Pumpkinls first at home reading!

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Joy.T

Member Since 2010
Well it was 12-7 when Pumpkin Pie was at the vet newly diagnosed diabetic with level of BG 462 Sugar in urine but no ketones. I immediately removed the dry food!!!. Since then he has been eating speical kitty (wal-mart) beef and liver dinner with some added chicken or turkey that i 've warmed up for him. When I make his meal I add 2 teaspoons of water.Pumpkin isn't a good pooper. He gets this meal twice a day. I give him the insulin between 6:30 &7:00.Lately he hasn't been attacking the food dish,so I end up waiting for him to eat,then waiting the 5-10 mins after to give the injection. When I received the home testing kit,I was curious to see. So it was 4:30 est about 9 hours after eating and his injection and he was 203. :? That was with giving him 1 unit of insulin this morning and (I'm guessing with all the changes) he is a day late with not pooping. Any advice, Oh bty he was not happy about the ear prick :sad:
 
WOOOOOHOOOOOOO Joy your post made my day!!!!! Seriously. I will leave it to the experts to give you advice about the injections and dosing and when you need to do the testing. I don't want to confuse you and they know what you will need to do.

I will say that the switch to wet food for Maverick caused constipation issues. We actually had to get him to the vet and clean him out. The wet food also is less bulk than the dry so maybe his habits will change a bit. After months of research and assistance from constipation.org (after trying pumpkin, mirilax and cisapride) it turned out a new fiber source was needed for his bowels to work. The guar gum in the cans we think caused it. Beat pulp helped keep him regular. I expect his system is getting used to the change in food.
 
Congratulations on your first BG test :-D I know Pumpkin didn't like it, but he'll get used to it. My cat comes to me whenever he hears me getting the glucometer ready. Did you give Pumpkin a treat and/or extra loving afterwards?
203 is a decent reading. I wish you The Best.
 
Wow....Congratulations on the first home test. It took me two weeks to get testing down with Tilei at the time.

Make sure you give Pumpkin a little treat and lovin' after the pokies. Since you have turkey on hand...that would do it. Cat's learn to adjust to the idea of poki ...treaty.

Atlas will now sit and purr ...waiting for his test.

And a 203 at +9 ain't too shabby either!!! :thumbup
 
I'll have to check out that site Karrie and Maverick. Pumpkin usally poop every two days on the dry now...My 2yr old male who use to be regular now is at every 2 day on wet food. I put their food out tonight and pumpkin didn't even get up just watch me and then to nap upside down.
 
Hi Dyana,It did take a few pricks I could not get the ear to bleed. So maybe when my skill improves( 4 tries before blood appeared) he'll feel better Plus he full of poop and didn't want to get pick up.I did give him "petramalt furball digestive aid" he loves the flavor...plus I'm trying to get him to poop. So 203 is soso? Two hours before his next lantus injection? -f he ever stops napping and eats!!!
 
Joy....Congrats on the poking....My Curry still growls when I poke, but she is so motivated for the treat that she lets me do it. She doesn't run and sometimes she will come on her own to the testing towel just to get her treat.

Curry was going daily on the kibble. Then when we changed to the canned it was every 4 days. I added the miralax and she's now regulated to every 2 days.

Great number of 209....Woooohoooo. :RAHCAT :RAHCAT :RAHCAT
 
Hi Blue,I was so nervious of going through the ear.their ears are so thin!! I am concerned of getting the numbers and times down pat. I just keep rereading the stickies notes. Is it two hours after the lantus injection that you test again??
 
Joy what are you using to poke his ear? Maverick purrs now too. We have a light that shows his vein and we aim between the vein and the ear edge. You'll get great tips... We started by warming up a sock filled with about a half cup of rice. We'd rub his ear and then rub him all over with it and keep doing this until his ear would warm up. He loved the attention. A warm ear bleeds better. One ear seems to bleed better on most cats too.

I think every two days is good, if Maverick goes to the third day I get a bit concerned. Its rare now.
 
Oh that a good idea warming up the ear!!! Thanks Karrie and Maverick. Pumpkin is a heat seeker so I know he'll love that idea.
 
Hey Joy!! You can also rub the ear to warm it up--I put Moonie's treat right in front of her, & while she is eating it, I poke her ear..She is so busy eating she doesnt mind..
It gets easier & they just know they are supposed to do it--Of course, they are getting a treat too :lol: Food can sway any cat--right kitties?? confused_cat
Moonie got bored with the rice sock, she hated it more than the poke!
My Most Beloved dog was named Pumpkin--They are special right??

You are doing a good job already..Just keep asking questions & reading the literature & the stickys..And if you need it here's a HUG :YMHUG: --
We all need them sometimes!
 
Congratulations!!

No need to change shot times. They should remain constant. Just do not feed 2 hours prior to shot time. If you do, there's a good chance that your pre-shot test will be influenced by food. (There are exceptions, but that's the basic "rule.") You want to test within a few minutes of your AM and PM shot time every day. The pre-shot test will tell you if it's safe to shoot. Most of us test, feed, then shoot all within about 10 minutes.

I would gradually work your way in to testing. I'm a big fan of getting a test 2 hours after you shoot. However, what you want to try to do is get at least one test somewhere near the middle of each cycle or, at night, before you go to bed. The 2 pre-shot tests and one test in each the AM and PM cycle are the minimum. Since Lantus dosing is based on the lowest point of the cycle (the nadir), that's why those mid-cycle tests are important.

I hate to be the bringer of bad news but Petromalt contains sugar -- specifically barley malt syrup. Many people here will use vasoline for issues with hairballs.

I'd also suggest adding more water to Pumpkin's food. If he'll eat it soupy, give him as much water as he'll tolerate if he's constipated. Also, adding a little oil to his food will help. Many of us use Miralax to help with constipation.
 
I've used Miralax on occasion, and it works. I believe the starting dose is it's 1/8 teaspoon. I just take a 1/4 teaspoon and put half (1/8th) in J.D.'s empty bowl and the other half (1/8th) in Ginger's empty bowl, and then add food and water on top and mix it all up. They poo good within a day. Hope this helps for you and Pumpkin.

Let us know if you have other questions. Ask, ask, and ask, away. We don't mind, we've all been in your shoes.
 
Congratulations, Joy! You've done your first test and shoot! It will get easier. A warmed ear really helps. So does a little Vaseline on the ear. This helps the drop of blood to bead up (and not spread out). I recently learned that blood flows DOWN from the tip of the ear. So if you put a little pressure on the spot on the ear right below where you intend to poke, that will create a "blood dam". Then keep the pressure on that spot after you do the poke and massage the ear from the tip down. You should get a drop of blood more easily using this technique. Don't forget to give Pumpkin a treat after the poke!

You're doing great.

Ella & Rusty
 
Oh well i could just cry!!!! my poor pumpkins ears .They look so sore. The second BG test did not go well .I use 7 strips!!! Either it was not enough blood or the machine said it was a use strip even thought I just open theses strips. So no 2 hour reading GRRRR. Plus now he's back to eating the left overs from his dinner plate. So if I understand this right his BG levels will go up after eating and the injection. The trick is to determine how long the BG levels stay up as oppose to when they start to lower??? BOY IT'S A GOOD THING I DON'T DRINK!!!!! UGGGG (Just kidding)
 
Hi Karrie and Maverick I'm using the lancet device to get the blood I feel so bad on poke went thru his ear OUCH
 
I wonder if others have some suggestions. I'd put something firm behind his ear to help. I don't use the lancet device but I use 25 gauge syringe tips. So I don't have experience with the devices. It gets easier.

I show pictures of how we get Maverick's ear pricks. I'll post them after this.

So is the blood pooling into a ball or is is spreading out on his ear? Are you putting the strips into the blood from the top, or side of the blood drop? Some strips sip up blood. The ones we have only needs a small drop of blood - I put the strip into the side of the blood drop, not on top and the test strip sucks it right up.
 
Karrie and Maverick,the stips do kinda suck up the blood. I think the problemis that I don't get enough blood. Maybe it just takes practice. Oh but his ears you can see where he was pricked.He'll have no sore spots left on his ears if this keeps up. Plus he shakes his head which spreads any blood I do manage to get. I really wanted to get the BG numbers after his dinner and injection rom 7 ish tonight but his ears are so sore now.
 
Here is our testing setup. Some people use a makeup sponge back, or the back of a contact lens case for example behind the ear as a backing to the lance. This light allows me to see the vein so I don't hit it directly and allows for a backing for when I gently prick his ear. I finds he bleeds easier at the tip of his ear.

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Oh a light that's clever.That would really help. It just such a narrow space to hit without hitting the vein.I'll try the tip of the ear I was going along the side part. Thanks so much. I feel bad he is sore and I couldn't get the 2 hour BG numbers. But we both needed a break,plus I figure if he is getting rah rah the BG numbers would be off. Can a person get accurate BG #'s if the cat nibbles on his left overs through out the night?
 
Joy.T said:
Karrie and Maverick,the stips do kinda suck up the blood. I think the problemis that I don't get enough blood. Maybe it just takes practice. Oh but his ears you can see where he was pricked.He'll have no sore spots left on his ears if this keeps up. Plus he shakes his head which spreads any blood I do manage to get. I really wanted to get the BG numbers after his dinner and injection rom 7 ish tonight but his ears are so sore now.
Click to expand...

We find if we can get him lying on his side he's less inclined to back away. Also you need to get a very firm grip of ear and head together and so NOT let him shake his head - or that precious drop of blood will be gone! (and you have to start over...)

Also, we always use the INSIDE edge of Sooty's ears, there is much less fur there and you can find the edge of the ear and once you get blood, you can get at the blood drop much easier. Just bend the ear back over a finger or thumb, hold firmly but not too tight - just so he can't shake his head, wait a moment to let a drop form, and then keep him STILL until you get the meter to beep!

You WILL get the hang of this - and don't worry, you will not do any lasting damage to Pumpkin's ears! Not even if you DO go all the way through and out the other side!

Make sure you use a piece of gauze and apply a little direct pressure (squeeze firmly but not TOO hard!) for 15 = 20 seconds or so afterwards (where you did the poke), this helps to stop the bleeding and helps to prevent bruising.
 
Congratulations on hometesting, Joy! Pumpkin will get used it over time. I think his system will get used to the change of food, too, over time. Everything is in babysteps. :)

Btw... 203's isn't a bad number at all. :)
 
You can always use a little Neosporin (the one with pain relief on the label) on his ears, but I find that it makes the blood spread instead of bead up. But after a heavy testing day I feel they deserve a little pain relief.

Personally, I find that the back of the ear works best for me. The hair sort of raises the blood drop. When I try the inside something always happens to make the ear flip just the wrong way and I lose the drop.
 
Congratulations on your first test! I remember that feeling. :)

There maybe some frustrating times while you two get a routine down but it will be well worth it. :)
 
Thanks so much for all your tip Lantus land!! I will be added that neo.w/pain relief. Esp for curve days.I have too notice on ears bleeds quicker than the other,also I just feel so sorry for him when I see those little red pricks on his ears. If we are lucky I'm down to only 2 pricks. He now realizes he'll get catnip after the ear pricks
 
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