch their faces. We are so lame, but who cares!? LOL

I wish I could upload my pic here as my avatar, but it won't let me as the pics are all too big. I can't shrink them down tiny enough!
 
:D

It'd be lovely to see a pic of Dweezil. There are a lot of sites online where you can resize images. I normally resize images locally on my PC, but I've recently tried using FotoFlexer - a free online tool for photo editing. It's quite intuitive and easy to use. Maybe you could upload Dweezil's pic and crop/resize it there or on a similar site?
 
Thank you! I will try it. I have managed to resize my pics down a lot, but just can't get them quite to the tiny miniscule under 10kb that the site needs. They start out as about 3000kb! By the time they get down to 20kb they're all distorted and so small they look like one single pixel. lol
 
OH! It worked!!! I did it a different way. Went through another avenue to get to my avatar and didn't even have to resize it! WOO HOO! There are my beautiful babies, touching paws on the couch, and on top of my shirt and socks. Monty loves laying on the socks and that's Dweezy's top. Dweezy is the gray and Monty is the ginger, heheh.
 
monty_dweezil said:
OH! It worked!!! I did it a different way. Went through another avenue to get to my avatar and didn't even have to resize it! WOO HOO! There are my beautiful babies, touching paws on the couch, and on top of my shirt and socks. Monty loves laying on the socks and that's Dweezy's top. Dweezy is the gray and Monty is the ginger, heheh.
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They're gorgeous cats ! I can't put an avatar on here either, nothing works !
 
I've just read your post about Dweezil's day at the vet as well , poor little boy, he got himself in a right state :(

I think your idea of the vet coming to the house might be better , & perhaps taking blood from somewhere else.

Squiggles loathes the vet, she poos in her carrier every time we take her, & goes ballistic if they try & take blood from her neck :(
 
LynRich said:
They're gorgeous cats ! I can't put an avatar on here either, nothing works !
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Hi Lyn,

There is a post in the Suggestions, Tech Support, Testing Forum about Avatars. Link to that post is here. If you still have problems getting an avatar up, post a thread in that forum to ask for help.

Here's what I said to someone else:

It's much much easier to add a picture now as your Avatar. No need to shrink the picture down to 90x90 pixels. I simply used a picture from my Pictures folder on my computer, moved it around a bit, and saved it as my new Avatar. I love the fact that the resolution is so much better. In fact, the reason I put up a new picture was because the old Avatar was looking a bit "fuzzy" with the new software.

1. Click on your User name in the upper right hand corner.
2. Select "Avatar" from the drop down list, 7th down on the left side.
3. A window pops up, asking you to "Choose a File"
4. Clicking on the "Choose a File" text took me to my Pictures library on my computer.
5. Select the picture you want to use.
6. Click Okay to confirm and you're done.

Sorry to take up space in Dweezil's post, but Conversation wasn't giving me a reply option to answer LynRich privately.
 
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monty_dweezil said:
Poor little babies. I just wish we could tell them they'll be ok. I love them all.
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:bighug:

As they start feeling better, it's amazing the way that they realise all the poking and prodding has something to do with it, and it can bring them even closer to us. And they really do understand the praise and reassurance you give them. They know when they are loved. :)
 
Bah. We couldn't try it. My partner got home late due to the buses being stupid, so i had to give Dweez his insulin quite a while before she got home. We'll try tomorrow.
 
Some ya sure do! :)

Hopefully today might be more pleasant. We will all get a reward afterwards for this test, regardless of whether it's successful. Dweezil will get his delicious dinner, and we will get to go out for a delicious dinner at a restaurant around the corner from our place. LOL. Woo.
 
Yay! Treats all round! Have a grand time. :)

Treats for trying to test are just as important as treats for successful tests.
 
Oh I know!!! For him, a failed test and a successful test are the same in terms of the experience. It's only a benefit for us and for him in the long term.

We give him treats a while before we even start getting ready for the test, as we click the pen near his ear and give yet more treats (thank god they're low carb!!! lol), and show him the freehand lancet and give treats.

Then we get ready, have him jump up on the washing machine (it's the easiest accessible place for us and him), have the treats in my partner's pocket, the Accu-Chek on the washing machine, ready with strip half inserted, the pen and lancet ready, and Dweezil...not happy. lol. After every attempt, he gets treats. And he always jumps down to have his treats, but then he will also always jump back up of his own accord to try again (well. For us it's so we can try again. For him it's to get yet MORE treats! lol)
 
Hi monty_dweezil! Just popping in to say hi, I'm in Brisbane :)

We had heaps of trouble testing Rupert when we were first starting out too, I could poke him but couldn't get any blood. It was so frustrating, I will admit to having tantrums and Rupert hated it just as much. I watched heaps of youtube videos on testing cats and we finally got the hang of it, Rupert still doesn't like it obviously but we all do much better with it, plus he gets a treat afterwards which is a massive bonus. Rupert is also a difficult patient at the vet but fortunately hasn't had a breakdown like poor Dweezil, testing him is a two person job though.

All I can say is approach it calmly and try not to stress, I know that's easier said than done! You will get the hang of it though, plus you have the added bonus of all the amazing helpful people here.
 
Thank you so much!

We will indeed keep trying. I think it'd be easier if after the initial prick, dweezy didn't jerk back so violently. We seem to need 3 people. 2 to hold him and 1 to do the lancing!

I love the name Rupert for a cat!! It is so adorable!
 
I forgot! Some people sing to their kitties at testing time. :)

I tend to speak in a very upbeat, sing-songy, 'this is fun!!' tone to Saoirse when I'm testing her.
 
Oh, I do that too. I often sing to my babies normally just cause I love singing. lol. And they love hearing it. (they don't really. Sometimes they walk off) LOL
 
monty_dweezil said:
Oh I know!!! For him, a failed test and a successful test are the same in terms of the experience. It's only a benefit for us and for him in the long term.

We give him treats a while before we even start getting ready for the test, as we click the pen near his ear and give yet more treats (thank god they're low carb!!! lol), and show him the freehand lancet and give treats.

Then we get ready, have him jump up on the washing machine (it's the easiest accessible place for us and him), have the treats in my partner's pocket, the Accu-Chek on the washing machine, ready with strip half inserted, the pen and lancet ready, and Dweezil...not happy. lol. After every attempt, he gets treats. And he always jumps down to have his treats, but then he will also always jump back up of his own accord to try again (well. For us it's so we can try again. For him it's to get yet MORE treats! lol)
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Monty Dweezil, it sounds as if you're getting there with the blood testing ! It's taken us until the end of the 3 round of two hourly all day blood testing to get the routine right & even then we have mishaps. You're doing very well, HUGS to all of you, including Dweezil of course !

I was such a nervous wreck at the end of the first blood testing day I had to have a large gin & tonic !
 
20140921_155132.jpg
Dweezy can't wait for his new ziwipeak low carb wet food to arrive. He wants to go and pick it up himself and is ready to go shopping. Lol
 
Can you believe it's been just a bit more than a month since you joined FDMB? You have learned so much in that short time. I was reading back over this post, and I can see how much calmer and in control you feel with being able to help Dweezil and help him to feel better.

Keep up the good work!:D:joyful::D:joyful:

Hope Dweezil keeps getting better and better.

He is he doing on his weight?
 
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