Newby here & SO CONFUSED!!!

[Milo'sNurseMaid]

Hello.

I'm a newby here... my 9 1/2 year old Maine Coon was diagnosed on 9/26. His vet recommended that we try the Purina prescription diet, (kibble & canned), for a few weeks prior to re-testing his blood glucose & making a determination of controlling through diet or insulin.

His initial level, (on 9/26), was 464.

3 weeks later, it was 414.

In the interim, I found catinfo.org. Milo's vet was recommending insulin, but I asked him if he would be open to trying a strictly canned diet of EVO Chicken first. I did that for 4 days. Rechecked blood glucose. It jumped to 509.

We started him on 3 units of insulin every 12 hours, but I have SO MANY QUESTIONS!!!

I haven't tested him at home yet, although I bought a meter a couple of days ago. I don't know what I'm doing... I understand that his insulin dosage will change according to the level of glucose in his blood... but to what? This wasn't explained to me.

I'm so frustrated...

Milo's vet is recommending free feeding kibble. He says that Milo will listen to his body & eat accordingly. Dr. Pierson recommends (STRONGLY) d/c ing all kibble, as well as free feeding.

And where do "treats" fit in? Milo has long loved Temptations kitty cookies, and Dr. Pierson recommends giving your kitty treats following testing, but are Temptations treats okay?

I don't even know WHEN I'm supposed to be testing! Before or after a meal? I'm assuming before an injection, (so dosage can be adjusted accordingly), although this was never really explained to me, nor was HOW to adjust his insulin dosage following changes in his blood glucose levels.

I want to give my guy the best care that I possibly can, but I don't know how to do that.



~Shannon

 

[Sue and Oliver (GA)]

First, Shannon, take a deep breath. We were all confused and worried at first. And we survived and so did our kitties! Once you start learning, it becomes so much more doable. Read and reread and ask lots of questions.

You have already read Dr Lisa's site. We are all on board with wet low carb food, BUT DON'T CHANGE OVER COMPLETELY UNTIL YOU ARE HOMETESTING. Our Oliver went down 100 points overnight when we changed. If we hadn't tested the next am and lowered the dose, we would have overdosed him.

Here are some great links and info on home testing. Ask questions and we will guide you through the process.

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=287

In general, we test before every shot to be sure it is safe to give the amount we are planning on. And we test midcycle to see how low the insulin is taking the cat. So start there.

What kind of insulin?

 

[Dusty Bones]

Hello Shannon,
I'm new too but have been lurking around this Message Board enough and experienced first hand with Dusty Bones that it's very important to feed your kitty only wet food. Something like Fancy Feast (FF) Classic Chicken, very low on carbs and high on protein. You want a pate with no gravy. If you give him treats they should be very low on carbs as well. You have to remember, unless your kitty had an infection of some type, what got him to where he is now was the high carbs used in all dry food. Get him on wet as soon as possible and be prepared to lower his insulin because his body won't be loaded down with carbs once you swap him to wet. I test Dusty's gc level then I feed him a can of FF. If I'm home I'll give him a small FF snack about half way through the 12 hours. I then test him again right before his 12 hours are up and feed him again and so the 12 hour cycle continues. I'll leave the dosing advise for those more experienced but like i said, wet food is key to getting Milo's diabetes under control.
cat_pet_icon Keep in mind if you start the insulin before swapping to wet food and then you go to wet food you need to be home and testing because the low carb food will make a huge difference in his glucose level and will require less insulin. You'll want to be home to watch him initially. There's plenty of time to swap to wet, do it slowly and carefully.

 

[BJM]

Re: Newby here & SO CONFUSED!!

For hometesting, you'll need:

An inexpensive glucometer such as the Glucocard 01 or 01 min from our shopping partner ADW (link at top of page) or a branded version of it, the ReliOn Confirm or Confirm Micro from another shopping partner, WalMart.

At least 2 boxes of matching test strips (interchangeable between these 4 meters).

Neosporin ointment with pain relief to reduce the annoyance of pricking the outer edge of the ear

A cotton ball or folded tissue to brace the ear as you hold it.

 

[Wendy&Tiggy(GA)]

Hello and welcome to the board!

Food - Evo canned is a good choice for your cat -its low carb but you will also need low carb treats. Many of us feed freeze dried chicken (get in walmart and pet stores) but heres a list http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=9172.

insulin - what kind is it?

Home testing - here are some tips. https://docs.google.com/document/d/13c_CPZVKz27fD_6aVbsguadJKvjSrSAkD7flgPPhEag/pub

I usually recommend 3-4 tests a day (but this depends on what kind of insulin you are using so please let us know -the below assumes Lantus)

- always before the shot - this is mandatory as you don't want to shoot when too low. As a newbie this too low number is 200 but is reduced over time once you have the data to know if its safe. Don't feed for 2 hours before the shot as you don't want the pre shot test number influenced by food
- mid cycle - 5-7 hours after morning shot depending on your schedule. This is to see how low he is going. The low point "nadir" is what you base dose changes on since you don't want him dropping too low (under 50).
- before bed (2-3hours after Pm shot) to get an idea of what his overnight plans are. If this number is less than the pre shot test number you may want to set the alarm for a test a few hours later as this implies an active cycle.

We can advise on dosing etc once we know the insulin.

Wendy