Thanks All,
Here goes nothing...this is going to be a long story.
Desi: I always wanted to know how you folks added urls to your posts. Now I can go back and review this thread when needed!
The following is a list of food a friend picked up for me; I don't know if it's all "do-able". He printed out Binky's list, did the shopping, and stuck post-its with the carb % on each can. I asked for a variety, since unfortunately, I don't know Marilyn's, or Clark's, favorites in advance. Is #4 (SC Flaked w/Tuna & Egg in Sauce) the best option here? Any of these need to go in the diabetic cabinet, instead of the "hypo kit"?
1. Authority Pate Ocean Fish Recipe - 3 oz. - 11% carbs
2. Fancy Feast Chicken Feast in Gravy Grilled - 3oz - ? - Not on list
3. Fancy Feast Turkey Feast in Gravy Grilled - 3 oz - ? - Not on list
4. SophistaCat Flaked with Tuna & Egg in Sauce - 5.5 oz - 16% carbs
5. SophistaCat Supreme Flaked Tuna Dinner - 3 oz - he says it's 14% carbs; best I can tell, it's 4%
DD & Tinkerbell said:
DUH! I was looking for her 11/24 condo, didn't even think to check Marilyn's SS.
What is this "condo" I keep seeing in threads? I thought it was a place to live with no lawn maintenance. Seriously, what is it?
carlinsc said:
This dance is freaking fun, isn't it?
Yes Carl, I can't remember when I've had so much fun...OMG, this "shelter" is WAY understaffed...please send help.
carlinsc said:
On the one hand, you have Marilyn who has decided that for some reason, the 2.0 units of Humulin is going to be working "better" than it has been.
At $25 per 10 mL vile, I was hoping the Humulin would work. The thing is, Marilyn only decided the Humulin was going to work better for that one cycle. It still doesn't make sense to me. If she decided it was going to continue to work better, we might have been able to swing it, even if I had to try TID...although, TID would more than likely kill me. It was that one cycle that scared me. Has anyone looked at Marilyn's 12-Hr. curve graphs that are on separate tabs of her SS? They take a while to load on google docs. If I could have gotten that "curve" nicer...lower down on the graph in the numbers game...maybe she would have done okay with Humulin? Who the heck knows what Clark's numbers looked like...talk about scared. He still isn't "right", even though he is OTJ...I'm thinking there is some permanent damage. He's just not my "Boo Boo" anymore. I miss the old "him", and I feel horrible about what he went through.
carlinsc said:
On the other hand, you have Clark, and his spreadsheet couldn't look any better!
There's something really frightening about Clark's situation, that I have yet to piece together in writing. Clark started declining in March, but I couldn't deal with him then, since my Dad was dying (oh my, my new vet has thrown me into such a tailspin, I just keep bursting out in tears with no warning). When I took him to the Vet for blood labs on 4/28/11, due to his weight loss (which started in March), and overall decline in health, I asked her to look at his mouth. I told her that his "mouth" seemed to be bothering him...she forgot to look, and I forgot to ask a second time (I don't see well enough to detect dental issues on my own). He went in for insulin "regulation" after his lab results came back with the high glucose. I was grumbling about his "episodes" for months to follow. When I grumbled long enough, she told me to bring him in for a fruct. While there for the fruct, on 10/13/11, I asked her to check his mouth...it was bothering him more than previously. This time she checked, and he had a horrible abscess, plus a broken tooth. He had 4-tooth extractions a few days later, which left him with one remaining...a K-9 that they probably should have also pulled, since now it's bothering him due to the lack of any other teeth. It's like it's throwing his jaw off, or poking him in the bottom gum. Anyway, doesn't an infection cause the BG to increase? Is it possible he was never diabetic in the first place, or it was induced by the infection, and temporary? I really would like to understand this better; I've just been too busy with Marilyn. Any thoughts? Is Clark really a Humulin success story? Am I beating a dead horse?
Hillary & Maui said:
I'll make this very easy for you - Fancy Feast now has a gravy lovers option - buy that and you will have all the high carb you need!
Is this what it's called? Fancy Feast Gravy Lover's? Is it a can, or a pouch?
BJM said:
Yes, we've found a number of vets worth their weight in ... coal. And if our incendiary thoughts would just ignite them, we'd probably feel better, at least temporarily.
That is really very funny...too bad I'm too insane to thoroughly enjoy it. I'm going to apologize in advance; but I just can't get past yesterday. I have spent 2 months transitioning 12 animals from my vet of 12-years. It's such an overwhelming undertaking, I didn't know where to begin. I promised myself I wouldn't bad-mouth my vets, since I can be quite the handful when my anxiety gets the better of me...and being "vet-less" with 12 ailing pets, is nothing, if not a huge whirlwind of anxiety. You all know how many questions I consistently ask...but I am tired of over-analyzing my own behavior, and letting others' get away with murder, simply because I am at their mercy. Just obtaining their so-called medical records was like pulling teeth (no pun intended), and took over a month. Fast forward to "vet" #2...I've known her for about 3-weeks, and have already spent $700. It's not like she's performed a surgery, or something; this dollar amount consists of blood labs, physical exams, rabies vaccines (more to come, they weren't all done), and Rx foods. It will be an endless boost to her income...but maybe I am spoiled and don't realize what a bargain I'm receiving.
When I called her yesterday to tell her about Marilyn's BG drop on Thanksgiving, and to ask for Lantus, she readily complied. So I know you are all happy with that aspect. I asked her to fax me the Rx, but she wanted to call it in; so I chose Walmart, since that's where the Humulin was cheapest. Then I thought I would give Rite-Aid a call just to make sure I made a good snap decision. Rite-Aid said the Lantus was $139, OR $11.82 using the Saving's Card...what? The Rite-Aid person couldn't believe it either. She said the only way to find out how it would "ring-up" was if the vet called in the Rx, so she could put the order through. How could I let this go, without finding out for certain? Therefore, I called the vet back and left a message on her answering machine. The vet calls me back and says she's called it in to Rite-Aid, and I need to make-up my mind since Walmart is waiting for her to call them back...and she sounds pissed (Why? I told her to fax me the Rx to begin with). I begin to tell her that we should probably clear-up the other issues (with other animals) in this phone call, so I won't have to call her next week. She dx'd one cat with arthritis, and sold me Glyco-Flex for $15, that the cat won't touch...along with 5 other cats who also acted like it's poison. I asked if she could order Dasuquin for me (as long as it was under $21 per bottle; the best internet price I could find, that would require an Rx). She already knew I use Dasuquin for 3 other cats, but she doesn't carry it, so she pushed the Glyco-Flex instead. Apparently, she's not impressed that I can conduct my own trials here. Sub-par products won't fly; you can't blame something on one finicky feline...
...So I say, "I realize you're getting aggravated, but"...and that's all the opening she needed. She interrupted me, FLIPPED OUT, and told me that I have called her 8 times (I called her twice, and she called me once; which I pointed out later...since I can actually count), and I am "nickeling & diming" her to death, and her "time is valuable". So I stopped her "mid-flip-out", and reminded her that she never wrote me a Rx for the IBD cat who is wasting away. My dog who isn't eating, or feeling well, who I found a deer tick on, but showed negative on her $40 Lyme test, will need further blood work. I told her I needed to know, RIGHT NOW, if this isn't going to work out...and I went on, and on, until I was in tears...she then meekly asked for my fax number, for the IBD cat's food Rx.
Rock and a hard place; that's where I am. I can't possibly continue using her, but I just don't have the energy to start this transition over again...so soon. Okay, I've mentally & physically exhausted myself again, which is why I left vet #1 in the first place...where I paid "cost" for everything. As little money as I have, my peace & sanity, are always more important. I can't pull any of this off without my peace and sanity; I don't care how much it costs. It is also important for my vet to be more level headed, and much smarter than me...she should also be able to count to three, and not confuse it with eight.
If one person, with one sick pet calls the vet...what do think...4 to 6 times a year? Maybe more? Times that by 12, and you can expect to hear from me once a week, minimally. But, how can she figure that out, if she can't differentiate between 3 and 8 calls in a couple of hours? It might seem like 8 calls to the dramatic, apparently hysterical type...but the $700 in 3-weeks, felt like $2,000, and yet I still thanked her for such reasonable prices...I must be insane. She can't just go through the motions and collect her money. You have to understand, I don't just have 2-Diabetic cats; it's much more extensive than that. I honestly can't do this anymore without a thinking, competent, concerned vet.
So now I'm almost through Marilyn's first 12-hr curve using Lantus. It might be too soon for a curve, but I'm not comfortable with a new insulin, without a full set of numbers. I don't know how I'll sleep tonight...I need to sleep. I'll update her SS eventually.
BJM said:
So, breathe. Stretch a bit. Do what you need to release some tension.
I started replying to posts in the middle of the night. That is totally out of character for me, and probably not very helpful to the poster's, but apparently, it helped take my mind off my own stuff, so I just rolled with it.
Do I still post here, or have I been booted to the Lantus board? Guide me please...and please, be gentle.
Hugs & Kisses...I figure I owe you that after this agonizing post.
Deb
