My cat, Sashy, was diagnosed in November. I have been taking her to get glucose curves done at the vet. The last two she was low "5" before they even started. They strongly suggested I start doing my own monitoring. I have found this website very helpful. I have being reading as much as I can. I hope to do better this evening as I was frustrated this morning and unable to get a reading. I am going to work on 1. warming the ear first. 2. Getting a better bead and not letting go of the ear. 3. Talking to her, praising her, acting confident. I was shown to use inside of ear but saw on video them using outside of ear. She has long hair, a Maine Coon, should I try outside or keep with the inside where there is less hair. It is all so tricky...patience.
Just starting glucose monitoring - ARGH!
- Thread starter Sheila D.
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Stacym20
Member Since 2014
Bud is part Maine Coon and I test him on the outside. I don't know, it's just more comfortable to me that way. I have him sitting sideways on my lap and put the rice sock flush with the inside of his ear and then poke the outside using the rice sock as leverage and padding if that makes sense. Are you rewarding with low carb treats? Even if you don't get blood, give treats to Sashy for trying. It does take a bit to get it down, but it will get easier! Great job on starting to home test and good luck!
Vyktors Mum
Member Since 2011
You should do it whatever way works best for you. Sashy's ears will learn to bleed better as you go along, at the moment you probably don't want to be using anything thinner than a 28 gauge lancet (the higher the number the thinner the lancet). As Stacy mentioned small LC treats are the way to go, most cats end up looking forward to the test for the treat. After you have taken the test very gently pinch the spot you pierced for a bit to help prevent bruising. It's good to see you mention patience because you do want to be that - if you start getting stressed so will she. Usual 'rule' for beginners is three strikes and you're out - give the treat and try again later. Let us know how you go and any problems you have. We are here to help.
You can set up a marvellous spreadsheet to record Sashy's results (you'll find it in the tech forum) to attach to your signature here and also send the link to your vet so we can all stick our nose into Sashy's numbers
With kidney issues I believe you're also going to want to make sure her food is low phosphorus. Tanya's website is an awesome resource for kidney cats. If you google Tanya's feline kidney disease you should find it easily.
Welcome aboard
You can set up a marvellous spreadsheet to record Sashy's results (you'll find it in the tech forum) to attach to your signature here and also send the link to your vet so we can all stick our nose into Sashy's numbers
With kidney issues I believe you're also going to want to make sure her food is low phosphorus. Tanya's website is an awesome resource for kidney cats. If you google Tanya's feline kidney disease you should find it easily.
Welcome aboard
Lisa and Witn (GA)
Member Since 2009
You are doing a great job. Sometimes it takes a little while for your cat's ears to learn to bleed. Massaging the ear towards the tip also helps to get the blood flowing. Start massaging the ear before you test and then continue if you do not get enough blood.
Hillary & Maui (GA)
Member Since 2009
Another trick is put petroleum jelly on ear before poking. Then when you poke and get blood, you can scoop it onto your nail and test from your nail - sometimes this is easier than trying to hold the ear and play with meter at same time.
what kind of meter are you using? as some meters take a much smaller blood sample than others.
what kind of meter are you using? as some meters take a much smaller blood sample than others.
I am using ACUTEST. So far all her readings are low: 7.4, 8.6, 8.0, and this morning after breakfast 10.3. I have been occasionally getting the blood drop on my thumb and testing off of that - hope that is okay and not affecting the results. I will go out and buy some low carb treats, right away. I find it very hard to test before she eats as all she wants is "feed me". Is it okay to do about 20 minutes after her feeding? And how would this affect the results. It is surprising that her level is staying below 13 - I wonder if she is no longer diabetic or is there an issue with the way I am testing. This morning went better - I appreciate the mention of the 3 strike rule. If it stays low should I continue testing twice a day? Could I just do her once or does it fluctuate too much and I might miss a high level.
She is starting to hate me touching her ear. She is constantly twitching it, but I will try to continue the massaging as best as I can.
Hillary & Maui (GA)
Member Since 2009
Play with her ears when you are not testing. and make sure to give her treats when you do test. (Maui's favorite treat was getting brushed).
If she is constantly hungry then she may not be getting enough food. The tests you are getting 7.8 -10 (equate to 140 - 234) which is definitely high numbers and needs insulin. Ideally, normal BG range is (50-120) = 2.7 - 6.7 (if you multiply your number by 18 you get the US equivalent).
So, as you can see you are above normal range and while she is teetering on lower numbers, she isn't there yet.
I'm not familiar with the acutest meter. That could be cause it's a Europe centric meter and not available in US.
What insulin and dose are you giving? Are you able to start a spreadsheet, so that we can see the patterns and better help you.
The test won't be affected by the petroleum jelly or being on your nail, which is why I suggested it as an option.
If she is constantly hungry then she may not be getting enough food. The tests you are getting 7.8 -10 (equate to 140 - 234) which is definitely high numbers and needs insulin. Ideally, normal BG range is (50-120) = 2.7 - 6.7 (if you multiply your number by 18 you get the US equivalent).
So, as you can see you are above normal range and while she is teetering on lower numbers, she isn't there yet.
I'm not familiar with the acutest meter. That could be cause it's a Europe centric meter and not available in US.
What insulin and dose are you giving? Are you able to start a spreadsheet, so that we can see the patterns and better help you.
The test won't be affected by the petroleum jelly or being on your nail, which is why I suggested it as an option.
The other trick to help is to put some first aid gel on the ears afterwards. In the US they use Neosporin, in Canada I use Polysporin Complete. Basically you want something that speeds the healing and takes out the sting. If you put a bit of that on after (or before instead of the vaseline), it can help the ears heal.
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