Chels1440
Member Since 2018
Hello everyone!
I apologize for asking questions that might be redundant, I *have* read through the FAQ's and many other posts, but I've got a combination of issues/questions and I am not really sure what to do.
Almost 2 weeks ago we rescued Talulah (Lulu), a little 12 year old girl from a shelter (6 years there!). She is 10.5 pounds, and had been getting 1/3 can DM and "some" DM kibble twice a day, coupled with 3 units of Lantus twice a day at the shelter.
When we got her home, she had NO interest in the DM, I just couldn't get her to touch it. Fortunately I had read about all the super-low-carb/hi-calorie wet foods here (and my other two cats are 100% raw fed), so I had some on hand. She nibbled at the canned, but didn't eat a satisfying amount. Her blood sugar was only 180 or so, so I called the 24 hour vet to see if I should still give the insulin. They said to give 1 unit, instead of 3 so I did.
The next day I talked with our vet. They said she should be eating 1 5.5oz can per day (seems really low to me, but that's what the shelter vet recommended as well), and to hold off on giving insulin unless/until the reading was over 180, between then and her scheduled exam two days later.
Since her second day here, Lulu has generally eaten about 75-85% of a 5.5oz can per day, and won't eat much at once (she's been getting 4 meals--when I try to reduce the frequency, she reduces the quantity). She doesn't find any "enhancements" like crumbled freeze-dried or fish flakes enticing, no change in appetite with those, and she *hates* syringe feeding (I tried once, just to see if it could get her going). Her blood sugar has only been above 180 once, and most of the time, it's in the 140's-160's.
The vet told me I was "overreacting" testing her so often (just twice a day, before giving the insulin, because I didn't want her to go hypo), and to stop testing, and just give her 1 unit twice a day. Well, I did that for a day and a half, and then she went hypo. Since then, I've been testing, still 140's-160's, and I'm afraid to give her the insulin when it's that low, but I also can't get her to eat two big meals, which might be the thing that gets her blood sugar high, and I'm anxious to call my vet about it, because I know she'll scold me for testing. I get it, new cat in a new home, she probably thinks Lulu is scared, but she's been getting tested for years, it literally doesn't even phase her! She sits there purring while I test her (not scared purring, regular purring), and doesn't even get up from her spot (or stop purring) when it's done!
Also, I've read people talking about giving "half units" but I can't imagine how that would be--the needles we were given have 30 "unit" marks and they're only 1cc syringes! It's hard enough to be sure you don't get more than 1 unit...
I should also add in terms of behavior, she is GREAT--all about the laser toy, super cuddling, very social...the only time she had any "red flags" was when she went hypo and started hiding.
Anyway, I guess I'm just wondering what people's thoughts are...Should I chance it with the 1 unit twice a day even when her levels are low? Should I be fasting her, risking reducing her calorie intake more, to get her to a 2 meal day? Any other ideas/thoughts?
I apologize for asking questions that might be redundant, I *have* read through the FAQ's and many other posts, but I've got a combination of issues/questions and I am not really sure what to do.
Almost 2 weeks ago we rescued Talulah (Lulu), a little 12 year old girl from a shelter (6 years there!). She is 10.5 pounds, and had been getting 1/3 can DM and "some" DM kibble twice a day, coupled with 3 units of Lantus twice a day at the shelter.
When we got her home, she had NO interest in the DM, I just couldn't get her to touch it. Fortunately I had read about all the super-low-carb/hi-calorie wet foods here (and my other two cats are 100% raw fed), so I had some on hand. She nibbled at the canned, but didn't eat a satisfying amount. Her blood sugar was only 180 or so, so I called the 24 hour vet to see if I should still give the insulin. They said to give 1 unit, instead of 3 so I did.
The next day I talked with our vet. They said she should be eating 1 5.5oz can per day (seems really low to me, but that's what the shelter vet recommended as well), and to hold off on giving insulin unless/until the reading was over 180, between then and her scheduled exam two days later.
Since her second day here, Lulu has generally eaten about 75-85% of a 5.5oz can per day, and won't eat much at once (she's been getting 4 meals--when I try to reduce the frequency, she reduces the quantity). She doesn't find any "enhancements" like crumbled freeze-dried or fish flakes enticing, no change in appetite with those, and she *hates* syringe feeding (I tried once, just to see if it could get her going). Her blood sugar has only been above 180 once, and most of the time, it's in the 140's-160's.
The vet told me I was "overreacting" testing her so often (just twice a day, before giving the insulin, because I didn't want her to go hypo), and to stop testing, and just give her 1 unit twice a day. Well, I did that for a day and a half, and then she went hypo. Since then, I've been testing, still 140's-160's, and I'm afraid to give her the insulin when it's that low, but I also can't get her to eat two big meals, which might be the thing that gets her blood sugar high, and I'm anxious to call my vet about it, because I know she'll scold me for testing. I get it, new cat in a new home, she probably thinks Lulu is scared, but she's been getting tested for years, it literally doesn't even phase her! She sits there purring while I test her (not scared purring, regular purring), and doesn't even get up from her spot (or stop purring) when it's done!
Also, I've read people talking about giving "half units" but I can't imagine how that would be--the needles we were given have 30 "unit" marks and they're only 1cc syringes! It's hard enough to be sure you don't get more than 1 unit...
I should also add in terms of behavior, she is GREAT--all about the laser toy, super cuddling, very social...the only time she had any "red flags" was when she went hypo and started hiding.
Anyway, I guess I'm just wondering what people's thoughts are...Should I chance it with the 1 unit twice a day even when her levels are low? Should I be fasting her, risking reducing her calorie intake more, to get her to a 2 meal day? Any other ideas/thoughts?
