Worried mom

[Suzzie]

Mickey my 13 year old boy was diagnosed about 5 months ago. He's been having insulin shots twice a day.
on Wednesday he went and spent the day at the vet's for a curve. When I went to pick him up that evening instead of just giving me my boy, I was asked to wait to speak with the Doctor. This scared me. Then she told me he was in remission that he no longer needs the insulin. She told me not to throw away the insulin that it's very possible that it could come back. Needless to say my husband and I were thrilled. I was wondering if he should have been weined off the insulin. I've noticed that he is drinking a lot of water again. Not as much as when he was first diagnosed, but a lot more then he has been. This really worries me. Although we are thrilled for the good news I want to be doing the best I can for my litter gjy. I don't want to throw away all the good work we have been doing to get him to this point. If anyone has any experience with this I would love the feedback . Thank you... Suzzie in MA

 

[Diana&Tom]

Are you testing blood glucose at home? That's the only way to see what bg is at any one time and whether a kitty is indeed in remission. Drinking more than usual can be a sign that bg is high again and if so you should probably re-start insulin... but you do need to test first.

 

[Squeaky and KT (GA)]

First, Welcome! There are a lot of things that roll into that question - type of insulin, amount of doses, test curves and your gut is telling you right - to get a strong remission, you usually need to work from large doses down to smaller ones to drops then off. That said, a cat's pancreas CAN heal - there's a chance over this 5 months that it has but you can't tell just by 'clinical' signs such as drinking. Let's get you home testing and be sure you DO have a good remission.

I'm tagging one of our 'welcome' members to help you get everything set up so we can help you keep him rolling safely!

@Idjit's mom -

 

[Idjit's mom]

Hi Suzzie, I replied to your Introduction post. Diana is right, testing is the only way you are going to be able to see, real time, what Mickey's blood sugar is. Our Idjit is in remission and I know now that I did not wean him off correctly from insulin. Mickey has only been off insulin for a few days, and you have the opportunity to get the strongest remission possible. Best thing going forward is to test now and see what Mickey is doing.

We can help you with choosing testing supplies and learn to test, so you know exactly where you stand and know the next steps to take.
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/hometesting-links-and-tips.287/

Many of us use the Walmart brand ReliOn Prime meter and strips, because they are readily available and cost effective. Lancets are very inexpensive and other supplies like cotton balls, petroleum jelly, and a pain relief ointment are also not expensive.

We know that we are going to be testing Idjit's blood sugar for the rest of his life, so that if he falls out of remission we will know and be able to take action before the situation gets worse.

It would help us if you would create a signature so that Mickey's pertinent information is available whenever you post.
Setting up your signature (light grey text under a post). Here's how:
click on your name in the upper right corner of this page
click on "signature" in the menu that drops down
type the following in the box that opens: kitty's name/age/date of diabetes diagnosis/insulin you're using and dosage amount /glucose meter you're using/what (s)he eats/any other meds or health issues (s)he has. You can add your name, and a geographic location (sometimes the time zone matters) Be sure to SAVE when you are finished.

We also use a spreadsheet to record insulin and testing data, so that you will see how the trends and patterns emerge, and members can review his progress before offering suggestions or advice.
Here are links to setting up the spreadsheet and how to understand the information you will input:
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/understanding-the-spreadsheet-grid.156606/

I am so glad you found FDMB and will let us help you get Mickey OTJ (off the juice) for as long as possible. Many kitties can stay in remission for years!