UK vs US BG levels
- Thread starter Rgo7777
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Sarah&Soph
Member Since 2019
I believe to convert the two numbers, you multiply the UK reading by 18 to get the US number, and you would divide the US number by 18 to get the UK number
MrWorfMen's Mom
Member Since 2015
The 40mmol reading at diagnosis was likely done on animal calibrated lab equipment or a pet BG meter which reads higher than the human meters the majority of folks use here so just know the number was high but don't read too much into it. Part of that number, if done at the vet's office was probably stress. Our kitties are notorious for having high BG in the vet's office even if not diabetic and numbers can be elevated by 100 points (5.5 mmol) and sometimes more just from the stress.
Sarah&Soph
Member Since 2019
Yes that is quite a high number, but as Linda explained, your kitty might not be quite that high without the vet stress. I see you have a meter indicted in your signature, so when you start home testing, you’ll get a much more accurate picture of what your kitty’s blood sugar is really like 
If you set up a spreadsheet, I believe it will automatically calculate the US numbers for you, which may make it easier for you to interpret!
If you set up a spreadsheet, I believe it will automatically calculate the US numbers for you, which may make it easier for you to interpret!
Rgo7777
Member Since 2019
Thank you very much. I'm really worried about home testing. Do you always need a torch to try to locate the vein in the ear? She's absolutely brilliant with me giving her injections so far. I don't want to break her trust. She's been through a lot in the past week. Back to vet on Tuesday for them to see her and check her.
Sarah&Soph
Member Since 2019
I think it depends on your cat’s ears and the lighting in the room. My girl has black ears so I can only see the vein if the room is really well lit. But I personally don’t use a flashlight because I know roughly where the vein is, so I just aim for the outer edge of her ear. You don’t want to aim for the vein, just outside of it.
Some cats are perfectly fine with testing, and some (mine
), not so much lol. If your meter hasn’t arrived yet, it may be a good idea to get her used to touching and rubbing her ears, holding her in place, etc so she’ll be more used to it by the time you get the meter. Most cats are quite easy to condition if you use lots of treats! 
Here’s a link to home testing tips as well if you’re interested
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/hometesting-links-and-tips.287/
Some cats are perfectly fine with testing, and some (mine
), not so much lol. If your meter hasn’t arrived yet, it may be a good idea to get her used to touching and rubbing her ears, holding her in place, etc so she’ll be more used to it by the time you get the meter. Most cats are quite easy to condition if you use lots of treats! Here’s a link to home testing tips as well if you’re interested http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/hometesting-links-and-tips.287/
MrWorfMen's Mom
Member Since 2015
Chances are that Honey, once she gets use to testing will be a co-operative little patient. My girl hates being held and I thought I'd never be able to test her. She turned out to be the best little patient I could ever hope for and often would come get me at test time. I now simply ask her if Mommy can test her and she does a little dance, and then sits down presenting which ear she wants tested. I think they start to understand that we are trying to help them and as long as we are calm, they are calm. And don't worry about hurting Honey because our kitties have very few nerve endings in the test area of their pinna so don't feel much and certainly nothing close to what we feel when poking a fingertip. Most cats don't object to the testing....they object to having their ears manipulated so as Sarah suggested, get Honey used to having her ears played with and then give her a low carb treat as a reward whether she co-operates or not. She will eventually decide that the treat is worth letting you play with her ears.
It also helps to have a special test place. Honey will associate the testing spot with the treat too so eventually you might be able to call her and she'll come running, ready and willing to let you test to get her treat.
It also helps to have a special test place. Honey will associate the testing spot with the treat too so eventually you might be able to call her and she'll come running, ready and willing to let you test to get her treat.
I also had a black eared cat, and so were the non diabetics in my home that I've tested. Think I would learn. Anyway, I used a small pocket flashlight at first, with a piece of gauze on top of the light part, and put the ear on that after it was warmed up. After a while I did learn where the vein was.
I don't know if you've seen the spreadsheet that many of us here use. The World version (Linda and I have one as we are in Canada), does the translation from World to US numbers automatically for you. The majority of people here are American and don't know the World metric numbers, so we "talk" US numbers.
Anyway, I used a small pocket flashlight at first, with a piece of gauze on top of the light part, and put the ear on that after it was warmed up. After a while I did learn where the vein was.I don't know if you've seen the spreadsheet that many of us here use. The World version (Linda and I have one as we are in Canada), does the translation from World to US numbers automatically for you. The majority of people here are American and don't know the World metric numbers, so we "talk" US numbers.
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