Too much insulin too soon?

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LGoddess

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Dollbaby was diagnosed as a diabetic in June 2008. She'll be 14 in May. Since her diagnosis she's never been on more than 2 units twice a day. She's been getting a fructosamine test every two months and her blood sugar level has dropped almost 150 points. Then last July her vet said we could reduce her to 1 unit twice a day. We moved and I started bringing her to a new vet. They messed up the first time they tested her glucose and said she had skyrocketed to 550+. A week later she was tested again and was about 280.

I took her for her check-up and got yelled at by a new vet who said she needed glucose tests instead of fructosamine. Intimidated, I agreed and left her there for the day. Now you see, Dollbaby is incredibly skittish so her blood sugar shot through the roof as she got more panicked throughout the day. This knocked her up to around 350. The vet instructed me to increase the insulin to 3 units twice a day and bring her back in 10 days. A few days ago we returned and it was another "leave her there all day" situation. I was told my cat had gained weight and she was to be pushed to 4 units a day despite her blood sugar having dropped like a rock back to the 280 range. The vet also wants her back in next week.

I'm at my wit's end. It terrifies me jumping her insulin to such a high dosage when she's been stable and her levels lowering at the usual levels for 18 months. There's also the fact that this $100/wk vet visits is absolutely devastating my finances. I can't keep it up. Do you guys think this increase in insulin is too rapid? I feel that the new vet is trying to force a change instead of letting it happen gradually. Also if I buy a home monitoring kit (any suggestions on where to buy one already per-calberated?), is there a link that will help me decide when to adjust her insulin?

I'm just freaking out here. The old vet won't talk to me w/o charging $40 for a phone chat.
 
welcome to fdmb!

yes, the dose increases are too big at one time anddddddd the biggest problem is they are based on curves done at the vet where often a cat is unhappy and stressed out, which can elevate glucose levels.

sooooooooooooooo, yes, get a glucose testing kit and start testing her at home yourself. gather some data that way, you can post, read, ask questions and get some input from all of us. while doing that, put in a call to this vet and explain to them that you would like to hometest and report his numbers to them because money is getting tight. if they are 150% against that or not open to working with you on this, start looking for a new vet. you can even post your city here and maybe one of us is close enough to give you a vet recommendation if it is needed.

as far as meters go, economically the Relion Micro from Walmart is a good one to get plus it takes a very small blood sample and requires no coding.

don't worry, we'll help you get this all figured out :smile:
 
WELCOME, this forum is a great place to gain knowledge and really learn how to manage feline diabetes. By doing just a few things each day (that really won't take up much of your time at all), you won't need to worry about losing your precious cat, not where feline diabetes is concerned.

There are three key factors to managing diabetes: food/nutrition, home testing and insulin

1) Feline Nutrition: Now, as far as diet - definitely dump the dry food (if you are feeding any) and if the vet recommends purchasing prescription food like DM just say "no thank you". ALL cats, and especially those with diabetes, do best on a species appropriate diet that is high in protein and low in carbs. Dry food DOES NOT fit that bill and DM food, even canned, just really isn't that great as far as quality. Most here on FDMB feed low carb/high protein canned, raw bought from a pet store or they make there own.

Here great links, one is to a food chart put together by one of our board members that breaks down the carb % and protein % of most of the commercial brand foods. You want to keep the carb % below 10% and around 7% is great. The other link is to a site by a vet "Dr. Lisa DVM" ... who also posts on this board from time to time ... there is in-depth info. there about many things, including nutrition and how to make raw food.
Nutrition/food info

The good thing with feeding your diabetic cat this way, is that it is ALSO good for any non-diabetic cat too. All your cats can safely eat the same food without worry and it may save you some costs and headaches of having to do separate feedings and keeping track of what they are eating.


2. Home testing: It is impossible to convey the value of testing your cat's BG (blood glucose) level at home. Some vets will "suggest" this, but most won't even mention it. They will send you home with insulin and an amount to shoot and maybe some instructions about hypoglycemia (blood sugar dropping to a dangerously low level).

Well, the thing is, human diabetics don't EVER give themselves insulin without checking there BG to make sure it is safe to do so, so why shouldn't it be the same for our kitties. Here on FDMB it is. You will notice that the vast majority of people here test their cat's BG at least 2x/day (before giving each shot to make sure the level is safe enough) and periodically at other times to see how the cat is responding to the current dose. We use a human glucometer, test strips and lancets - which are all very readily available and easy to use.

Our kitties get lots of love and treats for "putting up" with this and most of them actually come out to be tested on their own 'cause they want those treats . Here is a collection of great links that "Carolyn and Spot" pulled together about hometesting. See what you think ... it truly is the best way to not only keep Your cat safe but also really get a handle on this disease and help him to live a healthy life with FD (feline diabetes).

Home testing Links

3. Insulin: There are several types of insulin available. Many people, myself included use Lantus or Levimer both of which are great insulins. They are gentle insulin and given twice (BID) per day in 12 hour increments.

Please read up on the insulins available, here is a link to the Insulin Support Groups:

Insulin Support Groups

However, one caveat and again this shows how these three things are inter-related:

If you are feeding dry food or even a high carb food, BEFORE removing these foods, please make sure of your insulin dose as it will most likely need to be reduced, so as to avoid a possible hypoglycemic situation due to the removal of the dry/high carb foods that will lower the BG’s and reduce the amount of insulin required. Again, another reason why home testing is important.

I know this all seems like a lot, and that's because it is ... there is a learning curve here. But as long as you are determined and keep at it, you will have it down before you know it and you'll be seeing the results in Your cat' overall health and happiness. Ask all the questions you can think of - that's why we are here!

Also, if you haven't done it yet, take the time and fill out your profile. It will help when others come on and read this. Also, let us know where you live - city/state as there are probably people in your area who can provide on the ground support and help you to learn home testing, etc.
 
Hi!: Glad you made it over here. Ponywoman1105 from LiveJournal here. Theses people will help you a lot! They did with my Samwise. Good luck with DollBaby and I hope you can dump that vet!
 
Thank you guys so much! I went straight to Walmart and bought the ReliOn Micro and some testing stripes. I'm definitely looking forward to taking over control of this situation to ensure Dollbaby's continued good health in the years to come.

You guys are so wonderful! I truly appreciate your help from the bottom of my heart.
 
You've gotten some great advice, just wanted to say "welcome!" and also comment on the vet questions. YOU are the client, and you are hiring them for service. They should be embarrassed IMHO if they yell at you. In my book, that is completely out of the question - as a professional, you just don't yell at your clients. Most of the time I advocate that people stay with their vet and work with them on the dosing, etc. But it really irks me if a vet is intimidating you and making you feel bad and worried, etc. They exist as a business solely to help you and your pets afterall!

If you haven't already, I would suggest that you call or visit other vets in your area and ask them about their philosophy of treatment, etc., etc. If you don't feel confident with the vet you are using (and it sounds to me like you don't!!!), I would say it's worth at least asking around, and then knowing that you have other options. As far as the every 10 days thing, it's unrealistic that most people can afford that - I had a vet suggest that to me, and after a couple trips in, I just said "this is out of the question for me financially, what are my other choices?" and they worked with me (and ultimately recommended home-testing) on doing tests in a way that managed the costs. Sounds like you are already set as you are starting home testing (yay!!! and in case you aren't sure, that means you do NOT need to take your kitty to the vet for more glucose curves or fructosamine tests, even if the vet says you should, it really is not needed if you are able to get sufficient home tests)

Some of this may already have been covered, but please be aware that if you make a change in foods (if you aren't already feeding low-carb canned food, that is what most people here have found works best for not raising their BGs as much), you should lower the dose at the same time. Hopefully with testing you can post here regularly and get specific advice, but I wanted to be sure you know that in case you get excited about changing foods and move forward with that quickly. :) My cat went from about 4 units of insulin on dry food, to around 1 unit when I was able to switch him to low-carb canned.

Welcome, and good for you for questioning the insulin increases! Your kitty is lucky to have you looking out for her best interests. :)
 
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