Stressing out, Possible UTI after SUBQ fluids at vet this weekend

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Bear and the hooman Ciony

Bear and the hooman Ciony

Member Since 2020
Hi all! Very new here and new to the diabetic kitty world. My cat Bear was diagnosed on 2/17 after feeling like the worlds worst fur mom I all she needed to be healthy again. We started insulin on 2/22 we are using the solostar pens, currently at 2 units every 12 hrs. This weekend Bear was vomiting after I had given her her shot so I rushed to the vet fearing she was hypoglycemic. Luckily she was not but her blood sugar was 490. They told me she was very dehydrated and gave her 150ml of subQ fluids and an anti nausea pill.(we chopped it up to her being constipated because she hadn't passed a regular stool in a day or so. Currently back on track regular stool for 3 days now) vet suggested subQ fluids will help rehydrate her so we took a bag home. I have yet to give her any fluids and today she is going pee out side of her box and all over the kitchen but only in small coin size amounts then licking at her lady bits. This is leading me to believe she has a UTI. After researching and maybe working myself up a bit too much I'm thinking its from her insulin not being regulated enough? When we started this journey her blood sugar was 412 on 1/15. I have yet to begin spot testing because our tech appt is just days away. I know I have to get a urine culture done and I want to her her ketones checked out now. But until then can anyone provide me any advice? Has anyone been through this with their kitties? Did it lead to anything else ? What can I do to help her until I get her into the vet?
 
You have found sound refuse here. WELCOME to the best site to help you help your kitty. Theres a wealth of information here and like people helping their own kitties. I hope you spend time here and heed the advice. We arent being paid by big pharma or any other entity. We just do what works! :bighug:
 
Deb & Wink said:
Small coin sized amounts could be a partial blockage of the urethra.

How small? USA Susan B Anthony dollar? JFK 50 cent piece? quarter, nickel, penny, dime?

p.s. Hi Bear. Would you introduce your mom/dad to us? First name is enough. Thank you.[/QUOTE
Deb & Wink said:
Small coin sized amounts could be a partial blockage of the urethra.

How small? USA Susan B Anthony dollar? JFK 50 cent piece? quarter, nickel, penny, dime?

p.s. Hi Bear. Would you introduce your mom/dad to us? First name is enough. Thank you.
Click to expand...

Human's names are Ciony and John!
She is urinating her normal amounts at times too but on the title or floor it's only been quarter sized or so and very clear. I called my vet but they have yet to get back to me. How we found her diagnoses was we brought her in for a ecoli bacteria infections which is the same signs shes exhibiting now. I was thinking of getting D'Mannose for her. If you guys have any thoughts on this please let me know. And thank you so much for your response. I am very relieved to have found this website.
Click to expand...
 
jt and trouble (GA) said:
You have found sound refuse here. WELCOME to the best site to help you help your kitty. Theres a wealth of information here and like people helping their own kitties. I hope you spend time here and heed the advice. We arent being paid by big pharma or any other entity. We just do what works! :bighug:
Click to expand...
This website gives me hope. I have been an emotional wreck since her DX
 
Your response back in post #5 got buried in the orange shaded test box. So I've broken it out for you. Happens all the time with new members.
Ciony said:
Human's names are Ciony and John!
She is urinating her normal amounts at times too but on the title or floor it's only been quarter sized or so and very clear. I called my vet but they have yet to get back to me. How we found her diagnoses was we brought her in for a ecoli bacteria infections which is the same signs shes exhibiting now. I was thinking of getting D'Mannose for her. If you guys have any thoughts on this please let me know. And thank you so much for your response. I am very relieved to have found this website.
Click to expand...
Hi Ciony and John and welcome.

What part of the world are you from?
 
Deb & Wink said:
Your response back in post #5 got buried in the orange shaded test box. So I've broken it out for you. Happens all the time with new members.Hi Ciony and John and welcome.

What part of the world are you from?
Click to expand...

Thank you! I'm still so new to this. Took me days to figure out how to post haha. We are from Washington state in the Unitied states. Where are you and Wink from?
 
So as a new member, there is some set up you can do to help us help you better.
It's all explained in this link. Simply click on the blue text to open the document.
Sticky New? How You Can Help Us Help You!

"Sticky" or pinned posts can be found at he top of the various forums.
The 5 basics for treating feline diabetes are
1. a good insulin made for cats - Prozinc, Lantus or Levimir.
2. a good low carb canned food
3. home testing the blood glucose levels.
4. a good vet, knowledgeable about feline diabetes and the latest guidelines on treatment, or willing to learn
5. a support group such as this message board.
 
Unfortunately my vet as yet to get back to me still.. currently switching to a new one this weekend. She has not since strained to pee or gone outside the box. She just ate her dinner, we are feeding her primal raw food and wervua canned. I am going to proceed with our 7pm dose since the vet has not advised. I was thinking should i try D-Mannose? I researched it on here and online and an maybe thinking it's a decent option at least for now. Any thoughts? Also should I even attempt subQ fluids tonight? She senses I've been panicking
 
Darn. Thank you anyways. You have bee. so helpful and such a relief to me. I'm hoping she is feeling relieved and this was just a freak occurence but defintely not over looking this at all
 
You could test her to see if she is dehydrated. Do the skin tenting test, Where you gently pull a bit of skin near her shoulders into a tent shape. The skin should go right back to normal when you release it. If the skin is slow to return to normal, then some or moderate dehydration. If the skin stays up in the tent, then that is severe dehydration and she needs fluids ASAP.

There is also the "gum" check, open her mouth, put your finger on her gums, and check to see if her gums are tacky and dry. That's another sign of dehydration.

If she is dehydrated, then do give her some fluids.
 
She only seemed moderately dehydrated last night. My vet called and gave me the run around pretty much chalked it up to her "needing more boxes to go in" huge reason why I'm switching vets. She is still peeing outside the box and sometimes inside. This morning she has not eaten her normal amount so I cant administer her first dose. But she is up and active, playing in boxes ,jumping in and out of them playing with her sister. I'm devastated i have to skip this morning. Just feeling so defeated
 
Not a good idea to skip insulin. That can lead to ketones, especially with a cat that is not eating enough.

What was her BG pre-shot test this morning?
With lantus insulin, the onset is not usually for a couple of hours. +2 to +3.
Will your cat eat more before then?
Is she a grazer?
Being moderately dehydrated can diminish the appetite.

p.s. If you take 60 seconds to update your User Id Signature that will help us a lot.
 
Are you home to monitor?
What was the pre-shot test this morning?
Maybe I should ask first, do you home test?
 
After spending so long figuring out how to use the lancet and getting her into a nice calm area(we have 3 dogs who adore her to pieces so its difficult) we missed her dose time by an hr and have yet to dose. I just got our first at home test result. It read 233 . I'm new to the at home testing and the world of BG levels so if someone could explain what this means that would be phenomenal!
 
233 is a good test number for pre-shot.

Did she eat before the test?
Yes, I'd go ahead and give her the insulin. BUT reduce it to 1U or even 0.5U

A 2U starting dose could be a bit much.

Then, set up our spreadsheet template to track the tests. Good way to track for you and your vet.
FDMB Spreadsheet Instructions include set up on pc, tablet, smartphone.
 
She ate a small amount still being finicky with the foods I'd say a little less than a 1/3 of her breakfast so probably an ounce or 2 at the most. Is this still safe to give her a lower dose(1 or .5?) Even after it's been an hr after her usual shot time? Again so sorry for all the newbie questions. My vet is a complete airhead and is no help.
 
I'd suggest the 0.5U dose.
Shot times need adjustment for the time change this weekend anyway.

By 15 minutes per cycle, or 30 minutes per day.

No worries. We have new members all the time.
 
I gave her the 1 unit dose(pen is only measured in one unit intervals) as you recommended. If I am to dose her tonight should I stick with the 2 units at 8pm if she eats her normal amount and if not do 1 unit instead? I only ask because the vets answer and explanation was just to give them none if she doesnt eat a full meal or 1/3 of it.
You have been an angel sent straight out of our rain clouds today!! Thank you so much again for all of your help and info. You have really turned my week around!! bear is sending all of her purrs and snuggles your way
 
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I know you are using Lantus, because you mentioned the solostar pen. We can recommend a good pharmacy in Canada where the prices are lower than the US. They ship.

It's possible to use an insulin syringe to withdraw insulin from the insulin pen. Once you start doing that, it's no longer possible to use the "dial a dose" feature of the insulin pen. You would have to continue to use a syringe to withdraw the insulin. That is because there is a little stopper inside the insulin pen, that pushes the insulin towards the pen needle opening. Also, the pen needs to primed with each use when using the pen needles and that can "waste" up to 2U per dose. With an insulin syringe, you can use every drop, no priming, no wastage.

Even smaller doses are possible with insulin syringes. Like those 0.5U doses I mentioned. We even "guesstimate" 0.25U doses in insulin syringes. Even possible to "guesstimate" 0.1 unit doses, with plunger positioning tips.

Video on how to draw insulin from a pen is here:
You'll want to find U100 3/10 cc capacity (30 unit max volume) syringes with 1/2 unit markings on the barrel. Needle length is your choice.

Walmart has U100 insulin syringes with 1/2 unit markings. Pharmacy staff sometimes does not know this, and you have to ask them to please physically check the box. Relion brand.
ADW diabetes also has these type of syringes. Not recommending them over any other vendor, they are simply one place I know that carries these syringes.

Home testing the blood glucose will help you decide if your cat should get insulin. Do you have a meter yet?

Most of us here use the human meters, because the cost of the test strips is less than a specific pet meter. All our documentation is written with human meters in mind, since this site has been around for decades before the pet specific meters came out.

Alphatrak 2 pet meter test strips are around $1 each. In the US, the Contour Next One is an excellent human meter and very accurate, plus it gives you 60 seconds to get more blood on the same test strip in case the blood drop was not big enough the first time. Consumer Reports recommended, highly rated on human diabetes websites. Contour Next test strips are around 32- 38 cents each, depending on quantity purchased and where. Wal-mart Relion line is another option. Not quite as accurate as the Contour Next, but test strips are half the price of the Contour, 17 cents each.

We highly recommend home testing. So you know your cats blood glucose (BG) is high enough to give the insulin shot in the first place. Learning to home test takes some getting used to but doable for most people.
 
You are awesome! Again thank you for all of this knowledge, after spending all day researching on this site I am feeling a little more confident. I am waiting on the vet to get a perscription for the U100 syringes. I have yet to test her but it is still 4 hours away from her dose but am planning to go with the 1 unit depending on her numbers. I have the alphatrak and am still getting used to the thing haha. Now I'm onto learning when to shoot what dosage.:cat:
 
Some home testing links for you, in case you have not discovered them on your own.
These tips can be helpful with both giving the insulin shot and the home BG testing.
2 of my favorites.

•Ear Testing Psychology•

Marje and Gracie's Testing and Shooting Tips
With an excerpt from that second document for you below:
"Testing
We all know the basics:
  • Warm the ear with a rice sock or a warm washcloth wrapped in a plastic bag.
  • Either freehand or use a lancing device; new members usually start with a larger gauge lancet such as 28g or 29g until the ear learns to bleed; then progress to a 31g or 33g which are finer.
Be sure to poke in the "sweet spot" and not the major vein that runs along the length of the ear. Poking the vein will not only hurt, but will result in a lot of blood. The sweet spot is on the edge of the ear.
4395c545-36bf-4aba-bec7-4392fcdb191c-jpeg.48119

But did you also know there is a particular way for the lancet to be used? It has one side that is beveled so the sharpest part goes in first, if used correctly."

More comprehensive information here on home testing, including videos. From the Health Links/FAQS forum, in the INDEX "Sticky" or pinned post at the top of that forum.
Hometesting Links and Tips - includes numerous links, instructions, pictures, & videos

p.s. I know where stuff is. Just ask.
 
Since you are not home testing much yet, probably safer to go with a lower dose.

Here on the Feline Health (Welcome & Main forum), we recommend a pre-shot test of 200 for most insulins, Once you gather more data, and move to one of the ISG (Insulin Support Groups), that number can and will be lowered.

p.s. Signature info and SS needed before you post in the ISG groups. For the best help.
 
Thanks for the tips and diagram! Made our home testing much easier yesterday. I also spent a while on this site reading and finally finessing my SS and signature.(hope I'm doing this right) I'm hoping to seek more of your help(or anyones) today. Regarding changing my shot times for the time change on Sunday. Should I create another thread for this question?
 
Basically, you can change your shot times in 15 minute increments per cycle, or 30 minutes per 24 hours.

I'm taking care of someone else's diabetic cat this weekend. But I don't start taking care of their cats to do the complete time shift before the clock change.
So here is what I'm doing for that cat.
Normal shot times are 7 AM and 7 PM
Sat AMPS 7 AM (normal shot time) by owner
Sat PMPS 6:45 PM (15 minute shift earlier) Since this will now be 7:45 AM the next morning, Sunday
Sun AMPS 7:30 AM (15 minute shift earlier)
Sun PMPS 7:15 (15 minute shift earlier)
Mon AMPS 7 (one more 15 minute shift earlier, and it's now back to the old shot time)
 
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