VERY drastic drop in glucose, help!

Merfles

Merfles

Member Since 2025
Bee has been running in the 200s or more for months now, hardly responding to his insulin, but this morning he tested at 112 (gave a reduced dose), and now at his second shot time he's only at 93. I don't know what this could mean?! He's been on budesonide for almost a month for IBD, and due to my vet being awful and taking four days to respond to Chewy for his refill, I gave him half of the pill yesterday, to stretch them out while I wait for the delivery.
I'm afraid to give him any insulin now, and don't know if I should give budesonide either. What does this mean? Is some organ failing, or something? Do I need to take him to the emergency vet??
 
I do not give dosing advice but let me tag a member that can, remember Lantus is a Depot Insulin it takes 5-7 days for the dose given to take effect in the cat's system, I do know that increasing or decreasing dose according to BG is not a good idea, and again sometimes you can stall the dose, or not give the dose, I will let Sienne handle that she has better knowledge on Lantus assist you I use ProZinc the protocol is a bit different, and I shoot on low 2 digits, I do not saying you should, that takes a lot of knowledge about how your cat reacts to the insulin, practice, guidance, and guts, which took a loooong time to get
@Sienne and Gabby (GA)
 
99 is good, a non-diabetic cats' glucose level is between 50-120, do yu have a hypo kit? this should include, some medium carb food between 11-15% / some high carb food between 16-24% carbs, gravies, some honey or Karo Syrup, this is in case the BG gets lower than 50, re-test again in 1/2 hour and post it I am right here in the meantime that Sienne plugs in. you are not alone
 
CORKY said:
I do not give dosing advice but let me tag a member that can, remember Lantus is a Depot Insulin it takes 5-7 days for the dose given to take effect in the cat's system, I do know that increasing or decreasing dose according to BG is not a good idea, and again sometimes you can stall the dose, or not give the dose, I will let Sienne handle that she has better knowledge on Lantus assist you I use ProZinc the protocol is a bit different, and I shoot on low 2 digits, I do not saying you should, that takes a lot of knowledge about how your cat reacts to the insulin, practice, guidance, and guts, which took a loooong time to get
@Sienne and Gabby (GA)
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Thank you, so much...
I reduced him to 1.25u this morning because he was DRASTICALLY lower than he's been very suddenly. He's been at 1.5u for six days, and I expected he may level out some, but suddenly going from 205 at the 5hr mark last night to 112 is way out of his recent pattern. I called and left a message for a tech at the vet, asking what I should do with his budesonide dose, at least. Ugh, so worried 😞
 
CORKY said:
99 is good, a non-diabetic cats' glucose level is between 50-120, do yu have a hypo kit? this should include, some medium carb food between 11-15% / some high carb food between 16-24% carbs, gravies, some honey or Karo Syrup, this is in case the BG gets lower than 50, re-test again in 1/2 hour and post it I am right here in the meantime that Sienne plugs in. you are not alone
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I do have some higher carb wet food here but not sure what %, will have to check. I do have honey. I'll test again in a few mins, and see if he's gone up any more yet. He used to only get .1-.25uand reacted VERY strongly to it until this Jan. At that point he suddenly started testing much much higher, and even with increasing him gradually up to 1.5u, he was barely reacting, some days going UP after his shot. I just don't know how to interpret this sudden change 😕
 
Merfles said:
Thank you, so much...
I reduced him to 1.25u this morning because he was DRASTICALLY lower than he's been very suddenly. He's been at 1.5u for six days, and I expected he may level out some, but suddenly going from 205 at the 5hr mark last night to 112 is way out of his recent pattern. I called and left a message for a tech at the vet, asking what I should do with his budesonide dose, at least. Ugh, so worried 😞
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Merfles said:
I do have some higher carb wet food here but not sure what %, will have to check. I do have honey. I'll test again in a few mins, and see if he's gone up any more yet. He used to only get .1-.25uand reacted VERY strongly to it until this Jan. At that point he suddenly started testing much much higher, and even with increasing him gradually up to 1.5u, he was barely reacting, some days going UP after his shot. I just don't know how to interpret this sudden change 😕
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here is a food calculator, you will use the nutrient% of the food, you can also find these on CHEWY.com find the food, click on the can, scroll down to ingredients, click there will be a chart us these on the calculator, we always want the dry carb matter carb%
Carb Calculator - Felinediabetes.com
 
Just tested at 105. He did eat his pre-shot wet food at 3pm, right after testing at 93, so he's going up, I just don't know how to proceed with insulin and the budesonide still.
 
good job he's coming up good job, do not feed any of the gravy lovers for now test in 1 hour again and post the BG, I am still here with you. You are doing great,! I am sure that Sienne, will plug in , she has a lot on her plate, I will also tag another member, in reference to the medication and dosing, hang in there
@Wendy&Neko
could you help with the Lantus dosing and the medication budesonide taken the BG is fluctuating, thanks
 
CORKY said:
good job he's coming up good job, do not feed any of the gravy lovers for now test in 1 hour again and post the BG, I am still here with you. You are doing great,! I am sure that Sienne, will plug in , she has a lot on her plate, I will also tag another member, in reference to the medication and dosing, hang in there
@Wendy&Neko
could you help with the Lantus dosing and the medication budesonide taken the BG is fluctuating, thanks
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I am still here, until you feel comfortable with the BG levels! you are not alone ;)
 
You're amazing ❤ I'm not panicking about his glucose now, just hope someone can advise on what I should do with the shot and meds. I don't know how long you can delay the shot, it's 2hrs past his time now?
 
Giving back is why I am here, I was once in your shoes, and a member stayed with me till 4:30AM till we stabilized Corky. Again I shoot ProZinc, if you see Corky's SS I have shot in the 80's and I know you are not a newbie, , I know for newbies is recommended not to shoot 100 or lower, is up to you right now, is how you feel about shooting this low for you, and if you are ready, since Lantus is a Depot insulin it is now that the insulin will start to kick in, perhaps you should skip this shot, you will get a higher BG for his next shot of course, but is better to be safe than sorry . right???
 
test a couple of more times before bed time, if he stay around the same, you can rest, but I am still here, I go to sleep very late, and my phone is next to me., I will be here till you and Bee are comfortable :bighug:
 
If it were last year when he was only getting .1 or .25 I'd give him his shot, but at 1.5 I'm afraid to. It's getting pretty late for him now, so I'll probably have to skip, but the budesonide I still don't know about. The vet never called back, and they close in 40mins 🙄
 
Merfles said:
If it were last year when he was only getting .1 or .25 I'd give him his shot, but at 1.5 I'm afraid to. It's getting pretty late for him now, so I'll probably have to skip, but the budesonide I still don't know about. The vet never called back, and they close in 40mins 🙄
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I always say that following instincts is always the best choice. you made a good choice, still test a couple of more times to be safe, and then tomorrow is another day , You are doing Awesome Bee is blessed to have you, and I am sure by tomorrow you will have an answer about the medication and it's reaction to the BG and dossing advice, please post if you need us, you are never alone in this Forum. :bighug: 🫶
 
I am still here, but I will also check in tomorrow morning I give Corky's AMPS is at 6:00AM (ET) so make sure to post any other BG numbers you have, hugs to you and Bee
 
Thank you so so much ❤ I will test him again and post the results at 6, 7, and 8pm. I feel like maybe I should go ahead and give him half of his budesonide, but hmm.
 
Since he did not go below 90, and you are following SLGS, his dose remains the same. I suspect that what you are seeing is the 1.5 unit dose finally kicking in. The budesonide should not lower his numbers, and for some cat may in fact increase them. Though it didn't impact Neko's numbers at all. ECID. I think you can give the budesonide.

Note, unlike what was stated above, the Lantus depot doesn't need 5-7 days to build, except when starting Lantus.

I suspect he was breaking a bounce last night, which is why you saw that lower number in the AM today.
 
Thank you for clarifying Wendy, I tried to help the best I could ,,I thought the the Depo was the same thru each shot, always learning, thanks
 
Currently at 116. I did give half a budesonide at 6p. The vet called back at 6:20, I updated them, and they said they'd check in tomorrow. I think if he's over 150 in the morning, I'll feel pretty safe giving his 1.5u dose. I guessing he will be closer to 200, but we will see.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
Since he did not go below 90, and you are following SLGS, his dose remains the same. I suspect that what you are seeing is the 1.5 unit dose finally kicking in. The budesonide should not lower his numbers, and for some cat may in fact increase them. Though it didn't impact Neko's numbers at all. ECID. I think you can give the budesonide.

Note, unlike what was stated above, the Lantus depot doesn't need 5-7 days to build, except when starting Lantus.

I suspect he was breaking a bounce last night, which is why you saw that lower number in i
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Thank you for replying! I really wish he would have a day like this when I can monitor him, 112 was SO different than what he's been recently, it's so hard to just trust and dose him.
I had been thinking about raising him again since he's rarely under 200 recently, but now I'm not sure? I need to go refresh on the SLGS info again, I can't remember how long I should wait between dose changes, if I don't see results...was it 3 test cycles or something? He's so unpredictable, it's frustrating!
 
Alright, finally climbing a bit, 155 at 8p. Time for bed for me and Bee, 3a comes quick...
Thanks everyone for the support, sincerely.
 
Merfles said:
I had been thinking about raising him again since he's rarely under 200 recently, but now I'm not sure?
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Stick with 1.5 units for a bit yet, with SLGS you stay with the dose if he's seeing nadirs in the 90-149 range. If he drifts above that for nadirs, then consider the increase.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
Stick with 1.5 units for a bit yet, with SLGS you stay with the dose if he's seeing nadirs in the 90-149 range. If he drifts above that for nadirs, then consider the increase.
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His nadirs (well as close as I can do with my schedule, I test at 5hrs) haven't been below 200 for a while, but I had to hold off on upping him due to a trip. I finally do, and he's super high and then all the sudden he's at 112 and 93. He has a history of being too high, then I change his dose, and he's then too low after a week, so I lower him, rinse and repeat. I can't make sense of it. Maybe I'm just being overly cautious about it, I don't know?
 
Merfles said:
His nadirs (well as close as I can do with my schedule, I test at 5hrs) haven't been below 200 for a while, but I had to hold off on upping him due to a trip. I finally do, and he's super high and then all the sudden he's at 112 and 93. He has a history of being too high, then I change his dose, and he's then too low after a week, so I lower him, rinse and repeat. I can't make sense of it. Maybe I'm just being overly cautious about it, I don't know?
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Keep the dose as Wendy explained, it takes a bit
 
Checking in , as we knew her AMPS was going to as we see it high, Bell will be bouncing so let her go thru that by tomorrow she’ll be stable
 
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Bee is doing great and so are you, don't worry about HYPO, remember non- diabetic cats' glucose level is between 50-120, even when she hits low 2 digits she will be ok we like to raise the BG if needed first with low carbs, 1/2tsp every 1/2 hour and test, repeat, at least for 1 1/2 hour, if it continues to dive down then we use medium carb food first, then high carbs if necessary using the same procedure, feed 1 tsp medium carbs wait 1/2 hour test, and repeat, you do not want to give too much medium or high carbs or honey or syrup from the start of a low BG, unless she goes 50 or under, then you rub some honey or Karo on the gums, just a little bit, if given too much carbs, you will very high BG's and unstable Bee, we don't want this, if you come across hypo unexpectedly, post us with a red 911(drop down window) on a new thread and title it NEED HELP ON HYPO, I am sure a member will plug quicky
and we can be there for you a step at a time, you will not be alone. being positive is a good sign to help you get confidence, is a trial-and-error process, that's how we learn, we have all felt scared inadequate, are we doing something wrong? posting all your concerns here, makes it much easier to feel confident if you have doubts,You are doing Great!
 
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