New to ProZinc and Testing

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bobby&maggie(GA)

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I have a question about the exact procedure to do a curve. Is a shot given at the start, food in the beginning, frequency of testing, and is food given during the cycle? I know it is simple, but I didn't see it spelled out. Also, I would welcome comments on Blue's SS numbers.

I've been on this board since late in 2000 with Maggie (GA 2002), who never required testing or shots. Now, I have Blue, who was diagnosed at the start of November with a 596 at the vet's office. My vet, who is agreeable to home testing, started Blue on 2u of ProZinc and he almost crashed at a 28 after 5 doses. I bought a One Touch Ultra2 and have done pre-shots since that time. His numbers have remained low, with a few spikes, since, but has been below 100 in the AM with 120-140 in the PM.

My vet tried a curve, but said Blue was just too stressed to get a true reading (this is shown on my SS), and I have not tried to do one as of now.
 
bobby&maggie(GA) said:
the exact procedure to do a curve.
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Congratulations on home testing!

Most curves are done by testing BG at 2 hour intervals over a 12 hour period:
  • test BG in AM before feeding. Feed then give AM dose.
  • test BG at +2, +4, etc.
  • maybe test at +6 and feed right after
  • test at +8, +10
  • test just before PM meal and shot.
Some people might feed throughout the cycle but my opinion is that for the purpose of doing a curve it's better to have data not influenced by food so you can better judge a doses's effect.

I get "access denied" when I try to look at Blue's SS.
 
Your spreadsheet works now. A curve is a good idea. In general, we suggest not shooting under 150-180 and only then if you can monitor. You could shoot less than 0.5 - there are skinny doses and we have ways to give a drop of insulin. It is possible that he is bouncing up for pmps after being very low in the am cycle. A curve will help you see if he is ever dangerously low.

It looks to me that he is headed into remisssion(anti jinx). We consider a cat in remission if they are between 40-120 off insulin for two weeks. It Looks like he was higher when you skipped a shot, but maybe giving less than 0.5 will give you shootable, even cycles.
 
Thanks for the info. I do monitor Blue pretty closely at the mid-cycle, and the times that I've tested, he has not been very low. I have a vet visit today, and after that visit, I will start doing more with the dosage. His vet wanted me to keep Blue on 1u, and I don't think that would have been possible. His numbers were in the 50s when she tried a curve a few days ago. Their computer was down and she could not give me the exact numbers, but I think they were all over the scale.
 
I certainly wouldn't raise the dose. Your kitty is in normal numbers that we would consider too low for insulin. What does your vet see as too low? We think 50 is a top range for hypo. The one midcycle cycle number I see is the 67 at +5 - he could have dropped in hypo range before or after that. Also, be aware that cycles done at the vet can be much higher than cycles done at home. Most cats are stressed at the vet (noises, other animals, strange people) and stress raises levels. Doses based on those numbers can be too high once the cat is home.

I see you give WD as a treat. WD dry is 37% carbs. What does he normally eat? If you'd eliminate any higher carb (above 8%carbs) you might be able to eliminate the insulin. If you do that, be very careful - maybe concentrate on low carb without insulin for a few cycles and see where he is. It is possible that even a few pieces of higher carb can be keeping him safe from dropping too low, which is a good thing, but without it, he might stay in normal numbers without it and without insulin.
 
I don't plan on dosing with the numbers as low as I've done in the past. I usually have observed him in the +5-6 range for any sign of hypo. I did catch him in the beginning when he was a 28 at +4. I did give him .5 today for the PM shot because he was 121 this morning and 131 this evening. I will test him at + 5-7 just to see what he's doing. A treat of dry WD is 3-5 pieces. I'll check the food charts to see what my options are for dry food because he is going to have to be boarded fr 2 days at Christmas, or left with dry food for a day and night. Blue is eating WD wet and a small amount of WD dry.

I have had a few days without insulin, or very little, and the numbers were low. Is there any point in trying a curve if the numbers are low without a shot?
 
I wouldn't do a curve with no shot on board. It won't give you data on how a dose is working, so it's not really needed I think.

Will you be able to get a test in later this evening? With that low of a PMPS it would be good to make sure that the shot isn't taking him too low.

As for dry food, I never fed any, but I hear good things about Young Again and Evo. You might do a search or ask on health about dry food options to see if you can get some replies from people who have used them.
 
Rachel said:
I wouldn't do a curve with no shot on board.
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Thank you. I've checked Janet& Binky's food chart, and I see why dry is not an option. I don't understand why WD dry exists since it higher in carbs than off the shelf foods. I missed the nadir point last night by sleeping on the couch. I physically checked him at the +7 mark and he seemed ok.
 
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Blue made it just fine through the short Christmas h0liday. He tested 71 Christmas AM and 91 day after Christmas PM.
He was 92 this AM. Blue free fed on SO during that time after a good big serving of soft food in the AM on the 25th. I am still searching for a good wet food that is lower in Phosphorous. My cats do not eat shreds or slices.
 
A few good pate type low carb, low Phos foods are Wellness Core Beef, Venison & Lamb, Wellness Complete Health Turkey, Merrick Whole Earth Grain Free Duck, Merrick L.I.D. Duck. There are others as well. We are working on updating the food chart. If you have questions about a food, tag me and I'll see if it's one we have info on.
 
Thanks Sharon. I may have to order food to get what I need. My local PetSmart didn't have a great stock of the foods that are lower in Phosphorus. Blue spiked at 126 tonight after free feeding on the dry food. My vet put him on WD wet and dry at diagnosis: he's not overweight so I don't understand that.
 
I would guess the dry food over the holidays caused the higher bg levels. So, yes, getting him back on wet low carb will hopefully get those levels back down.
 
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