Low BG numbers

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Kot

Kot

Member Since 2013
Hello,

one of my two cats, Bailey (he is 13), was diagnosed with diabetes three months ago after going to the hospital with high BG numbers and high ketone values. After giving him 1 unit of insulin a day for a week, his BG numbers were not going down significantly. We did 1 unit twice a day to get his sugar down and then, on advice of our Veterinarian(!), we stopped his insulin altogether. Bailey went into hospital three weeks later with high BG, severe dehydration and was diagnosed with kidney failure. We had couple of rough weeks. His BG was in 300-400 range and we went "low and slow" when I was giving him half a unit a day which brought his sugar way down. He went into a hypoglycemic shock one evening after dropping from close to 400 to "LO" reading on the glucometer within 5-6 hours. We got him slowly back after a sleepless night. Anyway, ever since his blood sugar is low consistently. Below 100 and often in 50-70 range. He was reading "LO" again a week ago but I caught it fast. I am constantly, it seems, rubbing honey on his gums or adding it to his food. Does anyone have thoughts on that? Any other way to keep Bailey's blood sugar a little higher?
Thanks
 
He is no longer getting insulin, right?

What type of insulin was he on?
And what food is he currently eating?
 
You might want to feed him a higher carb food. Most people feed diabetic cats 7% or less, but some cats do better on 10%. I'm sure glad you're testing to catch those extremely (and dangerous) low numbers.
 
If he isnt getting insulin then 40-130 is perfectly normal and you dont need syrup or anything.

What kind of meter is it? I am wondering what "LO" means -if its 40-50 then its ok (assuming no insulin of course)

Wendy
 
Thank you all for replies!
Bailey was on Lantus insulin and have not received an injection for at least 6 weeks. I am using ReliOn Confirm meter and it indicates "LO" value if blood glucose is below 20. However, I did not do the "control solution" testing for the meter and I'm wondering if it could be a big mistake? I am feeding Bailey and his sister a variety of "Soulistic" canned foods. I have found some of them recommended on FDMB forum and I believe their protein values are around 10%.
 
Have you ever checked your own BG with the meter? I never used the control solution either, just my own finger.

To be safe, I think I would have a blood panel done by a vet. You shouldn't need to worry if he isn't getting insulin, but other things might cause low numbers. If there's something else causing it, a panel should indicate if anything else is "off".

I've seen people post 30s when a cat is OTJ, but never a "LO".
 
THere's a printable fodd chart at Cat Info which has the % of calories from carbohydrates, protein, and fat. We don't follow the weight % listed on the can; its not reliable.
 
I've checked the chart : canned food and pouches that cats eat have Protein between 48% and 65% , Fat 27% to 30% and Carbs 7% to 23% of total calories.
 
Thank you all for your replies,
Bailey is still eating a variety of Soulistic canned foods but we try to give him more of <10% carbs foods. He was also diagnosed (by the same misguided vet who suggested taking him off insulin too early) with kidney failure. It is suggested to feed cats with kidney failure foods with less protein so I am kind of performing balancing act here ;-)
I am still keeping an eye on Bailey's BG levels but feel more relaxed now about lower readings. I did check for a couple of days his BG levels every couple of hours and he seems to be more or less in 70-80's range. So I decided to consider it a normal range for him and not to take any actions unless he goes below 50-55.
 
Kot said:
... He was also diagnosed (by the same misguided vet who suggested taking him off insulin too early) with kidney failure. It is suggested to feed cats with kidney failure foods with less protein ...
Click to expand...

Ummm ... not necessarily. Per Dr Pierson of Cat Info, feeding quality (as in animal based) protein with low phosphorus levels is appropriate, to avoid losing muscle mass and further weakening the cat. Her food chart there lists the phosphorus levels - I think the Friskies Special Diet pates may work OK for you.

Also, for your new information needs on feline renal disease, pop over to Tanya's Feline CRF web site.
 
I've got a shortcut list from Dr. Lisa's list of foods that are both low carb and low in phosphorus. Let me know if you are interested in that list.
 
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