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MisMelzy

MisMelzy

Member Since 2013
Hello -

It's been a while since I've been here. The last time I posted was when my furry one Faith possibly had diabetes which it turned out she had a heart condition, and had a stroke :( Anyway, I brought my baby girl Lucky into the vet today because she seemed to be living at the water bowl and peeing a lot. She had been drinking well over a cup of water a day. I took her in to the vet tonight and initial diagnosis is Diabetes. She had Sugar spilling into her urine, and her urine was dilute. The vet did take blood and won't know the results until possibly as late as Saturday. Hoping I hear something tomorrow! But he used a dip stick tester that changed colors for different things. Her urine was dilute and he said the meter kept getting darker as it sat for the sugar in the urine. Other than the drinking of water she seems happy and normal. For now he gave me a low carb/sugar prescription cat food. I think it was KD. Can't remember off the top of my head. They make so many different ones. But I put her on that for the time being. I know that with those prescription diet food stuff isn't the greatest for them. I have 2 Cats with Hyperthyroidism and know that the new food they just came out for cats with HT is junk. But wanted something to give her tonight to eat to help her blood sugar. I figure something is better than nothing, and the longer she goes without treatment the more damage that can be done. I do have a monitor, but the strips expired in 2012. So I'll have to get new strips for it.

Guess I need a refresher course on how and when to take the blood sample for a reading (and how often), and what the normal reading should be. I won't be able to get a reading tonight as it's already late and have to be into work early tomorrow. That and being I live in a small town pretty much every drug store is closed now. But she is on food for now. Vet said her urine was dilute which is from the drinking of so much water. Hopefully that will go away with management! Are there any other values on the blood test that may be out of whack because of the diabetes? I know as with HT sometimes the liver values can be a little high and that goes back when they are stable. He did say that I caught it early and the only symptom was the excessive drinking. Otherwise she seems content and happy. She was playful last night when I was petting her and playing with her. So hopefully I caught it early enough!

Also a while ago when I was researching for faith, I remember hearing that sometimes Diabetes can be reversed by a wet only diet and keeping the weight under control? If so, what kinds of foods? I have 5 Cats who all eat the same food. Unfortunately I can't afford to put them all on wet, and I have one who refuses to eat it. So wondering how others handle cats with different diets? I have 5. Smokie is 12 and has HT, Sassy is 16 and has HT, Callie is 6, and Charlie is 9. I have them on a Science Diet Grain Free dry food. I get dry because it's cheaper. Two of my cats have allergies to Corn, so I can't have foods that have anything with corn as an ingredient (ie corn gluten, meal etc). So I guess for the time being when I'm gone during the day at work. Lucky gets a room to herself with her food, and when I let her out at night the other bowl food needs to be taken up so she can't get into it. Also how much does insulin run if she needs to go that way? Hoping I can afford it with all the special needs cats I now have!


Lucky is a female tabby who is 12 years old and weighs 14lbs She's lost 2 lbs since the last time she was seen by a vet probably over a year ago. I also had them do a T4 reading just to be on the safe side too.


So I await to hear all the earfuls of info that I will be learning soon!

Mel & The Gang
Smokie (dx HT 1/21/11), Charlie, Callie Sassy ( dx HT 4/3/13), Lucky
 
Short answer: Friskies pates in the US are one of the least expensive low carb canned cat foods. Use the Special Diet version if there might be renal disease.

Long answer, pop over to Cat Info and get the printable food chart. Select any foods with less than 10% calories from carbohydrates (not printed on can or packaging).

Always test before giving insulin.
To see how well the insulin is working, test around the expected nadir when possible (day off, set clock overnight) - 5-7 hours after Lantus, 5-6 hours after ProZinc.
 
Hello and welcome Mel and extra sweet kitty Lucky to the FDMB. Sorry to hear that Lucky may be diabetic.

You might still try some of those old expired test strips. I've actually used test strips that were about 14-19 months past expiration without an issue.

Food. I feed Wink Fancy Feast classic pates and Friskies pates and he has been diet controlled for 5 months now. We use this list to find canned foods that are <10% carbs. food chart My other 2 cats like the Friskies pates so I buy the 13 ounce cans at Wal-Mart.

Here are a few dry foods you might want to check into for all the cats. I did not check to see if any of them have corn as an ingredient.
1. Natura/Innova Evo Cat & Kitten 8% carb but it has been hit by another recall.
2. Young Again Zero Carb, mail order only, expensive, some cats refuse to eat the different sized chunks, a couple of cats have achieved remission on this dry food. Manufacturer claims 0% carb but carb calculators indicate 5%
3. Nature's Variety Raw Instinct chicken 7%
4. Wellness Core Grain-Free Original Formula (tan gold bag)11%
5. Stella and Chewy’s ? % this is actually a freeze dried food but can be given as a meal. Better rehydrated.

Most dry foods are coated with animal digest and that is what cats love the taste of. There is a product called Fortiflora that you can buy to sprinkle on the canned food. Similar to the animal digest coating of the dry foods and cats love the taste.
 
Good cause that is what would fit in my budget. Since I'm new to canned food, how much should she get. She is going to not like not being able to eat whenever she wants. She'll have to be in a room during the day while I'm gone. The rest of my cats are on dry food. I wish I could put them all on wet. But can't afford that even with friskies. That and I have one cat who will not touch wet.

Tomorrow I'll pick up some friskies pate for her. Wish I didn't get the dry stuff from the vet. I gave her some already so I can't return it don't think. I can double check.
 
Most of the prescription diet cat foods are returnable to the vet. They have guarantees, so if your cat doesn't eat it, take it back to the vet for a refund. I know Hill's and Purina have this guarantee, not sure on Royal Canin.

BJM feeds 14 cats on the Friskies pates, 13 ounce cans.

How much per day? Hard to say. You said Lucky weighs 14# now? Super hungry still? Losing weight still? Underweight? Overweight? just right?
 
Here are some glucose reference ranges used for decision making using glucometers. Human glucometer numbers are given first. Numbers in parentheses are for non-US meters. Numbers in curly braces are estimates for an AlphaTrak.

< 40 mg/dL (2.2 mmol/L) {< 70 mg/dL for an AlphaTrak}
- Treat as if HYPO if on insulin
- At nadir (lowest point between shots) in a long term diabetic (more than a year), may earn a reduction.

< 50 mg/dL (2.8 mmol/L) {< 80 mg/dL for an AlphaTrak}
- If before nadir, steer with food, ie, give modest amounts of medium carb food to keep from going below 50 (2.8).
- At nadir, often indicates dose reduction is earned.

50 - 130 mg/dL (2.8 - 7.2 mmol/L) {80 - 160 mg/dL for an AlphaTrak}
- On insulin - great control when following a tight regulation protocol.
- Off insulin - normal numbers. (May even go as low as the upper 30s (1.7 mmol/L){60s for an AlphaTrak}; if not on insulin, this can be safe.

> 150 mg/dL (8.3 mmol/L) {> 180 mg/dL for an AlphaTrak}
- At nadir, indicates a dose increase may be needed when following a tight regulation protocol.

200 mg/dL (11.1 mmol/L) {230 mg/dL for an AlphaTrak}
- no shot level for beginners; may slowly reduce to 150 mg/dL (8.3 mmol/L) {180 mg/dL} for long-acting insulins (Lantus, Levemir, and ProZinc) as data collection shows it is safe

180 - 280 mg/dL (10 - 15.6 mmol/L) {may be 210 - 310 mg/dL for an AlphaTrak}- Any time - The renal threshold (depending on data source and cat's renal function) where glucose spills into the urine.
- Test for ketones, glucose is too high.

>= 280 mg/dL (15.6 mmol/L) {may be >=310 mg/dL for an AlphaTrak}, if for most of the cycle between shots
- Uncontrolled diabetes and thus at risk for diabetic ketoacidosis and hepatic lipidosis
- Follow your insulin protocol for dose adjustments
- Test for ketones; if more than a trace level of ketones, go to vet ASAP.
 
When I have her on the dry food she eats less than 1/2 a cup a day on the dry food. So she doesn't seem super hungry. She is over weight. Vet would like to see her at about 10lbs at the most. So she has 4lbs to loose. Right now all she's doing is drinking a lot and peeing a lot.
 
One of the many pluses of wet food is that the same volume of wet as of dry has significantly fewer calories. Its like a person eating a grape vs a raisen.

When I switched everyone (12 at the time) to canned, several heavier cats lost weight without even trying.
 
Unregulated diabetic cats are usually starving and clamoring for more food. The fact you say Lucky girl only eats 1/2 cup of dry surprises me. Are you free feeding or meal feeding?

Wink was 12.5 pounds or around there when I got him and he would eat 1 cup of dry food easily in a day, and ask for more.

Cats with hyper-t also drink and pee a lot, but are also usually very hungry.

Are you sure this is diabetes? Sugar spilling into the urine can have other causes. Infection/inflammation for one. I realize you do not have the final diagnosis from the vet yet, but some of the clinical symptoms do not jibe with a diabetes diagnosis.

Some tips and videos on home testing
here. If I were you, I'd pull out that old meter and those expired strips and get a BG test anyway.

Ear testing psychology here.
 
I pulled out the meter and tested her this morning. Her reading was 158 this morning. Is this good or bad? The vet seems to think that I possibly caught it early enough that the only signs are drinking and peeing a lot. He did check for a UTI and there was no signs of a UTI.
 
If you're not giving insulin, that's a good number.
If you are giving insulin, get a 2nd test to see if that's a rising number and ask for advice.
We don't like new folk to shoot below 200 without data to show it is safe
(Sorry - off to work! Back on in an hour or so.)
 
That 158 is pretty good for a cat not yet on insulin. You said you don't have the final diagnosis from the vet yet and you did not mention any insulin. Maybe the diet change to low carb food will be enough to help Lucky. We'll keep our fingers and paws crossed.

Was the test before or after food? We suggest those first morning tests and the first evening test be non-food influenced. That means removing the food 2 hours before those 2 tests only.
 
I was not sure of when she ate. But I tested her at like 5:30am. I have taken her food up and after two hours will retest her again. She is NOT on insulin yet. Have not gotten the blood work from the vet as to what her results were. When I get them will let you know!
 
I made sure she didn't eat for two hours, and tested her again. She's at 158 still which is odd becuase that's what she was in the morning. Could the testing strips be off? They are out of date. They expired June of 2012. So I'll have to go to the store and see what the testing strips for this true meter cost. Hopefully not too much!
 
I tested my self and did not get the same reading. Mine was 93. So they must be working. When I had to test my grandmother usually her readings were never spot on twice like that. So it threw me off. I guess after I start feeding her the canned food I'll have to re-test her blood to see if it goes down.

So if I can get her treated just on the canned food, do I have to still check her blood sugar once or twice a day to make sure she continues to be stable? Or does it get to a point where as long as she's on the food and I don't see a recurrence of symptoms I don't have to test her any more?
 
MisMelzy said:
I guess after I start feeding her the canned food I'll have to re-test her blood to see if it goes down.
Click to expand...
We call this a "Food Test" and if her numbers go down about 2 hours after eating, that's a great sign that her pancreas is still working. :thumbup

MisMelzy said:
So if I can get her treated just on the canned food, do I have to still check her blood sugar once or twice a day to make sure she continues to be stable? Or does it get to a point where as long as she's on the food and I don't see a recurrence of symptoms I don't have to test her any more?
Click to expand...

You will have to check it twice a day for the first 14 days (known as being "at the Falls" or a "honeymoon"). Once she hits 14 days and is considered OTJ (Off The Juice-in remission) most people test about once a day for a while, then once a week, and then once a month indefinitely.
 
I fed her at about 5:30. So do I need to test her again today or should I give her a break and test her again tomorrow after she eats in the PM. Tomorrow morning I'd have to get up at 3 am to feed her because I have to leave for a birthday party and won't be home until 6 or 7. How often should they eat? Every 12 hours or does it depend on the cat? I'm starting her off at 1/2 a can in the am and 1/2 a can in the pm. So she's getting one can in a whole day. I bought Friskies special diet pate. I knew that one was a low carb one. Don't like fancy feast because it's really rich, and it's about $.20 more per can.
 
It helps with cats heading toward remission to feed them multiple small meals throughout the day because this will trigger their pancreas to naturally produce insulin and lower BGs. You can add water to the food and leave it out if you think that will work better. Some people freeze it or use timed compartments for when they'll be away for longer periods of time.

Feel free to give her a break today, but it's usually recommended to keep testing her twice a day for the first 14 days. The faster you can catch a rising BG, the more likely you can get her back into remission with just a smidge of insulin if she needs it and the more likely she'll stay in remission. But, hopefully it won't come to that for you guys. :-D
 
How would I leave the wet out for her all day? I work anywhere from 7:00am to 5:15 pm. I work in Day Care and my hours are never steady, and I work about 25 miles from home so going home at lunch time I can't do because I'm never guaranteed to get an hour break. That and it would eat up gas like crazy. So how would I go about putting the wet out and leave it out for the time I'm away? I don't have anyone that can run to the house to give her small feedings through out the day. Not sure if I freeze it and leave it out to melt if she'll eat it. I know if she is hungry enough she'll eat it fresh out of the fridge. What ever way will work so that I can leave it out all day for her to much on as she needs. But I'd only want so much put out so she's not eating more than she should have in a day.
 
You have some options

1. leave it out and she might eat it although its dried up a bit - my boys do'
2. Buy a timed feeder - that controls the amount she eats but remember while she isnt regulated she will need to eat more
3. Freeze it and let it defrost. If she is hungry she will eat it.

Wendy
 
I did already test her 2x today. Once this morning and Once Tonight. I just didn't want to test her 2 hours after she's eaten again if I didn't have to. I have not gotten the hang of it yet tho I've gotten blood enough to test. Where I prick her on her ear she usually bleeds right away. The video's I've seen they message the ear and it slowly forms a bubble. Her, nope, I get it right away. So I hope I'm not hitting the wrong spot. I have found a little scab tho from the last blood poke. I've found that using it with the top off and manually pricking is easier. She doesn't like the noise of the lancet when I press the button. I have started a record book of the Date time, and time of last feeding along with the reading. This way I can see patterns that might work for her :)

You can see a pictures of my kitties including lucky on my twitter page: my twitter account is all about my 5 bundles of joy ;)
https://twitter.com/fivespoiledcats
 
I have chekced out the feeders online, but right now they are a bit more expensive that I can afford. I can check on Freecycle and see if maybe someone has one that's not being used.
 
Good news! Lucky has been eating just the Fri skies pate with water in it. since yesterday. I checked her blood sugar thistle morning and the reading was 142! so it's going down just with food! Have not gotten the results yet from the Vet. hoping it's just diabetes and nothing else is wrong. crossing my fingers!
 
Great!
Looks like freezing a chunk of food to thaw for nibbling may be easiest. Muffin pans work pretty well for this.
 
Thats great on the Friskies pate - i hope you transitioned it slowly though as some cats get diarrhea after a sudden food change.

Its good the blood comes up immediately. My Tiggy is like this - he is a real bleeder. As long as you arent hitting a vein all the time then its fine.

Wendy
 
well results are in kidneys are good. blood sugar was close to 400. liver enzymes were off a little but he said those can be from the diabetes. So he said I must have caught it in the very very early stages and that with a diet change should be all she needs.
 
That's fantastic news that your vet thought you caught the diabetes early enough for a diet change to be all that may be needed. Keeping our fingers and paws crossed for you and Lucky.
 
I tested her this morning and her reading was 177. The only thing I did differently yesterday was because I was going out of town for the day I put a bowl with the wet food out and added water to it. She at that all. I tested her in the am before I gave her any food. There was a dish that had a few tiny tiny spots of food. So I'm going to take food up for two hours and retest her again to see if maybe she hate that tiny microscopic amount of food and it raised her blood sugar. Kind a frusterating that her glucose levels dropped yesterday in the am, but today they are up again. Infact higher than what they were initially
 
The BG numbers are going to fluctuate day to day, cycle to cycle. You can give the exact same food at the exact same time, same amount and same amount of insulin and the numbers will still fluctuate.

Maybe your cat played more one day and less another. Maybe she ate her food at a slightly different time and took longer to eat or ate faster. Maybe she slept more. Maybe there was something stressful in her environment like she saw a strange kitty out the window or you had a visitor to your home or there was a full moon.

You don't have control over every factor that can impact your cats numbers. Instead of looking at a single cycle or a single day, try to look at longer term patterns, over a week, two weeks, a month. And look at those 5 P's, peeing, pooping, purring, preening, playing and the appetite to help judge how well your cat is doing. Lucky is more than a set of numbers.

Lucky is leading this sugardance. you and we can only follow along and see if we can try to remain upbeat and positive that over the long term the pancreas will heal and start to produce more of it's own insulin.

Your cat did not become diabetic in a week or a month or 2 months. It took time to damage the pancreas. It will take time to heal the pancreas.
 
I was just happy to see the numbers going down, and was hoping that they would continue to go down once on the wet food.

Also is there another place to test a cat other than the ears? Because today she has been a pill to try and get numbers from the first time it took me 10 tries. She is fighting me more. Any time I touch her ears she moves them. The second time I tried to get the reading I used the lancet and It went through to MY finger. I got blood though, but poor lucky it probably hurt. I tried re-adjusting it. But anything lower than a 4 and I get nothing. I've tried doing it by hand. But she moves so much most of the time I get me, and I bleed! Today has been frustrating. I've watched video's and I'm trying to do what they do but their cats are relaxed and fine. I want to see someone get blood from an uncooperative cat. That's what I want to see! I've tried giving me a break and her a break. I've tried messaging her ears for a while. She does not like her ears touched at all. And she does everything she can to make sure I don't touch them. At this point tonight, I may just give up and try tomorrow. But at this rate I'd have to get up 2 hours early so I can get blood from her. I've gotten two readings today just not one in the am and one in the pm. Is there an easier way to get blood from an uncooperative cat? I don't have anyone to help me during the week, so I have to do it myself.
 
No. I stopped giving her dry on Friday. So it's been 48 hours on wet food. And yesterday she went through a can and 1/4 of the second can. Today I've tried giving her 1/4 of the can at a time through out the day. It's weird. When she was on the dry she'd eat less then 1/2 a cup a day. Wet food she now is going through more than one can. I don't know if she likes it so much she's eating more than she needs?
 
What weight is she? we can work out how much she needs.. or more accurately what would you say is her ideal weight?

158 and 177 are pretty close I wouldnt worry. Both numbers arent bad at all for no insulin.. and it might take a few more days before you see any difference. Can you test her before and 2 hours after food? We can see that way how her pancreas is working.

Wendy
 
Put something hard to poke against between your finger and her ear like a pill bottle lid. Or put a folded up tissue between the ear and your finger.

Secondary testing site is the paw pad.

Are you aiming for the sweet spot?
 

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I am aiming for the sweet spot. We did get a reading this last time we tried. I heated the rice sock up a little more. And I gave her cat nip to try to calm her a little. I used a cotton ball between her ear and the lancet. The reading was 167. And she had not eaten anything in a while. I won't be able to test again tonight as I have to get up at 5am to get ready for work. I will try to get a reading before and 2 hours after tomorrow night if I can. The one thing is that on her left ear her sweet spot on the top of the ear has been cut off. I think she was apart of a spay neuter release program. They clipped the top of the ear off so they knew she was spayed I think. Anyways getting blood from that ear is a little difficult. But I don't want to use the right one all the time. I think she might not like the testing on the pad.

Right now she is 14.5lbs and her ideal weight would be around 9-10lbs. My first cat was on all wet food. She got 1/2 can in the am and 1/2 in the pm. And she weighed right around 8-9lbs. So not sure if right now she needs more because of her weight and the diabetes or if she needs less.

The other thing that struck me as odd was that the vet I took her to was not my usual vet. He thinks she's in the beginning stages. I couldn't get in to see my regular vet until this week sometime. I wanted her to be seen as soon as possible. I called my regular vet to let her know what was going on and the results, and she agreed with me that she should have been seen right away. When I told her that Lucky's reading was 158 on Saturday she said that was a normal reading for a cat. But in the back of my mind that if she's not on insulin and her numbers are good for a cat not on insulin could like pancreatitis cause blood sugar issues? Just a passing thought. All though her blood glucose levels were near 400. I know that stress at the vet can make those go up. It also makes me see that as she's getting more stressed during testing times, that can cause the spikes too. The first test I did she was nice and calm and now as the days pass she is disliking the testing. I don't blame her. I've tested myself and it doesn't hurt hurt, but it doesn't feel great either LOL
 
Here's a starting point..

How much to feed? Required calories per day = [13.6 X ideal weight in lbs] + 70

Based on 10lbs that's 196 calories but she will likely need more while not regulated..you can get the calories per can from here.. http://www.catinfo.org/docs/FoodChartPublic9-22-12.pdf Weigh her every few weeks and adjust as needed..

I use the same ear all the time. They learn to bleed over time and its easier. Just apply neosporin afterward. Also cats ears have less nerve endings that your fingers so it doesn't feel so bad to them. She will get used to it, just remember the treats!

Wendy
 
What treats can I give her. I have some regular treats that I used to give her. But because of the diabetes I'm wondering if I can give those to her any more because they are dry treats. Can I still give them to her if I do it 2x a day she would get 2 a day. They say there's only 2 calories in each treat. They are Wiskas Temptation chicken treats. Can I still give her those? If I can that would be great as I bought a ton when they were on sale. I have to give my two other cats meds in pill pockets so I give the rest of the cats treats too so they don't feel left out! ;) This morning she was at 176. She had not eaten for quite a while either. So noticing that in the AM she's higher than later in the day.
 
Here's a link to a list of low carb treats for Lucky. low carb healthy treats

My Wink loves the freeze dried chicken, either Halo Liv-a-Little or Pure Bites. He also likes the Whole Life freeze dried liver treats, a piece of fresh cooked chicken no spices, beef, etc.

Anything that is pure protein would be good to try with Lucky.

The Temptations are going to be high in carbs. Better to save those for your other cats.
 
I have lunch meat and I have her some as a treat :) Her blood glucose today when I got home was 146! I like that a lot better! The other thing I'm freaking out on is I need to buy more testing strips for the meter I got, and I"m looking at $40 for 100. I don't have $40 I can get 50 for $15 I think or a little more but that's not even a month's worth! Trying to see if I can get a cheaper meter with cheaper testing strips. Trying to figure out how I'm going to afford to get testing strips right now :( I'm getting low. If I test only 2x a day I have 3 days worth left and that's it! It may be cheaper to get another meter for $9 that comes with 50 test strips.
 
The Walmart relion confirm and micro are reasonably priced and need very little blood, the prime is even cheaper but it needs more blood. So depends how much of a bleeder she is.

Wendy
 
Problem is I don't have money to buy another meter. I really need to find strips that work with my meter for within my budget. Looking at the costs of now having to get wet food and all the diabetic testing supplies. I'm really wondering if I can afford all this. My other two cats their meds cost $15 for the both of them a month. My grandmother was diabetic and she took a pill and tested her blood once a day usually before she had eaten anything in the morning. Do you think I could get away with testing her once a day? I'm trying to find a way to do this so that it's within my budget. I could not get another reading on her after she ate. She fought me quite a bit and I could tell she was getting worked up. So even if I did get a reading it would probably jump up because of how stressed she was. So I gave up. I tried twice with no success in any blood. I'm just so stressed out and the more she fights me the more I want to scream. I'm having a hard time dealing with this, and the other cats illnesses and trying to afford it all. Plus some other stressful things in my life. Put them all together and I want to run away screaming. Are there any resources for people with diabetic cats that help them to get the supplies they need?
 
Well she is not on any insulin right now. The vet is waiting to see if food switch only will be all that we need. So since I'm not giving her insulin could I get away with once a day? This morning she was at 170. So it seems she's lower in the evenings than in the morning. This time I got blood on the 4th try. But I had to take 2 breaks. Because when I feel myself getting frustrated I walk away before I get worked up. Cause that's not going to help her. My Problem is the fact that I can get her situated and I get the ear warmed up. I take my lancet and I get it all ready to to poke to get blood and as I am on my way to poke she moves so most of the time I get me. She's smart and know's just when to move her ear! I've tried wrapping her in a towel. I've tried giving her a little piece of turkey meat prior to testing and after. I know that will make the blood sugar rise. She purrs the whole time I'm doing it. Never bites. She just moves at the right time and I end up poking myself! And that is what is so darn frustrating. I need a second hand to hold her darn head so she can't move.
 
Well she is not on any insulin right now. The vet is waiting to see if food switch only will be all that we need. So since I'm not giving her insulin could I get away with once a day? This morning she was at 170. So it seems she's lower in the evenings than in the morning. This time I got blood on the 4th try. But I had to take 2 breaks. Because when I feel myself getting frustrated I walk away before I get worked up. Cause that's not going to help her. My Problem is the fact that I can get her situated and I get the ear warmed up. I take my lancet and I get it all ready to to poke to get blood and as I am on my way to poke she moves so most of the time I get me. She's smart and know's just when to move her ear! I've tried wrapping her in a towel. I've tried giving her a little piece of turkey meat prior to testing and after. I know that will make the blood sugar rise. She purrs the whole time I'm doing it. Never bites. She just moves at the right time and I end up poking myself! And that is what is so darn frustrating. I need a second hand to hold her darn head so she can't move.
 
With Spitzer, I'd hold him on my lap with my left arm pushing him against my chest while sitting on a toilet seat in the half bath.

I'd have a piece of folded tissue between my left finger and his ear, so that if he flinched or moved, I didn't get stuck myself - that happened numerous times before I figured out doing that!
 
Sorry then once a day is fine if you arent giving insulin. Maybe one day as an experiment I would test her before and 2 hours after food to see if the number drops and shows her pancreas is kicking in

If you dont get blood after three tries then give up and try later. Give Lucky and yourself a treat for trying ;) And hold firmly onto that ear. It will get easier... she will get used to it.. and her treat!

Wendy
 
Today I did it in one try! But only tested her yesterday morning though. So that might have been the trick. There was a long enough break in between testing :) But I have good news! She's had her lowest bg reading every since I started testing! 138!!! I was happy to see that. I know it's just one testing. But I take it as a good sign things are improving even if just a little ! Yesterday she didn't eat all her food at night so I left it the rest of the evening and she finally ate it. So I don't think she liked the bowl I put it in. She cleans it up much better when it's on a plate. So hopefully tomorrows reading will be just as good! She's getting fed 2x a day 1/2 in am and 1/2 in pm and she doesn't eat it all right away when I give it to her. So that's a good sign. I just don't want her to loose too much weight too quickly and get fatty liver.
 
138 with no insulin is a very nice number to have! The food change definitely seems to be positively impacting her numbers. Keep testing as much as you're able (both physically and mentally :lol: ) and it will get easier over time.
 
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