URGENT: ProZinc dosing question for tonight

[Nancy Lynne]

First some background: Grandma was diagnosed in early June and I started her on 1 unit Prozinc 2x a day. No home testing. I ended up switching vets and took Grandma for a follow up appt on 24 Aug and during that 11a appt they did a blood glucose and it was 30. I started home testing on 26 Aug which you can see from the spreadsheet. I've had somewhat of a hard time getting consistent tests for a variety of reasons but I'm hoping I can test more frequently. So I have two questions:

• The first is a pressing issue. Grandma gets fed 3 ounces of Fancy Feast Classic 2x a day with a freeze-dried salmon treat around 3-4p. Today after her treat I came out to see she had just eaten a very large rodent given the size of the head and entrails around 430p. I am hoping to get a test before her normal 730p dinner time, but I'm curious if a large meal like this would alter any dosing strategy. Or should I just shoot based on the testing number?
• The second is a broader general question based on her numbers. Based on her 30 number on 24 Aug I stopped her recommended 1 unit a day and dropped it to .5 to .75 (or not at all). It's been hard to be exact given I'm dealing with very small doses. I'd love any general thoughts/recommendations/things to think about.

Thank you!

 

[Panic]

Hello Nancy and Grandma!

Very wise to drop the dose based on that 30. Bigger yikes since it was on Alphatrak!! Grandma is showing really good numbers, from just the pre-shots. Pre-shots are the last numbers to go down and hers are very good. I know you said for a variety of reasons you haven't been able to test much but in Grandma's case in PARTICULAR I urge you to start getting mid-cycles asap. Grandma looks like she'll be off insulin sooner than later if you put in the extra effort right now. I don't say that about many people's cats.

Nothing wrong with her having eaten a rodent, good for em! It's possssible that her PMPS might be a little higher, since she ate later in the cycle and that can burn up insulin faster, but I wouldn't worry otherwise. The extra meal shouldn't be reflecting in her PMPS test like it would if it had been less than 2 hours out.

The thing that concerns me right now is you're only giving Grandma food twice a day? With numbers as low as hers she NEEDS food available in case her BG starts to drop low again. A good "baseline" would be giving small snacks of her regular food at +2, +4, and +6. Cats will seek out food when their numbers drop; you're not checking so you don't know how low she's going.

I really really hope you can find a way to start checking her more; she may need even less insulin right now, we can't be sure! Her pre-shots are fantastic.

 

[Nancy Lynne]

Thanks so much for the quick reply! Here are more details on this situation. Grandma and two other cats (Trouble and Cissy) are all 100% outdoor cats and my landlord's shop is their home base. I cannot bring them inside or risk major issues with my landlord. I live in an active construction zone and the guys are in and out of the shop all day, so once the cats get fed in the morning they scatter until the evening when construction is over and it's quiet again. I know where Grandma tends to hide out, but me being available to feed her every two hours isn't tenable. And I can't leave wet food out, it would be eaten right away either by her or one of the other two cats or would attract other animals. I used to have a timed feeder with dry food so all the cats had access to food throughout the day but I took that out of the shop when Grandma was diagnosed. I completely understand your recommendations, I just have logistical issues with implementing them. I was operating under the assumption that her meals should be tightly controlled as to the timing of them, so I'm glad to know there's flexibility to feed her more if I can.

Any thoughts on what her no-shot number should be?

 

[Panic]

I gotcha. My girl had to stay outside a lot of the time so I made do. If you're unable to physically go out and feed her every 2-3 hours (and if you could that'd be great because you could test her then too) I would get a Petsafe 5 autofeeder, they can dispense wet food. If she has a particular area she hides out in I would put it nearby.

It's hard to say what her no-shoot number should be ... I think on Prozinc w/ an Alphatrak you're not really recommended to shoot under 100. But that's for a cat with lots of mid-cycle data, you don't have any of that. She might be alright staying over 150 pre-shot ... but I just don't know. Any possibility you can get some evening mid-cycle tests after the shop is quiet? I would make food available at night too.

Ugh, wish your landlord would make an exception. Makes it tricky.