I updated the spreadsheet. I was pretty freaked out after some really low readings a few days ago. So I will stick with 1 unit for the next week. Her behavior (purring, peeing, preening, playing) has been mostly normal, but she is still having loose bowel movements (the last P, pooping) ever since she was diagnosed. It did not change when I switched her to EVO. Will they every go back to formed? I have to clean up about 5 or 6 puddles every day from my basement floor. She goes all over the place.
Midnight's blood sugars Tuesday 4/30
- Thread starter TMR
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MommaOfMuse
Member Since 2010
Glad to hear that at least 4 of the 5 Ps are all in place. Never had a problem with loose stools in any of mine with the food switch although I didn't radically change their diets just took away the dry food and upped the amount of Friskies they were already eating.
I do know some folks will use either a little bit of unsweetened plain yogurt or a little canned pumpkin (not the pie filling stuff) to help firm up loose stools. As well as some also use Fortiflora which you can either order on line or get from your vet.
Mel, Maxwell, Autumn & The Fur Gang
I do know some folks will use either a little bit of unsweetened plain yogurt or a little canned pumpkin (not the pie filling stuff) to help firm up loose stools. As well as some also use Fortiflora which you can either order on line or get from your vet.
Mel, Maxwell, Autumn & The Fur Gang
TMR said:
Hi TMR,
Did you have to change food with the diagnosis? I'm wondering if the loose stools were driven by a change in the amount of fiber in her diet. Since she's been checked out by the vet I'll assume its not worms or anything like that....but I know that I had loose stool issues with one or the other of mine when I changed food back when I was feeding dry. (I rarely know who the culprit is for sure - they blame each other at my house)
I don't know if its safe to add fiber to a diabetic cats diet but I'll see what I can find out about it.
And the yogurt - I've heard about that as well -but some cats like mine are really sensitive to dairy and if you have one of those - you'll just make the problem worse, sigh.....
TMR said:
What did she eat before the diabetic dry? I wasn't thinking wet/dry actually - I was thinking more that switching dry food from one kind to another - maybe there was some ingredient in the original food that isn't in the diabetic and EVO, like some form of fiber.
And I'm glad she didn't go too low today - I think she's still bouncing a bit from those earlier lows and it might be another day before you see better preshots - but she's looking good from here.
Em
She was on Hills RD to lose weight before diagnosis. She is down to 9 pounds (at diagnosis, and steady so far) and the vet said that is a good weight for her.
I just updated the spreadsheet. I can't guarantee I will do sugars every day, but I will check it more often than I had been checking it.
I just updated the spreadsheet. I can't guarantee I will do sugars every day, but I will check it more often than I had been checking it.
MommaOfMuse
Member Since 2010
This is purely out of my curiosity...But why not check her BGs before even giving her insulin everyday? What is going to happen if one morning she is say 50 first thing in the morning and you don't test before that shot and go ahead and give her a full dose?
The reason I bring that up is because my first adopted sugarcat Maxwell came to me with his BGs consistently in the 200s-300s, yet I gave him two...yes TWO insulin injection in total before he was in remission and never has gotten high enough to give insulin to again and that was 2 1/2 years ago. Now not every cat does that but we see lots of them on this board especially those on Lantus do exactly that, go into remission and never need insulin again.
I would hate for you to not test and have her go hypo on you and die. That is the basic reason that we do test at home is to make sure that we can head off a potential dangerous situation while they are on insulin.
Mel, Maxwell, Autumn & The Fur Gang
The reason I bring that up is because my first adopted sugarcat Maxwell came to me with his BGs consistently in the 200s-300s, yet I gave him two...yes TWO insulin injection in total before he was in remission and never has gotten high enough to give insulin to again and that was 2 1/2 years ago. Now not every cat does that but we see lots of them on this board especially those on Lantus do exactly that, go into remission and never need insulin again.
I would hate for you to not test and have her go hypo on you and die. That is the basic reason that we do test at home is to make sure that we can head off a potential dangerous situation while they are on insulin.
Mel, Maxwell, Autumn & The Fur Gang
I will think about testing every day before every dose. I just don't know if I am going to test several times every day. I will think about it. I get it. I understand the point of it. Please respect that some people do not do quite as much as others. But thank you for your concern for Midnight.
TMR said:
I'm not a vet, but I think that might be it....R/D is a high fiber food - 14% dry matter. The Hills DIabetic M/D is 6% and the Evo looks to be 2%. That's quite a change in the amount of fiber in her diet and it could explain the loose stools.
Mel - do you know if its safe to give metamucil or another fiber supplement to a diabetic cat - I know you can do it with non-diabetics?
And I'm glad you are testing when you can.....I do understand. There are times when I'm frustrated and even angry that my entire life seems to be taking up with caring for and paying for my cat - and it could go on like that for years and years. I love my cats, but I think there needs to be balance in life - and each person decides how to manage that balance.....there are no wrong answers.
The people on these boards are a great resource. Many of the folks who are here are very passionate about feline diabetes - and sometimes that passion might come across as being demanding or insistent that you do certain things. But they are just sharing what they believe.
So you just take what they give - use what you can, and don't worry about the rest. No one doubts that you love Midnight and are doing your best for her....and that makes her a very lucky kitty.
Em
MommaOfMuse
Member Since 2010
Sorry I asked...I was merely curious....I thought if perhaps it was because of a problem you were having with testing I could offer some assistance. You're right you are doing more for Midnight that either Maxwell's or Autumn's previous owners did for them, which is exactly why even though I already had 12 healthy and happy cats I adopted them.
Your correct Midnight is your cat and only you can choose how to treat or not treat her. But I also have a very busy life, I have 14 cats, 16 litter boxes to clean, a house to maintain, a new business that I'm starting, a large dog to walk and care for, and a husband, children and grandchildren to occupy my time with. I certainly do not need to spend what little time I have to sit down and check this board being ripped into when I simply ask a question.
So basically I don't have to be here trying to help with dosing advice without the tools (enough test date) to give informed advice from
Mel, Maxwell, Autumn & The Fur Gang
Your correct Midnight is your cat and only you can choose how to treat or not treat her. But I also have a very busy life, I have 14 cats, 16 litter boxes to clean, a house to maintain, a new business that I'm starting, a large dog to walk and care for, and a husband, children and grandchildren to occupy my time with. I certainly do not need to spend what little time I have to sit down and check this board being ripped into when I simply ask a question.
So basically I don't have to be here trying to help with dosing advice without the tools (enough test date) to give informed advice from
Mel, Maxwell, Autumn & The Fur Gang
I really do appreciate the people on this board. They all care about their cats and know a lot about feline diabetes. My vet really doesn't have a clue. It is just a guessing game with him. He wanted to test once every couple weeks, stick with the Purina DM food, and go from there. I agree with home testing and I feel a lot better knowing I can test Midnight's blood sugar whenever I want. I can test as often as I choose, and adjust her insulin doses accordingly, based on the articles and advice on this website. I am VERY VERY grateful for the support and advice and wisdom of the people here. I just don't know if I will test several times every day, for the rest of her life. I just want to be respected if I decide to test less often. That is all.
TMR said:
So, I just went and looked at your evening preshot....and that is really good....I thought you'd have to deal with high bouncy numbers for longer. I think that EVO has definitely made a difference - you can see from the chart how she has lower number with less insulin . So please give her an "attagirl" from me.
MommaOfMuse
Member Since 2010
Sorry I popped off as well but testing is a sore subject with me and let me tell you why...
My very first diabetic cat was a beautiful seal point Himalayan girl named Muse, she was the light of my life and was actually one of the two cats that I had when my husband and I first started dating and finally because of the way both she and Onyx responded to him and he to them is what convinced me to say yes when he asked me to marry him (He asked my cats first if it was okay to become their dad).
It took a long hard fight and finally a switch in vets to even get her dxed, once I knew what was wrong with her, while she was still in the hospital being treated I started researching and found this board. Well her dx came at the worst time in our financial life, we were both unemployed, so running out and just getting a meter wasn't possible. I didn't know anything yet about the differences in insulins so when the vet sent me home with NPH I knew very little about it, plus she was sent home over a long holiday weekend. To make a long story short...I couldn't test yet, so I dropped her dose back to 1u and prayed. 3 years ago yesterday was the worst morning of my life, the night before I had given Muse her shot, she seemed to be doing better actually came to me to be brushed and snuggled, loved on the other kitties and even kissed the dog, so I went to bed so happy that my girl was going to get better and that by morning I would be able to go get a meter and start testing her and then call the vet about a better insulin....The morning of May 1 2010 I woke up and realized Muse wasn't with the others waiting for breakfast, so I went looking for her. I found her cold and stiff in a pool of her own body fluids. She was gone, she had hypoed over night, went into seizures and passed away. My world went dark that day, as she was my light, she was my beautiful funny dancing girl and I killed her. It is a guilt that I carry in my heart everyday and that day I decided that this disease would never sneak up on me and rob me of another one of my beautiful spirits that I am blessed to share my life with, and that if I ever did become blessed enough to have another sugarcat in my care I would never ever give another insulin shot without testing to know it was first.
I never ask for anyone to test more than they are capable of, with the exception of those preshots and curve once a week to help with dose adjustment. Mostly because I don't want anyone else to carry that feeling in their heart that for the lack of a few moments it takes to test they killed an animal they loved. It is hard enough to lose any of them, but it is far worse to know you shortened their lives when trying to help them because you didn't take 2 minutes to make sure they were safe.
Mel, Maxwell, Autumn & The Fur Gang
My very first diabetic cat was a beautiful seal point Himalayan girl named Muse, she was the light of my life and was actually one of the two cats that I had when my husband and I first started dating and finally because of the way both she and Onyx responded to him and he to them is what convinced me to say yes when he asked me to marry him (He asked my cats first if it was okay to become their dad).
It took a long hard fight and finally a switch in vets to even get her dxed, once I knew what was wrong with her, while she was still in the hospital being treated I started researching and found this board. Well her dx came at the worst time in our financial life, we were both unemployed, so running out and just getting a meter wasn't possible. I didn't know anything yet about the differences in insulins so when the vet sent me home with NPH I knew very little about it, plus she was sent home over a long holiday weekend. To make a long story short...I couldn't test yet, so I dropped her dose back to 1u and prayed. 3 years ago yesterday was the worst morning of my life, the night before I had given Muse her shot, she seemed to be doing better actually came to me to be brushed and snuggled, loved on the other kitties and even kissed the dog, so I went to bed so happy that my girl was going to get better and that by morning I would be able to go get a meter and start testing her and then call the vet about a better insulin....The morning of May 1 2010 I woke up and realized Muse wasn't with the others waiting for breakfast, so I went looking for her. I found her cold and stiff in a pool of her own body fluids. She was gone, she had hypoed over night, went into seizures and passed away. My world went dark that day, as she was my light, she was my beautiful funny dancing girl and I killed her. It is a guilt that I carry in my heart everyday and that day I decided that this disease would never sneak up on me and rob me of another one of my beautiful spirits that I am blessed to share my life with, and that if I ever did become blessed enough to have another sugarcat in my care I would never ever give another insulin shot without testing to know it was first.
I never ask for anyone to test more than they are capable of, with the exception of those preshots and curve once a week to help with dose adjustment. Mostly because I don't want anyone else to carry that feeling in their heart that for the lack of a few moments it takes to test they killed an animal they loved. It is hard enough to lose any of them, but it is far worse to know you shortened their lives when trying to help them because you didn't take 2 minutes to make sure they were safe.
Mel, Maxwell, Autumn & The Fur Gang
I don't think you killed your cat. You shouldn't feel guilty for the rest of your life because your cat died. She might have had a seizure or heart attack or something totally unrelated to her blood sugar. Maybe it was just her time to go and no matter what you did or didn't do, she would have died anyway. I believe that my former pets are in heaven and I will see them again. I hope you can believe that too, and not keep feeling like it was your fault that your cat passed away.
MommaOfMuse said:
First off, what a wonderful story about you and your husband - I'm glad your cats said yes.
And although it's natural for all of us to take blame - life happens.......we do the best that we can...and there's no way of knowing whether or not you could have changed anything. But this month especially, when I'm sure you are filled with all sorts of emotions I want to remind you of how much you've done and continue to do to help so many of us here - you've taken a terrible experience and turned it into a wonderful testament to your Muse.
Thank you so much for all that you do here and (((((hugs))))) just because it kinda seems like that kind of day.
Em
(((((Mel)))). I knew you had lost Muse a while ago but I didn't know the story. It made me weep with sadness for you especially since today is three years....keeping you in my thoughts. :YMHUG:
Terri...I know you mean well by thinking it could have been something other than a hypo but I can't even imagine what it took Mel to share that story. I know her pain and grief must still be huge. Please honor Muses memory and also what it had to take Mel to share this story. Please don't be dismissive of what she is trying to tell you.
We all have busy lives but there is no excuse for not getting a PS test every single time. If you don't work, you just need a midcycle test. If you do, grab an out the door and in the door. Then test before bed. It isn't too much to ask to spare your girl the tragedy of a hypo. You've seen how low she can drop. And just because you cut the dose back to 1u, does not mean she can't drop on that dose.
Like Mel, I also cannot help someone who won't test as I will not be a part of a cat having a hypo.....or the opposite which is hyperglycemia...which can kill as well and is an equally horrible death. You don't have to test like some of us do, but you do have to test.
Terri...I know you mean well by thinking it could have been something other than a hypo but I can't even imagine what it took Mel to share that story. I know her pain and grief must still be huge. Please honor Muses memory and also what it had to take Mel to share this story. Please don't be dismissive of what she is trying to tell you.
We all have busy lives but there is no excuse for not getting a PS test every single time. If you don't work, you just need a midcycle test. If you do, grab an out the door and in the door. Then test before bed. It isn't too much to ask to spare your girl the tragedy of a hypo. You've seen how low she can drop. And just because you cut the dose back to 1u, does not mean she can't drop on that dose.
Like Mel, I also cannot help someone who won't test as I will not be a part of a cat having a hypo.....or the opposite which is hyperglycemia...which can kill as well and is an equally horrible death. You don't have to test like some of us do, but you do have to test.
MommaOfMuse
Member Since 2010
But I did kill her, you see I asked that a necropsy be performed on her after her death to know exactly what she had died from since I had several other cats in the house at the time and wanted to be sure it was nothing that they could have caught from her...her blood sugar was 15 at the time of her death. So it was by my hand that administered the insulin that caused her death.
Now do I think Muse hates me for it...No, she only knew that I loved her that I fought long and hard for her and that she was loved, fed, and had a warm safe place to sleep at night. Something she hadn't know for at least a period of time in her life, because she was originally found in a house in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina and Rita went through alone locked in a kennel on top of a refrigerator where her people had put her to keep her safe. She was also found with her original owners bodies. They had died because they refused to leave her behind. Then she spent several years in a shelter, after which she was adopted by a family that brought her to Nebraska and when one of their children in their daycare turned up allergic to cats she was booted outside with no claws to protect herself.
She literally fell into my lap when I needed her most and I let her down. But because of her, I found this board, Maxwell who is also a Katrina survivor and I found each other, then Musette came into our lives and ironically she also passed away on the same day two years later as her namesake Muse, and then Autumn came into our hearts and home just a few days before losing Musette.
Musette's death doesn't haunt me because I know I did nothing wrong with her, from being vigilant in testing her to rushing her to the ER when she stopped eating on her own. In her case it truly was nothing more I could have done for her. It was simply her time to go, she was done fighting the good fight and she was ready to rest. The same thing applies to Onyx that I lost in November of last year. Yes I told the vet to end his life, but I did so because I wasn't going to watch him struggle to breathe as the tumor in chest kept growing by leaps and bounds. We could have had a few more months together maybe, but I wanted him to go gently knowing nothing but that he was loved and cherished.
Mel, Maxwell, Autumn & The Fur Gang
Now do I think Muse hates me for it...No, she only knew that I loved her that I fought long and hard for her and that she was loved, fed, and had a warm safe place to sleep at night. Something she hadn't know for at least a period of time in her life, because she was originally found in a house in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina and Rita went through alone locked in a kennel on top of a refrigerator where her people had put her to keep her safe. She was also found with her original owners bodies. They had died because they refused to leave her behind. Then she spent several years in a shelter, after which she was adopted by a family that brought her to Nebraska and when one of their children in their daycare turned up allergic to cats she was booted outside with no claws to protect herself.
She literally fell into my lap when I needed her most and I let her down. But because of her, I found this board, Maxwell who is also a Katrina survivor and I found each other, then Musette came into our lives and ironically she also passed away on the same day two years later as her namesake Muse, and then Autumn came into our hearts and home just a few days before losing Musette.
Musette's death doesn't haunt me because I know I did nothing wrong with her, from being vigilant in testing her to rushing her to the ER when she stopped eating on her own. In her case it truly was nothing more I could have done for her. It was simply her time to go, she was done fighting the good fight and she was ready to rest. The same thing applies to Onyx that I lost in November of last year. Yes I told the vet to end his life, but I did so because I wasn't going to watch him struggle to breathe as the tumor in chest kept growing by leaps and bounds. We could have had a few more months together maybe, but I wanted him to go gently knowing nothing but that he was loved and cherished.
Mel, Maxwell, Autumn & The Fur Gang
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