New Member and New Sugar babe

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SparkyReturns

SparkyReturns

Member Since 2020
Hi FDMB,

I've been lurking for about a month and this is my first post. I'm Laura, and I have a little trouble maker called Sparky. He's somewhere between 13-15, I foster failed him through a senior rescue last summer.

Sparky's hot mess list includes

Early stage kidney disease
Early stage inoperable mast cell tumour
Megacolon

And now likely steroid induced diabetes.

Sparky's BG readings came as a massive shock to me a few weeks ago when he went in for an enema/deobstipation and came out with a BG reading of 34mmol/L (600)!!! At the time he'd had back to back depo-medrol injections for his tumour, and was then on 1X prednisolone to try and manage the tumours growth. After some reading I realized that this could very well have been the reason for Sparky's high blood sugar (for reference, his last BG test in the vet was December and he was 7mmol on that test, so this massive number was shocking to me)

Fructosamine was med-high and BG was high on that day. It's also super important to know that Sparky is a terrible guest at the vet - he needs to be sedated before going in with Gabapentin. So given how bad he is in there I am always expecting elevated BG readings from him in the clinic. The vet and I both decided for a number of reasons (bad patient, covid & restrictive access to the clinic, plus I dont have a vehicle) home monitoring would be the best way for sparks.

Sparky had none of the clinical signs of diabetes and after getting a second opinion from another vet I thought it'd be best to watch his levels and see what happens as the steroid leaves his system. The good news is he's gone down, but he's still too high (he's sitting between 11mmol - 18mmol (196-325 in US numbers) for the past two days, but I just tested him and he came back at a 23.6!!) and so I need to start insulin.

To add to his hot messness - each of his conditions warrants a different diet regime. Megacolon? High fibre. Kidney? Low phosphorus. Probable diabetes? Low carb. So for now I am treating the most current issue and got some FF classics and am managing his poops with miralax and cisapride. So far so good with that change.


I am SUPER nervous about this. I don't feel supported by my vet (they basically told me to youtube it - they didn't even suggest getting a glucometer - I got that from this forum as I did not want to admin insulin without knowing what his BG was!) I've never even held a syringe before, I've never drawn insulin before... my regular pharmacist has been more helpful than the vet clinic (needless to say I'm in the market for a new vet!)

Its 5:00pm here and I'm curious about how to start. I just picked up some Lantis pens, some U100 syringes, and have a direction of 1U twice a day. I'm also nervous that this might be too much for Sparky - he's 5.35kg and hovering between 11-18mmol during the day. I thought I read somewhere that a slow and low approach is the right way to go so with that said here are my questions for you very experienced lovely forum members - thank you in advance for your support!

Could 1/2 U be a better start for him? Are there consequences to underdosing? Do I start now or tomorrow morning? Reading about Hypo is terrifying and I'm super nervous about that!

Thanks in advance. Hopefully I'm not repeating too many newbie questions. I've created my spreadsheet and ready to add data. And really *really* anxious about all of this.


EDIT - apologies, I didn't realize the glucometer brand was an important thing to note here - I have an Acsencsia Countour Next One, it's a small human glucometer - will post in replies as well. Thank you for the heads up on this piece of info!

EDIT EDIT - updated to include US numbers above.

Laura & Sparky (aka Sparks, Spanks, Sparkle Warkle)
 
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First off let me say, I’d start tomorrow morning as most cats can go very low overnight because they eat less. I’ll come back and add more to this.

welcome and good for you for already being so proactive! Lantus is a great choice!! :bighug::bighug:
 
Hi!!!

I am a returning sugar mama after several years away from the forum I know others here have lots more experience, so I will leave the advice giving to the more experienced and knowledgeable.

For now, just saying welcome I'm sorry to hear you aren't feeling supported by your vet and wow, that does sound like a unique mix of conditions to consider.

Thanks for sharing your first post!
 
It will help us help you if you can set up your signature where do you live
In About You, create a "FDMB Profile" using details you would like to share. See this post, "Creating a FDMB Profile" for information you may want to include.
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Last edited by a moderator: Dec 6, 20
 
WELCOME CLOSET MEMBER! We are glad you found us! :D I too am not qualified to give dosing advice but just wanted to welcome you and Mr Sparky He sure is a beautiful kitty!

I think you will get lots of help for diabetes and maybe some of the other issues Sparky has.;)

Again welcome to the best darn site to help you help Sparky!:coffee:
jeanne
 
Thanks everyone! I've made the changes suggested above and edited the OP to include US based numbers. Thanks again for the heads up!
 
Laura&Sparky said:
Thanks everyone! I've made the changes suggested above and edited the OP to include US based numbers. Thanks again for the heads up!
Click to expand...
Thanks Laura , what a beautiful kitty Sparky is so you have been shooting 1 unit of lantus twice a day?:cat: can you add that to you signature also, can you add his BG numbers to the spreadsheet so we can help you. Its easier to look at the spreadsheet rather than go back to your post above
 
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Diane Tyler's Mom said:
Thanks Laura , what a beautiful kitty Sparky is so you have been shooting 1 unit of lantus twice a day?:cat: can you add that to you signature also, can you add his BG numbers to the spreadsheet so we can help you. Its easier to look at the spreadsheet rather than go back to your post above
Click to expand...
Thanks Diane!

Just to clarify, I just picked up the Lantus today at 5pm MDT. Direction is to shoot 1U twice a day. I just wasn't sure if I should be starting tonight or tomorrow morning, and if the 1U was the right dosage considering the vet prescribed that based on a 500-600 BG reading, and Sparky has been between 196-325 testing at home. I do recognize that people here are speaking from experience and might not be vet-qualified to answer that question, so no worries if that's not the right q to ask here :)

I hope I am making sense, this is all a very new language for me! Thank you so much for being there for Sparkle-Warkle :)
 
Diane Tyler's Mom said:
Thanks Laura , what a beautiful kitty Sparky is so you have been shooting 1 unit of lantus twice a day?:cat: can you add that to you signature also, can you add his BG numbers to the spreadsheet so we can help you. Its easier to look at the spreadsheet rather than go back to your post above
Click to expand...

Hi again, I just popped my numbers into the spreadsheet. Thanks again for your patient guidance! <3
 
Welcome to the FDMB. First off you are a saint taking on a senior let alone one with so many issues. It’s great you are testing but you need to get a few evening tests in as well once you start Lantus. As someone else mentioned many cats drop at night. Max did. You always need to test before you shoot to make sure it’s safe. Usually a +3 will give you an indication of how the cycle will be and whether you need to leave food out if you leave or go to bed.

How long ago did you make the food change? Since just that has made a difference I would be inclined to start with a low dose. I would definitely start in the morning so you can get tests in every few hours to see the response. I need to look at a chart to see how many pounds he weighs. Be right back.

I would start with .5.
 
tiffmaxee said:
Welcome to the FDMB. First off you are a saint taking on a senior let alone one with so many issues. It’s great you are testing but you need to get a few evening tests in as well once you start Lantus. As someone else mentioned many cats drop at night. Max did. You always need to test before you shoot to make sure it’s safe. Usually a +3 will give you an indication of how the cycle will be and whether you need to leave food out if you leave or go to bed.

How long ago did you make the food change? Since just that has made a difference I would be inclined to start with a low dose. I would definitely start in the morning so you can get tests in every few hours to see the response. I need to look at a chart to see how many pounds he weighs. Be right back.

I would start with .5.
Click to expand...

Wow, this is so helpful. Thank you so much! And apologies for the kg measurements - that's 11.8lbs - brain just goes straight to kgs, despite living in the land of lbs for nearly 14 years! Really appreciate the guidance on evening testing. I'll start at 8am tomorrow and will be watching the cheeky bugger like a hawk all day.

We were on very high fibre dry food up until Monday for his megacolon and just changed to FF this week full time. He was having a combo of dry high fibre food, plus a little bit of wet food to help get his Miralax down twice a day. So now we are playing with fire, upping his Miralax and taking the fibre response away... let's hope we get it right quickly, for both of us, hah!
 
Laura&Sparky said:
Thanks Diane!

Just to clarify, I just picked up the Lantus today at 5pm MDT. Direction is to shoot 1U twice a day. I just wasn't sure if I should be starting tonight or tomorrow morning, and if the 1U was the right dosage considering the vet prescribed that based on a 500-600 BG reading, and Sparky has been between 196-325 testing at home. I do recognize that people here are speaking from experience and might not be vet-qualified to answer that question, so no worries if that's not the right q to ask here :)

I hope I am making sense, this is all a very new language for me! Thank you so much for being there for Sparkle-Warkle :)
Click to expand...
Laura you've done a great job so far. I know it's a bit overwhelming but in time you will be a pro. Let me tell you the members here know more than most vets do.
Tyler wouldn't be doing this good if it wasn't for this amazing group.
Just keep asking all the questions you want. :cat:
 
First shot was done! I was super nervous but it was a non-event. Why was I so nervous?!

The biggest issue I have is how small the unit markings are on the U100 syringes I have. Maybe the issue is my eyesight though?

Since that first shot Sparky's numbers have been low (for him) - and I have many questions about them, but will research the forums first to make sure to see if they've been answered before asking here.

Thanks everyone!
 
Congrats. I suggest that you start posting on the Lantus/lev forum and start a new condo each day there. When you go there you will see the yellow stickies at the top. All the info you need is there. Then ask as many questions as you have.

I just looked at your spreadsheet. I’m confused. You put a dot in tge units column. That’s where you need to write the dose you gave. I also see no pm tests. It’s important to get a +2 at least now that you are giving insulin. Many cats drop lower at night. That test will also let you know if the cycle willbe active or not.

I used reading glasses to dose and a magnifying glass when I had to dose .25 or less increments.
 
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