Update,Sprocket, vet appt

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Darnell & Sprocket (GA)

Darnell & Sprocket (GA)

Member Since 2015
Hi Everyone,
Sprocket had a vet visit (scheduled) today and she was Very Impresses with how great he looks!! She was happy with all the help i get and understands it. I gave her a link of the spreadsheet to view later since she couldnt get to view it at appt.
He is 14.9lbs. She took blood for liver panel & kidney testing & ketones. Those results come back monday. She said to try to stop the famotidine & see how that works. I have already reduced his cypro to .25ml 2x a day. So he still has his ursodiol and ondansetron.
Unfortunetely the ride to get to vet was not good as he peed 15 mins into 45 min drive then puked 10 mins before we got there too. They took him in back and cleaned him up for me and said the vomit had a hairball too.
He was 280 before we left amd 263 when we got back so not bad for stress related bg.


He is still at 2.75u. Has been bouncing since tuesday. He is surfing now though.
Not sure if he will earn reduction tonight but I am monitoring him.
We will see.
Thanks to all whom have helped me to help him. Its always greatly appreciated even with all the stress. We all love our cats and we are all passionate about their care. Just remember to be nice too. And one request of mine to experienced people...rememeber how you felt being a newbie when answering some questions.
I know many of you tell me to shoot a low bg(107) but I had this feeling it wasnt good cause it was just a weird cycle. I am terrified he wont stop dropping.
Plus i know I ask opinion but must make the decision from all the opinions and the education everyone has given me. My confidence in decision making myself is still very shaky. I am getting it but slowly.
So just remember that intense fear that you can have to see those bgs at shoot time.

Ok. I gotta figure out how to given his ursodiol as I forgot to give with his food. Urgg.
Ok thank you!!!
Hugs!!
:bighug::bighug::bighug::cat::cat:
 
Glad you had a good vet appointment. Good luck with stopping the Pepcid.

I remember how scary it was shooting lower numbers the first few times. But I gulped, put on my big girl pants and nervously shot. Then I gathered data showing me how much flatter the cycles were, and I grew to love shooting lower preshots. When the preshots are higher, they can drop a lot and you have no idea what the cycle will look like. Shooting low is much easier to do and more predictable, once you have the data to do so. I loved shooting in the 80's, though I followed TR, cause chances are she wouldn't move more than 10 points the entire cycle. Nadirs were much more predictable too. You will get there sometime too.:bighug: Just gradually work down how low a number you are willing to shoot.
 
I still freak out over shooting low numbers too. I started on prozinc so it's hard to ignore the programmed prozinc experience. I'm getting a little better at it. Slowly reprogramming my mind.
Glad the visit went well! Sorry he had such a messy ride!
 
Wendy&Neko said:
Glad you had a good vet appointment. Good luck with stopping the Pepcid.

I remember how scary it was shooting lower numbers the first few times. But I gulped, put on my big girl pants and nervously shot. Then I gathered data showing me how much flatter the cycles were, and I grew to love shooting lower preshots. When the preshots are higher, they can drop a lot and you have no idea what the cycle will look like. Shooting low is much easier to do and more predictable, once you have the data to do so. I loved shooting in the 80's, though I followed TR, cause chances are she wouldn't move more than 10 points the entire cycle. Nadirs were much more predictable too. You will get there sometime too.:bighug: Just gradually work down how low a number you are willing to shoot.
Click to expand...

But what if it doesnt go flat by shooting low numbers? How do you know?
 
Darnell & Sprocket said:
But what if it doesnt go flat by shooting low numbers? How do you know?
Click to expand...
By looking at cycles and spreadsheets of other cats. Lantus is great at keeping lower numbers low. Yes, kitties can still earn reductions when they start lower, but that's no different from when they start higher.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
By looking at cycles and spreadsheets of other cats. Lantus is great at keeping lower numbers low. Yes, kitties can still earn reductions when they start lower, but that's no different from when they start higher.
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Except ALOT scarier!! :nailbiting::nailbiting:
How would you keep them safe if they did drop from shooting a low number?
 
Same way you do if they drop from shooting a higher number. When you shoot your lowest number to date, it's always good to get a +1 and a +2 to see how the cycle will shape up. If the +2 is lower than the preshot, start feeding some carbs to slow the drop.
 
Sounds like you had a good vetty appointment and that you have a good vet and have her support; that is huge! Sending good luck vines for all the BW to come back good.

Darnel, we all do remember how scary it was in the beginning with shooting lower numbers but as Wendy said, when they start lower they don't move down as much, especially when you shoot a green . If you can steer Sprocket up from a big drop from a higher number, you'll be able to steer him up from a drop from lower numbers. Once you can see it for yourself on the SS you'll be so psyched and want more and more greens to shoot so that you will start to see more progress and to stop coming down the dosing ladder. :cat:

We can only give our experience and knowledge and like you said, it's ultimately up to you as you hold the syringe. But, know that if you shoot a lower number, someone will stay with you through the cycle.
 
Shooting low is nerve wracking!! I can appreciate that knowing your kitty is prone to big drops you get apprehensive at the thought of how much Sprocket could drop from a low pre-shot number. What I typically tell people is to look at what the lowest number you have previously shot is. How much lower would you be willing to shoot? Gradually work your way down and keep gathering data. The process of ratcheting down the number where you're shooting will help to build your confidence. I'd also point out what the AM cycle on 6/1 looked like. That's the kind of response you're looking for.

The other suggestion I would make is based on a day like the the PM cycle of 5/18. You shot a PMPS of 120. First, you reduced the dose. That's fine but given that Lantus is a depot insulin, you may not see the effect of a dose reduction during the current cycle. (The depot can kick in and "make up" the difference.) You did a great job by testing early in the cycle. Having 6.5 years of experience with a cat whose numbers could drop like a rock early in the cycle, that +1 of 103 would have signaled me to feed some LC. The +2 would have had me reaching for more food -- possibly a small amount of HC. In other words, learning how and when to intervene with food can help to soften drops and flatten cycles. I would not have held off on food until +6.

You may need to do a bit of experimenting with when you're feeding. In theory, if Sprocket's nadir is actually around +6, by feeding at nadir, you're giving food at the point where the effects of the cycle's dose are beginning to wane. It might make sense to move the +6 feeding a little earlier in the cycle. For example, Gabby was prone to fast drops and her nadir was usually at +3 or +4. I front loaded her food -- her meals were at PS, +1, and +2. You may not need to feed that early but it's an example of how to use the information about Lantus onset and nadir to adjust your methods based on the needs of YOUR cat.

 
Ok so your all saying to feed to keep him up if I shoot low. Last week I gave extra food hours before the pmps to try to get the bg up and it didnt work.
This is a reason why I say..
What if it doesnt work??
I tried to bring up his be at end of his cycle & it didnt work so why would it work by shooting a low bg at pmps time?
 
If it doesn't work, worst case scenario, you syringe feed honey. Unless you severely overdose cat (by giving the wrong insulin dose), it's very unlikely that BS will remain low as you feed straight sugar. You do have to retest frequently after and try to feed HC after as well, as the sugar wears off pretty quick. Hypos can be serious, I don't want to say they aren't, but in most cases if you are monitoring, and catch them, they are very temporary.
 
Meya14 said:
If it doesn't work, worst case scenario, you syringe feed honey. Unless you severely overdose cat (by giving the wrong insulin dose), it's very unlikely that BS will remain low as you feed straight sugar. You do have to retest frequently after and try to feed HC after as well, as the sugar wears off pretty quick. Hypos can be serious, I don't want to say they aren't, but in most cases if you are monitoring, and catch them, they are very temporary.
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Uggg....I am not sure I can do it yet. Idk if I could handle that stress of a situation like that. I would need someone by my side helping and no electronic device is fast enough when your frantic like that.
Idk
 
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