too high or too low

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megangreen1981

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My diabetic cat is starting to act like he doesn't feel good. He has had a siezure before because of low sugar level, which we gave him syrup and he came back around. It seems like it might be too high this time. My question is, how do i know if it's too high or too low...which one? We have never home tested before as our vet is against it. Any help is GREAT!
 
We no longer use ProZinc and are now in the TR group, but I saw your note and thought I'd respond while you're waiting for others. I can't say it enough how important home testing is. Without it, you have no way of knowing if your kitty is too high or too low. My vet wasn't in favor of much, if anything, we thought best for Hershey. You have to do what you feel is best for your baby. Hershey has thrown us some pretty low numbers and it could've been really bad if we hadn't home tested and caught them. If you look at his SS, you'll see he was (31) at PM shot time 2/24. Whoa! I don't even want to think about what might've happened if we had shot into that! And, our vet wanted us to start no lower than 1 unit and maybe closer to 2 units. Again, his SS shows he was only briefly over 1 unit and is now trying a reduction to .3u.

This seems like a lot to learn, but there are some super people here who'll hold your hand through the whole process. Hershey was diagnosed 11/11, started ProZinc 1/13/12 and Levemir 6/13/12, so we are definitely still learning, too! Honestly, when we started I didn't think I could EVER test Hershey, but now it's pretty much second nature.

Best wishes to you -

Libby (& Hershey, too!)
 
Libby's right, the only way to know what is happening to your kitty is to test him at home. We have taught hundreds of people how to do it over the Internet; we'd be happy to teach you. You do not need your vet's permission. We figure we wouldn't take our child to the doctor, get insulin and shoot blindly. We treat our 4 legged children the same.

Also important is a low carb diet and dose adjustment based on glucose levels, but first you need to know what his numbers are.
 
I don't (and you shouldn't) care the least bit that your vet is against home testing. He's 100% wrong, and he is putting the life of your dear kitty at risk by telling you not to home test.

It sounds like he's forgotten who is the customer, and who is getting rich off of those customers. He works for YOU, not the other way around.

And, no matter what he thinks, the fact is that you can home test all you want, and just don't tell him you're doing it. It's really none of his business.

How much insulin are you giving him, and are you giving it every 12 hours?

We can help you, and help him. But honestly, without "numbers" it is impossible to tell what is going on with your little guy. Please consider home testing as soon as possible. It isn't hard, it only takes a couple of minutes a day, and it can save your kitty's life.

Carl
 
Knowledge is power! Home testing will give you the power to keep him safe.

It's easy once you get the hang of it, my vet forbade me from home testing and told me to shoot blindly and come back in three weeks but I didn't have to keep that appt because I learned how to home test and with the guidance I received from here my Harley went into remission before that appt rolled around. He stayed in remission for a year. I went against my vet because I was too scared to shoot blindly and am really glad that I did.

We are here to help you on this journey.
 
Thank you so much everybody!!!
I just ordered a kit from here, i am very nervous to try it but i think it will be for the best!
Our cat (Blackie) has had diabetes for about 7 years or so and we have not been having problems till recently.

Is there a way to learn how to test?

thanks so much!!!!!
~megan & Blackie
 
Here is a thread of lots of links including videos.

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=287

While you are waiting for your kit, get him ready. Pick a spot where you plan to test- a towel or blanket on the floor, or couch or the counter. It's the spot you'll plan to test each time. Start by taking him there, playing with his ears - lots of praise and petting. Then give him a snack and let him go. Make a rice sack or fill a pill bottle with hot water. Add warming his ears when he's at the spot. Treats and release. The hope is that, by the time you get your kit, he will be ready to be poked!
 
Welcome to our board and congrats on keeping your diabetic kitty safe for so long.

Like Libby and the others have said, I too chose to home test without the blessing of my vet. But as a result, my decision was the right one - and I knew it the first day I came home to shoot and Grayson was 128 (after being over 450 at shot time). You can only imagine what might have happened had I shot into the 128.

Glad you're here. Please let us know how we can help you!

Lu-Ann
 
My husband just checked Blackie's sugar with the meter for the first time...yay...i was so proud of him and he did it all by himself. A few questions...he said he kept pricking his finger too cause he was going all the way threw his ear, is that normal?
Our vet didn't want us to home test because the fear of a hematoma on his ear...is that a real fear i should have?
His reading was 45....would those numbers be the same on our home meter as the ones that the vet does?

thanks for any help!
 
Hi!

First off the 45...
That's as low as you want it to go. Where is that in relation to when his last shot was given? Can you test again soon?

Poking your finger - Are you using a cotton ball or something like that on the side of the ear where your finger is? That'll stop the lancet from going too far and hitting your finger.

I don't think your vet's fear is a real issue. Every cat here gets their ears poked several times a day, some for a year or longer. Just try to pick a new spot on the ear each time, and you can use the entire outer edge of both ears as long as you are hitting between the vein and the ear edge. You can also rub neosporin with pain relief on the spot afterwards....that'll work on your finger too :smile:
 
Yes, try to use a cotton ball behind Blackie's ear and that will take care of hitting the finger. Also, do change the spot. 45 is pretty low for a reading. When did you give the shot??? and when is he due for another.


I take it you got the syringes? They should have been at your mom's today.
 
Yes my mom did get the syringes...thank you thank you thank you!

it was 45 at about 4pm ish...he usually gets his shots at 9/9...my husband checked him again at 9 tonight and it was 57 so he skipped the shot for tonight. he usually get's 2 units twice a day
he just got 3 teeth removed (he only has 3 left now) and the last time he had teeth removed is when everything went crazy...after all the infected teeth were out last time his sugar must of went more normal...he was on 6 units and then he had a seizure on us since we didn't know he was low.
so now since this surgery it has me scared to death so i'm so glad we are home testing now and can regulate it ourselves.
is it ok to adjust his dosage day to day?
is it possable he is going into remission?

you guys are a huge help to me, i have felt so alone all these years...
megan, blackie
 
Hi Megan,

No, you don't need to invest in a pet meter. Some people at FDMB use them, but the overwhelming majority of us use human meters. They aren't worth the added expense.

Yes, it is okay to adjust the dose every day. Bob was on insulin for ten weeks, and he rarely got the same dose two shots in a row. Not many people do it that way, but every cat responds to insulin differently. The hard part is figuring out how Blackie responds to it. That's why home testing is so critical.

Many cats improve after a dental, especially if infected teeth were removed, because infection usually boosts blood glucose levels, and pain from bad teeth will do the same thing.

A BG of 57 is a perfectly normal number, and you did the right thing not giving insulin. Yes it is possible that he could go into remission, or that at least he will require a much smaller dose going forward.

Keep us posted on the numbers:-)

Carl
 
With that low of a number at +12, you certainly need to reduce the dose. And be careful for the next cycle. He may bounce back from the lower numbers to a higher one. If he bounces (it's a reaction by his body to release extra glucose to combat a low number he is not used to) you don't want to "shoot into the bounce" So even if he was in the 300s, you would want to reduce the dose.

I would consider reducing the dose to one unit, montoring carefully and increasing every 3 -5 cycles if the numbers warrant. That way you are safely moving him up rather than trying to react to low numbers. If you decide this is a good idea, be sure to get ketone strips and check regularly for ketones.

Can you set up a spreadsheet? Not only is it a great tool for you, but when you want dosing help, we can see the history at a glance and give better advice. Here are the directions:

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=18207

It's a little tricky; if you need help, just ask.
 
I think i got my spreadsheet saved and added to my posts on here...i'm just not sure what each catagory means...i think it kinda goes like this:
i give shots at 9/9...so the +1 would be 10 oclock and so on?
not sure what the "ps" means on the am and pm?
the "u" is how many units i gave him?
and i would put his readings in at the times indicated?
o jeez i think i'm messed up
 
megangreen1981 said:
I think i got my spreadsheet saved and added to my posts on here...i'm just not sure what each catagory means...i think it kinda goes like this:
i give shots at 9/9...so the +1 would be 10 oclock and so on?
not sure what the "ps" means on the am and pm?
the "u" is how many units i gave him?
and i would put his readings in at the times indicated?
o jeez i think i'm messed up
Click to expand...

Amps=am preshot=reading before morning shot
Pmps=pm preshot
+4=4 hours after shot, etc.
U=units given each shot

You're on the right track. I agree you dose seems too high.
 
The "PS" is short for "pre shot". That's the test you take when you give him his AM and PM shots. That would be considered "zero" on a 12 hour timeline. The +1, +2, etc is how many hours after the shot you get a test, and you would enter the test number in those boxes.
And yes, the "U" is what the dose was when you gave the shot.

The reason we use the +1, +6, PS and all of that is because we have people in every time zone in the world on the forums. You saying 10PM would make sense to you and anyone close by, but to somebody in South Africa, it wouldn't mean much. So we think of everything in terms of "how many hours past shot time is it?"

Carl
 
I wanted to take a minute to sit down and tell everyone how thankful i am for all of your help!
Blackie passed away last week and i am just now strong enough to get back on here.
We had taken him back to the vet because i knew his mouth was bothering him and figured it was from where he had just had the teeth extracted...so my husband and i thought it was an infection or it just was taking longer to heal etc. The vet had us leave him for an hour while he sedated him to look in his mouth (he's not the best with dr's) and then called us to come back. When we got back he said it wasn't good and that Blackie had a tumor in his mouth so large it was underneath his tounge and into one of the "holes" where he had just taken a tooth out of. The vet said he didn't see it when he was in there doing surgery and it would of been hard to miss. He said there wasn't anything we could do about it because if he tried to remove it he would end up breaking his bottom jaw because it was in or next to the bone, he said it was causing him extreme pain. So of course i'm not going to let my poor guy suffer and we had him put to sleep. The bad part is that he was still sedated when he brought him in for us to say goodbye...that was the hardest thing...he wasn't awake to know that we were there with him. So my husband, myself and our 2 year old daughter all gave him kisses and petted him for a long time and that was it.
Of all the cats i've had this one was so hard since we were so close to him since he took constant care.
It has been so rough on us and i feel bad for my husband since he had just got really really good at home testing in the last couple weeks :(
If it wasn't for all of you we would of never got thru the last month....THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!
With all our love,
Megan, Chris
 
((((((Megan, Chris & baby))))))

I'm so sorry for your loss, fly free Blackie wings_cat land ever so softly back in your family's hearts.

Please don't feel any guilt because he was sedated, he knew you were there and he has had a lifetime of loving pets and kisses from you to take with him. He was a very lucky boy to have been a part of your family.

Sending healing and calming vibes to surround you all at this sad time.

Robin
 
Megan -

I am so sorry for your loss. Blackie was fortunate to have a family who loved him so very much.

Hugs and Prayers -

Libby (& Hershey, too!)
 
Megan: I can't tell you how badly I feel for you and your family, and Blackie too. I wish his outcome would have been better, it's so hard when we lose our pets. Know that he knew and loved you all. :cry: :cry: Fly free Blackie. wings_cat
 
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