Recently diagnosed

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Barbara

Barbara

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Hello!

My cat Thumper was diagnosed on April 1st. I was totally shocked & figured I could never give her 2 shots a day but I'm managing. My vet mentioned home testing when she was diagnosed but it went right over my head. Her blood sugar at initial diagnosis was around 540. I was in such shock I can't remember the exact #. She was put on Pro Zinc 2 units twice a day. I had always fed dry food but am now giving her some wet food right before her shot. I asked the vet about switching her food altogether but she didn't want me switching totally till she was more sure what her #'s were. I took her back to the vet last Thurday for a curve. They did the first reading about an hour after her insulin shot & food. That reading was 155, 2 hrs. later it was 74, 2 hrs after that it was 89, and I the last one they took was 8 hrs after she got her insulin & it was at 289. I can't remember the ones in between those. The vet had me lower her dose of Pro Zinc. She again mentioned home testing but said if I didn't do it at home she would like to do another next week. After getting info on here I decided I had to do it myself. I went out & got a Relion meter & tried to do a curve yesterday. I tried to download the spreadsheet but had no luck there. I'm hoping someone can take a look at these #'s & tell me what you think cause I'm confused....and stressed! Hopefully I get the terms right, I tried to read & understand some of it! I think I'm on overload though!

AMPS 352
Fed her & gave 1.5 units Pro Zinc
+2.5 322 (I know I was a little late!)
+4.5 163
+6.5 102
+8.5 152
+10.5 246
she ate & I gave her 1.5 units Pro Zinc 1/2 hr later (I was an hour early with the shot - am still trying to work out my schedule!)
+2 315
This is where I'm confused. I thought the insulin would bring her blood sugar down? That's what seemed to happen that morning. I didn't test her again that night. I'm having a hard time getting blood & she was sick of me by then. cat(2)_steam She decided if I wanted blood so bad she would show me how to get some from myself & swatt my hand! LOL!
These are a couple of readings from this morning. I thought of testing her again all day since I'm off but her poor ears are all poked & I couldn't put her through that again today.

AMPS 410 (I was actually 45 mins. later than the 12 hrs since I gave the last shot)
+2 297

That's all I have for now. And if anyone can help with the spreadsheet I would appreciate it! Thanks!

Barbara
 
Welcome Barbara,

How well you are doing already to have a curve down! And those are excellent numbers. You want a curve that starts with a higher number, gently goes down to a nadir (lowest point in the cycle) and then gently goes back up as the insulin wears off. So yours looks perfect. Your higher number at +2 was probably the food. It raises the bg levels in diabetic cats. That's why we always say test, then feed and shoot. You want to test first so you have a number that is not artifically raised by the food.

I would be careful at this point with your dosing. If you have recently changed to wet lo carb, that can bring the numbers down. You want to always get a number before you shoot, to be sure it is safe to give the amount you are planning on. We tell new diabetics not to shoot under 200.

Try this spreadsheet: https://docs.google.com/previewtemplate ... ode=public It does load slowly so be patient. We are having trouble with it. It works fine on some computers but not so well on others.

Have you seen this info on PZI: viewtopic.php?f=24&t=32799 Also, you can post over on the PZI forum. Everyone there uses or has used your insulin and can help with dosing questions. It is a smaller forum than this one, but there is always someone on in the am and pm to help. viewforum.php?f=24
 
Thanks! I got the spreadsheet to open now I don't know how to use it or attach it! I tried clicking on "use this template" but nothing happened, just a blank white page.

I did start giving wet food, just so I could make sure she's eating before her shot but I still have the dry food out for "snacking". I have 3 other cats & my goal is to switch them all to wet low carb. I think my vet was afraid of the #'s being all over the place & that's why she told me not to switch totally just yet. I have no idea what the carb count is on what I'm using. It's Pro Plan 3 oz cans & I don't see any info on that anywhere. I did purchase some Friskies classic today & since I'm testing now at home I was thinking of going ahead & trying that. So, if I get a 200 or less I should just skip that shot & test again before the next shot?

I have a headache! LOL! I'm gonna go check out those other links you sent! Thanks!
 
It is absolutely overwhelming at first. Would it help to know we all felt that way? And it got better?

It should open when you choose" Use this Template". Here's another idea. Sign on to Google, and then search Google docs for FDMB spreadsheet. See if you can get it to come up that way.

There are some ProPlan flavors on this page: http://binkyspage.tripod.com/CanFoodOld.html The goal is to stay under 8-10% carbs.

If you get a 200 at preshot, we suggest waiting 20 minutes and testing again. If you get a number over 200, you can go ahead and shoot. If it is 250 -300, you should be okay with the original dose. If it is lower, you may want to reduce the dose by .50 or .25. If it is still under 200 after the initial 20 mintues, wait 20 more minutes and test again. It would be best if you can shoot something and not completely skip the shot. That sets you back with a high preshot next time. But it is also important to keep the kitty safe. These are the times it is good to post on the PZI and get advice.
 
Just wanted to say hello and welcome. My cat Max was diagnosed in January and I was right where you are now. I'm sure you're already figuring out that you've come to the best place for help with your diabetic cat. I knew next to nothing at first and was overwhelmed and stressed. This forum and following the great advice/protocol really helped me turn Max's health around. It's great that you are already home testing and have a curve done (kudos to you!). I think it's really great that your vet encouraged home testing. Every cat is different and some are more sensitive to carbs than others. I spent some time transitioning Max from dry to the wet low carb diet cause my vet recommended a low carb dry food instead and it was hard to do something different. Your vet sounds more open. Anyway, Max really turned a corner when I completely ditched the dry and got him only on the wet low carb food. If you are changing the diet, you want to be sure and test (more than usual) cause the diet change can affect how much insulin your kitty needs. Read all you can and keep asking questions.

On the spreadsheet, it is doc through google and doesn't actually download to your computer (at least mine didn't). I login to google and update it there. Once you get it up and running, it really helps you keep track of the numbers, and you may have noticed you can link to it in your signature and others can take a look at it when you have questions.
 
Thanks!

I just posted over in the PZI forum. I think I'm having my first "crisis" thank goodness I found this board! Thumper's PMPS (that is evening pre shot, right?) was down to 136, I waited, actually more like 45 mins. and it's still only 180. I'm now only 11 hrs away from her morning shot. I'm just waiting for some advice! I only have about an hour in the morning before I have to leave her alone to go to work. That worries me!

Barbara
 
Thanks so much! I think I got the spreadsheet all filled out & attached properly so here it is! Not so much success with a pic though, it told me I needed to resize & I have no energy to deal with that at this point!
Barbara
 
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