Timing the shot

Status
Not open for further replies.
heather&giz

heather&giz

Member
I am fairly new and still learning, but I have one question specifically about Gizmo's insulin. A little background: He is on 1u/2x day of PZI. Every 12 hours he gets his shot. I don't always pre-test, but I do about every other day. He is in the 280 range before the shot. So I am thinking of bumping up to 1.5u/2x day. I did a curve last weekend and his range was 280-240.
My specific question is-- assuming this scenerio is unavoidable for one day-- Is it better to give him his 2nd insulin shot 2 hours early, or 2 hours late? I hate to even ask this, but I know i cannot change the situation this one time. and it is too cold for him to stay in my car.
 
Hi Heather,

Welcome to PZI land. The timing will need to be largely dependent on the numbers. If he is in the 200s 2 hours before your usual pmps, and you have tested to be sure he is headed up and not down, you should be okay. If you want to play it safe, you could even shoot .5 units. You can shoot 2 hours late also. It would throw you off for a cycle, meaning higher numbers and getting back to your normal schedule.

It's up to you - do whatever you feel most comfortable with. Sometimes with newbies, it feels safest to shoot the late shot (same dose even if numbers are high) and then get back on schedule. It's that "safer to be too high for a day than too low for a minute." PZI is forgiving. You don't have to worry about depleting a shed like you would with Lantus and Levemir.

Always test before each shot. We have had dozens of examples of a kitty throwing a low number out of the blue - from newbies to kitties who have been on insulin for years.
 
fortunately with the pz insulins, sticking to a schedule isn't as important as it is with some of the other insulins. especially if you don't have ketones in kitty's history. so which ever way is more comfortable for you and your schedule
 
I used to have to shoot early/late one night a week and I based the early/late decision on what his bg number was at the time. If he was high enough to shoot early, I did, if he was to low I waited.

It is sooooo important to test before every shot, you just never know when their P might decide to kick in and start working and if you don't know that and you shoot the insulin you could have a very sad outcome.
 
If you go the early shot route I would probably lower the dose a little bit if you don't have a lot of data yet to go on. The shot will be more powerful at +10, and although you may need the full dose, since it sounds like you are still pretty much in a data gathering phase, I would lean towards shooting conservatively.
 
Welcome and congratulations on home testing! You are ahead of many people who come here and have not learned how to test. We recommend testing at least before every shot and preferably in the mid cycle as well, so you will know just how low he is going. Is there something in your schedule that makes this difficult?
I frequently shot a few hours early or late, depending on my schedule. It never seemed to matter. But if you are going to shoot early, you need to know you are in a safe range. If the previous shot has not yet petered out and your numbers are low or still going down, you could end up with a cat with too much insulin.
Hope this helps. Keep posting and asking questions!
 
Oh that is all so very helpful. I am breathing a sigh of relief! I can't hometest all by myself because neither my husband, nor I are that great at it yet. So will probably shoot late this instance so that we can test him. We are going to try do another curve this weekend. I'll post it afterwards, maybe i will get some advice/suggestions. Thanks again!
 
Hi Heather...

Welcome!

Have you had a chance to get Giz's Spreadsheet up? It's really helpful for the advice givers to see what Giz's numbers are in a pattern, ie over the past days/weeks. If you need help with the SS(I sure did!), ASK! There are folks in here that are very good at getting it set up for you.

Please, always test before you shoot. We treat our 4 legged children just like out 2 legged ones. We'd not give insulin to a child without finding out the BG first. It's not easy, at first, to test but, the more you do it, the easier it gets :-D
 
Heather,
My cat was IMPOSSIBLE to test at first. She would hiss and bite and struggle. I never thought we would be able to test her, but we did, and eventually it became routine and she would even come over when she saw me getting the test supplies together!
However, in the beginning---what a struggle. My husband and I would wrap her up in a small fleece blanket burrito style,with just her head sticking out.. But before we did that, we would apply clothespins down the scruff of her neck. Sounds bizarre, but it simulates the way a mother cat holds the kitten, and it did WONDERS to relax her. Here is the link; http://www.felinecrf.org/giving_sub-qs_ ... _peg_trick

I warmed her ear with a small medicine vial filled with very hot water. This also gave me a hard surface to poke against. I dabbed a little vaseline on her ear to help the blood bead up.
I poked her freehand with a lancet (found the device too cumbersome) and sometimes had to do 2 or 3 pokes.

Before I started, I would gather all the supplies near where I would sit. I would push the strip halfway into the meter so it was all ready for when I needed it. She did not like treats, so I fed her some food she liked after every test. Also brushed her and patted her.

So all this worked, and my husband and I were a testing team. Then just 3 days after we were able to do this, he had to go on a business trip for several days!!! And I managed to do it myself!

This is all a long winded way of telling you that it is possible, and you will get the hang of it---just don't give up when you get frustrated, it is a very difficult process at first and you feel like it is impossible that it will every get to be easy, but IT WILL!
 
The testing is getting easier. Dont his ears get sore from every day if testing? I'll get the spreadsheet together this weekend and post it. What is a rice sock? I've started using a warm towel, is that just as hood as the rice sock?
 
Wonderful that it is getting easier! If you hold his ear for a few seconds after you get blood, it will help with bruising. You can also use Neosporin with pain reliever.

Whatever works to warm the ear is fine.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top