New here. 5 months in and still not regulated.

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Every 8 hours makes more sense if we keep going three times a day. But that is where it gets tough on my schedule. I don't really want to keep doing it three times a day... I'm just following what the vet said for now. I am starting to work on the spreadsheet and don't really understand how to use it if I'm doing shots three times a day.
I developed these current SSs and I have a template for three times a day dosing but I encourage you to consider just dosing twice a day. I can only remember a few members who shoot three times a day as it is grueling even shooting every 8 hours. But the decision is yours. Let me know and I can take the SS you have and add the one that is for 3x day.
 
Would it be normal for him to bounce back so quickly if it really was ketoacidosis? The vet said that it was ketoacidosis on Friday, but by Sunday, Charlie was eating on his own and acting better. Today I'd say he's acting like normal. Eats just fine and has energy.

Depends on the cat and the DKA severity, so recovery times vary wildly. My Hendrick was like Charlie, DKA on a Saturday morning and home by Monday eating on his own. So on the surface, looked very much recovered. But DKA is very hard on the little feline body.
 
I developed these current SSs and I have a template for three times a day dosing but I encourage you to consider just dosing twice a day. I can only remember a few members who shoot three times a day as it is grueling even shooting every 8 hours. But the decision is yours. Let me know and I can take the SS you have and add the one that is for 3x day.

I would like to switch to two times a day. So I'll start that today. Then I will have an easier time using the spreadsheet. Do you think I should stick with 6 units twice a day? 5 units?

I got some ketone test strips last night. I never caught him going to the litter box. I put some saran wrap in there this morning to see if I could catch some while I'm at work. I also have a ketone blood meter on the way, it will be here Saturday.

This mornings preshot was 476, so still pretty high. I gave him 6 units. Will go home during my lunch and test again.
 
Depends on the cat and the DKA severity, so recovery times vary wildly. My Hendrick was like Charlie, DKA on a Saturday morning and home by Monday eating on his own. So on the surface, looked very much recovered. But DKA is very hard on the little feline body.

I got ketone strips last night. Just haven't been able to catch him in the act yet. I put down some saran wrap to see if that would do the trick. I also have a blood meter that will be here Saturday so we can see what the ketones level is.

I stuck a strip in some wet litter and it showed trace amounts but I know that is probably not accurate.
 
I would like to switch to two times a day. So I'll start that today. Then I will have an easier time using the spreadsheet. Do you think I should stick with 6 units twice a day? 5 units?

I got some ketone test strips last night. I never caught him going to the litter box. I put some saran wrap in there this morning to see if I could catch some while I'm at work. I also have a ketone blood meter on the way, it will be here Saturday.

This mornings preshot was 476, so still pretty high. I gave him 6 units. Will go home during my lunch and test again.
@Marje and Gracie
 
I am not testing for ketones. The meter I am using says ketone on it when it displays the results and I am not sure what that means. Again, I'm using an Auvon meter from Amazon.
The displaying of "Ketones" on a glucose-only meter like yours means that glucose value is very high and you should be testing for ketones because of the high BG reading. .
 
I would like to switch to two times a day. So I'll start that today. Then I will have an easier time using the spreadsheet. Do you think I should stick with 6 units twice a day? 5 units?

I got some ketone test strips last night. I never caught him going to the litter box. I put some saran wrap in there this morning to see if I could catch some while I'm at work. I also have a ketone blood meter on the way, it will be here Saturday.

This mornings preshot was 476, so still pretty high. I gave him 6 units. Will go home during my lunch and test again.
Wendy suggested 5 to 5.5u every 8 hours if you were going to stick with 3x/day. That would mean a total of 15 - 16.5u a day. Therefore, if you are shooting twice a day, I’d start at 7.5u twice a day and absolutely no less than 7u twice a day. Of course, it helps us more if the SS is up-to-date so trying to get all the BGs entered to today would be extremely beneficial.

Instead of Saran Wrap, I use to stick a large spoon under Gracie’s bottom as she squatted and it always worked. My vet also has small plastic trays to slip under the kitties’ bottoms as they squat. You could even use the lid to a plastic container that something like butter or sour cream comes in as long as it is spotlessly clean.

If you can catch him before he pees first thing in the morning, if you put him in the box, perhaps you can get a sample. This was always the easiest way for me to get urine from Gracie without having to watch her all day to see when she went to the box. She would always “pee on demand” first thing in the morning.:woot:
 
Wendy suggested 5 to 5.5u every 8 hours if you were going to stick with 3x/day. That would mean a total of 15 - 16.5u a day. Therefore, if you are shooting twice a day, I’d start at 7.5u twice a day and absolutely no less than 7u twice a day. Of course, it helps us more if the SS is up-to-date so trying to get all the BGs entered to today would be extremely beneficial.

Instead of Saran Wrap, I use to stick a large spoon under Gracie’s bottom as she squatted and it always worked. My vet also has small plastic trays to slip under the kitties’ bottoms as they squat. You could even use the lid to a plastic container that something like butter or sour cream comes in as long as it is spotlessly clean.

If you can catch him before he pees first thing in the morning, if you put him in the box, perhaps you can get a sample. This was always the easiest way for me to get urine from Gracie without having to watch her all day to see when she went to the box. She would always “pee on demand” first thing in the morning.:woot:


Twice a day will just make it easier on my schedule. I'll start with 7.5 units tonight. I have today's numbers on the spreadsheet. Since I was previously doing 3x/day, I don't know how to enter that information. Should I enter the previous numbers I have or just start fresh with the 2x/day numbers? On weekdays, since I'm working I can't test as much. This weekend I should be able to collect some good numbers for you guys.

I have a spoon on standby! Just haven't seen him go to the box. I like your idea of putting him in first thing in the morning. I'll try that.

One other thing... I can't thank you enough for your time, effort, and patience in helping me. I have learned so much in the last couple of days. I just feel so grateful I posted here and that everyone has been so kind and helpful. :kiss::kiss:
 
Twice a day will just make it easier on my schedule. I'll start with 7.5 units tonight. I have today's numbers on the spreadsheet. Since I was previously doing 3x/day, I don't know how to enter that information. Should I enter the previous numbers I have or just start fresh with the 2x/day numbers? On weekdays, since I'm working I can't test as much. This weekend I should be able to collect some good numbers for you guys.

I have a spoon on standby! Just haven't seen him go to the box. I like your idea of putting him in first thing in the morning. I'll try that.

One other thing... I can't thank you enough for your time, effort, and patience in helping me. I have learned so much in the last couple of days. I just feel so grateful I posted here and that everyone has been so kind and helpful. :kiss::kiss:
Perhaps use the remarks to post the mid-day PS and tests. In the +12 column, put the BG and then how many hours since the last shot so if you shot the evening shot 8 hours after the midday shot, just put “xxx” (where xxx is the BG) @ +8. Does that make sense?

When going to this new dose, please test as much as you are there for so in addition to the pre-shots, a +2, and out the door, and in the door, and at night the PS, +2, and before bed tests.

We are very happy to help and I feel confident we can at least improve things.
 
Twice a day will just make it easier on my schedule. I'll start with 7.5 units tonight. I have today's numbers on the spreadsheet. Since I was previously doing 3x/day, I don't know how to enter that information. Should I enter the previous numbers I have or just start fresh with the 2x/day numbers? On weekdays, since I'm working I can't test as much. This weekend I should be able to collect some good numbers for you guys.

I have a spoon on standby! Just haven't seen him go to the box. I like your idea of putting him in first thing in the morning. I'll try that.

One other thing... I can't thank you enough for your time, effort, and patience in helping me. I have learned so much in the last couple of days. I just feel so grateful I posted here and that everyone has been so kind and helpful. :kiss::kiss:
I just saw he dropped to 58 tonight. It’s hard to know if this is from the depot (which it likely is) of the high dose you’ve been shooting. But, to be cautious, you might want to stick with 6u twice a day until the depot empties a bit.
 
I just saw he dropped to 58 tonight. It’s hard to know if this is from the depot (which it likely is) of the high dose you’ve been shooting. But, to be cautious, you might want to stick with 6u twice a day until the depot empties a bit.

When I tested him before his PM shot and it was 222, I decided to stay with the 6 units. But he did drop to 58 +2 ... I gave him a little bit of honey because I was panicking that he was getting too low. Was I jumping the gun? Should I have just left it?

Still haven't been able to catch him peeing so I haven't checked ketones. The blood meter should be here tomorrow so I can check.

Today he was at 151 +6. I'm feeling hopeful we can get this under control!
 
When I tested him before his PM shot and it was 222, I decided to stay with the 6 units. But he did drop to 58 +2 ... I gave him a little bit of honey because I was panicking that he was getting too low. Was I jumping the gun? Should I have just left it?

Still haven't been able to catch him peeing so I haven't checked ketones. The blood meter should be here tomorrow so I can check.

Today he was at 151 +6. I'm feeling hopeful we can get this under control!
@Wendy&Neko
Hin Wendy, @Katy and Charlie has decided to shoot 6 units twice/a day instead of 3 times a day, per her post #58.
And post #60.
Since Charlie dropped under 90 per SLGS do you think she should reduce the dose or do what Marje suggested in post #60
Thanks Wendy
 
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What percent of wet vs dry food are you feeding him now? Which day did you switch from 3 times a day shots to 2 times a day? If you could put a note in the Remarks column as to the day you went to 2 shots a day, that will help us.
I gave him a little bit of honey because I was panicking that he was getting too low. Was I jumping the gun? Should I have just left it?
That was a big drop early in the cycle. Honey was a good idea. Getting a test later in the cycle would also have helped. Honey can wear off and his numbers might have dropped again. While he still has dry food in the picture, you don't want him going below 90.
 
What percent of wet vs dry food are you feeding him now? Which day did you switch from 3 times a day shots to 2 times a day? If you could put a note in the Remarks column as to the day you went to 2 shots a day, that will help us.

That was a big drop early in the cycle. Honey was a good idea. Getting a test later in the cycle would also have helped. Honey can wear off and his numbers might have dropped again. While he still has dry food in the picture, you don't want him going below 90.

For food, I would say it's been about 75% wet, 25% dry. Still trying to phase out the dry I just don't want to do it too quickly. When I first posted here earlier this week, he would get dry food in the morning and wet food at night. Now I'm giving him wet food both morning and night but some dry food throughout the day.

We switched to 2x/day yesterday (2/1/24). I've added that to the remarks now.

You're right, I should have tested him again. I'm trying to test as much as I can but honestly, he hates it. I'm still trying to get better at getting it on the first poke. But I'm struggling with poking a couple times and not getting blood. He tries to escape the whole time and I just start to feel like I'm torturing him. I bribe him with treats but he just doesn't like it.
 
For food, I would say it's been about 75% wet, 25% dry. Still trying to phase out the dry I just don't want to do it too quickly.
A slow transition would be about 10% change per day, so you've gone faster than that. And that explains the 58 you saw last night. In light of that, I think you should move to 5.5 units as the new dose. We don't want him going that low.

As far as testing goes, some people find combing or pats/attention work for rewards. Does he like the treats? You should try a few random times where you hold him like you are going to test him, rub his ears, do not test, and reward him. Some people get the blood drop on their fingernail and test it from there. That allows you to release the cat earlier.
 
A slow transition would be about 10% change per day, so you've gone faster than that. And that explains the 58 you saw last night. In light of that, I think you should move to 5.5 units as the new dose. We don't want him going that low.

As far as testing goes, some people find combing or pats/attention work for rewards. Does he like the treats? You should try a few random times where you hold him like you are going to test him, rub his ears, do not test, and reward him. Some people get the blood drop on their fingernail and test it from there. That allows you to release the cat earlier.


I think I am transitioning to wet food too quickly. I'm just having such a hard time. 10% change is so minor, i dont know how to gauge that. I just tested @ +12 and it said LO. Tested again and it's 29. Just gave him honey, kinda freaking out over here.
 
Sorry, missed that it was +12. You need to give him some gravy from high carb food, maybe a tsp, and a couple drops honey. We need him UP!
 
Test about 15-20 minutes after that first bit of honey - let's see how much it bumped him up.
 
Test about 15-20 minutes after that first bit of honey - let's see how much it bumped him up.


It's been about 15 or 20 minutes.. tested again and got 92.

This being all over the place is making me crazy. I have a hard time not getting stressed and overwhelmed and I'm sure Charlie can sense that.

I'll keep trying to test tonight but he's mad at me.

So what do you think? No insulin tonight but 5.5 units in the morning?
 
Not after that Lo and 29 just now. Maybe 5 units instead. Any chance you can get a test 1/2 hour before AMPS and post for help? In case he does something unexpected overnight.

So skip tonight, feed regular food, and I'd test in an hour to make sure he's not dropping back down. Don't feed all his dinner, reserve a bit so he's still hungry if he drops and you need to feed him again. Normally I wouldn't suggest a skip with a cat and recent DKA (please add DKA and date it happened to signature), his insulin needs are changing quickly. If you can, try to get a ketones test in the next 12 hours.
 
Not after that Lo and 29 just now. Maybe 5 units instead. Any chance you can get a test 1/2 hour before AMPS and post for help? In case he does something unexpected overnight.

So skip tonight, feed regular food, and I'd test in an hour to make sure he's not dropping back down. Don't feed all his dinner, reserve a bit so he's still hungry if he drops and you need to feed him again. Normally I wouldn't suggest a skip with a cat and recent DKA (please add DKA and date it happened to signature), his insulin needs are changing quickly. If you can, try to get a ketones test in the next 12 hours.

Yeah, I should be able to test 1/2 before AMPS. I'll follow your guidance. The ketone meter got here a day early so I have it now. I was going to test but then got worked up over him being low! I'll do that ASAP and post what I get.

Thank you so much for your help!!
 
Good morning @Wendy&Neko :):coffee:
Charlie is at 595 this morning. He is seriously bouncing all over the place.... I'm wondering if I should do 5 or 5.5 units. I'm thinking 5.5 since he's so high this morning.
 
We dose based on how low the dose takes the cat, not the highs. Ignore those bounces. Plus you skipped insulin, so not surprising he's high. Try 5.0 units if you are continuing the food transition.
 
Lantus dosing isn't based on the pre-shot number unless the number is too low to shoot like last night. However, Charlie's numbers were low enough that you need to reduce his dose. I'd suggest dropping the dose to 5.5u.

Normally, dose reductions are 0.25u. Also, please remember to test for ketones when you can.
 
Lantus dosing isn't based on the pre-shot number unless the number is too low to shoot like last night. However, Charlie's numbers were low enough that you need to reduce his dose. I'd suggest dropping the dose to 5.5u.

Normally, dose reductions are 0.25u. Also, please remember to test for ketones when you can.


Thanks for the help. I'm still learning and the bounces make me so nervous!! I tested for ketones using blood meter last night and got 0.2mmol/L. From a Google search that seems like a healthy level, correct me if I'm wrong. How often should I be testing for ketones?
 
I would test at least once a day if his numbers are high. Since you skipped last night, earlier today would be good. Ketones under the 0.5 seem to be normal. If he goes above that maybe test more frequently. It also depends on his energy level and appetite. Is he eating well?
 
I would test at least once a day if his numbers are high. Since you skipped last night, earlier today would be good. Ketones under the 0.5 seem to be normal. If he goes above that maybe test more frequently. It also depends on his energy level and appetite. Is he eating well?


I'll try testing his ketones and BG in a little bit! He has been eating like normal. BG has slowly been coming down today. Energy is good too. I even got him to play a little bit earlier which he hadn't been doing much lately!
 
116 @ +11, gave 5.5 units this morning. Ketones tested @ +11 0.2 mmol/L.

Think we should stick with 5.5 units tonight? I'm just worrying about him dropping too low again tonight. He had a mixture of wet and dry food for dinner.
 
That's a huge drop in 2 hours! Could you retest now? That's about 1/2 hour later. I suggested 5 units this morning.

How late after PMPS can you monitor tonight?
 
Correct, no shot with him that low. 5.5 units has proven to be too much insulin. I hope you've fed him and he comes back up. He will unfortunately be high again in the morning, but hopefully we'll soon find a dose you can give twice a day.
 
Katy - a favour to ask of you. For your next post here, could you start a new thread? This one is now 88 posts long so getting long for new people to catch up on what is happening.
 
Katy - a favour to ask of you. For your next post here, could you start a new thread? This one is now 88 posts long so getting long for new people to catch up on what is happening.

Yes, I was wondering about that. I'll start a new one probably tonight or tomorrow. I'm having some family time today and won't be able to test or post as much, but I'll do an update ASAP! Thanks!!! :)
 
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