New on Prozinc

Status
Not open for further replies.
sylvan

sylvan

Member
Hi everyone,

Just looking for advice on my cat, Sylvan. He's 7 years old and was diagnosed with Diabetes around Thanksgiving. At that time, he was sent home with just a change in his diet (DM). He appeared to be doing better and acting more himself. We were also checking his sugar and it was staying below 200. And then he started crashing. We took him back to the vet and his sugar was at 600 and he had ketones. He spent 4 nights at the vet. He came home on January 8 with a dose of 3 units of Prozinc twice a day. He has gained weight back and is definitely more energetic, but after 2 weeks his numbers still don't look that good to me.

We also realized (thanks to this site) that the TrueResult meter we were using was giving us false low readings. We used my mother in law's meter and it read 100 to 150 points higher! If we had more accurate readings we probably would insisted on insulin much sooner. The numbers at the beginning of the spreadsheet show these low numbers. He is also off the DM (refused to eat it) and is eating Fancy Feast wet only.

I have read that 3 units is a lot of insulin. I'm not sure if we should drop the dose a little or go up. I'm afraid to drop it because of the ketones, yet when we started giving him a little less than 3 units, he seemed to have better numbers. Also we are having trouble scheduling the shots when we go out. Is it better to give a little less insulin, or shoot full dose before we go out and hope okay while gone, or wait 4-5 hours 'til we come home?

I appreciate any advice.

Thanks so much,
Liz
 
Hi Liz and Welcome!

You have done lots of reading and already made great changes with the wet lo carb food and testing at home. The spreadsheet picture is murky because the first meter may not have been accurate.

Are you testing for ketones at home? That will ease your mind while he is in the high numbers. Here is some info: ketones If getting a strip in his urine stream sounds impossible, we do have some tricks.

You mention several times you aren't sure about the shot. Here are some pictures and info about shooting: How to give a shot

It is hard to manage the shots if you are going to leave. Once you have a clearer picture of how he reacts, it will be easier to you to do. You can leave out food for him so he could bring himself up if he goes low. The question of the dose will depend on how much you are giving that day /night based on your preshot - so it can different each time. The general rule is not to shoot under 200 but to wait 30 minutes and test again. If he is in higher numbers, you should be okay giving him a safe dose and leaving him with food. Shooting 4-5 hours late is a problem because it throws off your schedule, and he may be running high for several hours waiting for a shot. Any way you can set up a schedule so you are likely to be home? Like 6am and 6pm - early in the am but before you might have to go out at night?

Reducing the dose as a rebound check is scary with ketones. I would check consistently for ketones for a few days and be sure he is ketone free before I would consider it. Then maybe just a quick test - one unit for 2 cycles - while testing religiously for ketones.
 
Thanks Sue. That helps a lot. When we leave the house I've been so afraid of Hypo, but I guess at his levels, we should be more concerned about keeping his numbers lower. I work from home, so the schedule is only a problem on the weekends. I will definitely get the ketone strips. I also have been feeding him when he asks. He did have a weight problem before, but he's lost so much weight that for now, I just feel we should feed him when he asks. He's really a good cat and it's so good to see him acting like himself again. It's been a scary few weeks and I will try to patient with his numbers.

Thanks again,
Liz
 
Liz and Sylvan,
Welcome! We are new here too, but we wanted to say, "Hi!"
Steve and I also use Prozinc and have found a lot of helpful people and posts regarding Prozinc on the PZI board. Apparently, PZI and Prozinc are very similar which we didn't know until we came here. Anyway, good luck getting regulated! Steve and I will be pulling for you and Sylvan!

Cheers,
Allie and Steve
 
Hi and welcome! My Sam is on prozinc and like Sylvan, started out on a higher dose (2 u) but is now down to .6. It's definitely worth cutting back the dose, but I'd do it when you're going to be home and can test or run a curve through the day. If you're going to be out on weekends, do you have anyone who can come in and test and shoot for you? Like a vet tech? I know a lot of them do side work as cat sitters and such. Even a diabetic friend might be willing to help since they'd already understand a little of what's going on. Just some thoughts.

And good for you for doing all the reading and readjusting things for Sylvan. That's awesome!
 
Thanks everyone for your advice and support! I bought the ketone strips last night, so I'll start stalking him when he heads to the litter box. I'm not sure how that's going to go. He's very private.
 
Oliver would not pee if anyone was looking. We eventually got some aquarium gravel, put it in a litter box and left him in a room with it and water. He went! And it was really easy to get the sample because it just sat there and didn't get absorbed. Some people use a ladle and stick it under while the kitty is going, but Oliver would just glare at us if we were in the room when he was ready to step into the box and he wouldn't go.
 
If Sam even thinks I'm following him toward the box, he'll turn around and leave. Such a prima donna! I have to hide behind the door, wait until he's in the box going, then hurry up and stick the ketostix underneath him. It's tons of fun for everyone, let me tell you. I've become very stealthy. LOL
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top