Sick cat with numbers climbing

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threesenough

Member Since 2013
Tobby couldn't poop yesterday morning and didn't want to eat. I took him to the vet and the X-rays showed constipation back up but no foreign object. Last night after finally pooping he ate well and his BG was higher than normal but I kept him at his 0.25 unit Lantus. This morning he ate again and I confess I didn't check his BG and gave him his normal 0.325 of Lantus. Tonight, his BG was at 135, which is way higher than he normally goes (our meter puts him at 69 usually). I coaxed him to nibble a bit and then I gave him 0.5 Lantus and the clavamox he is taking for an upper respiratory thing they discovered on the x-ray. I have waited an hour and now he is at 154! He did just eat more though. Clearly the second blockage is making it's way and making him uncomfortable. The question is if in an hour his BG is up more do I give him another .25 unit of Lantus?
 
Update... he just at a bunch of his food and I just checked his BG and it went down 20 points! Sigh. Will test him in the morning before I dose him. I've never prayed so hard for a cat to poop!
 
You can use 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon of plain psyllium powder in his food to help soften the feces and hold water in them so they can move. Add an extra tablespoon or two of water to the food so it doesn't become caked up.

Also, got to Feline Constipation to read more about how the feline GI tract functions and ways to assist it when it slows.
 
Hello,

Lantus is dosed every 12 hours, so twice a day. If you give 0.50 units in the morning that is what dose you should give in the evening. With Lantus you should keep the dosing consistent.

Terri
 
If he seems painful, or won't let you touch or put any pressure on his belly, you might need a vet visit so his colon doesn't perforate.
 
threesenough said:
Tonight, his BG was at 135, which is way higher than he normally goes (our meter puts him at 69 usually). I coaxed him to nibble a bit and then I gave him 0.5 Lantus and the clavamox he is taking for an upper respiratory thing they discovered on the x-ray. I have waited an hour and now he is at 154! He did just eat more though. Clearly the second blockage is making it's way and making him uncomfortable. The question is if in an hour his BG is up more do I give him another .25 unit of Lantus?
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I know that I am here way after the fact, but I was checking to see whether 911 posts had resolved so that I could remove the 911.

If you are regularly shooting insulin into your cat on a preshot reading of 69, I think it would be good for you to set up a spreadsheet and start sharing your cat's blood glucose readings with the community. I have seen a few VERY experienced caregivers with lots of historical data shoot insulin at a number that low, but even then I wasn't comfortable with it. 69 is within the normal BG range for a nondiabetic cat. If you feel 135 is "way higher" than a normal preshot range, when it is in fact just slightly above the normal range for a non-diabetic cat and very easily explained by the stress of constipation, I suggest you do some additional reading on background materials here and have a conversation with your vet. You also could consider micro-dosing at less what you have been dosing.

It may also be that you are using an animal-validated meter that at the low range reads about 30 points lower than human meters. However, even with that, it seems to me that you are being aggressive with the insulin.
 
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