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he was at 4 in the beginning but also I didn't have monitor. So vet office test showed in 500s range
Menda was at vet office 2 days geting adjusted and was fine there suposedly. So not sure what is not working at home. I know I give insulin correctly
 
Hi Magda! Sorry I am usually on pretty early during the week but not on weekends.

I'm of the same opinion as Sue. It's a tough call but maybe an increase to 4 IF he stays high today? Will you be able to get a mid cycle check to see if he drops low at all today? Might help us determine if he is surfing along in high numbers or drops and bounces.
 
I can do some tests through out the day. Just got new box of test strips so should be good for few days . Anyone found lower price than $60 for box of 50 strips
 
Magda said:
he was at 4 in the beginning but also I didn't have monitor. So vet office test showed in 500s range
Menda was at vet office 2 days geting adjusted and was fine there suposedly. So not sure what is not working at home. I know I give insulin correctly
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I don't understand that either. I wonder how they defined "fine" ? In general we say a cat is regulated if they are in the mid 200s at pre shot and in low 100s or double digits at nadir, but above 68 on AlphaTrak. Once there you start fine tuning the dose.

Tell us about the shot. Do you give it before feeding? Where are you shooting on his body? What kind of syringe are you using - U40? Is your insulin definitely U40?

If there is no low nadir today to bounce from, then I'd work my way back up slowly, careful to get that nadir whenever possible to eliminate the possibility of bouncing.
 
Magda said:
I can do some tests through out the day. Just got new box of test strips so should be good for few days . Anyone found lower price than $60 for box of 50 strips
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The AlphaTrak strips are very costly. I use Freestyle LITE strips in my AT meter. I set the code at 38 and leave it there as it's a cat code and the FSL strips are for a human meter. They cost half what the AT strips cost.
 
yes it is u40, both syringe and insulin. I got it at vet office. I shoot between shoulder blades under the skin
Yes they used word regulated.
 
Unfortunately I have to start feeding and insulin at 6 am. He gets into panic mode at 4 am and tries to wake me up as I forgot his food and he will never eat again. Would love to find a way of stopping it.
 
Hmmm...could you give a small snack overnight? Maybe use an auto feeder to give a snack and then have it shut 2 hours before 6 so you know he doesn't get any food in that time?
 
before we go to sleep we give him about 1/4 can of his food but this still doesn't help much. He is just kind of cat who is used to have food around at all times. no need to have it shot before any time. Moment it opens up he will gobble it up. What kind of food should I put in it? I don't have autofeeder.
 
at +6 hours glucose is at 455. I.m leaving now but be back later to recheck. At what hour should I recheck?
 
I just saw those freestyle strips in Walmart. Are they really as accurate as AT? The strips I got with test had code 8 today I got new refill box also AT and code for cats is 38. Is that normal?
 
Hi Magda! Sorry I've been running errands. Let's see...I believe most people just use regular food. The auto feeder makes it so that you can have it open when you want so he doesn't gobble it up as soon as you put it down! Sometimes a snack is helpful to them overnight.

It doesn't look like he is dropping low. You can grab another test when you get home, but I'm thinking we are surfing in high numbers tonight.

I haven't used the AT so I can't answer that question. Might post on Health about that specifically to see if you can get some more answers from folks who use it.

Ketones. There's a sticky at the top of this forum I encourage you to read. I'd say check periodically and any time you have some of the triggers mentioned present. Generally, ketones form when you have little to no food, little insulin, and infection present. They can form other times, but that is the trifecta that often causes it. I'd say go ahead and grab one when you can since you haven't tested before. Any more than trace is when you get concerned.
 
I did some measuring at +3 and +6. staying steady but still at 300s after 4 units.
I read info about ketones. Not sure if I understand. What is the best time of day to measure them?>
 
Maybe hold the 4 for another cycle and then raise to 4.5? We thinking raising by 0.5 (and even 0.25 at lower numbers) is a better idea than jumping a whole unit.

You just want to catch him in the litter box. Our Oliver refused to let us watch him pee. Some people can stick the strip right in their urine stream; some use a ladle to catch a sample. We had to get an clean litter box, fill it with aquarium gravel (some people also use beans) and leave him alone in a room with it. He didn't like seeing a clean litter box, so he'd go and we could swoop in and get a sample because the gravel wouldn't absorb it.

Some people use a strip themselves the first time so they see what a normal result looks like. (The colored results can be a little tricky)
 
I just updated the sheet. Staying somewhat steady.
Whenever I go in their room he assumes I'm bringing food so he will just stand by the bowls and not going to bathroom. But he was very cooperative last time when I needed to get urine. Just went in a cup so will need to catch him already in the box
 
I think his ears getting sensitive from all that poking. ANything to make it easier on him and heal quicker?
 
You can use Neoorin plus pain relief - the ointment not the cream. Also, hold onto the place you poked for a few seconds after you get the test to help with bruising. You can try varying the ears also. Some kitties bleed better from one ear than the other; some it doesn't seem to matter.
 
I have to find that intment. Is it available in regular pharmacy? I keep switching ears and areas but I know still hurts after so many pokes
 
Menda +6 sugar was 286. His stool was on a little softer side. It was still formed though. I didn't change anything else besides insulin. Gave him little less food. 3/4 of a can 2xday and leave 1/4 from each feeding for snack.
He seems to have diarrhea from some treats and other flavor cans so I stick to chicken and tuna
 
That is a nice number. Lower than you have had, but still room to drop. Revising my advice. Maybe stay with 4 one more cycle before raising.

Have you tried FortiFlora? It is a probiotic that lots of people use. Other people use a teaspoon of pumpkin - not pumpkin pie filing, just plain pumpkin.
 
I tried pumpkin. He didn't like it much. I didn't try forth flora on him yet. We used flagyl for 2 weeks. His diarrhea was very bad for a bit. It helped a lot when I changed food
 
I retested this evening at +3 h after giving 4 units. It went up to 442. I tried to recheck it to see if this wasn't a mistake and second test showed 453. I guess he got stressed so went slightly up. But why is it going up not down?
 
Not sure. But sometimes one number is just a number. In general, things are looking a little better. If the amps is still high, maybe consider the increase to 4.5.
 
Gave Menda 4.5 insulin and he was 455. Everything else is updated on the sheet. I have him another 4.5 this morning. Wonder why is he crazy jumping like that. Will update some scores later.
 
I was encouraged by the 2/14 cycle. It wasn't where it needed to be, but it had lower pre shots and a yellow in the middle. So, after that, it seemed like 4.5 should improve that a little. My gut says stay with this dose a few cycles and see if things improve, but I don't like all the high numbers.

I would be testing for ketones daily. I thought a restart might give us better numbers. But 4.5 is a high dose. Have you thought about high dose conditions?

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/...-other-high-dose-conditions-what-we-know.375/

Some of the links on the page don't work but the general info is there. Do any of the symptoms sound familiar?

It could also be that ProZinc is not the insulin for him. With cats who are getting more than 4 units twice daily, an insulin change seems like a good option. we sometimes think Levemir works best. It stings less at higher doses and often has longer cycles, later nadirs.
 
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Thanks. I will read up on this and see what it says. I think I will get couple more days in and possibly schedule vet visit if there is no improvement.
 
Magda said:
Unfortunately I have to start feeding and insulin at 6 am. He gets into panic mode at 4 am and tries to wake me up as I forgot his food and he will never eat again. Would love to find a way of stopping it.
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Yeah, good luck with that! Lol. It's same at my house and I have 6 of them stomping on me at 4am. Literally stomping. The bedtime snack doesn't help either. Little stinkers! :banghead:
 
Magda said:
I just saw those freestyle strips in Walmart. Are they really as accurate as AT? The strips I got with test had code 8 today I got new refill box also AT and code for cats is 38. Is that normal?
Click to expand...
Magda said:
I just saw those freestyle strips in Walmart. Are they really as accurate as AT? The strips I got with test had code 8 today I got new refill box also AT and code for cats is 38. Is that normal?
Click to expand...


Make sure the strips are Freestyle LITE, not just the regular Freestyle. The numbers run pretty close as a rule. If you get a number that seems oddly high or oddly low, retest using AT strip. I kind of misspoke earlier, I set the meter to the number on the current AT bottle, so if I need to retest using an AT strip, the meter will be coded properly. With the FSL strip, if the meter is set to an AT number, it knows it's reading cat blood. But as I said, you should do your own comparison testing for a while until you feel comfortable trusting the numbers.
 
Actually that is considered flat. Meters can have a variance of +/- 20% percentage so it'd be the same number. Let's see if he drops later in the cycle.
 
So a pretty flat cycle.

I am sorry. I was not helpful. I thought maybe dropping the dose would help, particularly as it was raised pretty fast, especially in the last few weeks. But I see nothing encouraging. He got better numbers at 6 units. It is just a high dose that we just don't see very often. The vast majority of cats here get under 2/3 units, regardless of the insulin type. Kitties getting over 5 units usually have an underlying condition like the ones I linked.

I guess I would go back up to 6 units on the first cycle you can monitor. The issue you were seeing there is that he really bounced back up to the Reds for Pre shots, but at least you saw some lower numbers mid cycle.

I would definitely talk to the vet about a possible insulin resistance condition and a change in insulin.
 
appreciate your help. At least I have some numbers to show her when I go so we can work with that
 
I gave Menda 5.5 units tonight. After 4.5 hours it went down to 328. I do hope things will stabilise soon. Will be trying for Friday vet visit.
 
Haven't been here in a while. Doctor changed us to lantus I supine which is insanely overpriced. But numbers are still high. Just increased to 5 units.

I have questione about those freestyle lite strips. Just went to local Walmart and they sell it at $163 per box of 100. Amazon is at $60 but they would t price match. I was wondering where you getting them for so cheap.
 
Folks may purchase on E-Bay or any other place they can find a deal. Craigslist, for example.
 
Just wanted to update info . Had my kitty to the vet to try to figure out why is he still so high. His IGF-1 is >521 . Luckily no IAA. That explains a lot of things and now that I know what I'm dealing with I can do appropriate changes.
If anyone can help or share this fundraiser on their FB or anywhere else please do [link to fundraiser removed by moderator, pending approval from our Admin - Robert and Echo]
I am in really hard situation and I don't want to loose place to leave or I have nowhere to go with the kitties.
 
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Sorry to hear he is a acro kitty. We do have lots of them so you will have support. You might contact Diabetic Cats in Need. DCIN is a website. I am not sure how active they are or what resources they have. I would also suggest you haunt the supply closet forum and pick up Lantus anytime you can.
 
DCIN is helping me a bit but the only can help some and this will be long way. I'm at 10 units of Lantus and his numbers are nowhere near perfect. So we switching to levemir to hope for better results/
 
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