Just checking in about Tye

Status
Not open for further replies.
tye

tye

Member Since 2010
Hi everyone, meant to post sooner but the board was down, glad it is up and running.
We are now at 0.15 once a day with Tye but I'm not sure if this is the right dosage. I haven't been able to do a curve recently (hopefully this weekend) but it seems that his numbers 12 hrs after he gets a shot are going too low - for example this morning he was at 79 (4.4). Then tonight he was at 225 (12.5) which is where he seems to be without a shot these days now that he's on the wet food.

Should we continue the once daily shots? I'm scared he is dipping too low when we do give the shot, but otherwise nothing seems to be changing...
 
He is doing really well! That's great to see.

Honestly, lev works best being given consistently (same dose every 12 hours). I suspect that he will be OK with .15u bid still, but without any mid-cycle sport checks since your curve it's hard to tell. Can you get any spot checks before the weekend?

I do see where he dropped to the 30s of .25u, so a reduction after that is good. And some of those PS's below 100 would give me pause as well if I could not be there to get spot checks.

I would suggest that you try drawing .1u or even .05u, but for now .1u will probably be ok. That way you can probably shoot him as low as 125-150 (probably lower) and he won't be so high having to go 24 hrs between shots.

Probably you can shoot .1u as low as 90-100, but I would want you to be there to test him to see how low he might go on that. There isn't much data, long-term, but it looks like he starts to drop at about +3 and nadirs at +6, so spot checks at +1, +2, +3 would tell you if he is climbing or starting to drop (climbing would tell you it is safe to shoot) and +10, +11 would tell you if he is surfing or climbing. All the data you can get will be pieces to the puzzle of how/when he responds to the dose.
 
I was just checking your spreadsheet yesterday and giving a big sigh! Because I know it is hard for your Dad to test between shot times. Has any of that changed?

Like we discussed before, giving much smaller shots two times a day is much better, but especially at this name in the game with Tie trying to go off the juice. If you can get even just one spot check in mid-cycle it would help to ease your mind if he is going too low or not.

Sheila gave you some excellent advice and suggestions.

Tye wants to go into remission. It really looks like it. But his pancreas needs a little help at this point. Going back up to those 200's is not helping any. That is when glucose toxicity starts to set in. Then when you only dose once a day it is like starting all over.
 
Oh, gosh, sorry. I forgot that Tye was at your parents house....

You can predraw syringes, probably for up to a week. I did that when I went out of town as Beau was heading off insulin. I had a sitter that tested, set a higher do not shot number, and left the predrawn syringes (.05u). He didn't get any insulin while I was gone (6 days) and I ended up using those syringes over the next two weeks when Beau was getting "as needed" shots. I know the insulin in the syringes was still good because he reacted to it.

Note for other readers: you can not predraw lantus.
 
Ohhhh ok I misunderstood, I thought it was too dangerous to shoot when he was getting that low. The problem is that my dad's eyesight is not the greatest so it's hard for him to measure the teeny tiny amounts. I will see if I can go there this weekend to measure out a week's worth of needles with 0.05, maybe that will be easier for my dad as then he only has to do the testing.

It is good to hear that you guys think he might be able to get off this stuff eventually! That gives me hope!

I haven't been able to get there to do a curve as I've had a lot of deadlines and I hate to ask my dad to test more than 2x a day since he finds it so difficult already (I think he also has trouble seeing the blood bead)... I hope to get mid-cycle numbers this weekend.

I am thinking of telling my dad to not shoot below 150 (around 8.5) to be on the safe side until I see what happens with a 0.05 dose.

Actually - is there a different procedure for hypo around here? I probably should reiterate to my dad what to do and what signs to watch for, just to be on the safe side. My vet just said to give sugar water - do you do this or something different? At what # does an attack usually happen?
 
tye said:
Actually - is there a different procedure for hypo around here? I probably should reiterate to my dad what to do and what signs to watch for, just to be on the safe side. My vet just said to give sugar water - do you do this or something different? At what # does an attack usually happen?
Click to expand...

I am glad you brought this up. I had thought we had already given it to you, but I guess not.

There are two lists. One is for what to have on hand in your hypo tool box:

http://www.felinediabetes.com/phorum5/r ... sg-1661798

This other one is a list of symptoms. Not all cats will show symptoms, but if he does then your Dad will have to test him right away (not trying to scare you but just to be prepared):

http://www.felinediabetes.com/phorum5/r ... msg-925783
 
Tye will probably never have any symptoms. A lot of cats don't. But most cats are also ok going down to 40 on lev (NOT that you want them to do that on a regular basis...).

We usually suggest feeding regular food if the numbers are going below 70, especially early in the cycle (first 5-6 hrs) and if you are uneasy about the numbers. 70 is perfectly safe, but we are so used to seeing 100+ numbers and know that in humans that is the low end of normal that it can cause a moment of worry. Just saying: don't panic yet!

If he drops below 50, you might want to feed a bit of higher carb food. I keep a few cans of food with gravy in it, but hardly ever feed that. I don't break it out until Jeddie gets below 40.

For true hypos, rubbing honey, corn syrup, etc. on their gums can get glucose into them if they are unable to eat on their own. One time a mixed about a quarter tsp of Karo syrup (corn syrup) into regular food for Beau. He ate it just fine. I don't know of any cat that will drink sugar water, and force feeding it could be dangerous (have you ever breathed sugar into your windpipe? It leaves you gasping for air).

I can't even count the number of times I felt sure that Beau was "acting" strange and must be very low, only to test and find him 200+. It was the times I just did a spot check and found him below 40 that really surprised me. One time he was trying to eat food out of an empty dish with a full dish a few feet away, so I tested him and he was 33 or so.

I think that on .05u it will be very difficult for Tye to reach a dangerously low level.
 
Thanks for the info about the hypo symptoms + remedies -- I'm here with Tye today and will be putting this on the fridge so my parents know what to watch out for.

Just a question as I'm trying to do a curve right now (although this most recent measurement might be the last I get today as my niece and nephew are here making tons of noise so Tye has just made a run for it and now hiding somewhere!!).

Anyway just measured him at +6 hrs and he was at 86 (4.8) which doesn't seem too low, but like I've been noticing lately he vomits up clear fluid around this point in the cycle. He did this about 10 mins or so after I tested just now. I noticed he did this yesterday too... although wasn't doing a curve yesterday, it was around the same time in the cycle.

Anyone know what this means and what I can do? I fed him some Temptations just now but not sure if that was the right thing to do. He doesn't have any other symptoms.
 
I'm not sure what the vomiting clear fluid means. Will he eat afterwards?

Oh, I guess so, if he ate the Temptations. They will make his BG go up, as they are loaded with carbs, some people put them in their "hypo tool kit" because cats really like them.

Does he get food right after his shot and then no more food available? I wonder if maybe he's hungry by +6. It's a good idea to keep food out for them most of the day.
 
How old is Tye? I can't remember. I ask because vomiting clear liquid is common in cats with hyperthyroid. I have two cats with hyper-T, Beau and Charlotte. Beau never vomits (seriously, in 11 years he has vomited 4-5 times and always after eating a plant to make himself throw up a hairball). Charlotte, on the other hand, vomits if she gets hungry, or eats too fats. Or drinks too much water. The poor thing just turned 18 and is in her waning days, i am afraid. But her first symptoms of hyper-t was vomiting clear liquid.

86 would not be too low and cause vomiting. Great nadir, in fact.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top