Lots of questions for Chumlee!

R

RandyChumlee

Member
Hi guys ! Ok lots of questions so bare with me. Cat had blood sugar around 560 when we got him checked, Diabetes obviously. So I was told to give him the proper amounts of vetsulin twice a day. First question

1) I give my cat a shot at noon, the numbers drop to about low hundreds from high 400’s by 4 pm and then start to climb and hit back to high 400’s by midnight and i repeat this cycle for past week. Is this normal?

2) His pees have pretty much gone back to normal from very heavy, and he still has appetite and is playful when the laser comes out. This are good things ?

3)Diet questions, trying to research food and i switched him to all wet and over to Fancy Featst fish and shrimp flaked which was recommended by a diabetic site behind DM foods as a alternative to expensive foods. Can someone tell me if this food is ok ?

4) I’m trying my best to make a curve but it’s so hard getting to him two hours after insulin. I can only do it here and there and I realize so many things affect the numbers And every cat is different but so frustrating.

5) What numbers am I suppose to be looking for blood sugar ? obviously I’d like him to go into remission but that takes a bit.

Sorry for scattered questions but this is very stressful as both my last couple of cats have gotten sick and had to be put down by 3half and now chumlee 8 gets sick and it destroying me. How long of a life span if things go moderately well for him should I expect?

Thanks for anyone to take the time to respond.

Edit: Gave shot tonight at 1130pm 1U it’s 230 am and BSL is at 244 from 560 something. I’m guessing it will be around 380 something by noon at time of next shot.
 
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RandyChumlee said:
I give my cat a shot at noon, the numbers drop to about low hundreds from high 400’s by 4 pm and then start to climb and hit back to high 400’s by midnight and i repeat this cycle for past week. Is this normal?
Click to expand...
Perfectly normal. These deep "smile shaped" curves are typical of Vetsulin's action. From the Vetsulin web site:

Ideal blood glucose curve
The graph below demonstrates an ideal blood glucose curve for a cat receiving Vetsulin® twice daily. Not all blood glucose curves will be ideal at first.

img-graph-cats-ideal-blood-glucose-curve.jpg


RandyChumlee said:
2) His pees have pretty much gone back to normal from very heavy, and he still has appetite and is playful when the laser comes out. This are good things ?
Click to expand...
Very good signs that he's feeling better!

RandyChumlee said:
3)Diet questions, trying to research food and i switched him to all wet and over to Fancy Featst fish and shrimp flaked which was recommended by a diabetic site behind DM foods as a alternative to expensive foods. Can someone tell me if this food is ok ?
Click to expand...
Low carb (under 10% as fed) wet food is ideal and it doesn't have to be expensive. There's a great reference chart you can look at to assess a lot of different foods: https://catinfo.org/docs/CatFoodProteinFatCarbPhosphorusChart.pdf

RandyChumlee said:
4) I’m trying my best to make a curve but it’s so hard getting to him two hours after insulin. I can only do it here and there and I realize so many things affect the numbers And every cat is different but so frustrating.
Click to expand...
Try some desensitizing training by taking him to your testing spot, playing or petting him and give him a low carb treat - no poking. Repeat a lot of times and he'll learn pleasant associations. For now getting AM and PM pre shot BG tests as well as at least one in the +4 to +7 range will be useful data. Here are some good tips: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/hometesting-links-and-tips.287/

RandyChumlee said:
5) What numbers am I suppose to be looking for blood sugar ? obviously I’d like him to go into remission but that takes a bit.
Click to expand...
We'd consider a cat to have very good BG control if pre shot BGs are in the high 100s to low 200s and nadir (lowest point) BGs in the 90 - 110 range. It can take a long time to get there so a ton of patience is needed. A long time can mean many months, not just days or weeks.

RandyChumlee said:
How long of a life span if things go moderately well for him should I expect?
Click to expand...
A kitty can live many healthy years with feline diabetes if the owner stays on top of BG control, feeds an appropriate diet and attends quickly to any health issues that arise like dental infections, UTIs, etc. Their state of health is more fragile than a kitty without diabetes but there are many members here who have healthy diabetic seniors who have been diabetic a long time.

RandyChumlee said:
Edit: Gave shot tonight at 1130pm 1U it’s 230 am and BSL is at 244 from 560 something. I’m guessing it will be around 380 something by noon at time of next shot.
Click to expand...

Here are some things that will help us to help you:

1. Set up your signature (light grey text under a post). Here's how:
  • click on your name in the upper right corner of this page
  • click on "signature" in the men that drops down
  • type the following in the box that opens: kitty's name/age/date of diabetes diagnosis/insulin you're using /glucose meter you're using/what he eats/any other meds or health issues he has.
2. Another thing that will help us help you now that you've started BG testing at home is to set up a spreadsheet like the one we use here. We can all see it and look at it before offering advice: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/
 
But that’s not what my curve would look like in the picture. It would be two U’s together in a 24 hour period. Shot at midnight and it’s back to where it started by noon then another shot and it goes low but back to normal by midnight.
 
RandyChumlee said:
But that’s not what my curve would look like in the picture. It would be two U’s together in a 24 hour period. Shot at midnight and it’s back to where it started by noon then another shot and it goes low but back to normal by midnight.
Click to expand...
Sorry about that! I agree that the curve I posted is weird. Its horizontal scale is wrong. It should start at one time and end at another that's 12 hours later. If the far left of the curve is 12 AM, then the lowest point should be 6 AM and the righthand high point should be 12 PM. You're correct about having two Us in a 24 hour period.
 
BTW - Caninsulin is what Vetsulin goes by in the UK and Canada. Also - I contacted the manufacturer on their website to ask about that graph. Notice the scale from 8 AM to 8 PM on the graph in the link I put in my post above. That's a correct scale.
 
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