Peeka 8/21

This could all be blind optimism, or my wife trying to encourage me, she told me she has been walking a little bit further distances, less stops, SLIGHTLY less imbalance in her gait, all of which I love. Peeka has been more or less cooperative with her tests. We still haven’t found a good low carb treat for her yet, work has been a beating and the weekends are my busiest time between two jobs. This morning Peeka checked in on her AMPS at 397, and her +4 at 271.

But for me, the biggest achievement was that she got up on her little ottoman that she loves so much, walked clean across it, paused for a slight second, got ready and sprung to the next one that was a little over a foot away and nailed the landing, walked over to a blanket and laid down. It wasn’t as graceful as normal, but still, seeing her make that jump made my heart soar. I’ve updated the SS. I think for right now we are going to stick with the 3u as it seems to be working. Here’s hoping she continues to make “leaps and bounds” in her progress.

 

I'm GIDDY for you! Peeka is on her way! YAAAAAAY

 

Yay!!! Celebrate the little victories!

did you start her on the b12 methyl yet? Also, you can order the treats from Chewy and you’ll get it super fast. Transitioning the food and treats is the next important milestone for her

 

Methyl B12 gets in today, We'll be giving some to her and Boo, who by all accounts is looking good, but maybe this last little bit will help even more.

Transitioning food is definitely on the horizon, but if I'm being honest, this has all felt like a lot to take in and digest. I would really like to lock down Peeka's dosage before starting the transition for both cats. I feel like we have finally found a sweet spot for Boo, and I would like to find that spot for Peeka, get her legs underneath her, and then take the next steps for transitioning at that point and look to lower their dosage.

 

I'm sure someone has already mentioned good treats to give with methyl b12. I've seen the gerber baby food options, but are there any on Chewy that people like? Cats love just about anything to be honest, they're not picky.

 

Any freeze dried meats are perfectly fine 0 carbs (no additives) Purebites is a fave around here but my Zoe hates them
Bonito Flakes (Asian market sells them) Theres another but for the life of me cant remember the name.

 

There is much anxiety in the FD world, but also moments of sheer joy!

I'm very pleased to read your good news, Peter. Great you got the +4 as well.


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Bought some Purebites chicken, wish us luck, Peeka goes crazy for treats and typically won't leave us alone once she has seen the bag. I have to work tonight again, so no PMPS. Will be able to get another AMPS and +3/+4 tomorrow I believe. Hoping for continued progress with Peeks with her Vitacost coming in today and hopefully the 3u still doing work, still a little bit of a wobble and sway in her back legs, but she has been spending less observable time at the water bowl, and a little bit longer distances covered in her walk.

 

Great to hear Peeka's making good progress, Peter.


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Peter, I don’t think waiting to lock down the dose before transitioning the food is a good idea and here’s why. The mush lower carb food will send her numbers down so your “locked down” dose will no longer work and you’ll have to keep decreasing. It’s much easier to adjust the food and dose simultaneously now since you’re still trying to regulate the diabetes. Food is a huge part of regulating feline diabetes and so it goes hand in hand with the dosing @Critter Mom what are your thoughts on this?

 

My main concern with doing both at once is my wife and I aren't at home to monitor the BG levels for longer than an hour or two after we have given the insulin. I understand that even transitioning to the HC wet food is going to make some adjustments to the dosage, and I have concerns about my own ability to juggle a few different things at once.

Regarding the Methyl B12 while we wait to get the treats from Chewy, should we use 1 or 2 capsules for both cats? And also, what should we use to mix it in? We used to have to give Boo something similar back in the day, and we would just coat his food with it, and he ate it just fine.

 

I use to just mix it into the food. Trouble never knew the difference

 

@Aleluia Grugru & Minnie -

I wouldn't rush into a food transition if I were in Peter's situation, for the following reasons:

1. There's not enough BG data for Peeka yet. I would want to have more data on both AM and PM cycles to get a clearer picture of the starting point before starting a food transition.

2. There is also Peeka's brother, Boo, to consider. Peter has not yet started checking his BG levels. Boo is also diabetic and is doing very well at the moment, but if his diet is also to be changed a picture is needed of how his insulin is working for him before attempting to adjust carb load.

3. Lastly, Peter and his good lady have very busy schedules and some advance planning may be needed to arrange times when they'll be able to monitor both kitties as their food is transitioned.

Lots of moving parts here.


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We had talked about possibly doing something during Thanksgiving break since my wife is off, and with our daughter being born towards the end of the year, while we may still be busy with a newborn, we will at least have time at the house to monitor the BG levels. Testing Peeks only takes a few minutes so far, and Boo is a big baby and will let you do anything as long as he gets a pet or two.

 

Okey dokey, I’m on board with the plan. Is Peeka really doing well with the tests now? So happy to hear that? Are you feeling more secure testing too?

 

Definitely feeling more secure in testing. Peeka is hit or miss on cooperation, my wife is noticing a difference in her walk, it’s improving. Not perfect, but not falling from underneath her legs.

 

One thing that has continued though, before diabetes, Peeka would still sometimes pee on clothes, long before her diagnosis. And since her diagnosis, it’s something she continues to do. If you place her in the litter box, she will go. Does anyone else have experience with this?

 

You could try a litter box with low sides. She may find it easier to get into. If a low side litter box, preferably a larger one so that the litter does not go everywhere.
Some people cover as much of the floor as they can with doggy pee pads.
It is early days. She still feels like crap because of the diabetes. If I had difficulty getting to or using a litter box, a nice pile of clothes would be my choice. Soft and you can go through the motions of covering up!
Once the diabetes is regulated and under control, you may see a return to the litter box.

 

11:45 CST update: Peeka checked in at +6 395

 

Quick question, my wife has some concerns about Zobaline vs. Vitacost methyl B12, when she read the label, she has concerns because Vitacost says it’s for humans. I’m not the only one who over analyzes things here can someone give my wife some reassurance that the Vitacost methyl b12 will be ok for our babies?

 

Its JUST as safe for cats.

Please tell Mrs's this:
When I was dealing with neuropathy Zobline NOT on the market. I used the HUMAN Methyl B-12...We all did. It helped Troubles neuropathy immensely . No worries!

 

You’ll find lots of humans meds are safe and used for cats like Ondansetron, gabapentin, omeprazol, and the list goes on and on and on. If it makes her feel better with Zobaline it’s fine too. It’s just a lot more expensive and you’d have to do 2 pills a day to get the same amount as one vitacost capsule. Minnie was and is still on Vitacost b12 methyl as I mentioned before. I also find it much easier to mix the content of a capsule in her food than crush pills. It’s all a matter of personal preference and finances

 

I think it just had more to do with the label saying with was for adults, and she saw the 5000 mcg. I did the conversion though and found it was only 5 milligrams we are going to continue with the Vitacost as it is a bit more cheaper and easy to break the capsule over their food.

 

Glad you figured that out. Exactly 5mgs and Zobaline is 3mgs each. I was actually giving Minnie 1 and 1/2 capsules at first to try to help her recover faster as I saw lots of people give their cats 6mgs to start off

 

If she has always been on a dry diet then that could be an influence on the inappropriate toileting behaviour (can make cats more prone to urinary tract issues).

Also, diabetic neuropathy can affect bladder control.

I'd suggest asking the vet to check for a UTI. If you could find a way to increase Peeka's fluid intake that helps to flush out the urinary tract. Sometimes adding some home-made chicken broth to a kitty's water can encourage them to drink more. Adding some of the fluid from a can of tinned tuna in spring water is another thing that some cats like.


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Meant to comment on this too. Minnie would pee anywhere she happened to be laying on when her neuropathy was at its worst. She couldn’t hold it, but she also couldn’t make it in and out of the litter boxes. I literally had pee pads on all her favorite spots, under all her beds and also under mine when I’d put her there. Pee pads saved me from going insane and having to clean the floors every day

 

Missing from my previous post:

When a diabetic cat isn't fully regulated, glucose may spill into the urine and that can make the cat more vulnerable to urinary tract infections (the sugar feeds bacteria).


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Thanks for the update, thankfully it’s been an outlier so far as we make sure all clothes are put away but it’s something i will continue to monitor.

 

It also means they’re burning calories just by peeing!