Oliver has been to the vet. We need your goog brains

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ecurie

ecurie

Member Since 2012
Oliver has been to the vet.. Her recomendations and my thoughts...needing your thoughts are in the last reply to this... i'm sure there's a better way to do this. If i should start a new topic instead of adding on to this one, let me know and i promise to do better next time.... just be glad i'm not picking YOUR ear.
sorry and thanks
mary



We so wish we had been able to get tests through Oliver's last 24 hours. But i've got what we could get. We were doing pretty well at testing and have gotten progressively worse. Oliver gets in a corner, under anything, last night he found a new spot to hide and wouldn't come out. This morning's test at shot time didn't have enough blood and was an error. We had to pick up furniture to get him out of his hiding place and drag him hissing into the kitchen for shrimp and testing/shot. We are totally useless.
We have a vet appointment at 4pm. She'll want to test him (she didn't want us to test at home, but i'll bring his numbers anyway) (i'm sure his numbers will be way high as he hates going to the vet) and i'm sure increase she'll want to increase his dosage.

I've watched all the videos on testing. It seems like a mountain we will never be able to climb. Oliver puts up with it a couple times a day, but got very angry with us yesterday when we tried to test him all day. When he sees the ear warming sock, he starts to hiss and scratch. If we hide the sock from his view, he starts to growl and his when we put it on his ear.

Do you think the lancet pen would help at all? Right now, i hold and pet him, while mark pokes him. We are poking all the way through his poor ear. We started by trying a little prick and got no blood at all. I can only think we are doing something sooooo very wrong.

I'm sorry, i'm just rambling. I know his testing is not at all good enough for you to give any good advice. But i'm very nervous and hoping for any direction you might be able to give us.

There is one bright spot. Oliver tested negative for ketones for the first time since his diagnosis (1 week ago)
 
Re: Oliver is going to the vet, could you please look at the

A couple of my thoughts about testing and I'm sure others will chime in....

Testing shouldn't be an ordeal for you or for Oliver. For the moment, I would test four times a day -- once at AMPS and PMPS and then get a spot check once in the AM cycle and once in the PM cycle. In the meantime. pick Oliver up, take him to one spot that you can use for testing and just give him a treat, tell him what a good boy he is, etc. Every trip to the testing spot gets a treat. Every time you poke, regardless of whether it's successful or not, means that Oliver gets a treat. You want to make a solid association between testing and treats. Reinforcing the behavior you want really does work.

You and Mark need to not stress. Cats are incredibly attuned to our moods. If you get stressed or frustrated with testing, Oliver will pick up on it. It's better to test/shoot a little late if it means you can be calm.

You are absolutely right about some cats having MUCH higher numbers when they go to the vet. As a result, the vet wants you to raise your cat's insulin dose. However, the true BG values may be substantially less at home when vet stress isn't a factor. We've seen any number of cats who have been given too high of a dose of insulin because of just this kind of situation. Remember, you can always tell the vet you're uncomfortable with the dose she's suggesting.

You may want to bring this article along with you to the vet. It's the article from a leading veterinary journal that describes the Tight Regulation Protocol.
 

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Re: Oliver is going to the vet, could you please look at the

I agree with Sienne.
Minimize your tests to what she said and in between give treats and take Oliver to his spot and reward him just for sitting with you.
He's getting negative associations and you want to switch that to positive experiences.

I was nervous about the clicking of my lancing device but it has become a positive thing. I have known a few others who had to start out just clicking, with no poke and giving
a treat so the click becomes positive.

If you have to get a lancing device, go get the Accu-chek fastclix. It is a 26 gauge ( slightly bigger) which is what you want especially if you are having to poke many times to
get blood. Those finer gauge lancets are too difficult to get a sample. They are for humans.
I couldn't do it freehand because my cat really got upset with that method. I think if they are sensitive to being poked, it is more painful.

The phrase " I don't feel comfortable with that" is really useful for your vet. They aren't the ones who are doing this 24/7 and their curves just aren't accurate when Oliver
is stressed out for being in their office with all the new sounds and smells.
 
Re: Oliver is going to the vet, could you please look at the

Personally I find it easier to use the lancet clicker device to prick the ear -- that way, it is very consistent - doesn't go all the way through and it is pretty quick. It does take some practice to aim in the right place with part of the lancet tip off the ear to get the pin near the edge.

Be calm and relaxed - also -- in my house, we use a 3 strikes and you're out rule --- if we could not get blood in 3 pokes -- we stopped, gave treats and praise and let him loose. If kitty was acting normal, we would go ahead and give injection if it was shot time, and try to test later.
 
Re: Oliver is going to the vet, could you please look at the

You've gotten some great suggestions so far.

I tried once without the lancing device, and I just couldn't do it. Trix does perfectly fine with the device - the clicking doesn't bother her at all. For me, it seems much quicker, more accurate as far as "hitting the target" goes, and much less sudden/startling to use the device. She still squint her eyes and braces herself before every test, but she also does willingly jump up on the "testing station" (an ottoman) when we pat it.

It took is a good 3-4 weeks before either of us was able to test Trix by ourselves. Treats and lovings really do help.

And - keep asking questions. We're all here to help! Good luck with the vetty visit!!
 
Re: Oliver is going to the vet, could you please look at the

thank you very much for all your advice. There's so much support here. We can breathe easier, which i'm sure will help Oliver. I will let the vet say whatever she wants and then we'll come back here.
I will try the lancet pens... and going to the testing spot just for treats....you are so right... turn a negative into a positve!!!!
thanks and lots of love to you all
mary,mark,oliver
 
Re: Oliver has been to the vet. we need your good brains

Thank you all ! We tested just before we went to the vet. We took a little longer, more petting and holding first. Oliver was 300t +6. 346 at the vet. She said to increase him to 2 units bid. I'm much more inclined to go with the advice we've gotten here. Increase by .25 or . 50 . She also said not to test him again for at least a week. I don't get that at all. Thank heaven's we leave here in 2 weeks and get back to our vet.

Any advice on .25 or .50 increase? I don't want to go too fast. In the past week, He has changed to totally wet food, gotten over a cortisone shot, gone from moderate ketones to negative. And is putting up with us goofy parents.

Thanks for holding our hands through this. Don't know where we would be without you.

Mary, Mark& The Ver.
 
Re: Oliver has been to the vet. we need your good brains

Thank you all ! We tested just before we went to the vet. We took a little longer, more petting and holding first. Oliver was 300t +6. 346 at the vet. She said to increase him to 2 units bid. I'm much more inclined to go with the advice we've gotten here. Increase by .25 or . 50 . She also said not to test him again for at least a week. I don't get that at all. Thank heaven's we leave here in 2 weeks and get back to our vet.

Any advice on .25 or .50 increase? I don't want to go too fast. In the past week, He has changed to totally wet food, gotten over a cortisone shot, gone from moderate ketones to negative. And is putting up with us goofy parents.

Thanks for holding our hands through this. Don't know where we would be without you.

Mary, Mark& The Ver.
 
Re: Oliver has been to the vet. we need your good brains

Thank you all ! We tested just before we went to the vet. We took a little longer, more petting and holding first. Oliver was 300t +6. 346 at the vet. She said to increase him to 2 units bid. I'm much more inclined to go with the advice we've gotten here. Increase by .25 or . 50 . She also said not to test him again for at least a week. I don't get that at all. Thank heaven's we leave here in 2 weeks and get back to our vet.

Any advice on .25 or .50 increase? I don't want to go too fast. In the past week, He has changed to totally wet food, gotten over a cortisone shot, gone from moderate ketones to negative. And is putting up with us goofy parents.

Thanks for holding our hands through this. Don't know where we would be without you.

Mary, Mark& The Ver.
 
Re: Oliver has been to the vet. we need your good brains

Thank you all ! We tested just before we went to the vet. We took a little longer, more petting and holding first. Oliver was 300t +6. 346 at the vet. She said to increase him to 2 units bid. I'm much more inclined to go with the advice we've gotten here. Increase by .25 or . 50 . She also said not to test him again for at least a week. I don't get that at all. Thank heaven's we leave here in 2 weeks and get back to our vet.

Any advice on .25 or .50 increase? I don't want to go too fast. In the past week, He has changed to totally wet food, gotten over a cortisone shot, gone from moderate ketones to negative. And is putting up with us goofy parents.

Thanks for holding our hands through this. Don't know where we would be without you.

Mary, Mark& The Ver.
 
Re: Oliver is going to the vet, could you please look at the

I think you should edit your first post of this thread in the subject heading and ask a new question.
10/9 Oliver Dosing??


I think the answer will be 0.25u increase but I want you to hear that from Sienne or Marje. They should be around sometime later on today.
So wait for their response.
 
Hi, As Rhiannon suggested, you will get fastest response from the experts if you change the subject of your original post on this thread to the customary format 10/9 Oliver +6 300 Dosing advice? and put the question mark icon. Stick to one thread per day so everything about Oliver is in one place. That will help the gurus notice your post faster and they will appreciate your adopting this LL custom.

Trust that if you keep at it you will get the hang of testing, and Oliver will get used to it too. We use the adjustable depth click pen that came with our meter. We put the edge of the hole at the eadge of the ear and that usually gets a good spot. We hold a folded tissue against the other side of his ear to give the pen something to press against. We also rub his whole ear to make sure its really really warm, otherwise its too hard to get a usable blood drop. Sometimes I have to rub his ear above and below the whole to coax the drop out. I also rub his shoulders and neck to relax both of us cat_pet_icon . I tried freehanding the lancet and Jasper freaked, got all hissy and pissy :o ECID, as you try various things you will figure out what works.
 
Oliver has been dropping into the yellows at nadir. Based on the protocol, you would increase the dose by 0.25u.
Increasing the dose:
  • Hold the dose for 3 - 5 days (6 - 10 consecutive cycles) if nadirs are less than 200 before increasing the dose by 0.25 unit.
  • After 3 days (6 consecutive cycles)... if nadirs are greater than 200, but less than 300 increase the dose by 0.25 unit.
  • After 3 days (6 consecutive cycles)... if nadirs are greater than 300 increase the dose by 0.5 unit.
Click to expand...

I wonder what this vet would do if she had a diabetic child and her pediatrician gave her the same instructions about testing? Crazy!!
 
My original, long time vet actually chewed me out for wanting to test and for doing my own research on Feline Diabetes. He is no longer the vet I use. I know not everyone has the opportunity to change vets but it sounds like you're in a temporary situation and will be going home soon (to a different vet).

Testing. Oh dear. When I first started testing, Poopy would have none of it. We had to wrap him in a towel (growling, hissing, squirming...the whole gambit). It darn near broke my heart. Poopy is my love and I'm his momma. We've been close since he was a kitten. After trying to test? He wanted nothing to do with "The Evil Woman Who Pokes".

After much guidance and encouragement from the folks on this board, I kept at it. Poopy learned it was something I had to do, that he receives special treats only at test times, and he gets extra lovings during tests.

Poopy will now come to me when I shake the test strip bottle, knowing it's test time, and purrs throughout the whole deal. Yes, he's the same cat that fought me over testing. :lol:

Don't give up. Testing is what gives you the tools to help Oliver. He will learn that...with time and patience on your part. :YMHUG:
 
Hi Guys,
I haven't visited your condo before, so want to say welcome. Here's another tip for getting blood to flow: Blood flows from the tip of the ear down, so if you hold the ear and put a little pressure on it just below where you intend to poke, that pressure acts like a dam and it is easier to get a blood drop. I agree with everyone who recommended using the lancet device. It delivers a much faster and much more uniform poke. A little vaseline on the ear before doing the poke helps the blood to bead up. We hold a small gauze square behind the ear to give something to poke against. Then, after getting the bg reading, the gauze square can simply be doubled around the ear to staunch the blood (and this pressure keeps the ear from bruising).

Good luck! It gets much easier. I hope you get back to your good vet soon!

Ella & Rusty
 
Here is a diagram to show what Ella just explained above. The red arrows show the way the blood flows in a kitty's ear. I hope this helps.

BigMacear.jpg
 
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