? New...with scheduling issues

Hi there!

My name is Becky and my 10 year old cat Davis was just diagnosed with diabetes. His brother was on the Hill's k/d diet for kidney disease and our former vet said it was ok for Davis to eat it as well. NOPE! That's what triggered his diabetes.

I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around how to manage feline diabetes with my schedule. I am self-employed and I do not have a regular schedule at all. Sometimes I leave my house at 6am, sometimes 11am. Sometimes I'm home by 3pm, sometimes 10pm. Sometime I'm out of town for 2 days, sometimes 6 days. Sometimes I'm home all week long. It's just so dang unpredictable - I feel like I'm already failing him and I haven't even begun insulin yet.

Because of how my schedule is, my new vet suggested we see how dietary changes go before doing insulin. Davis has been eating Fancy Feast Purely (I read it has the lowest carb content of all FF varieties..I think that's still true?) and Young Again Zero Mature is left out for him to graze on. We've done this for the last 8 weeks. His glucose numbers were dropping pretty steadily but this week they rose. So I decided it was time to stop relying on dietary changes alone and just do the best I can with insulin and my crazy schedule.

Does anyone have advice for how I can do this with an unpredictable schedule? What do you do on days where you're just not able to get home in time for a shot? How bad is it if you miss a shot? What if you have to miss a whole day? Gah, this is so unbelievably stressful (and I haven't even begun to let myself think about what I'm going to do when I have to go out of the country for 2.5 weeks).

Any thoughts or encouragement would be greatly appreciated!

 

Hi Becky and Davis - welcome!
There many pet parents who scratching their heads too over how to balance sugar kitty's needs, family, business and social life, and I am sure someone will share their ideas. I am sadly unable to offer any scheduling advise - I am home all of the time to monitor my kitty and do not have schedule conflicts.
What I wanted to let you know is that there are few steps you can take that will help us to help you and Davis and the most important of them -
Do you home test? By taking Davis's blood glucose (BG) readings thru the day and recording them in to a Spreadsheet (SS) which you make publicly accessible is the best thing to do to spot/learn Davis's reactions to food and insulin. Once you have collected enough data (test results) in your SS by taking BG tests AM, midday and PM hours you will be able to spot typical responses to food/insulin shots and that's enables you to plan your day. HERE is how to set the SS and HERE is how to read it.

Great idea. There are some kitties on this Board who were regulated by dietary adjustments alone. No insulin injections (shots) were required.

HERE is the link to the various food charts; most of us here use Dr. Lisa Pierson's 2017 updated.

Have you started the insulin therapy? If so it important to home test pre-shots for safety. Please read this Sticky - HYPO KILLS - very important info as to what you have to have at home to prevent your kitty from going dangerously low.
Which insulin and what is the dosage?

It is better to skip the shot than shot without being able to monitor. Once you know Davis'a responses - by taking BG test 2 hours after the injection, or 3 ...6 hours you will know when to skip or when to shoot and leave some extra food out for him. Someone with practical knowledge will be alone to help.

Always stressful on the beginning, and then eases up to a routine. @CassAndGordy I tag someone who is also going out of the country and might be giving you some ideas.

You are in the very best place for that.
Anything we might do to help to go thru it - we will do.
If you answer the basic questions I posted above ppl will be able to offer advise.
Tons of knowledge and experience available here for you to make Davis happy and healthy kitty again. You are not alone.
Keep posting your questions and concerns no matter how trivial you might think them to be - we are here to answer.

 

Thank you for your response!!

We are going to be starting Lantus (not sure on dosage yet) and I will be home testing as well once we begin injections. My vet had someone donate a testing kit after their pet passed away, she is going to bring it to my house next week for our appointment, so I'm not sure what brand it is, but it's free!

 

It makes me SOOOO happy to hear that you are going to home test! Why not start now - that way you'll know his BG prior to the insulin therapy and can assess the food impact?

Let us know which one is it - some here use cat calibrated but most plain human - they are easily available and the strips are the cheapest. You can include it your Signature (check out mine to get an idea - all the basic info listed in one ot two lines and immediately visible to the reader).

Post your questions about dosage, food etc on the Lantus/Levemir Forum - it is very busy, high traffic place and I do not exaggerate when I say it a well of practical knowledge and wisdom. I use Lantus, too.

Can please give an overview of these numbers? Like - started to feed FF and the BG 1st day = XX at XXAM or PM, day two, etc - I am just curious were are you starting and how getting rid of Hills helped.

 

There is a Sticky note at the top of the Lantus/Lev forum - if one of the methods to regulate used here is possible for the people who work full time - there might be some helpful tips but I understand your main issue is unpredictability. But still, that -I think - can be tackled with knowledge and a little planning.

 

My vet has been coming to my house every other week to test his blood glucose while we started dietary changes. Those numbers went 475(March 1st when he just went off Hills)-->400-->313-->210--->315(yesterday). I was so happy to see the trend of the numbers decreasing over time, and then yesterday was super disappointing to see the BG number spike. That is what prompted the decision to begin insulin.

 

Thank you! I will head over and take a look! I have found a pet sitting company that employs vet techs and people who are comfortable and familiar with BG testing and administering insulin. That will help immensely when I have to go out of town. It pricy but worth the peace of mind!

 

Nice run down after taking away Hills! And see why you are concerned with that 315.
How Davis takes ear poking in general?
Some elevation in BG might be explained by stress he experiences during the vets visits, associate it with pain=higher BG.
It could be up to 200 points higher for some kitties if their tests performed at vets.

 

I see my tag, but it looks like you already have some ideas for taking care of your kitty while you're away.

Before Gordy was diagnosed, i have a 10 day vacation planned and couldnt bring him. I was living alone at the time, so I arranged for someobe to come check on them twice a day and do the insulin. This was back when he was on Vetsulin and was high all the time.

Next week I go Italy for 10 days (eep!), and because he is getting more regulated, I've actually chosen to board him with me vet. While I know he will in good hands, i feel bad he will spent a lot of time behind bars. Vut unlike the sitter, he will be closely monitored at the Vet stay. There are pluses and minuses to both approaches.

 

I think Lantus is a great insulin. Some of our caregivers who occasionally have inconsistent schedules have been able to figure out ways to work with Lantus for their cat. However, if your schedule is as varied as you've indicated, you might be better off talking to your vet about using Prozinc insulin. Prozinc may be a better fit for you than Lantus due to your scheduling conflicts.

Just throwin' it out there... might be worth having a conversation with your vet if you haven't purchased Lantus yet.

 

He definitely doesn't love it. I noticed that my vet does it really differently than what I've seen here. She just jabbed him in the center of his ear and then squeezed it really hard to get some blood. He was really upset and in pain. The videos I've seen in here make it seem a lot less traumatic. I will be very interested to try it on my own with a warm sock and see if less stress helps his numbers.

 

I am lucky to live right next to CSU, which is one of the best vet schools in the country. I have a friend who goes there and she posted a message about me needing a pet sitter who was comfortable with injections and BG testing and I already got 2 responses! One girl is a vet tech and is studying to be a vet, she's in school this summer so pet sitting is how she earns a little extra money. She said she's given a gazillion injections and has no problem doing BG tests - phew! I'm hoping this can work out because I have at least 5 week-long trips this summer and I hate the idea of boarding him so many times! I'm slowly learning that while expensive, there are options for me when I'm not able to be home. Have fun in Italy!!!

 

Thank you! I will definitely ask her about it!

 

That is plain wrong.

You aim at spot between the vein and the edge, not center like here:

Try doing it yourself and see if any further lowering in BG occurs. I offer a tiny shack after each test. Before I started my kitty and I had a "conversation", I explained why I am going/have to do it and I swear she understood. Give treat even if you don't get a sample. General idea is to do very differently then your vet does, make it not as stressful and certainly not as painful.
HERE is the good testing tips. I am sure you'll do well.