Introducing Austin the 13yo Burmese! (Australia)

Hi everyone! I've been reading on and off since Austin was dx diabetic 3 days before Christmas 2009 and have finally decided to sign up.

Austin is my 13 year old chocolate Burmese who has lived indoors exclusively since being hit by a car at about 6 months of age. In the second half of 2009 he started to have really bad breath, which I thought was from slight muscle paralysis (as a result of his car accident) and food getting caught in his cheeks sometimes. We had his teeth cleaned under general anasthetic, but they soon became bad again, and he lost a lot of weight. I then went to a better vet, and one who's opinion I value highly, and we began treating him for athritis (sp) due to weak back legs. After 2 weeks with no improvement he was tested, and confirmed, as diabetic.

We started out on 3/4 unit Lantus x twice a day, with syringe, but didn't see any results after the first few days.

In Feb 2010 we went on to 1 unit of Lantus x twice daily and saw a slight improvement. At his next glucose curve day at the vets he was still returning levels off the chart (which goes to 30 (we are in Australia, so I belive this is a different scale to the US and UK?)).

In April 2010 we went to 2 units of Lantus x twice daily by cartridge pen, and I started to see more improvement i.e. more active, wanting to play sometimes, interested in cuddles.

Last week, we went back to the vet surgery and his BG levels were still at 26. He's now on 3 units of Lantus x twice a day by syringe, and seems to be doing great!

 

Re: Introducing Austin the 13yo Burmese!

My computer's gone funny and won't let me continue typing, so I've had to start a new post - sorry.

We're back to the vet in another few weeks for another BG curve day to see how the 3 units x twice a day is working.

Since his dx, Austin is being fed Hills Prescription Diet m/d wet at night, and Hills Prescription Diet m/d biscuits to graze on throughout the day.

When Austin was first dx, I had a bit of a panic wondering how I was going to manage twice daily insulin injections whilst working, studying, being a wife, and being a mother to 2 young, active boys. It took me no time at all, however, to realise this is my best friend and confidant and that I would do anything for him as long as his quality of life didn't suffer. I've now got friends and family trained on how to administer insulin and what to look out for with hypos, so we ca still get away camping on weekends.

It's costing us about $200 - 300 a month to have Austin's BG curves done and buy his food, but it's a price I'm prepared to pay for my best friend.

Most people Ive told think we're nuts going to so much effort for 'a cat', but I wouldn't have it any other way. If we go out at night (his nightly injection is at 8pm), we make sure one of us stays sober enough to be able to duck out and drive home to give him his insulin. People who don't know and come over, think we're being mean when we ask each other "did you stab the cat this morning/evening". LOL.

That's our story, and now that I'm registered, I'm looking forward to talking to you all and reading more!

 

Re: Introducing Austin the 13yo Burmese!

Welcome to the site!

First thing: if you home test Austin yourself, you will save lots of $$$ because it is best to test before shooting any insulin. After all, human diabetics test themselves before shooting, so why should cats be any different??
There will come a time when Austin's numbers may go very low and you will not see any signs of a hypo.
People here can help you with any issues, but I will say that it's not painful and my 2 cats usually just sleep through the testing when I prick the ear.
Here are some links for you:
Lots of stuff in this link.
New to the Group

Hypo is something you want to watch as you can have problems very quickly - home testing has caught several lows for many cats.
List of Hypo symptoms
How to treat HYPOS – They can kill! Print this out!
Jojo’s HYPO TOOLKIT

There is a protocol followed when using Lantus and Levemir, so these links can give you info to understand how it works.
Tight Regulation Protocol
LANTUS & LEVEMIR – INSULIN DEPOT –AKA- STORAGE SHED
Lantus&Levemir – Data Ready to Shoot Low Numbers

If you set up a profile, and also a spreadsheet of your test numbers, once you are testing, others will be able to help you in taking good care of Austin while on Lantus.
Help with signatures/links/images/avatars
Creating spreadsheets & attaching them to your signature

Foods are important; keeping under 10% carbs will go a long way to better numbers, and some cats even become diet controlled and no longer need any insulin.
Be sure to feed wet food; toss any dry foods as they are bad and raise BG numbers. My Shadoe will go through the roof if she gets ahold of any dry food that my only civvie eats.
Binky’s Food Lists

For very high numbers, it is best to testing for ketones. Ketostix can be had from the pharmacy I think.

That's it for me; others will have lots more for you.

Welcome Austin.

 

Re: Introducing Austin the 13yo Burmese!

Hi,

welcome to the FDMB.
Austin is a very lucky kitty to have you as his mom. And don't worry - we get the same reaction too from our friends & family who we're quite surprised to know we were giving our cat insulin. But the word is getting out there! Feline diabetes is manageable!

Gayle's given you wonderful links to start with. I'm going to add a couple as well.

I will jump on and agree also with home testing. Yes it can be done at home, less expensive and Austin may even give you nicer numbers than at the vets , due to vet stress.
Home Testing Links


This board uses the U.S conversion for BG numbers, it's very easy to convert them..., multiply your number by 18 and you'll get the U.S conversion.

26 x 18 = 468 - checking for ketones should be encouraged. Has your vet mentioned ketones to you?
Ketones

The board has a few members in your area of the globe, I will cross post this thread to the community forum - someone in your area may be able to help you with where to purchase supplies and such. You may want to add Australia to your first subject line as well.

Hang in there! Check in when you can and let us know how Austin is doing.

 

Re: Introducing Austin the 13yo Burmese!

Welcome 4Xchooks,

Gayle has given you excellent advice and 2nd all of it. There is a lot of important information in the links that she gave you to read.

Good for you on being so proactive in treating Austin. I know a lot of people think its werid that I put so much into treating Sara, but would'nt think of doing it any other way.

In the begining I used to bring Sara to the vets for curves or just to check her bg. They would up her insulin by just the one # that they got that week. I now know that you need more data to see if a increase in in order. I learned how to home test with a human meter and I do it myself. Being at the vets brings makes most cats stressed which elevates their bg, so its not that accurate. A big plus is that it costs you less money. Plus you will feel more in control of this disease because you will know whats going on at all times.

It's nice that you have your husbands help with Austin. Imagine how people look at me when I say that I have to go shoot Sara. :shock: Try that phrase next time.

Again welcome and post daily and ask any questions you have.

jan and sara

 

Re: Introducing Austin the 13yo Burmese!

Welcome to FDMB.

We're all, no doubt, going to say that Gayle has covered the most important points for you to know. Most of us started out much the same way that you have -- feeding the very expensive, prescription food we bought from our vet, bringing our cats in for a curve or repeated fructosamine tests, and being overwhelmed at learning about our best friend's diagnosis. You were lucky -- Austin didn't have many of the life threatening complications. And then, we find FDMB and quite a bit changes. You start to take more control of your kitty's health.

We strongly encourage home testing. When I first found FDMB, I lurked read lots of other newcomer's posts. Someone pointed out that no parent would give their child a shot of insulin without knowing what the blood glucose (BG) level was. I have friends who are diabetic and they test before their insulin and before and after meals, as well as at other times. It all clicked. I went to the nearest pharmacy and bought a meter and started testing. While my vet didn't push me to test, she is very supportive and once she saw that I collect more data than she could ever hope to get, the topic of asking me to pay for her getting curves or other related tests never came up again. She has the link to my spreadsheet (SS) and can check on Gabby's progress any time she wants.

The same was true for food. We all know that human diabetics need a low carb diet. It would make sense for a cat, as well. But there's one big difference. Humans can eat and process any type of food. Cats can't -- they are obligate carnivores. Their bodies can only process meat. The one site that Gayle didn't link was Lisa Pierson, DVM's site on [http://www.catinfo.org/]feline nutrition[/url]. She makes a very compelling argument about the need for a high protein diet in cats and why dry food, in particular, is a problem. In addition, she notes that some of the prescription foods are full of poor quality ingredients. As a result, you can save a considerable amount of money by purchasing low carb, commercially available non-prescription foods. When I brought back the 2 cases of Hills M/D to my vet and explained that I was feeding low carb Fancy Feast, my vet was fine with my decision. As long as she saw that I understood the principle behind what to feed she, was happy even if it meant she wasn't making a ton of money by selling me prescription food.

One of the members here put together information for members in Australia. I'm hoping the information in this link is still reasonably accurate. The types of meters and some foods that are available are listed since names in the US may differ from what is marketed in your area.

Please let us know how we can help. Most of us tend to hang out on the Lantus board. There is a great deal of information available in the sticky notes on the board. If you decide to home test, we will be able to give you guidance with dosing once you have a spreadsheet up and running.

 

Re: Introducing Austin the 13yo Burmese!

Hi - everyone has already covered everything I can think of, so I just want to say "Welcome" and come on over and post in the Lantus support group... You'll meet a lot of people all taking the same journey... it's an amazing, supportive community!

 

Re: Introducing Austin the 13yo Burmese!

Welcome to you and Austin! I can't add a thing to what the wonderful members of this group have already posted except to say that this group has been a Godsend to me and my cat Meadow. I do want to say that home testing is the way to go....Meadow dropped way low yesterday with no signs of hypo and if I hadn't been home testing, the results may not have been pretty. But the great folks in Lantus land gave me the support, encouragment and advice that I needed to weather the crisis. Hope to see youover in LL soon!

 

Re: Introducing Austin the 13yo Burmese!

Hi and welcome,

May I ask, are you using insulin syringes with the Lantus pen or the Lantus pen needles? You stated "In April 2010 we went to 2 units of Lantus x twice daily by cartridge pen."

I ask for two reasons, 1) you my save money by using insulin syringes over Lantus pen needles, and 2) I have not seen any posts over the years where someone said they were using pen needles and not insulin syringes. I'm no expert, but I wonder if our kitties would not absorb the insulin as well as humans on pen needles and if that were true, maybe a lower dose of insulin would work as well if it were injected using an insulin syringe, saving money in the long run.

Of course, if you're using insulin syringes, this would be a moot point.

 

Re: Introducing Austin the 13yo Burmese!

Welcome to FDMB!

You've already received some great advice and links.

Just to re-emphasize a couple points:
learning to test Austin's blood sugar at home will save you money in the long run. A human glucometer works just fine for cats -- normal range is similar to humans.
Choose a meter with affordable strips (the biggest expense), and that takes a tiny amount of blood (0.3 to 0.5 microliter is best). Another point is look for "sipping action" strips or "approved for alternate site testing" -- easier to get the tiny drop from the cat's ear to the test strip.

The testing doesn't bother most cats -- mine seem to act like it tickles - they want to shake their head after the ear prick -- so make sure to gently hold on to the ear while the blood drop is forming. I hold the ear with thumb and index finger, and use my other three fingers to scruffle/scratch kitty's head to keep them still and purring. Also, only put the test strip in part-way until you have the blood drop ready. Many meters have an auto-power OFF after one minute and it is aggravating to have the meter shut off JUST when you are getting the blood sipped up.

Also - as mentioned, most of us get the 5-pack of 3ml cartridges of Lantus or Levemir, but we use regular insulin syringes instead of the pen.
This is my favorite syringe:
http://hocks.com/hocks-healthcare/hocks ... 40030.html

 

Re: Introducing Austin the 13yo Burmese!

Thanks for the warm welcomes everyone! I'm still finding my way around and trying to decode things, but I'll get there.

I'm going to try to find a BG monitor tomorrow. Although Austin is responding well to the 3 units, his back legs seem to go a bit 'spastic' for a bit after his shot, though he seems to have more energy. I'm not sure if I'm imagining this or not, so a BG monitor will help put my mind at ease.

Tuckers mum: sorry for the confusion with how we're administering the Lantus. He was originally on syringes and a vial, but one of the vets suggested the cartridge pens might be better. Our current vet doesn't agree, but rather than waste the pens, we're syringing the insulin out and adminsitering it that way now. (Hope that makes more sense).

Off to read more!

 

Re: Introducing Austin the 13yo Burmese!

You will save money by buying the cartridges, and using syringes to draw the
insulin out of the cartridges.

Lantus has a limited useful life once opened. Mfg states 1 month, though many here
get 2-3 months before the insulin begins to go bad (poop out, as we say).

If you open a 10ml vial, you will throw away a lot of it before you can use it all.

By using the cartridges, you can save money because you only open 3ml at a time and
can often use most of it.

Visit our Lantus Insulin Support Group for more information.

 

Re: Introducing Austin the 13yo Burmese!

OOOOOh. I just LOVE Burmese. I was proud to live with a part Burmese for many wonderful years. Suspina was truly a joy in my life and I still miss her since she passed on.

Welcome aboard Austin. So glad your Momma is helping you feel better and live a healthy life.