Jeddie - Feb 15-21

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Sheila & Beau GA & Jeddie GA

Sheila & Beau GA & Jeddie GA

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Well, I thought he needed a smaller dose, but it seems like .2u is working well right now. He is dropping to 60 though and I am not altogether comfortable with that. Maybe I should try to do .15u? I seem to have lost my touch for the micro doses... they are much harder for me now.
 
well, if you can do it reliably, 1.5u might be THE dose.

If it were me, with the recent revelation about getting numbers even rather than low, I might be tempted to stay at the .1u and let the body "heal on the hammock", but ECID.

Let us know what you go with
 
Shelia - do you mind if i ask how you micro dose? I have always wondered. How in the world do you find .2u and .15u?

Btw - Jeddie's SS looks great!!
 
I think Sheila does it by ejecting an exact count of drops formt he syringe from a base line she chooses- like the .5u line

Vicky uses a claibrated someting or other I have yet to get to wireless to open links about, but she posted a few threads back about it.

I flat out refuse to do them at this point as I seem to be getting grouchier and more incompetent the longer PK is an active diabetic. grrr. :cool: :twisted:
 
I draw to the .5u line and twist the stopper (rather than push it up) very slowy until a bead of insulin forms on the tip of the syringe. I have practiced with a used syringe and water or an old vial of vetsulin until I know, visually, how big a drop is to get 10 drops from 1u and 5 drops from .5u. Each drop being .1u. Then I guess what a drop the size of .05u would be (half as big as a .1u drop).

So for .2u, I draw to .5u and bead off 3 drops leaving .2u. For .15u, I would bead off 3 drops and then a half drop.

I have to take my glasses off to do this because you also have to pay attention to the printed markings on syringe because they can be off by .1u often and more than that - like .25u sometimes. I look at where the zero line is and how much of the top of the stopper is above that line (needle up) when it is fully closed. It makes EVERY dose a new measurement. On my syringes, the top "lip" of the stopper is about .2u from top to bottom - I think - so if all of it fits above the zero line I know that is .2u.

It's not an exact science. The device that Vicky uses is more accurate, but I have trouble seeing where the top of the chamber is and it measures from there to the top of the stopper - I mean you have to be able to clearly and accurately see those two points.
 
I'm impressed by your micro dosing skills - thank you for describing. And for any naysayers out there (still surprised to learn that not everyone agrees with the technique), your proven success confirms it's effectiveness!!
 
M, I am confused....
...still surprised to learn that not everyone agrees with the technique
Click to expand...
Do you mean HOW I draw micro doses, or the fact that I use them?

All I can say is someone disagrees is, "It works for BOTH of my cats. Why would I want to do anything differently? Why would I want to continue to do something that doesn't bring results and only makes things worse?" I also feel that if it works for my two, it will work for someone else somewhere so it should be "out there" for people to consider.

Jeddie was 158 tonight ~ shot .15u
 
I agree with you Sheila - that's why i asked for specifics on how you do it.

A while ago, maybe a year or so ago, there was a debate about microdosing and some people voiced their opinions how it was (can't remember exact words) ineffective? or maybe they were debating the inconsistency of it. I don't remember exactly because i didn't even bother to take part in the debate as it was clear, if microdosing works so well, why wouldn't you support it?

Does anyone remember this? And no Sheila, it wasn't about your technique of microdosing, just microdosing in general.
 
I really applaud Sheila's microdose technique - makes a lot more sense to me than the pictures, which are kind of blurry. And I agree that all markings are not uniform on a batch of syringes. Mine are all over the place, which is why I went to the external device.

And yes, stick with what works for you! Everyone has their own way of coping with their challenges. Sheila I'm beginning to have the same eye challenges you do. I can really only judge it well in daylight. I even got CFL bulbs but there is too much glare from them, so even though they are brighter, they handicap me even more.
 
Sheesh- I don't remember any debate over micro dosing...probably a good thing I don't. Seems like anyone that would think it doesn't work, either hasn't tried it or their cat was not a candidate for it.

Without microdosing I would never have gotten my PK off insulin the first time around.

Some people have nothing better to do than argue, I guess.
 
Well, I know some people on the board disagree with me on using and suggesting small doses, but I have had two micro-dose cats. Is that coincidence or my technique? Doesn't really matter. What I am doing is working for them and probably works for others/will work for others. It takes attention to detail and patience to allow it to work.

Anyway... yesterday he was at 114 and I was too worried about shooting and walking out for 10 hrs (work), so I didn't shoot. Well, he ended up at 260 in the evening so I shot .2u (instead of .15) and he promptly threw up everything he ate - dinner, treats, etc. Sigh. I gave them deli roast beef and I wonder if he is super sensitive to something in it. So, of course I worried about the dose, but he was eating again a half hour later and although I didn't test him again last night he seemed fine.

He was 123 this am so I shot .15u (maybe a little less). There is plenty of food down. I will be gone until very late tonight, probably +15, so I will hope he will be ok. He has dropped to 50 from 134 and .25u so I am thinking he will be ok even if he goes lowish.
 
wonder what made him get sick?

Mine are defrizzing by the butt load- it is like have 2 spare cats around as much fur as they are shedding at once! LOTS of white foam puke and nice long hair pukes mixed with food right after some of them eat....wonder if Jed might be having hair ball issues?

Hopefully he will be fine...gotta tell ya, I'm not sure I would have been able to shoot knowing I'd be gone so long, but you have your data and seem confident, so it will likely be fine.

Let us know how he did.

Beau holding his own, then?
 
Yeah, I know, but I did not want him back in the 200s tonight. I looked over his numbers and decided that given the PS and the dose and his data he won't drop below 60, but if he goes a little lower (like even 40) he should be ok.

Jeddie does get hairballs. With all that fur it's not surprising (although my little female has longer, fuller hair and has only had 1-2 in her while 2 year life). No, what he threw up last night was not a hairball. There was none in it at least. He has a tendency to eat stuff he finds on the floor, like globs of fur, bits of cardboard from the scratcher, etc. And I know he is going after the cut edge of the carpet and pad that is under the armoir, that I can't get at without moving the sofa at this point. Isn't there a name for eating non-food items? Anyway, I am afraid it was something like that.

Beau is holding his own. Last test was 103, I think. I am testing him Sat am now, so will get a test tomorrow. He is eating a bit more but I have to follow him around with the dish, heat it a little, add tuna flakes, sprinkle crushed Evos, etc. I am going to weigh him again tomorrow as well and will post updates.
 
When people eat non-food items it's called PICA.

"Pica is a pattern of eating non-food materials (such as dirt or
paper). Children and adults with pica may eat: animal feces, clay,
dirt, hairballs, sand, etc."

Many of the children with autism that i have worked with over the years have this disorder. It is the belief of some medical professionals that the disorder is born of essential nutrients missing from the body at present time - such as a kid eating dirt to get iron - or during infancy (oh boy, I'm sure i just made the entire medical profession cringe as i explain it!).

I found this on animal Pica: http://www.bobmckee.com/Client%20Info/B ... /Pica.html

What causes pica?

While pica may result from a medical problem, most cases of pica stem from compulsive behavioral disorders. Pica can be caused by a nutritional deficiency. Iron deficiency is the most common nutritional deficiency associated with pica. However, any disease of the digestive system that impairs the digestion or absorption of dietary nutrients can cause pica.

Keep in mind, like my explanation above, Jeddie could, and i'm sure he is, receiving the appropriate nutrients now but many not have been during the crucial developing years. Just another reason to love that original owner!!!

Check out the article, it's interesting.

Hope that helps.
 
I'm convinced it is nutrition deficiency of some type.

My old dog Jack ate dirt and when I talke ot our old vet about it she said it was a habit he'd developed.

Well, forward a few years and there he is suffering hemolytic anemia- needed iron just keep keep what little red cells he had left. I think he'd had the issue much longer than when it finally overwhelmed him and that he'd been trying to up the iron via soil. I believe the soil eating was a sign of a larger health issue that went un dx.

Not saying that is Jed's thing b/c I find the cats here will tear into something just to watch it fall apart or relieve bordeom...some gets eaten cuz cats are not able to spti stuff out very well.

On the old board there was a discussion about cats eating plastic bags and some nutrirent being in them...maybe it was on TT?

Dunno...maybe just move the stuff out of his reach so he can't tear it up and offer him flat cardboard pieces and crinkly paper bags to play and scratch- remove and replace when pieces happen.

When I go to big box wharehouse store, I ALWAYS grab boxes and stuff for cats...flatten them to get them home and tae together once inside.
 
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