? Information on trialling OTJ

[Laura and Gremlin (GA)]

Does anyone have a link to where I can find detailed info about trialling OTJ please? I'll be out of insulin after the AM shot tomorrow and I'd like to read up on the two week trial period before tomorrow night. Or any information you can give me would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!

 

[BJM]

Have you gradually reduced the insulin to nearly nothing and had to skip shots? That is a common path to going OTJ. Basically, though, you just test, feed, snag mid-cycle tests to observe, and if you make it 14 days without going over 120-130 mg/dL, you're in good shape.

One clue is if you feed and then instead of a food spike in the +2 hours post-meal, the glucose goes down. That is a sign the pancreas is working.

The cat will always be diabetic, so never give high carb again. Monitor for hyperglycemia indicators - excessive urination, thirst, hunger, weight loss, and dehydration (tips in my signature link Secondary Monitoring Tools) andtest the glucose if observed. Some of those indicators show up with hyperthyroidism or renal disease, so they are good to routinely monitor.

 

[carfurby (GA)]

Here is the information I was given when Furball started her OTJ trial. Good luck.

Start the trial on the next green pre shot.

If he/she is green at your normal test times, no need to test further until the next "PS" time; just feed small meals and go about your day. If he/she is blue at your normal "PS", feed a small meal and test again after about 3 or 4 hours. If his/her number is lower 3-4 hours after a meal, then the pancreas is working!

Post every day so we can monitor your progress and see if any tweaks are needed. He/she may have a sporadic blue number. Don't panic but post before you decide whether to shoot so we can have a discussion.

After 14 days of no insulin, we have a party!!

Sometimes the trial doesn't work the first time and we have to give a little more support in the form of resuming insulin. It's not the end of the world if that happens; we just give him/her the support needed. Our goal is a strong remission and it's better to take our time to get that than to rush into remission just to have it fail later on.

Good luck with the trial!!!

Once he/she is through the trial successfully, you enter a new phase. Your cat is still diabetic but has now become diet-controlled. Continue feeding low carb food in the manner successful for your kitty. If you decide to change his/her feeding schedule, let your meter be your guide to the best times to feed. Avoid medications with sugar in them and steroid medications unless they are medically essential. Continue testing blood glucose weekly for the first month and then monthly forever. It's a good idea to weigh him/her monthly. Weight should remain stable. If he/she seems "off" or sick, or is showing signs of diabetes (excessive drinking, eating, urinating, weight loss), test his/her blood glucose right away. Keep the teeth and gums clean and healthy; dental issues can bring a cat out of remission. If you see rising blood glucose numbers, it's time for a visit to the vet!

 

[Laura and Gremlin (GA)]

Thank you both for the information. I should tell you both that this is forced OTJ trial for Gremlin. He is so close to it I can smell it anyway, but his vet refuses to supply me with more insulin and said he should have been off it as soon as he went under 1u of Lantus per shot. I refused and kept going until this morning when I ran out. He earned his reductions all the way to 0.25u. He was a couple of days off his reduction to 0.1u but we were running out so I reduced it almost a week ago. This morning, I ran out. He has been under 120 mg/dL for almost 2 weeks now. His highest number in the last three weeks was 135 mg/dL.

Should I keep posting in the Lantus forum or in this forum?

Thank you both so much for the info!!

 

[carfurby (GA)]

Please post your OTJ trial in the Lantus forum since that's where you've been posting. That way we can follow along with you.