Mumf +5 BG 43

MumfsFriend

MumfsFriend

Member Since 2021
My cat’s blood sugar was low this morning so I gave him a reduced shot. Now I tested it at +5 and it’s at 43. Currently giving him some mid carb food with a teaspoon of glucose gel mixed in. He’s gobbling it up.

he doesn’t show any symptoms, we were both napping, so he just slept. Going to test every 20 minutes now, right?
 
He’s currently in the kitchen asking for more food, should I give him more of his regular low-carb food if he’s asking? It seems intuitive at least.
 
I would also try and get at least one test in during every Pm cycle as cats often drop lower at night. Getting a before bed test in is a good habit to get into and if that test is lower that’s the preshot, I would set the alarm and test again to see he is still safe.
 
Bron and Sheba (GA) said:
I would also try and get at least one test in during every Pm cycle as cats often drop lower at night. Getting a before bed test in is a good habit to get into and if that test is lower that’s the preshot, I would set the alarm and test again to see he is still safe.
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I will start doing this.
I should’ve seen this coming because he has been up since 2 AM meowing and restless and then his sugar was lower than usual this morning.. I didn’t get a reading at 2 AM because I wanted to sleep and had a massive headache, hence the napping when I caught his low blood sugar just now ;)
 
Bandit's Mom said:
You can wait an hour to poke him. It's later in the cycle and he's over 100.

BTW, could you please take off the 911 now? Thanks :)
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Phew, I’m glad. Thank you so much! I will keep posting his numbers in this thread, OK?
And yes, I will take off the 911 now, thanks for the reminder, almost forgot. I am super scatterbrained today ‍
 
129 now.

I guess now is a good time to start pondering how I’m going to continue with his dose. I just sent an email to the vet asking for advice but I’m not sure I will reach anyone as close to Christmas. I have to work Monday through Thursday right up until Christmas, there will be no way for me to come home and test midcycle and I will probably not be home until right before his p.m. shot. So I wanna be really careful.
 
Bandit's Mom said:
I guess you've seen the dosing protocols we follow here:
Dosing Methods: Start Low, Go Slow (SLGS) & Tight Regulation (TR)

A drop below 50 on a human meter is a dose reduction for both protocols. I am not sure how you measure 1.60U, but we usually go up and down by 0.25U.
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I have. The 1.6 was the vet’s idea, it’s really measuring by eyesight, and not very reliable - which is part probably part of the problem here. She said it’s usually something between 1.6 and 1.7 and that we should do well with that dosage. Mumf has been doing well with it and this micro increase gave him better readings than the 1.5 but it seems as though now it sends him crashing.

i’m going to see how his blood sugar is before shot time and then make a decision, I guess. Probably 1.25? When I say “make a decision“, I mean I will ask in the forum again ;)

i’m also going to get another blood sugar reading in about 10 minutes and then if it looks safe I’ll probably leave them alone until it’s pre-shot time.
 
MumfsFriend said:
I’m in Germany but we have caliper here too.. ordering someone Amazon now.

btw Mumf is stable at 129 for the time being. :cat:

ETA: added my location to my signature ;)
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Be sure to order the smallest lightest calipers you can find on Amazon. I made the mistake of ordering a bigger one and it ended up in a drawer. Small set with a digital display and most importantly a lock on it that once you set the calibration of your dose, you can lock the calipers to stay at that setting until you change it. It'll save you a lot of time every time you measure the amount of insulin in the syringe. You'll also get much better accuracy this way from dose to dose as it's always the same (unless of course you need to change it)...be sure to read up on the 'How to use Calipers' instructions/video here on the forum.
https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/dosing-with-calipers-updated-w-videos.79851/
 
Jana:

To be honest, you need more test data. If you are out of the house during the AM cycle, then it's very important that you get at least one test during the PM cycle. A "before bed" test every night is the minimum. Getting a test before you go to sleep will give you some confidence that Mumf's numbers are not dropping into too low of a range. The recommendation with testing is a minimum of 4 tests per day -- your two pre-shot tests and at least one test during both the AM and PM cycles.

In addition, you're holding the dose for too long. If you hold a dose that isn't bringing your cat into good numbers, you risk glucose toxicity developing. What this means is that your cat's body gets used to being in higher numbers and it more difficult to get the numbers to come down. This is why the dosing methods we use have you evaluate the dose every week with SLGS.
 
Sienne and Gabby (GA) said:
Jana:

To be honest, you need more test data. If you are out of the house during the AM cycle, then it's very important that you get at least one test during the PM cycle. A "before bed" test every night is the minimum. Getting a test before you go to sleep will give you some confidence that Mumf's numbers are not dropping into too low of a range. The recommendation with testing is a minimum of 4 tests per day -- your two pre-shot tests and at least one test during both the AM and PM cycles.

In addition, you're holding the dose for too long. If you hold a dose that isn't bringing your cat into good numbers, you risk glucose toxicity developing. What this means is that your cat's body gets used to being in higher numbers and it more difficult to get the numbers to come down. This is why the dosing methods we use have you evaluate the dose every week with SLGS.
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I get it but it’s just not always feasible for me. I work long hours, I need to sleep at night, I can’t do more than get the pre-shot and a test in the PM cycle which I will start doing now. I should be able to get a +4 in the evenings before bed.
I’m burnt out as it is from my job and I have to be alert at work and so I can’t set an alarm and get up at 2 AM and test blood sugar. I have a job that requires me to stay there all day, it’s a long commute, I cannot come home and do any kind of midcycle testing. I don’t come home until it’s almost time for the next shot. I’m doing my best but there’s not really much leeway for me to get more data.

I’ve been holding the dose for so long because the vet told me to she was happy with the readings/curves and said to stay at this dose for some time. I just sent her an email asking for an update and sent her a link to the spreadsheet so hopefully will get ahead there. I’m just trying to figure out what to do tonight and tomorrow, but it also depends on the pre-shot reading I get later. Still have about 3 hours to go until shot time.
 
Jana --

Most of us do understand that many caregivers don't have unlimited resources and we have to work to pay for insulin, strips, etc. My situation wasn't all that different other than I had a short commute and I had some degree of control over my schedule. If I was worried, I could run home at lunch and test Gabby. When I moved to a new job in a different city, I would often run home at shot time (5:00) and go back to the office for a late meeting. We all make the accommodations we need to make.

One thing to be aware of is that many vets, at least here in the US, will advise caregivers to leave their cats in higher numbers than we like. Often, they will indicate that the numbers are fine as long as they are in the 200s. The problem is that this can be a range that's over renal threshold. Diabetes is hard on the kidneys and allowing a cat's numbers to stay above around 220 increases the risk for kidney disease. If your goal is regulation or remission, you want to see numbers that are in normal range (50 - 120).

I'd suggest getting a test at around +11. It will give you an idea of where numbers are heading at shot time. However, Mumf's dose should be reduced based on the 43. With SLGS, you reduce the dose by 0.25u when numbers are below 90.
 
Sienne and Gabby (GA) said:
Jana --

Most of us do understand that many caregivers don't have unlimited resources and we have to work to pay for insulin, strips, etc. My situation wasn't all that different other than I had a short commute and I had some degree of control over my schedule. If I was worried, I could run home at lunch and test Gabby. When I moved to a new job in a different city, I would often run home at shot time (5:00) and go back to the office for a late meeting. We all make the accommodations we need to make.

One thing to be aware of is that many vets, at least here in the US, will advise caregivers to leave their cats in higher numbers than we like. Often, they will indicate that the numbers are fine as long as they are in the 200s. The problem is that this can be a range that's over renal threshold. Diabetes is hard on the kidneys and allowing a cat's numbers to stay above around 220 increases the risk for kidney disease. If your goal is regulation or remission, you want to see numbers that are in normal range (50 - 120).

I'd suggest getting a test at around +11. It will give you an idea of where numbers are heading at shot time. However, Mumf's dose should be reduced based on the 43. With SLGS, you reduce the dose by 0.25u when numbers are below 90.
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Thank you. I’m sorry if I sounded snappy, I’m just completely overwhelmed with this. Things seem to be going well and now I’m just unsure again. I think I’m also just very resentful that I have to work right up until Christmas lol.

My vet is actually trained in handling diabetic cats, and she has a practice that only treats cats, which is pretty good. However, she’s not always around for me to talk to, so I tend to send results of curves to her and then she gives me feedback.

i’m going to bake some cookies now to get my mind off this and do something for my own blood sugar.. :)
I will get a +11 in an hour.
 
+11 is at 203, so I will be giving 1.25 later.

Do you think it’s OK to give him a snack now, he’s begging for food.. but I do need to get a pre-shot reading in an hour. I think I just answered that question myself, didn’t I, lol
 
You're catching on!!! You are correct -- you don't want your pre-shot number to be influenced by food. If Mumf is threatening to chew on your ankle, a protein only treat (e.g., a freeze dried or cooked chicken treat) may be OK to give.
 
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