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Amanda & Jake

Amanda & Jake

Member Since 2013
Hello.

My name is Amanda and I recently found out my cat, Jake, is diabetic. I believe this was caused by the prednisalone he is currently taking for hypercalcemia.
His numbers are relatively low, 147 at +9. I gave him his first dose this morning when his BG level was 209.
I recently switched him from a half canned/half kibble diet to decrease the amount of carbs he is consuming.
My vet is not a fan of home testing or adjusting dosages according to his numbers. She has prescribed 1.0 unit 2x day. Dr. Lisa Pierson suggested I join
this board in order to in order to gather information and ask questions as I proceed with Jake's treatment.

My first question...and I'm not sure I'm posting in the right place, is his pm dosage tonight. My vet told me if his BG was <100 to skip the dose but she
told me nothing other than that. Dr. P. feels his numbers are low enough to possibly reduce him to .75 or .5. I'm fine with that but my syringes are so
tiny and 1.0 barely registers so how do I properly reduce to a smaller number? How and where can I post Jake's chart?

I'm sure I will be asking many more questions. I'm currently in freak out mode but knowledge is power so here I am.

Many thanks :smile:
 
Hi Amanda, welcome to you and Jake!

Prolonged use of Prednisolone has caused many a kitty to become diabetic (including my boy, Kismet.) I'm so happy Dr. Pierson has directed you our way.
Are you planning (or have you already) switched Jake over to an entirely wet, low carb diet? Dr. Lisa has actually put together a great chart with the nutritional values for most commercial canned cat foods. Here is a shortcut list to all foods under 10% carbs put together by Rhiannon.

Here is some information and pictures of how to get micro doses. A lot of us will take a used syringe and fill it up with food dyed water to practice until we get consistent doses.

A couple of other questions for you: What kind of insulin is Jake receiving? What kind of glucometer are you using? Do you have ketone testing strips or any other diabetic supplies?

I will be back shortly with directions on the spread sheet that you will find in our signatures that we use to keep track of our cat's blood glucose numbers.
 
A few more questions: How much does Jake weigh? Is he taking any other medications or received any other shots/treatments recently?

This link will take you to the template and directions for the spreadsheets we use. Once you get it set up on google docs, add the link to your signature by editing your profile via the user control panel.

To use the SS, you enter the date, and then AMPS refers to the morning test right before you shoot insulin (morning pre shot). Since we are all in different time zones and shoot at different times, we use + number system. For example: Let's say you shoot at 7am and 7pm.

AMPS = 7am test
U= units of insulin shot
+1= 1 hour after shot time (8am)
+2= 2 hours after shot time...
+3= 3 hours...
etc...
PMPS = 7pm test
...
 
chickee776 said:
Hello.

My name is Amanda and I recently found out my cat, Jake, is diabetic. I believe this was caused by the prednisalone he is currently taking for hypercalcemia.
His numbers are relatively low, 147 at +9. I gave him his first dose this morning when his BG level was 209.
I recently switched him from a half canned/half kibble diet to decrease the amount of carbs he is consuming.
My vet is not a fan of home testing or adjusting dosages according to his numbers. She has prescribed 1.0 unit 2x day. Dr. Lisa Pierson suggested I join
this board in order to in order to gather information and ask questions as I proceed with Jake's treatment.

My first question...and I'm not sure I'm posting in the right place, is his pm dosage tonight. My vet told me if his BG was <100 to skip the dose but she
told me nothing other than that. Dr. P. feels his numbers are low enough to possibly reduce him to .75 or .5. I'm fine with that but my syringes are so
tiny and 1.0 barely registers so how do I properly reduce to a smaller number? How and where can I post Jake's chart?

I'm sure I will be asking many more questions. I'm currently in freak out mode but knowledge is power so here I am.

Many thanks :smile:
Click to expand...
Hi Amanda,
I have a couple questions.
1. What insulin are you using?
2. What type of syringes are you using, and do they have 1/2 unit markings on them.

Various insulins are dosed a bit differently than one another, so it's important to know which one you are using.
There are separate forums in this board so that you can post on the forum where others are using the same insulin as you are.
For the syringes, if you just have full unit markings on the barrel, you will have little luck giving a constant dose, so look for syringes that have the 1/2 unit markings, then you can 'eyeball' the .25unit and .75unit doses.

I am very glad that you are home testing. Many vets are against it, and discourage it for some odd reason, but I bet they would not say the same if the diabetic were a child. Because you are getting numbers that are not terribly high, there may be times that you would not give a dose, so better to know than guess.

For the food, go with all wet and use Dr. P's list that she compiled..... you can't go wrong with her info.
http://catinfo.org/docs/FoodChartPublic9-22-12.pdf
Stick to foods under 10% and you should be fine.
 
Hi Courtney.

Thanks so much for your reply. I just practiced some with the syringe and was able to give him a .75 dose. I just realized that my syringes have
half marks so that makes it a bit easier.

I have switched all my cats to an entirely wet food diet after Jake's diagnosis. He is receiving Lantus insulin and I'm using a Relion Micro. I do not have
keytone testing strips, Just the monitor, strips and lancets.

And thank you for the shortcut list! I've been scrolling back and forth in Dr. Pierson's list till I'm crosseyed.

I also just figured out how to put Jake's SS in my signature and am starting to navigate around the insulin board. This is all a bit daunting since I've never
used a message board before.
 
Courtney,

Jake weighs 12.23 and the only other medication he is taking is .25ml of prednisalone every 24 hours.

I just got the spreadsheet in my signature but forgot to include Lantis so need to edit.
 
Hi Blue.

I'm giving Jake Lantus and I just realized my syringes do have 1/2 unit markings on them which makes it much easier to
measure the smaller doses.

I'm just figuring out the various forums but did discover the one for Lantus.

Thanks for the encouragement. I tried to get my vet to explain to me why cats are any different than people when it comes to
monitoring BG levels and adjusting each dose accordingly but she really couldn't. I'm extremely grateful to be a part of this message
board because I was feeling rather alone and a little scared.

Dr. P's list has been extremely helpful and my kitties are adjusting well to their all wet diet.
 
wow and welcome to the (((FDMB))))
can't believe how quick you've taken to this, an inspiration to me. I'm still lost and a nut job when dealing with ruben.
I am no expert but offer unconditional support and can assure you this is the bes place for kitty to be.
I can point you in the right direction here and am useful with links for questions you may have, other than that, your off to a great start.
also most vets are not big advicate for HT, but like you I can't find a reason for no doing it. Now that i know how important it is, I can't imagine not testing
 
Welcome to FDMB.

Unfortunately, the link to Jake's SS isn't working -- or it's not working for me. The error message is that the file doesn't exist. These are the instructions for setting up a SS and including it in your signature.

We generally recommend a higher cut off than what your vet recommended when you're so new to using Lantus. On the Lantus board, we suggest a "post and ask for help" pre-shot number of 150.

You may want to take a look at the starred sticky notes at the top of the Lantus board. There is a huge amount of information about Lantus and it's use.Below is a description and link to those notes:

  • Tight Regulation Protocol: This sticky contains the dosing protocol that we use here. There are also links to the more formal version -- the “Tilly” Protocol developed by the counterpart of this group in Germany, which was also published by Kirsten Roomp & Jacqui Rand, DVM in one of the top vet journals.
  • New to the Group: Everything you wanted to know about this forum and more. Info on our slang, FAQs, links to sites on feline nutrition and to food charts containing carb counts, how to do a curve and the components to look for, important aspects of diabetes such as ketones, DKA, and neuropathy, and most important, info on hypoglycemia.
  • Handling Lantus: how to get the maximum use from your insulin and what to not do with it!
  • Lantus depot: This is an important concept for understanding how Lantus works.
  • Lantus & Levemir: Shooting & Handling Low Numbers: What data you need in order to be able to work toward remission or tight regulation as well as information if you have a low pre-shot number or a drop into low numbers during the cycle.

Please let us know how we can help.
 
chickee776 said:
Hi Courtney.

Thanks so much for your reply. I just practiced some with the syringe and was able to give him a .75 dose. I just realized that my syringes have
half marks so that makes it a bit easier.

I have switched all my cats to an entirely wet food diet after Jake's diagnosis. He is receiving Lantus insulin and I'm using a Relion Micro. I do not have
keytone testing strips, Just the monitor, strips and lancets.

And thank you for the shortcut list! I've been scrolling back and forth in Dr. Pierson's list till I'm crosseyed.

I also just figured out how to put Jake's SS in my signature and am starting to navigate around the insulin board. This is all a bit daunting since I've never
used a message board before.
Click to expand...

Amanda, you're most welcome! FYI, I am not able to see your SS. Are you sure you copied the right url? You also need to make sure that you select the option to "share" in the upper right hand corner so that anyone with the link can view your SS.

There is a lot of information on this site, and I know the sheer amount of it can be daunting. We will provide you with the basics and the things you need to know right away; the rest you can learn over time and we're here to help you and to answer all of your questions. We have a special forum on the site just for Lantus users. We have some veteran members that can help give you extremely reliable suggestions, dosing advice, and the rest of us here can help you with other fd related questions, using the site, and support. I've let them know over in Tight Regulation Lantus Land that we have a new user, so some more people will likely be over here shortly to chat with you.

To get started, I suggest you visit LL (lantus land) and read through some of the starred stickies. Link to LL

It is fabulous that you are home testing. Did you test Jake before giving him tonight's shot? We test before every shot and try to get a few other tests throughout the cycle so we can make sure our cats are in safe numbers and to figure out dosing.

In the stickies, you will want to read the sticky Shooting and Handling Low Numbers Put together a hypo kit with MC wet food (medium carb) and HC wet food (high carb.) Fancy Feast with gravy will work fine. You will also want to have a jar of honey or corn syrup for emergencies. Print out a copy of the hypo info to keep on hand, just in case. Another thing to add to your supplies are urine test strips for ketones. There are many different brands available at most pharmacies. You can get ketostix at Walgreens or CVS. Reli On makes their own brand, too.

It is also a good idea to read up on Lantus and how it works, and look over the protocol we use here on the board. (In the stickies.)

For someone who doesn't know a lot about message boards, you're doing great!

I see that Jake is still receiving prednisolone... have you discussed any alternative treatments with your vet? Or does Jake have to be on this medication?
 
Amanda,
It looks like you didn't get all of the url when you copied it from the google docs site...

Carl
 
Thanks for the support, Ruben.

I'm sure I'll be asking you all kinds of questions. Right now it looks like my SS isn't showing
up so I've got to figure out why.

I've only been doing it for a day and half but I can't imagine not testing either.
 
Welcome Amanda.............as you scroll through the threads, you"ll see many experienced members guiding you through the twists & turns of FD & LL.....me, I'm still learning and am grateful for all I've been taught so far :razz: I'm here just to give moral support, a listening ear, & a cheering section for all our sugarkittys :RAHCAT Have A Wonderful Evening!! Cindy & Sabrina cat_pet_icon
 
Hi Sienne.

Thanks so much for the useful links! I'm going to try to set up the SS again in a few minutes.
Hopefully 2nd time's the charm.
 
Courtney, I'm really confused :o

Do I use the link in the share window or the link in the publish window in my signature?
If I follow the directions in the instructions there is no mention of using the share link.

Trying again.

And thanks for the LL links! Going to try to tackle those tomorrow.
 
Thank you Cindy & Sabrina for the moral support!
Everyone has been so welcoming and helpful. Can't wait to return
the favor soon :smile:
 
Thanks all for the help with getting my SS to show in my signature! I think it's finally working :smile:
Now that I've accomplished that, tomorrow I'm going to dive into all the info you've shared with me.

Will be doing a +3 on Jake before I go to bed tonight.

Sweet dreams.

BTW, let me know if the SS isn't working and I'll try again.
 
Courtney,

Jake is still receiving the pred. I wanted to reduce his dosage to see how low we can go and still get acceptable calcium
numbers. My vet did not want to do this and then she reluctantly agreed to reduce by giving him the same dosage every other day. I wanted to
reduce the pred for 2 weeks and then start insulin treatment but quickly found out that was not a good idea. I have agreed
to wait until his BG is more stable and then we will start reducing the pred.
 
Great ! Look forward to seeing you there. For your first post make sure to put new member or newbie or something in the subject line so that the members can welcome you to that forum.

the posts are structured like this

subject: 3/3 Jake AMPS 209 + 4 101 and so on. Either post them and edit the subject line as you get the readings, or at the end of the day

Content of the post: The "whole cat report" - A few lines on how Jake is doing as regards the 5Ps (peeing purring pooing preening and playing). Any questions you may have ( you can add a ? to your subject line if you have questions so people know). And a link to the prior days post.

We call these daily posts "condos"

Wendy
 
Thanks, Wendy.

I didn't know about the 5ps but I'll start using them when I post. :smile:
He pees a lot, not sure about the poop since I have 4 cats, purrs all the time, huge preener, doesn't play much at all
but that's not much of a change.

I'm gonna add this to my daily post. Do I do a new post for each day or group several days together?
 
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