Increasing Insulin

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DinaD

DinaD

Member Since 2014
We were just told to increase Lucy's insulin from 1 to 2. He is having trouble adjusting to eating on a schedule. So we let him graze again because he was just not eating enough. Yesterday at the vet she was totally against grazing. I am stumped. He only takes a few bites at first then I give him a shot. He will not eat again for a half hour or so. if we take it right away he is hardly eating. We were told to feed him 1 can at breakfast and one at dinner.

I need help, I just feel like I am doing with wrong thing.
 
We only increase insulin doses by .25 or .5 units at a time, depending on the cat's blood sugar readings. Increasing by 1U is a big step. If you testing Lucy's blood sugar at home, then you would know whether it was safe to give that much insulin.

As for feeding, with Lantus you don't have to feed all in one meal. That's necessary with the older harsher short acting insulins like Caninsulin or Humulin. Lantus is a much gentler insulin. Many people here will free feed there kitties, especially if they are grazers. More smaller meals is also easier on their pancreas. It's important that he eat when he is on insulin. What food are you feeding him now?
 
he is eating purina dm plus all the low carb friskies or fancy feast. according to the vet his levels did not go down at all the past 3 weeks
 
Is home testing something you would consider? Here are some tips on how. Kitties blood sugar levels can be a lot more elevated at the vet due to stress so picking a dose from numbers taken at the vet is not the best thing to do.
 
the fructosamine can be elevated due to stress too? i would like to try home testing but i am worried. i am getting so much different conflicting information I just don't know what to do.
 
DinaD said:
the fructosamine can be elevated due to stress too? i would like to try home testing but i am worried. i am getting so much different conflicting information I just don't know what to do.
Click to expand...

The fructosamine test is the average "BG" over the last two weeks and thus is really not affected by vet stress. Just note that the the fructosamine vale is not directly comparable with the blood glucose value.
 
Hello DinaD,

In regards to at home testing....My Vet recommended it and I was not sure that I could do it. But I was able to without much trouble at all. Poor Jack was so sick, he just laid there while I did my thing. He is a trooper. As he felt better, he became a little more frisky but still held still because he knew a treat was coming. Now that I am devoting more attention to Samantha, he just lays there as if to say, What about me?

i would like to try home testing bu...ing information I just don't know what to do.

I do not know what conflicting information you are getting, but if you are getting anything other than support for at home testing so that you can insure that kitty is getting the correct dosage, I say "bunk". I would never dream of giving my kitty insulin without being able to see how he is responding. The threat of Hypoglycemia (going too low) is something that only testing can measure and give you some level of comfort that you are heading in the correct direction.

All the best....
 
Some sort of monitoring at home is essential, unless you want your cat at risk of hypoglycemia, which kills fast, or hyperglycemia, which kills slowly. You have to decide if you're willing to take that risk for your cat.

In my signature link Secondary Monitoring Tools are some less accurate, albeit useful, ways to assess how your cat is doing. You might take a look at those, especially, weight, water and food intake, urine testing for ketones and glucose, urine and fecal output, dehydration, breath odor, activity levels and behaviors. Actually, just about all of them. They aren't as precise as blood glucose monitoring, but at least they are something.
 
I also agree with the others that it would be best if you're able to start home-testing. Please let us know how we can help.

Larry and Kitties said:
The fructosamine test is the average "BG" over the last two weeks and thus is really not affected by vet stress. Just note that the the fructosamine vale is not directly comparable with the blood glucose value.
Click to expand...

Here is some more information on fructosamine tests that you might find helpful.
 
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