New(ish) and would appreciate advice

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GatorsRBst

Member Since 2013
Hello! My cat, Scamper, was diagnosed about a week and a half ago. I've been keeping track of his BG levels and have changed his dosage from the 2 units the vet prescribed at first, down to 1 unit, then last night to 0.75 units per advice from experienced FDMB helpers. It was suggested that I post here for more advice. Please see Scamper's spreadsheet if you have time and let me know what you think. Thank you!
 
Welcome to Lantus Land Janet and Scamper!!

You are doing a great job of testing and I don't often get to say this but you could probably save some strips on those really high days and just grab a +2, midcycle, and maybe a +10 test.

Smart move to reduce from 2u. However, I think you might find the 1u dose was going to work for him.

Please forgive me if this was explained in Health, but when our kitty is first dx, he/she has probably been at high numbers a while. The body has become accustomed to those high BGs as normal. When we give insulin and the depot fills, numbers start to come down. If the numbers get lower than the liver sees as the new "normal" or a fast drop happens, the liver reacts by releasing counterregulatory hormones and glucagon to raise the BG. We call this a bounce. The liver has to be "retrained" to adjust to lower/normal numbers. We call this LTS or liver training school. All cats bounce until they don't. For some, they quit bouncing quickly; for others, not so much. It can take up to 72 hours for the body to clear the bounce so that's when we have to ignore those ugly, high numbers and see what the BG actually is when the bounce clears.

Scamper is bouncing right now from those green numbers PLUS his depot has drained a bit from the skipped shot. I would leave him at this dose right now and see what he does when the bounce clears. We might find he needs more insulin or he might surprise us (since his diet has changed from dry) and find he likes this dose.

Please read the "Stickys" at the top of this forum. They have lots of great info. We are a close, family group and everyone is willing to help or offer support. Just let us know how we can best help you and if you have questions, bring them on. We love questions.

Also.....as you see, we have a lot of very active members. If you have a question, it's best to open up your first post of the day, click on edit, then click on the "?" radio button and maybe add a word or two in the subject line like "dose ??" or "need help". Then click on "submit". We just ask that once your question is answered to your satisfaction, you remove the ? and the note in the subject line. If you aren't getting a response, bump your condo up by just opening it, click on "post reply", type "bump" in the text box, click submit.

There are several of us scanning the subject lines and that's the best way for us to catch that you need help.

You are doing great!!!! Awesome job on the profile. Scamper and Domino are very handsome!
 
Thank you, Marje! I will take it easy on the strips on high days - I think I just got panicky after that first low bounce & have gone overboard with the BG testing since. I can definitely do less when you say to, though, as those strips can get pricy!

I will check out the Stickys at the top of the forum today. I appreciate all the help and advice. I feel I'm getting more confident in understanding Scamper's condition every day due to the help I've been getting at FDMB. I can't tell you how much it has meant to me!

I also appreciate your kind words and encouragement - for both me and my sweeties! You made me smile when I read the end of your post. :-D

Peter, thanks for the kind welcome! I'm feeling more at home here every day. :razz:
 
Welcome to Lantus Land!!

You've done a great job of collecting data. Very impressive and yes, those strips do get expensive! Marje covered a great deal of ground in her post. The only thing I'd add is please let us know if you have questions or how we can help. The people here are very generous with their time and their knowledge. We'll do our best to lend a hand.

(Oh...the person posting was Devon, not Peter. Mocha's the cat!)
 
I just want to add my "welcome aboard" to the pile. Wow on the testing....so very awesome. Scamper is very lucky to have you (as is Domino)!

Do keep posting and asking questions...tons of knowledge, and tons of moral support here in Lantus Land!

Have a great evening!!

Amy
 
Welcome to LL! You've gotten a ton of information already and a lot to absorb.

My Tess is early CKD so we are low carb/low phosphorus too. There is a tab on her SS with all the foods from the list on http://www.catinfo.org under 10% carbs and below 250mg / 1000kcal phosphorus. That may help whittle down your choice a little.
 
Thanks, Ann, for the food list. I appreciate the help.

Interesting numbers I got today - I tested often since I decided to shoot pretty low. Nothing that worried me too much this time, thank goodness, but if anyone wants to look it over and give input, I wouldn't mind! Thanks.
 
beautiful day today. :smile:

I'm glad you got a +11. That will probably come in handy when you get to PMPS time. The +11 shows you that Scamper is heading up from the green numbers today. The +12 will probably show you how quickly he is heading up. He might bounce again, but at least you know he is able to get to good numbers on this dose. That means he will be able to get back there again.
 
:mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: What a nice green surf!

:oops: Sorry i didn't get the whole UrL in before, fixed it now! :lol: :lol:
 
Great job shooting low!

As an FYI, tomorrow you may want to start a new thread. (We call them "condos" since people come to visit -- and it's like the kitty condos that our cats play in.) We typically open one condo per cat per day. We also use a particular format for the subject line:
date....cat's name....AMPS-#, +time-#​
With this format, it's easy for those of us who scan the board to see if someone needs help. You can also put a question mark or otherwise indicate if you have a question or need help.
 
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