Just happily going up and down with Joe

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Hi, just got home, are you still still stalling?
171 looks great, go ahead and give him his shot if you can stay up to monitor.
 
Hi Smorg,
I just got a 186. Going to stall for 15 more minutes and see what I get. I can stay up maybe until the +2 but hoping not much after that.
Thanks for checking in.
 
Susan Pomo said:
Hi Smorg,
I just got a 186. Going to stall for 15 more minutes and see what I get. I can stay up maybe until the +2 but hoping not much after that.
Thanks for checking in.
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Ok, 186 is 100% a safe number btw. And don't feed him while you are stalling, unless he's REALLY screaming, then you can give him a teeny teeny bit of LC.

Don't do it if you're not comfortable, you may likely have to set alarms for +3 or +4.
 
OH NO! He got to 199 at exactly one hour past shot time. I was feeding him bites of chicken to get him to come to the testing table though. It was the only way. He is eating his meal now.
 
Susan Pomo said:
OH NO! He got to 199 at exactly one hour past shot time. I was feeding him bites of chicken to get him to come to the testing table though. It was the only way. He is eating his meal now.
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It's ok! Are you thinking that he has to be above 200 to shoot?
 
There's no hard and fast rule, but if you don't have data on how your cat responds to insulin, here are some general guidelines.
  • Below 150 mg/dl (8.3 mmol/L), don't give insulin.
  • Between 150 and 200 (8.3-11.1 mmol/L), you have three options:
    • a.) give nothing
    • b.) give a token dose (10-25% of the usual dose)
    • c.) feed as usual, test in a couple of hours, and make a decision based on that value
  • Above 200 (11.1 mmol/L) but below the cat's normal pre-shot value, a reduced dose might be wise.
I'd say you have a good amount of data so far and could give him his dose even at 171. But it is the nighttime cycle, so that makes it a tough decision!
 
With experience, you may find that lowering these thresholds may work well for your cat. When you have reached that stage, the following guidelines are suggested for Prozinc users following the Start Low Go Slow approach:

If the preshot number is far below usual preshot numbers:

  • Do you need to stay on schedule? Then skip the shot.
  • Do you have some flexibility with your schedule? Then stalling to wait for the number to rise might be a good option. Don't feed, retest after 30-60 minutes, and decide if the number is shootable.
  • Repeat until the cat either reaches a number at which you are comfortable shooting, or enough time has passed that skipping the shot is necessary.
 
So let me ask you.
would it be the same outcome, if I shot him at 171 as it will be since I waited to 199? Same thing as in test in 2 hours and set alarms etc?
 
smorgasbord said:
With experience, you may find that lowering these thresholds may work well for your cat. When you have reached that stage, the following guidelines are suggested for Prozinc users following the Start Low Go Slow approach:

If the preshot number is far below usual preshot numbers:

  • Do you need to stay on schedule? Then skip the shot.
  • Do you have some flexibility with your schedule? Then stalling to wait for the number to rise might be a good option. Don't feed, retest after 30-60 minutes, and decide if the number is shootable.
  • Repeat until the cat either reaches a number at which you are comfortable shooting, or enough time has passed that skipping the shot is necessary.
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I also thought I was not supposed to skip a shot. Mightily confused again.
smorgasbord said:
If the preshot number is far below usual preshot numbers:
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would you say it was tonight?
 
Susan Pomo said:
I also thought I was not supposed to skip a shot. Mightily confused again.

would you say it was tonight?
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It's a balancing act. We don't want to skip, but we want to keep them safe by shooting when they are high enough for your comfort and monitoring ability level.


Yes, this PS number does qualify as far below his usual number. Still completely safe to go for it, but again, if you're not used to it, and sleep is a thing you like to do, then a skip is completely acceptable.
 
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Suuuuusan. You better only be napping!
Kidding, I know you knew to set an alarm and get a +3 or +4.
You'll probably be groggy and half awake, but I'll be checking on your SS until I go to bed, so keep it updated or post his number here :)
 
what a night, bad storm, electric out, internet down. I just kept setting alarm and checking on Joe with a flashlight. He was fine and by morning the lights are back on. 160 this morning at AMPS for regular time but since I had to stall until 9pm last night I am probably stelling until 9am today
Thanks Smorg for checking on me!
 
smorgasbord said:
Suuuuusan. You better only be napping!
Kidding, I know you knew to set an alarm and get a +3 or +4.
You'll probably be groggy and half awake, but I'll be checking on your SS until I go to bed, so keep it updated or post his number here :)
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HAHA. I was waking up by alarm Smorg but not testing, just checking on him with a flashlight. I do have a smart phone but not smart enough to be able to find this forum, let alone, this thread via the smart phone. I use a desktop
 
Susan Pomo said:
HAHA. I was waking up by alarm Smorg but not testing, just checking on him with a flashlight. I do have a smart phone but not smart enough to be able to find this forum, let alone, this thread via the smart phone. I use a desktop
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I have a headlamp in our testing area. As soon as it gets dark, I put it on for tests. Flashlight wouldn't cut it, don't have enough hands!
It's great that you were setting an alarm and keeping an eye on him, but sometimes kitties can get really low and we can't tell without a blood test. There was a kitty the other day, she got down in the 20s and didn't even have the desire to eat to raise her BG.
 
He was alert and interested in food each time I checked on him. If he would not have been, I would have figured something else out. propped up the flashlight somehow. Not sure why but storms cause outages in my neighborhood quite often. All power and cable lines are buried in the ground here
 
Ok, you did what you could. But that was the lowest +2 you've ever gotten, and it's a really good idea to make sure, even if you just get one test. They really don't tell us when they are low.
Maybe standing the flashlight under a lamp and put a t-shirt over the lampshade? I just had that thought, maybe it would work?
I'm jealous you get storms, even if the power goes out. Where do you live?
 
Susan Pomo said:
Not getting how this would work. I had no power, so no lamp available
I live in Georgia now. Transplanted from Southern California
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I'm going to go see if it would work, now if I can just find a flashlight...

I've always wanted to visit Georgia. 4 of my siblings went to Emory University in Atlanta.
 
Like this-
Of course then you’d have to convince Joe to get really close to the lamp, but could work.
 

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Oh no! Winter is just about crappy everywhere though. At least you don't get frigid negative numbers and have to dig your driveway out to leave the house. But what about spring and fall?
 
smorgasbord said:
Oh no! Winter is just about crappy everywhere though. At least you don't get frigid negative numbers and have to dig your driveway out to leave the house. But what about spring and fall?
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Spring is nice until it gets too hot. It is the humidity here I do not like. Do you have to dig your way out of your driveway? Where are you Smorg?
90 at +9
 
You got a low of 64 on a cycle that had a +4 of 82, and that was a higher dose.

Also two days later you had a +4 of 95 and then most likely a nadir in the low 70s. Also on the higher 3.5 dose.
 
Problem is, those PS numbers (267 & 447) were much higher than your 179 tonight. And we know he's capable of dropping a lot from high PS numbers.
 
Smorg, how come tagging does not work on here? I only get the little suggestion when trying to tag but it never lets me select the suggestion and I have to fill it in and even then sometimes it does not tag
 
Susan Pomo said:
Smorg, how come tagging does not work on here? I only get the little suggestion when trying to tag but it never lets me select the suggestion and I have to fill it in and even then sometimes it does not tag
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It looks like the above tag did work. It might just be wonky?
 
Going to bed and leaving him a meal out. I will talk to you tomorrow. I need to start taking a nap during the day to continue doing this
 
435, huh Joe? Don't be discouraged, he's getting such better numbers. The higher 435 is likely due to Joe finally getting some awesome blue numbers in his cycle, and he's bouncing a little bit up from them. Once he spends more Joe hours in the blues, his preshot numbers won't jump up as high.
Hopefully you can get a nap in today!
 
Hi Smorg. You are a GODsend. Always there to help and encourage. Yes, I am not feeling great about his numbers but thanks to you I remembered the dirty word BOUNCE (not quite as dirty as "stay up all night and test every two hours")
 
Susan Pomo said:
Hi Smorg. You are a GODsend. Always there to help and encourage. Yes, I am not feeling great about his numbers but thanks to you I remembered the dirty word BOUNCE (not quite as dirty as "stay up all night and test every two hours")
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Haha. I know the feeling of seeing that gross red number. He's doing so much better so fast. I really like this dose.
It's a lot of late nights, but so worth it.
 
So fast? My friends and family all think I am crazy because I never go anywhere anymore. All I talk about is Joe's number or just Joe (what he's eating, what he's not eating, the state of his poop, etc.). I feel like it has consumed my life and has been going on forever. Peeps told me it might take a while to get him regulated but I never imagined this long. Maybe it just seems longer than it has been because it is all-consuming.
 
I guess that fact that I said "so fast" tells you a lot about how long this wonderful disease will take to regulate. :mad:
Sometimes it's like the only positive thing all day is that one good number you get. The rest is cleaning up puke and poop wondering if that scratch he just did is another underlying problem!
It has completely consumed my life as well. I must say, it will be less all-consuming as time goes on. Still consuming, but
I guess once you get the hang of knowing when to test, knowing when you can get a break based on his numbers, it should get easier.
But yeah, this all really just sucks. But we love them, so here we are!
 
smorgasbord said:
I guess that fact that I said "so fast" tells you a lot about how long this wonderful disease will take to regulate. :mad:
Sometimes it's like the only positive thing all day is that one good number you get. The rest is cleaning up puke and poop wondering if that scratch he just did is another underlying problem!
It has completely consumed my life as well. I must say, it will be less all-consuming as time goes on. Still consuming, but
I guess once you get the hang of knowing when to test, knowing when you can get a break based on his numbers, it should get easier.
But yeah, this all really just sucks. But we love them, so here we are!
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I could not imagine doing anything different for him :cat:
 
Right?!
Endlessly frustrating, but oh, would I do it any other way? Nope.
The 400 means you can have a bit of a life today ;)
Maybe go to Target and grab a Starbucks and browse the home section for things you don't need. Oh wait, that's what I plan on doing.

Maybe get a +5 or +5.5 just to make sure he hasn't pulled any shenanigans.
 
smorgasbord said:
Right?!
Endlessly frustrating, but oh, would I do it any other way? Nope.
The 400 means you can have a bit of a life today ;)
Maybe go to Target and grab a Starbucks and browse the home section for things you don't need. Oh wait, that's what I plan on doing.

Maybe get a +5 or +5.5 just to make sure he hasn't pulled any shenanigans.
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you crack me up!
 
Hope you got to nap a bit or enjoy your Caturday. Nice 160 from that high PS.
I treated myself with a Venti Matcha green tea latte and was very well behaved in the Target home section.
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I was productive, swept and vacuumed out the garage. Caught up on laundry. Cleaned dusted (yuck) my desk area.
Going to do a +10 in a few minutes.
 
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