Sammie 8/23 AMPS 533

Sarah & Sammie

Sarah & Sammie

Member Since 2017
Sammie has been reduced to .5 since Wednesday morning. Do I continue to keep her there for 3 more cycles considering she is testing so high? Her spreadsheet is updated.
 
Here is your last post so members can see Sammie's hypo history.

I forget if you are following TR, SLGS, or another dosing method, could you remind us and maybe add it to your signature? I would say let's see how Sammie's BGs develop today and if you don't see an improvement I think it would be a good idea to increase. On the 21st you decreased your dose quite a bit from 1.5 to 0.5u, are you comfortable trying 0.75u? If you have syringes with 0.5u markings you just eyeball between 1u and 0.5u. We definitely want to see Sammy in some lower numbers :)
 
Olive & Paula said:
Are you dosing with SLGS or HE method? Are you still giving the z/d dry food
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I’m not sure what those mean, I’m sorry.

She is still on z/d for her IBD. We haven’t had success with other foods.

Sammie was hypoglycemic on Tuesday evening, I posted here and received help from Chris.
 
AmandaE said:
Here is your last post so members can see Sammie's hypo history.

I forget if you are following TR, SLGS, or another dosing method, could you remind us and maybe add it to your signature? I would say let's see how Sammie's BGs develop today and if you don't see an improvement I think it would be a good idea to increase. On the 21st you decreased your dose quite a bit from 1.5 to 0.5u, are you comfortable trying 0.75u? If you have syringes with 0.5u markings you just eyeball between 1u and 0.5u. We definitely want to see Sammy in some lower numbers :)
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Thank you for linking to my post.

I’m not sure what method I am using. I’ve always tried to shoot within a four hour window. Since she’s been having issues I’ve been doing my best to reduce that to a two hour window.

Sammie was at 3 units, then she kept going hypo so I reduced to 1 and ended up at 1.5. She then went hypo at 1.5. Chris had suggested i hold 0.5 for 6 cycles. I’m comfortable moving up to .75 if that’s what is recommended.
 
These are 2 methods to dosing Lantus

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/...-low-go-slow-slgs-tight-regulation-tr.210110/

Look them over and see which would fit for you.

I don't understand what you mean by 2 hr window? Should be giving insulin within 15 minutes of getting the blood test. You will see here a lot t/f/s or tfs. That is test, feed, shoot all in about 15 minutes. A few people here including myself shoot while kitty is actually eating.
 
SammieCat said:
I’m not sure what those mean, I’m sorry.
She is still on z/d for her IBD. We haven’t had success with other foods.
.
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Paula is referring to the two dosing methods that Lantus users follow here on the board for determining when to change dose and by how much. SLGS (Start Low Go Slow) is a more cautious dosing method for members who have cats that eat dry food, or for members who cant test as frequently due to life commitments such as work (that's me!) For SLGS you hold a dose for a week, do a BG curve, then based on the lowest point on the curve (known as the peak or nadir) you can either increase, hold, or decrease the dose. TR (Tight Regulation) is a more aggressive dosing method which has more frequent dose changes and a lower number for changing the dose. If you're interested in one of those methods there is a sticky for it here.
SammieCat said:
I’m not sure what method I am using. I’ve always tried to shoot within a four hour window. Since she’s been having issues I’ve been doing my best to reduce that to a two hour window.

Sammie was at 3 units, then she kept going hypo so I reduced to 1 and ended up at 1.5. She then went hypo at 1.5. Chris had suggested i hold 0.5 for 6 cycles. I’m comfortable moving up to .75 if that’s what is recommended.
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It's up to you what dosage method you choose, it is easiest for members here to provide guidance if you choose one of the methods I've linked above, but if you prefer to follow your vet's advice we can try our best to understand Sammie's history and give guidance based on the pooled experience we have, for this to work it is really important to keep your spreadsheet updated and to provide a link to your last post in your most current post... personally I recommend choosing one of our methods (but of course it is up to you ;))... if z/d is dry food you would automatically be using SLGS because you cant feed dry food on TR.

For lantus keeping true to dosing 12 hours apart is really important since Lantus lasts 12 hours in most kitties, if you give a dose and then say dose 10 hours later (2 hours early) the dose can actually act like an increase, likewise if you gave the next dose 14 hours later (2 hours late) it can act like a dose decrease. If you are able to, it is best to pick a time where you will be able to consistently dose 12 hours apart. For me 6am and 6pm works really well because it fits both my work and social schedule. You also have a +/- 0.5 hour window on either side of your 12 hour dosing schedule, so for example, with a 6/6 schedule I can shoot anywhere between 5:30 to 6:30 without worrying about it.

We do recommend increasing or decreasing by 0.25u at a time, just because our kitties are so small and the smallest adjustment can make a big difference - Sammie showed you that when you changed just 0.5u from 1 to 1.5! I think 0.75u would be a good dose for you to try :joyful:

Definitely let us know if you have anymore questions :)
 
SammieCat said:
I mean that my schedule doesn’t allow for me to always shoot 12 hours apart. So I keep it within 11-13 hours of the last dose.

It seems like SLGS best fits me.
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Too bad our cat's don't just follow our schedules eh? If your schedule doesn't allow a 12 hour dosing schedule just keep in mind that if you shoot 11 hours later it is more important to test in 2 hours or so since the dose can act like an increase, it's a little less concerning if you're an hour late.

I follow SLGS and I like it! if I could I would follow TR but my schedule just won't allow it! As you get to know how Sammie reacts to insulin you can start adjusting some of the rules for it, but for the first few months you need to get the data first.
 
AmandaE said:
For lantus keeping true to dosing 12 hours apart is really important since Lantus lasts 12 hours in most kitties, if you give a dose and then say dose 10 hours later (2 hours early) the dose can actually act like an increase, likewise if you gave the next dose 14 hours later (2 hours late) it can act like a dose decrease. If you are able to, it is best to pick a time where you will be able to consistently dose 12 hours apart. For me 6am and 6pm works really well because it fits both my work and social schedule. You also have a +/- 0.5 hour window on either side of your 12 hour dosing schedule, so for example, with a 6/6 schedule I can shoot anywhere between 5:30 to 6:30 without worrying about it.
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It is often not possible for me to stick to a 12 hour schedule. For instance on Wednesdays I have to be at work at 7:30 am and don’t get home until 9 pm. My vet told me I had 2 hours on either side to give her shot (a 10-14 hour window.) I’ve been trying to shorten that to an hour on either side.
 
SammieCat said:
I mean that my schedule doesn’t allow for me to always shoot 12 hours apart. So I keep it within 11-13 hours of the last dose.

It seems like SLGS best fits me.
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That is the one to use since there is dry food involved.

Have you tried this product?

https://www.vitalessentialsraw.com/cat/food/?filter_pa_product-type=mini-patties

They have kibble and patties. The patties you can rehydrate little by little. The kibble be careful with as they have complete meal and treats which isn't complete.
 
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SammieCat said:
It is often not possible for me to stick to a 12 hour schedule. For instance on Wednesdays I have to be at work at 7:30 am and don’t get home until 9 pm. My vet told me I had 2 hours on either side to give her shot (a 10-14 hour window.) I’ve been trying to shorten that to an hour on either side.
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For sure, if you can't you can't, there have been other members here that have had similar situations! In the end you are doing a really great job taking care of Sammie, it is better for her to get insulin on a somewhat normal schedule than no insulin at all!

Let us know if you need any support starting off with SLGS!
 
Olive & Paula said:
That is the one to use since there is dry food involved.

Have you tried this product?

https://www.vitalessentialsraw.com/cat/food/?filter_pa_product-type=mini-patties

They have kibble and patties. The patties you can rehydrate little by little. The kibble be careful with as they have complete meal and treats which isn't complete.
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That’s a cool product! Unfortunately Sammie is food sensitive and has to be on prescription food. Limited ingredient diets weren’t enough to have her IBD symptoms controlled.
 
AmandaE said:
For sure, if you can't you can't, there have been other members here that have had similar situations! In the end you are doing a really great job taking care of Sammie, it is better for her to get insulin on a somewhat normal schedule than no insulin at all!

Let us know if you need any support starting off with SLGS!
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Thank you for your help! Since it’s only been 3 days should I hold at .5 then? Or is it ok to go to .75 beginning tomorrow (when I can be home with her.)
 
SammieCat said:
Thank you for your help! Since it’s only been 3 days should I hold at .5 then? Or is it ok to go to .75 beginning tomorrow (when I can be home with her.)
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I think if you dont see an improvement you could start the 0.75u tonight honestly, and then hold it for 7 days, but if you prefer to start tomorrow that is ok too! Do you always have weekends off? I usually do my curves on Saturday and/or Sunday so if you have weekends off that could work for you too!
 
AmandaE said:
I think if you dont see an improvement you could start the 0.75u tonight honestly, and then hold it for 7 days, but if you prefer to start tomorrow that is ok too! Do you always have weekends off? I usually do my curves on Saturday and/or Sunday so if you have weekends off that could work for you too!
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Sundays are my only full day off, my schedule varies each day. I’m a student and I work.

I’ll try her at .75 tonight or tomorrow night. Thanks for your help.
 
SammieCat said:
Sundays are my only full day off, my schedule varies each day. I’m a student and I work.
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Yikes! PLUS you have a diabetic cat! talk about piling it on!

If Sunday's are your only full day off then I think it would make sense for Sunday to be your "curve day", I personally flex back and forth between Saturday and Sunday... whichever works best for me. Since you're just starting SLGS I think it still wouldn't matter if you start tonight or tomorrow, if you don't start tonight I would start tomorrow morning if we are still seeing these high numbers :)


SammieCat said:
Thanks for your help.
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My pleasure! I'm looking forward to following Sammie's progress :joyful:

Good Luck :)
 
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