Max: 00cat - need some help getting regulated

[Kim & Max:00cat]

Hi. I've been around on the Facebook group for a while and finally (with much encouragement and some assistance) got a spreadsheet going and populated to try to help my kitty Max because he has been diabetic off and on since 2017 and we've had trouble getting him regulated this past year -- this was never so much of an issue before. I took some time and populated the data I had tracked on my own back for the last six months.

You can see we try to give him enough Lantus Glargine to get his numbers down but then he goes really low -- and maybe because of reading the msgs, I get paranoid and don't stay the course and then skip doses which has put him all over the map. As a note, he has gone "into remission" a few times early on so he's a sensitive kitty and our quest for the right diet for him (that can also accommodate the other 4 felines in the home) has been challenging for all involved both human and feline.

Poor Max in the last few months is now "flooding the box" and just seems overall not a happy kitty. Here is his spreadsheet:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1n_nR2TUwEyQjmu9YocTwCNZq3pLhZ0NxOxZcsC7SN_k/edit?usp=sharing

Thanks,
Kim & Max: 00cat (pronounced, double-o-cat)

 

[Sienne and Gabby (GA)]

Welcome to the group!

The FB group doesn't have the basic information -- or what we consider the basic info -- that are contained in the sticky notes at the top of the Board. My first bit of encouragement is to suggest you look over the sticky notes to make sure you have the basics under your belt.

The basics of using Lantus involve it being the kind of insulin where dosing is based on the nadir -- the lowest point in the cycle, rather than the pre-shot numbers. One very basic issue is that you will want to always get a pre-shot test -- otherwise, you have no idea whether it's safe to give a shot. Beyond the pre-shot test, it's very helpful to get at least one test during both the AM and PM cycles. The closer that test is to the nadir, the better. Given how few spot checks you have, there's no way to really low if 00cat is seeing any low numbers.

One of the fundamental principles of using Lantus is that because it is a depot type of insulin, it likes consistency. Skipping shots means that the depot doesn't stabilize. That can mean you don't get good duration or that numbers just don't stay where you want them.

I'd encourage you to read over the stickies -- especially the one on the dosing methods we use here. Once yo0u decide on which method makes the most sense for your and 00cat, you will have a guideline to follow and that may make it easier to figure out what to do and, hopefully, get your kitty regulated.

Please let us know if you have questions. The people here are very generous with their time and knowledge.

 

[Chris & China (GA)]

Hey Kim!! Glad to see you made it over here!!

As Sienne said, the sticky's have a LOT of information.....and it's good to read through them (sometimes several times). There's so much information in them that you can become overloaded, but each time you read them, you'll pick up something new!

As I've told you on Facebook, Lantus craves consistency so it's important that we find a dose that you can give every 12 hours that doesn't take him too low. I know you work during the day, so if you can't get tests in the AM cycle, it's even more important to get a couple on the PM cycle. On weekends or days off, you should either run a curve (test every 2 hours for 12 hours or every 3 hours for 18 hours) or get some tests in at different points in the cycle.

How are his teeth? Dental disease is one of the major reasons cats come out of remission along with UTI's.

Can we get you to go ahead and set up your signature? If you click on your sign on name (top right side of the page), the choice of "Signature" will come up. A new box will open for you to enter information into. Things like:

Your name, Cats name, age, sex, date of diagnosis, type of insulin, type of meter (human or pet), type of food, any other health problems or meds? and a general location. Then you put the link to your spreadsheet in and "save".

This way we don't have to keep asking the same questions over and over again and it makes it easier for us to give you better advice.

Hang in there! Getting a cat into remission once is hard!!...Getting them into remission twice is a lot harder!!

 

[Kim & Max:00cat]

Hi - thank you.
It's a chaotic schedule this week but I will try to read through the sticky notes when I'm home from work & evening commitments.
I think I fixed the signature.

 

[Kim & Max:00cat]

Oops so I guess I prematurely changed my username so that my IRL name wasn't visible and now I can't make it Kim & Max until 89 more days. Any oops passes available for newbies? I really don't want to have to delete my acct and start over unless it's the only way.

 

[Kim & Max:00cat]

Ok all sticky notes read. I think we are start low go slow.

 

[Sienne and Gabby (GA)]

@Jill & Alex (GA) - can you help out with the user name (see post #5)?

(Jill is one of the moderators.)

 

[Jill & Alex (GA)]

Oops so I guess I prematurely changed my username so that my IRL name wasn't visible and now I can't make it Kim & Max until 89 more days. Any oops passes available for newbies? I really don't want to have to delete my acct and start over unless it's the only way.

@Jill & Alex (GA) - can you help out with the user name (see post #5)?

(Jill is one of the moderators.)

Welcome to the FDMB, Kim!

Sorry, name changes aren't included in my bag of tricks. However, I believe Robert, our board administrator, can help. Please 'Start a conversation' with Robert and Echo. Explain what happened and ask if he would please change your user name to Kim & Max.

Hope to see you posting often...