Newly diagnosed 10/13- currently in hospital DKA

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Kiki & Lola

Kiki & Lola

Member Since 2023
Hello everyone, my name is Jill and my 8 year old cat, Kiki was diagnosed with diabetes 10/13 she had ketones in her blood so she has been in the hospital since then. I’ve been reading all the information this site has provided which has helped me already considering I have ZERO experience with anything like this. I have gotten a couple updates on Kiki from the Er and they said she will most likely be discharged today which I’m so happy about but I’m also terrified about what to expect and I want to be as prepared as possible so this never happens to her again. I haven’t gotten any information from the vet about treatment yet- obviously I will when I pick her up but I now know the jist after reading things on here. The only thing is I haven’t seen much about the dka patients… what should I be expecting once Kiki is home. What should I have on hand before I go get her? I also have another cat named Lola who is non diabetic but they have grazed their whole lives and I’m also concerned about switching their feeding pattern and if they will even take to it. Any advice would be helpful! I know I need to make a spreadsheet but I don’t have any information to do so yet. Thank you!
 
Welcome to FDMB!

Many of us, myself included, have kitties who were, at the time of their diabetes diagnosis, also diagnosed with DKA. Gabby had DKA, pancreatitis, and hepatic lipidosis. I had 2 vets tell me that many cats don't survive. She did and thrived for another 6.5 years. It's a terrifying process to go through but with attention on your part, you and Kiki will get through this bump in the road.

The beginning of this process for caregivers is completely overwhelming. So, if that's how you're feeling, we've all been there and it's the normal place to be. In addition to a spreadsheet, there are a few other details that are important. This link on helping us to help you will get you started.
  • Before you pick Kiki up or once she's home and settled, make a pharmacy run. You need a glucometer (a meter to test Kiki's blood for sugar levels). You'll need lancets to poke her ear to get blood. We are strong advocates for home testing. I've linked information. Many people here use the Walmart brand, Relion, meter. The strips are the least expensive around. Despite your vet's preference, you do not need a pet-specific meter. (The pet meter strips cost about $1.00 each. The Relion strips cost about $0.17 each. You need to test a minimum of 4 times a day so the costs become vastly different.) You want to get a wider gauge lancet for getting started. A 26 - 28 gauge lancet is good. Once you've mastered home testing and Kiki's ear bleeds more easily, you can switch to a thinner lancet (e.g., 30 gauge).
  • If you mention home testing to your vet and the response is, "You will ruin your relationship with your cat." all I can say is that you're getting misinformation. (Actually, that's my polite response.) If you look at Gabby's spreadsheet in my signature, you'll see I tested a lot. Gabby did not hate me. If you link testing to treats, you are rewarding your cat and they respond. They also seem to understand that testing and an insulin injection helps them to feel better. Home testing is the best possible way to keep your cat safe.
  • You'll also want to buy Ketostix. These are strips you dip in a cat's urine to test for ketones. Ketones can recur. You'll want to make sure Kiki is eating and her behavior is returning to normal. The basic recipe for ketones is an infection/inflammation + not enough calories + not enough insulin. Ideally, she's eating about 1.5x her normal amount of food. This is information on ketones.
  • Ostensibly, the vet is going to give you a prescription for insulin and syringes. The American Animal Hospital Assn (AAHA) recommends either Lantus (glargine -- it's now available as a generic/biosimilar and as a result, a lot less expensive), Prozinc or Levemir for the treatment of feline diabetes. If your vet suggests either Novolin/Humulin N or Vetsulin, please decline. They are shorter acting types of insulin and do not have the duration necessary for a cat's fast metabolism. If you want the AAHA guidelines for diabetes, they are located on this page with our health links along with a lot of other information. Glargine and Levemir are human insulins and available at a pharmacy. Prozinc is an animal insulin and available at the vet's office.
  • Syringes need to match the concentration of the insulin that you're using. Glargine and Levemir are U100 insulin; Prozinc is a U40 insulin. You will need either U100 or U40 syringes. U100 3/10cc syringes with half unit markings are the best to use for drawing Lantus, Levemir, or the Biosimilars from vials, cartridges, and pens. We encourage you get syringes that are marked with half unit increments. It will make dosing easier. (Do NOT rely on the insulin pens to dispense insulin. They are wasteful and are only calibrated in full unit doses.) You will need a prescription for syringes.
Many vets will encourage you to feed a diabetic cat twice a day only. It's old school thinking. It's fine if Kiki grazes. You do not need to change her feeding pattern. What is important is that Kiki is on a low carbohydrate diet. The same diet is fine for your other cat as well. In fact, it will make your life considerably easier if you feed your cats the same food. Both of my cats ate the same low carb food when Gabby was alive and my current cats eat low carb. (Cat's can't process carbs. They are obligate carnivores.) This is a link to a food chart that lists most canned foods available in the US and lists carb counts. The food chart was developed by a vet with an interest in feline nutrition and has a wonderful webpage on the topic. We consider low carb as under 10% although most members feed their cats in the range of 5% (give or take). Fancy Feast and Friskies pate style versions are popular brands but there are a lot of different foods to choose from. Canned food is preferred for two reasons. First, cat's have a limited thirst drive and there's more moisture in canned foods. The water component is important since diabetes is hard on the kidneys. And second, the vast majority of dry foods are high in carbohydrates. Also, you do NOT need prescription diabetic food. There is nothing in diabetic cat food that is prescriptive. In fact, the pet food manufacturers lost a class action suit for calling their food "prescription." The diabetic foods are now referred to as dietetic. And, frankly, the dry versions of what was called "diabetic" food was ridiculously high in carbohydrates (e.g., over 20%).

As I alluded to above, treats are important. Most of us use freeze dried proteins (e.g., chicken) which is a low carb treat. Products like Temptations are high in carbs. If your cat likes cooked chicken, any protein is fine. We had one member who used shrimp as a treat. However, whatever your cat considers a treat will work. Some cats regard getting brushed as a treat and that's what works!

I've just inundated you with information. The members here are very generous with their time and information. Please ask questions. We're here to help.
 
Thank you for all of that information! I’m definitely feeling overwhelmed and it’s comforting to hear i’m not alone. I got another update for the vet this morning and she said they may want to keep her another night because her ph level isn’t exactly where they’d like it yet but I really want to take her home and treat her the best way I can because I know how stressed she must be feeling. I’m going to call tonight for another update. I’ve been through hospitalization with my other cat Lola for a different health reason and I felt like they kept her there longer then they needed to to drain my wallet. I would hate to take Kiki home to early and have something terrible happen but I don’t think I can afford for her to stay much longer :(
 
Welcome Jill and Kiki
You couldn't have found a better group to join
If you can get your vet to prescribe Lantus its expensive in the US. I hope your vet will prescribe it
Most members get the generic you can get generic/biosimilar glargine at very reasonable prices using GoodRx coupon. Most members use the generic because Lantus is to expensive.
https://www.goodrx.com/lantus?label...d-pens-of-100-units-ml&quantity=1&slug=lantus
Make sure that the Match your prescription pull down menue says generic glargine 1carton of 5 3ml pens.
There is no wait time test, feed, give insulin
Lantus usually doesn't kick in until 2 hours after the shot

We buy the pens but use the syringes to draw out the insulin because if you use the pen you can only adjust by full units ,we adjust the doses by 0.25 units
U -100 syringes with the half unit markings
I can suggest a few if you would like


Also
The 5 pens will last about a year, we use the pens just like a vial, you would just insert the syringe it the gray rubber stopper on the pen and draw out your insulin
Its generic lantus



Or this one also

I see some members will call CVS, Rite Aid, Costco, Walgreen's, to get the price for 5 pens
Posted by another member
One members posted this
. I paid $175 for a box of 5 pens at Walmart pharmacy, but GoodRX coupon says you can get it for around $90 if you have a Rite Aid pharmacy near you.

Just call around for the best price

A member just posted this
Allie was using the Lantus and I just switched to the generic and using the GoodRX I got 5 pens for $81.30 at Walgreens.

GoodRX has a 1-800 number to assist you in using their services to get your pets prescriptions filled if the pharmacy gives you any issues.

I think I found it for you
GoodRx / Customer service

1 (855) 268-2822
 
Here is a link if your vet prescribes Lantus about the syringes and how to draw the insulin out of a pen
https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/thr...info-proper-handling-drawing-fine-dosing.151/

Do you have a Walmart by you if not you can order the meter and test strips on line
You can pick everything up from Walmart The Relion Premier Classic meter and test strips

https://www.walmart.com/ip/ReliOn-Premier-CLASSIC-Blood-Glucose-Monitoring-System/552134103. 9 dollars

https://www.walmart.com/ip/ReliOn-Premier-Blood-Glucose-Test-Strips-100-Count/575088197. 17.88 for 100

At least if you are running low on test strips you can run into Walmart and pick them up

You can get the syringes at
Walmart the other box may look like this either one is fine. You can't order the Relion Syringes you have to go into the store. I'm not sure if you need a script for Walmart , call and ask them
upload_2021-9-5_23-18-9-jpeg.62508
 
@Bron and Sheba (GA)
Please See post #1 and #3
Thanks Bron :cat:

I copied this from Bron about cats with DKA
With DKA in the recent past there are some important things you need to be doing
  • you need to give one and a half times as many calories as he normally eats. Offer snacks every couple of hours during the day and evening as well as the 2 main meals. Food is like a medicine and helps keep ketones away. If your kitty won’t eat the low carb food, feed him whatever he will eat as eating any food is better than not eating,
  • Don’t skip any doses of insulin as insulin helps keep ketones away. If the BG is not high enough to give the dose…stall, dont feed and test again in 20 minutes and post and ask for help.
  • Test daily for ketones. Put the results of the tests into the remarks column of the SS so we can see. Please report any trace ketones at all. If you don’t have a bottle of Ketostix to test the urine, get one from Walmart or a pharmacy..testing for ketones is very important.
  • Give antinausea medication if needed such as cerenia or Ondansetron or both
  • Give appetite stimulant if needed after the antinausea medication
  • Give extra fluids. If kitty will tolerate warm water in the food, put a teaspoon into each snack..
  • Ask the vet about subQ fluids
  • Set up a spreadsheet and test the BG frequently
  • Post daily with updates and ask for help as often as needed.
  • Bron should be on later since she lives in Australia and it's early morning for her now
 
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Always aim for the sweet spot warm the ears up first, you can put rice in a sock and put it in the microwave, test it on the inside of your wrist to be sure it's not to hot, like you would test a babies bottle. You can fill a pill bottle with warm water and roll it on the ears also.Just keep rubbing the ears with your fingers to warm them up
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6. As the ears get used to bleeding and grow more capilares, it gets easier to get the amount of blood you need on the first try. If he won’t stand still, you can get the blood onto a clean finger nail and test from there.
When you do get some blood you can try milking the ear.
Get you finger and gently push up toward the blood , more will appear
You will put the cotton round behind his ear in case you poke your finger, after you are done testing you will fold the cotton round over his ear to stop the bleeding , press gently for about 10 or 20 seconds until it stops
Get 26 or 28 gauge lancets
A lot of us use the lancets to test freehand not the lancing device
I find it better to see where I'm aiming
Look at the lancet under a light and you will see one side is curved upward, that's the side you want to poke with
Here is a video one of our members made testing her kitty
She's using a pet meter that has to be coded ,with a human meter you don't have to code it.
So ignore that
I have always used a human meter
VIDEO: How to test your cat's blood sugar




If you need help setting up your signature and spreadsheet just ask ,we have a member who will be happy to do it for you once you know what insulin you are given

Have your hypo kit ready if you need to bring Kiki's BG up such as
Fancy Feast Gravy Lovers Gourmet Beef Feast in Gravy 20% High Carbs

Fancy Feast Gravy Lovers Gourmet Chicken Feast in Gravy 15% Med Carbs

Fancy Feast Gravy Lovers Turkey Feast in Gravy 15% Med Carbs

Fancy Feast Gravy Lovers Chicken and Beef in Gravy 15% Med Carbs

Or look at the food chart below and find some Friskies since I see you are feeding that also

Good idea to mark the cans with magic marker how many carbs
And some honey

Or any on the food chart. Doesn't have to be Fancy Feast just an example about the med and high carb foods


https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/dr-pierson-new-food-

10% and under is low carb
11% -15 is medium carbs.

16- 24 is high carb.
from The Official Lantus, Levemir & Biosimilars Slang Dictionary MC =11=15% and HC is usually 16-24%
 
Kiki & Lola said:
Wow!! Thank you soooo much! I hope I can get the hang of this fast for my Kiki girl
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You're welcome, you will ,we are all here to help you, just keep asking questions or post when you need help :cat::bighug:
She's a beauty :cat:
Bron will probably be on later because she lives in Australia and it's early AM there now
What have you been feeding Kiki before he was hospitalized
When you find out what insulin is prescribed , I hope you get the Lantus
I would post and let us know how many units the vet wants you to give
If the ER has any BG tests they did ask then for the numbers
 
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Both of my cats are grazers I would put out a half can of wet and a half cup of dry in the morning and sometimes there would still be food in the dish when I got home from work (8hr shifts) so I would give them the other half of the can and little more dry in the evening. For the longest time I was feeding them the blue Buffalo wet food ocean whitefish and tuna (they tend to only like the fish flavor) but I found little pieces of bone so I switched them over to fancy feast classic or friskies pate of the same flavor. After reading I am definitely going to cut out the dry completely it was purina one healthy weight- obviously not so healthy. I read to be careful always feeding them the fish flavors though because of high mercury content so I’ll be introducing new flavors into their diet.. hopefully they take to it. I am hoping to get the Lantus- I will definitely ask. I haven’t been too crazy with the emergent vets so far but my regular vet is phenomenal and I know she wants to see Kiki for a follow up so if I’m unhappy with what the er vets decide I’m pretty certain she will make the adjustments. Thank you again!
 
Oh I also mixed it up and would give them the purina pro plan uti ocean whitefish and tuna. They seem to like that one too but I didn’t look on the cart to see if that was low carb yet
 
Most manufacturers do not include information about carbohydrates on their packaging or even on their website. They are not required to. There are cat food carb calculators on the web. The headache is that the information that is typically provided regarding nutrient value is the guaranteed analysis. The values are minimums or maximums so when you plug numbers into a calculator, you're getting an approximate value. The numbers on the chart I linked previously are based on "as fed" values. Dr. Pierson contacted the manufacturers to get the as fed values.
 
Kiki & Lola said:
Thank you for all of that information! I’m definitely feeling overwhelmed and it’s comforting to hear i’m not alone. I got another update for the vet this morning and she said they may want to keep her another night because her ph level isn’t exactly where they’d like it yet but I really want to take her home and treat her the best way I can because I know how stressed she must be feeling. I’m going to call tonight for another update. I’ve been through hospitalization with my other cat Lola for a different health reason and I felt like they kept her there longer then they needed to to drain my wallet. I would hate to take Kiki home to early and have something terrible happen but I don’t think I can afford for her to stay much longer :(
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Any update on Kiki , is she still in the hospital?
 
Kiki & Lola said:
Hello everyone, my name is Jill and my 8 year old cat, Kiki was diagnosed with diabetes 10/13 she had ketones in her blood so she has been in the hospital since then. I’ve been reading all the information this site has provided which has helped me already considering I have ZERO experience with anything like this. I have gotten a couple updates on Kiki from the Er and they said she will most likely be discharged today which I’m so happy about but I’m also terrified about what to expect and I want to be as prepared as possible so this never happens to her again. I haven’t gotten any information from the vet about treatment yet- obviously I will when I pick her up but I now know the jist after reading things on here. The only thing is I haven’t seen much about the dka patients… what should I be expecting once Kiki is home. What should I have on hand before I go get her? I also have another cat named Lola who is non diabetic but they have grazed their whole lives and I’m also concerned about switching their feeding pattern and if they will even take to it. Any advice would be helpful! I know I need to make a spreadsheet but I don’t have any information to do so yet. Thank you!
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@Bron and Sheba (GA)
 
Diane Tyler's Mom said:
Any update on Kiki , is she still in the hospital?
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Yes she is :( they said she is getting closer. They get her blood glucose and electrolytes balanced but when they start to ween her off the IV’s she becomes unregulated again so they are still trying to find the right balance so they can switch her to the injectable insulin.
Regarding what I read about her having to eat twice as many calories when she gets home I’m a little concerned because she is a 15 pound cat who barely finishes a 3 oz can by the time I get home from work. And same thing when I would wake up in the morning. My other non diabetic cat is the same way. They must have gotten so chunky from the dry food which they never finished either

What food do you feed your kitty Tyler? And how much does he usually eat?
 
Hi Jill I'm sorry to hear Kiki is still in the hospital, Tyler eats special food because one time he was blocked and they had to but a catheter in him to unclog his mucus plug because he couldn't pee. Most feed Fancy Feast pate of Friskies.
I'm going to message Bron for you and ask her to take a look at what's been going on
I'm going to private message her
 
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Hi Jill, Kiki and Lola,
I see Diane has given you what I normally write about care of the post DKA kitty.

It is one and a half times as many calories, not twice as many…not sure where you eat that.
Kiki will most likely be nauseated when she comes home so I would definitely ask the vet for some ondansetron for nausea or cerenia. It is really important Kiki eats and eat well as it is food and insulin that keeps the ketones at bay.
Do you think you could take a couple of days off work or work from home, when she first comes home? She really needs to eat every few hours to get enough food in over the 24 hours.

Also have you thought about hometesting the blood glucose? It is really important we know how the insulin is affecting the blood glucose (BG).
I can ask @Bandit's Mom to set up a spreadsheet for you to get started.
To get ready for when Kiki comes home you will need
  • A bottle of Ketostix to test the urine for ketones every day as it is really important to know what is happening with the ketones,
  • Have a good variety of food to offer her as she might be picky for a while.
  • It is more important that she eats well, than what she eats in the beginning. Offer her the low carb food, but you may have to try a few different things and if they are less than ideal for a diabetic cat…don’t worry about that in the beginning. The most important think is you get food into her.
  • Add a teaspoon of warm water to her food so she gets some extra fluids. Fluids are important too.
  • So feed a good meal before the doses of insulin then try and get her to eat a snack of food every couple of hours. A snack is a teaspoon or two of food.
  • We don’t want you to be skipping any doses of insulin as it is insulin and food that keeps the ketones at bay. This is why testing the BGs is so important.

    I would post every day or more than once a day when Kiki first gets home. She will need a lot of care for a couple of weeks but she should return to normal.
Kept asking questions
Bron
 
Thank you! I apologize I did read 1.5 x as much food I’ve just been on information overload. I am going to do the home testing and I did pick up some of those ketostix. I just got a positive update on Keek this morning :) she’s eating really well for them and they want to start her on prozinc ( I asked about lantus and it was my primary vet who would rather do prozinc) I have a really good relationship with this vet so I am going to give the prozinc a try. They are going to start her on that tonight and hopefully she will be home tomorrow. Luckily tomorrow is my day off and I’m most likely going to take the rest of the week off. I really appreciate all the help and that would be great if I could have some help setting up the spread sheet! Thank you
 
Kiki & Lola said:
Thank you! I apologize I did read 1.5 x as much food I’ve just been on information overload. I am going to do the home testing and I did pick up some of those ketostix. I just got a positive update on Keek this morning :) she’s eating really well for them and they want to start her on prozinc ( I asked about lantus and it was my primary vet who would rather do prozinc) I have a really good relationship with this vet so I am going to give the prozinc a try. They are going to start her on that tonight and hopefully she will be home tomorrow. Luckily tomorrow is my day off and I’m most likely going to take the rest of the week off. I really appreciate all the help and that would be great if I could have some help setting up the spread sheet! Thank you
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Prozinc is a good insulin as well and is not a depot insulin like Lantus so might be better for Kiki in the beginning as the full effect of the dose will be felt from the first dose.
Great she is eating but please still ask for an ondansetron script because she still could go off her food, and they always do it at weekends or at night.
Very please to hear you are going to take some time off.
 
Hi Jill, Since your vet prescribed Prozinc ,here is the link so you can read all about Prozinc
I'm glad to hear Kiki is doing much better .Read all the yellow stickys :bighug::bighug::cat:
https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/forums/prozinc-pzi.24/

You will want the ones with half unit markings since we adjust the doses by 0.25 units at a time. I don't know if your vet will have them . I would call ADW diabetes and order either one of these . They will take info from you and contact your vet so she can fax over a script , ask your vet for some refills . Give your vet a heads up

U-40 syringes with half unit markings for prozinc
https://www.adwdiabetes.com/product...MIsvv61477gQMVj0tHAR1dRggoEAQYASABEgJkqfD_BwE

Or these
https://www.adwdiabetes.com/product...MI87u-qY_7gQMVmFRHAR15igNtEAQYCCABEgLoO_D_BwE

Give ADW this coupon code
Here is a coupon if you get them from ADW diabetes
adw-coupon-dia10.jpg

10% off your next order!
 
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How are things going? Did Kiki come home?
Looking at the SS, it looks like you have Kiki home.
Are you giving her lots of food during the cycle as well as the preshot meal.
And don’t forget to test the urine daily foe ketones.
Looking forward to hearing an update.
 
Hi, Yes I have Kiki home and things are going as well as they should be I think. I am giving her lots of food throughout the cycle and the preshot meal and she seems to be eating just fine. She is not very tolerant of her shots yet but I know it will get better in time (she doesnt want her body touched at all after the ER vist and i don't blame her) I have yet to test for the ketones but that is my plan for today. She is also getting Clavamox 2x a day for the next 5 days.
 
I've only been at this for about a month, I had trouble with the shots at the beginning with 'fur shots' , I ended up shaving Angus's fur, it helped a lot. I found out my baby was diabetic and only got 1 shot into him before finding out he was dka, I feel your pain and panic. It gets better.

(Just the fur where I inject him, lol)
 
Kiki & Lola said:
She is also getting Clavamox 2x a day for the next 5 days.
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Hi Jill, I'm glad to hear Kiki is home and doing well,, nice +4 there , keep us posted
Have a nice day Jill :bighug::cat:
Jill I just wanted you to know I did a search up top and typed in Clavamox .
Found a few posts my members about it .just wanted you to be aware in case this happens

I found these posted by members
Clavamox is infamous for making cat's nauseous. If you're not already doing it, you should probably add a probiotic too. Antibiotics are great for killing bacteria, but they don't know to leave the "good" bacteria needed in the intestines....they just kill them all! Then you end up with a cat with diarrhea

I've seen many a kitty here have GI discomfort with Clavamox. Adding a probiotic, at least two hours apart from the AB, can help restore the tummy flora.


Clavamox, or antibiotics in general, can ruin the good tummy flora. I found it helpful to add a probiotic (not Fortiflora, it's just one strain and more of a flavour enhancer). Probiotics should be given two hours apart from the AB.
Clavamox is notorious for GI upsets. Are you giving him a probiotic?


So in case Kiki has any tummy issues I would post and ask what is a good probiotic to give
 
I’m happy to hear Kiki is doing well since coming home and you seem to be managing well.:)
Great you are feeding lots of food!
If she drinking OK?
When you give the shots are you giving her something to eat while you do the shot to distract her….something yummy!
 
She hasn't really been drinking much water honestly but unfortunatley she's always been this way. I've been putting water in her food. Her follow up with the vet is on tuesday and i thought about asking for subq fluids if she needs them. The food wont even distract her, she just does not want to be touched anywhere blow the head. It's been a struggle but we will get there!
 
Well done in all you are doing. Those high numbers are from bouncing after the green numbers so don’t worry about that. I’m going to ask @Suzanne & Darcy to have a look at the BG numbers as she uses Prozinc and I don’t. Kiki is dropping quite low on that dose but we don’t want to reduce the dose if possible. Let’s see what Suzanne says.
Have you tested for ketones yet?
 
First of all, about the Clavamox- many cats cannot tolerate Clavamox. I have to keep a list of which of my cats can and which cannot tolerate Clavamox. It’s a very effective antibiotic but is very jard on the GI tract die to the addition of Clavulanic acid, which helps to overcome antibiotic resistance, to the amoxicillin. But some cats do fine on it. I have several who tolerate it well and several who do not. Sometimes there’s diarrhea and sometimes vomiting and sometimes both in one cat.
 
Hello there. Kiki is so cute. I love her profile picture! I would watch her very carefully on this dose to make sure she doesn’t drop too low. I May recommend that you reduce the dose down to 1.75 units.

After my boy’s DKA, I bought a NovaMax Plus blood ketone meter from AW Diabetes Supply for testing ketones. I had to be sure. But you are doing great, and if he will let you use the keto doastix then that is perfectly adequate.

Are you using a Freestyle Libre sensor right now for monitoring his BG? Do you have a human meter for a backup to check when you see a particularly low number? I have seen the Libre sensors give low readings that, when checked against a human meter, are not so accurate. I guess what I’m trying to say is that I have seen instances where the Libre is not as accurate as a human meter in the low range. That is why I would like to know what the reading from a human meter would have been yesterday when you had a 69 and a 53 (both of which are very safe numbers, by the way.)
 
I’m looking at your spreadsheet and don’t see many numbers in there for today, October 20. I see a +4 reading of 239. Where are you in the cycle now? What time zone are you in? Where do you live? I’m on Eastern time so it’s after 10 p.m. here. I was hoping to see how today’s cycle went.
 
Thank you for the replies and Kiki will love to hear how cute she is :) She seems to be doing well. I actually took her to the vet yesterday afternoon because they wanted to see how she was doing before the weekend. She looked at her levels the libre has tracked and didn't like how low 2 uints were dropping her so she changed it to 1 unit and she seems to be doing well with it from last night and this morning so far. Her ketones are negative which is great and I have been using the free libre sensor because they put it on her while she was in the hosptial and she is hardly tolerant of the insulin shots so i'm nervous to start the ear pricks but i know i'm going to have to try so I did purchase the relion platinum human meter (only one they had in stock at the walmart by me). She is being more finiky with eating because she knows that she will be getting the shot after now which is really worrying me. She DOES eat still but its a challange and its not as much as I would like her too. She has been sticking her nose up to the wet food and i gave her a kibble of her old dry food to see if she would eat it and she couldn't eat it fast enough. I dont want to feed her dry food AT ALL but is there a low carb one for the times she refuses to eat her wet food at all? I am also on Eastern time and I will be filling in the chart soon. Also the clovomax may be affecting her belly because she did throw up a little foam this morning but this has been the first time since she's been home. Her last dose is tomorrow morning.
 
There are a limited number of dry foods that are low in carbs. Dr. Elsey's Clean Protein and Young Again Zero Carb (it's not zero carb but it's around 5%). There is also ZiwiPeak air dried raw food that isn't really "dry" food but many cats like it. You may need to slowly transition her from her old food to canned food.

Keep an eye on the vomiting. You want to be sure it's from the antibiotic or from the switch in food and not from something medical that's going on.

I would suggest that rather than giving Kiki only her food immediately after a shot or an ear prick (once you start), you give her a treat. You want to not have her always associate food with a shot.

You should be able to pull up information from the Libre to fill in Kiki's spreadsheet.

As for the dose, we would have encouraged you to reduce the dose. When Kiki's numbers drop below 90, it's time to reduce the dose. This is the information on dosing with Prozinc. It will provide you with guideline for when to increase or decrease a dose. We change doses in 0.25u increments.
 
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