? Should I feed my Cat Grass?

Oliver just switched to wet food (Fancy Feast) and loves it but his poops are now so tiny. He's always been a good pooper until now (usually at least 3 finger-sized poops every morning). Should I give him Miralax (how much?) or try grass first. He loves anything green, even artificial flower leaves. I can never have fresh or artificial flowers or plants because of him!

 

Are his lil poops hard? If so hes constipated. Miralax is used a lot here. Start out with 1/4 of a teaspoon mix well in food. I dont know as grass will help with constipation though. My Zoe LOVES her grass . She jumps to get it out of my hands.

Since Oliver has pooped I'm *guessing* he doesnt have a blockage. But it IS a GUESS. The safest thing is to take him in to get checked out first.

Good luck Lets hope hes just a little constipated.

 

Are the feces dry/hard? If so then Miralax (I use the generic) should work. You can try grass but the amount eaten may not help much. My Dulce helps himself to lettuce when I am making salad.

 

Thanks so much. His three tiny poops from this morning add up to the size of my little finger (normally he makes at least 3 big finger's worth when eating dry food). They are not hard and are the same color and consistency as usual. They squish like a cosmetic sponge. I will give 1/4 tsp. Miralax today just to be safe.

Speaking of cosmetic sponges, they make a great backing for poking his ears.

 

The change to wet food may be a factor in the smaller stools. See catinfo.org for more information on how diet can affect stool size.


Mogs
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Update: for what it's worth, here's what I learned.

Giving Oliver 1/4 tsp with his last meal of the day seems to be keeping him regular.

Giving him a few blades of grass (St. Augustine, not "cat grass" which is wheat, barley, oats,...) helps me to know how long it takes for him to produce a stool. He loves to eat St. Augustine but can't digest it so I can feed it to him and watch for it to show up in his poop. That way I know how much time his meals took to run through his GI track. So, giving a few blades with new food--when I change his diet--helps me see how he's handling it.

 

Wondering if you need a dose increase... You've been on that 1 unit a long time. lets see if
@JanetNJ or
@Panic agrees...

 

I agree! Can I increase his dose the way I did today (see below) to make up for a stubborn air bubble?

This morning's insulin draw had a large air bubble (see attached). At only 1 Unit, that could really shortchange the amount of Vetsulin he would get so I pulled the syringe back a little further (as shown in picture). Just to be safe, I did a BG check every 2 hours.

 

Some tips...

Removing Bubbles From Syringe

* Draw up about 1 - 1.5 units more than the dose you need (e.g. if giving a dose of 1 unit, draw up 2 - 2.5 units of insulin).

* Hold the syringe with the needle pointing upwards.

* Flick the side of the syringe to move any bubbles up to the top of the barrel. If there are several small bubbles, try flicking until the small bubbles 'pop' and form a single larger bubble (easier to remove).

* Try to centre the single bubble directly under the needle if possible. (Easier to shift than when it's stuck to the side of the barrel.)

* Keep the syringe needle pointed upwards and express most of the excess insulin. This should remove the air bubbles.

* Finish by doing the fine adjustment to set the required dose. Using a corkscrew motion makes it easier to set the plunger in the right position.


Mogs
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I’d do1.5. I want to see that number come down

 

Thanks Janet!

 

Thanks for the tips for eliminating air bubbles. The corkscrew rotation is the only thing I haven't yet tried so I will try that next.

I will start shooting 1.5 twice a day.

Should I keep measuring BG today? AMPS=456, +2=349, +5=349; kind of strange that the 349 stayed the same for so long or maybe I missed the nadir.

 

I think you're probably good till PMPS.


Mogs
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Thanks again. You guys are so generous with your time and help!

 

Paying forward for all the help we've received in our turn.


Mogs
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Finally got a PINK preshot BG last night (probably due to my compensating for the air bubble in the previous injection)!

I started the 1.5 Vetsulin last night (but checked it only once, at +2 because it was so late).

Got 495 for AMPS this morning, which is almost in the BLACK, so I'm wondering if its just "bounce" or maybe going up by 0.25 would be better since yesterday's AM shot was probably 1.25 and seemed to produce good results.

Also, Miralax is great. No problems at all with Oliver's overnight switch from dry food to wet.

 

this is probably the case but not an expert here!

 

awesome!

 

So I just gave him his AM shot of 1.5 Vetsulin.

Before I shot, I noticed that the needle went right thru him and was striking my finger (holding his tented skin up). This has never happened before. Anyway, since I hadn't shot yet, I pulled it out and tried again, being sure to get the needle inside him this time and then I shot. Was that OK?
P.S. the needle only touched my finger.

 

As long as you didnt refill the syringe its the same amount except for maybe a trace amount.

 

thanks

 

This is *brilliant*. I'm going to start using this trick with my kitty Cinnamon, who loves eating St. Augustine grass too.

 

Oliver has been so sleepy all day. Last night and this morning were his first doses of his first Vetsulin increase (1 unit to 1.5). He seemed a bit wobbly so I just measured his BG at 622 (+7 reading). The test strips are from a new pack which I confirmed with control solution to be accurate. Is Oliver experiencing "bounce"?

P.S. Oliver's urine output over the last 24 hours has dropped 24% from his average daily urine output since changing his diet to FF. Oliver's daily urine output has never changed this much before. Now I wish that I had taken more BG's today. Oh well, time will tell.

 

I dont like the wobbly part. Are you testing for ketones?
@Critter Mom Mogs???

 

Every day Oliver tests negative for ketones. He has gained 1/2 pound since feeding FF. Yesterday he sat in my lap and my daughter's lap for the first time since being diagnosed. This morning he was eagerly waiting for breakfast and is lapping it up, as usual. He was VERY active two days ago and may have needed a day of rest. (I do sometimes.) Even though he seemed wobbly, he was able to jump up and off of a coffee table on his own. I think he's just going through a lot of changes and I'm noticing everything now.

 

Gotcha

 

I am definitely overthinking this! Sorry I posted too much information. Thanks for keeping up with me and Oliver.

 

Why do you say that? All information is GOOD information. Never feel that you should modify your posts ok? What one reads and digests, is usually read differently by another. Many nuances are often exposed to become revelations.

Its all good

KEEP UP THE GOOD FIGHT!
j

 

I'm still concerned about the air bubbles. I'm trying to be as careful as possible but think that the size and occurrence of air bubbles is so random that it may affect the dosage consistency. My daughter gives Oliver the PM shot and she is much better at eliminating air bubbles than I am.

Attached is my understanding of a 1.5 unit draw. At least I'm doing that correctly and consistently.

 

Your comments inspired me to keep writing my observations, which led to more discovery this morning. Thanks!

I think EXERCISE needs to be added to Oliver's daily routine since lack of exercise correlates with feline diabetes. So, just before AMPS I made Oliver run around for spoon-fulls of his snack. I might as well take advantage of his ravenous appetite to get him moving. (Of course, the exercise may affect the BG and that might be something to watch as the big picture emerges.) His running around may have helped tire him out and kept him more still while I poked his ear. And that's a good thing!

 

HA!
Hey whatever works! You MAY have outsmarted the cat...lol shhhh dont tell him I said that.

 

I'm commenting here in case it helps someone in the future.

I had no idea that I was supposed to pull the syringe OUT of the bottle to get rid of the air bubble.

I've been leaving it in the bottle after over-drawing the dose and proceeding with all the next steps to get rid of the air bubble. It was quite a balancing act to hold the bottle in one hand, the syringe in the other other and SOMEHOW flick the syringe!!! I'm such an idiot!!! ..."one month latter"...I realize--finally--that I was supposed to pull the needle OUT of the bottle before preceding with the flicking and squirting of the excess.