ups and downs

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Vtambo & Rex

Vtambo & Rex

Member Since 2017
Hello again - question for all you FD veterans out there. I found out Rex had diabetes in January 2017. He is on 1 unit of Lantus 2x a day and I have been in the process of switching him to low carb/high protein food. while I admit I am still trying to get the hang of this I am noticing that as far as symptoms go he is up and down. seems as though one day he drinks normal amount of water and pees normal amount, then the next excessive again. sometimes he can go for a few days with normal amounts, then back to excessive again. is this normal?? is there something I should or shouldn't be doing? is there anything I can do to improve this? what about remission - is there a specific timeframe that a cat will go into remission if he is going to go into remission?
 
Probably one of the most important things you can do if you are not already doing it. is to start home-testing and set up a spreadsheet to record the readings. The home test will show what is happening each day and the spreadsheet is a wonderful visual tool for tracking the progress...both ups and downs.

This link has information on setting up a spreadsheet:

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/

And this link has some great information on home testing:

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/hometesting-links-and-tips.287/

If you need any assistance with these just ask :bighug: :bighug: :bighug:
 
I have tried the home testing (alpha trak 2) which failed miserably. stressed us both out. however, I do agree that perhaps I should try it again. Kind of funny - I kind of have two vets by default - my preferred vet only works part time so I often get shuffled to the "sub" vet and the two of them have very different opinions on the whole FD issue. the regular vet is all for the at home testing and the low carb diet, supplementing, and is looking toward remission etc., while the "sub" vet has actually told me she doesn't even look at home testing and only uses the fructosamine test as her guideline and was trying to get me to use prescription food and talks as though she is only basically interested in loose control or palliative care. funny thing is the time when I tried doing the at home testing (I did it 3 times over the span of 2 days) Rex's numbers were high (307, 351 and 385) so I kind of freaked out and called the office. unfortunately my preferred vet was not in at the time so I was instructed to bring Rex in at the next convenient time to do a fructosamine test. did that the next day. according to the "sub" vet the results were "excellent" (490 - which I don't consider "excellent") and when I told her that was odd because of the high numbers I got with home testing that is when she told me she doesn't ever go by those numbers. so it is a bit frustrating that I cant get much support from my preferred vet since she is not available all the time. :(

I will try to find some time today to look at the above links. thank you.
 
I would definitely be more comfortable with the regular vet. He/she seems to have a much better understanding of FD. Most vets have only a short period of training with diabetes in general and that covers all types of animals. When a person is diagnosed as diabetic they normally will see a specialist to get the insulin levels set. A vet is just like a general practioner...they know a little about a lot of diseases and conditions but generally not a lot about one specific one. The fructosamine test only shows an average of glucose levels over a 2 or 3 week period. If there have been a lot of high numbers AND a lot of low numbers during that time the fructosamine could show that the levels are good. It does not show what has happened each day

This is an example of fructosamine ranges

Fructosamine reference ranges for cats
Cats Fructosamine values
(micromol/l)
Normal non-diabetic cat 190-365
Newly diagnosed diabetic cat 350-730
Treated diabetic cats:
Excellent control 350-400
Good control 400-450
Fair control 450-500
Poor control >500


so even at best it is only "fair" control. Again without doing regular daily testing...before each shot and one or two times between shots, there is no way to know if the numbers have been high and then low. When numbers drop too low, a hypo event can happen which is a medical emergency. Also when numbers drop too low the body's counter-regulatory processes can cause stored glucose to be released, since the body sees low numbers as and emergency and the glucose levels can remain high for up to 3 days. Home testing is the safest and most accurate way to tell how your kitty is responding to a certain dose of insulin.
 
I did not know that if the number goes low then it can elevate for up to three days. interesting. I just got out the AT2 and sat down next to Rex and clicked it a few times. he got up and left. maybe I will continue trying this for a bit and then attempt the testing again when he gets more used to it. he really makes nothing of his insulin shots, so I guess this is not hopeless. I think on my part I am just procrastinating - kind of like denial - and hoping this will go away on its own. I tend to get stressed easily and am the worrier and the have to fix everything kind of person. I am worried that I will get obsessive with testing (kind of like when my son was little if he had a fever I would be taking his temp every 15 minutes...) :\

also I see in your "bio" that you use a different type of strips with your alpha trak?

I also see in your bio that your cat has chronic pancreatitis. any info on that? a year ago Rex tested very high on a PCL (I think that is the name of it) test which indicated pancreatic inflammation. nothing was done - long story. at any rate, this year he tested the same so I am wondering if chronic pancreatitis is the underlying issue. what can be done about that? will the low carb food help with that?
 
I'm guessing you are clicking the lancing device? I think most of us free-hand. I was afraid the lancet would go too far even on the lowest setting so I started off poking his ear by hand. Of course that didn't prevent me from poking it through once in a while o_O. Definitely continue desensitizing Rex though. If it helps to know that cats do not have many "feelers" (nerves) in their ears for the testing sites, it is usually more of an annoyance that their ears are being messed with.

Try to stay calm and breathe until you get more comfortable with testing, he will be able to pick up on your anxiety :bighug:. We are here to help as best we can!

Also, like Tuxedo Mom, I use Free Style Lite test strips with my AT2 meter because the AlphaTrak strips are very expensive ($1.08/ strip). I actually switched to a human meter ($0.36/ strip) a couple weeks ago and just use the AT2 for curves.

Lastly, I am definitely not a Veteran member but I still try to help as much as I can as my way of paying back :)
 
Of course that didn't prevent me from poking it through once in a while o_O.

I use a small piece of cotton or tissue on the other side of the ear to prevent me being poked.
 
Yong said:
I'm guessing you are clicking the lancing device? I think most of us free-hand. I was afraid the lancet would go too far even on the lowest setting so I started off poking his ear by hand. Of course that didn't prevent me from poking it through once in a while o_O. Definitely continue desensitizing Rex though. If it helps to know that cats do not have many "feelers" (nerves) in their ears for the testing sites, it is usually more of an annoyance that their ears are being messed with.

Try to stay calm and breathe until you get more comfortable with testing, he will be able to pick up on your anxiety :bighug:. We are here to help as best we can!

Also, like Tuxedo Mom, I use Free Style Lite test strips with my AT2 meter because the AlphaTrak strips are very expensive ($1.08/ strip). I actually switched to a human meter ($0.36/ strip) a couple weeks ago and just use the AT2 for curves.

Lastly, I am definitely not a Veteran member but I still try to help as much as I can as my way of paying back :)
Click to expand...


good to know that I can use different strips. I wasn't relishing the thought of having to drive to the vet's office every time I needed strips, and yes I understand they are expensive.

yes, I was clicking the lancing device. I will continue to do that for a day or so and then maybe try it again.

thanks for your info and support.
 
You are welcome :) I try to help newer members with this sort of stuff (no where near ready to help with dosing advice) because I was just there two months ago.
 
I went the first couple of weeks without home testing and my first (no longer my vet) did a glucose curve at the clinic. It stressed Tuxie out so bad that it never gave a good result, so they just increased the dose anyway. After doing some research here and on other sites I decided that home testing was the only safe way to go. It took awhile for the both of us to get "comfortable" with it but surprisingly it went better than I thought. Now I have 2 FD kitties and testing is just a routine way of life with us. After running into some potentially dangerous hypo numbers I could NEVER give a shot without home testing. Home testing has literally saved the lives of some kitties.

I do use the FS Lite strips in my AT2 meter but only after doing countless comparison tests with both types of strips on the same blood drop and doing comparisons when I took my kitties in for lab work. It is not really advised on here to suggest doing this, but if you choose to you would have to do many, many comparison tests before feeling confident that the readings are reliable. I still keep AT2 strips on hand for comparisons if the numbers do not look right and I have the FS Lite human meter I can also use, although human meters will normally give lower readings than a pet meter.

I freehand poke rather than using the clicker device. It is a matter of what you are comfortable with and what your kitty will tolerate. My Tuxie could not get used to the clicking noise so for myself I found it easier to freehand.

Tuxie has chronic pancreatitis with specific fPLI readings off the charts. He has had 2 ultrasounds and 2 specific fPLI tests done and the numbers are always very high. He has only had a couple of actual episodes of pancreatitis that required medical intervention. But he also has Cushing's disease which causes the higher pancreas readings, so there is little chance that will ever change. However with "normal" FD kitties, a good wet low carb food and good regulation will help the pancreas to heal over time, which should help bring down pancreatic numbers.
 
A kitty may have had an undiagnosed case of pancreatitis at one time and this could have caused some "damage" to the pancreas. Sometimes it can develop from use of steroids for other conditions, or from physical damage, such as a fall or blow. It could be caused by a viral infection or ingesting some sort of toxin. It is very hard to say just why chronic pancreatitis develops, but feeding a good diet is always helpful.
 
Vtambo & Rex said:
good to know that I can use different strips. I wasn't relishing the thought of having to drive to the vet's office every time I needed strips, and yes I understand they are expensive.

yes, I was clicking the lancing device. I will continue to do that for a day or so and then maybe try it again.

thanks for your info and support.
Click to expand...
The cheapest place I've found to buy alphatrak strips is Adwdiabetes.com. They always have $5 coupon codes too, so it comes to $48. I agree with the others who don't use the device. Most cats don't like the clicking sound. I just put a cosmetic cotton round behind the ear and poke.
 
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