Smiffy's July/August progress

Discussion in 'Feline Health - (Welcome & Main Forum)' started by Looby & Smiffy, Jul 23, 2016.

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  1. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    @MrWorfMen's Mom @Alexi @Bonzo @Woodsywife @Carol and Rosie (Beaka) @Capoo @Marlena

    I am starting a new thread for Smiffy.

    You are familiar with her story but for the benefit of others with cats also on Caninsulin that want to follow Smiffy and your advice to me. here is recap first of her last trip to the Vet:

    This is how Smiffy's July trip to the Vet 13th July went:

    She thought that Smiffy was doing very well but couldn't say if she was heading for remission but that her numbers were (as we already know) in a much better range now.

    They showed that she is doing well on Caninsulin, it seems to last longer in her than in most cats and there is no reason to change to another insulin at the moment - but the option was there for me if I wanted it now or in the future.

    She is pleased too that she is testing negative for keytones and that she is generally well and back to her old self.

    Her blood pressure under stress at the Vets was 140 I think she said but 'normal' and her slight murmur had not got any worse.

    Smiffy has lost 0.1 KG (!) in a month which is better than nothing (Smiffy doesn't eat more than about 70g of her dry food Hills m/d per day so she is stilll on the slimming portion but I let her graze on it until about +7 so that it is there to snack on if she gets low BG).

    She told me to continue to do preshot tests and approximate Nadir shots wherever I can and any other tests I feel necessary.

    She told me to carry on with the plan which is not to inject if she is under 10, to give her 1 unit if she is between 10 and 14 and 1 1/2 if she is higher.

    So that's it really .... just that she is and I am doing very well and improving and to keep up the good work

    She sees no need to see her again for 3 months unless of course something happens and Roberta is always there if i need help.




    So there you go @JanetNJ :)

    Smiffy's preshot this morning was back up to 15 this morning but it is a very hot day and we have established that she is affected by the heat .....

    The pen needle went in fine but toady for the first time in ages Smiffy has lashed out at me but she is in a bad mood anyway because there is a toddler next door screaming and she can't sit in peace in our back garden poor thing.

    Her preshot last night was 14.2 and +3 10.4 so as MrWorfmen's Mom (Linda) has suggested on the last thread I am going to give Smiffy one and a half units instead of one this evening if her preshot is over 14 to try to get these numbers back down a bit.

    Have a look at Smiffy's spreadsheet JanetNJ to see what I mean ......

    Thanks again for your ongoing support and advice - Smiffy is very grateful and needs you as Mummy relies on you here as she doesn't get out of the house so this is her lifeline for looking after me :)
     
    Last edited: Jul 23, 2016
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  2. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    Well we had a cooler day yesterday and Smiffy's numbers went down .... now the heat is back on her numbers are higher so there is defnitely a correlation between Smiffy's numbers and the weather .....

    I am looking forward to hopefully giving her one and a half units tonight so see what effect it will have ...
     
  3. MrWorfMen's Mom

    MrWorfMen's Mom Well-Known Member

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    Hey Looby, it's hotter than Hades here today. Feels like 35C/95F with the humidity and it's expected to hit 36C/97F. My girl's curve is totally upside down today! I'm wearing a bald patch on my head trying to figure her out so I'm going with the heat too!:D We'll see how Smiffy does tonight with the extra boost of insulin and hopefully slightly cooler temps!
     
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  4. manxcat419

    manxcat419 Well-Known Member

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    This all sounds very positive Looby! I love the vet report - and what an awesome blood pressure result. 110-160 is normal range for cats, so Smiffy is right in the middle of normal even with vet stress (many cats suffer from white coat syndrome and I know I'm always recommended to take 20 points off Rosa's reading because of that, though she did manage a couple of 140s recently while she was hospitalized too). And I love your spreadsheet - look at all those tests you're getting done these days! :) While you do, of course, want to get Smiffy's numbers down just a touch still, it is definitely true that some cats are affected by excess heat...it's odd because every cat I've ever owned has actively looked for the warmest places to sleep, but they do reach a point where it's too much even for them. And I notice you have a note about a hairball a few days ago too - those can also affect readings and it is hairball season with the warmer weather.

    Hopefully the slightly higher dose will get Smiffy back into the range you want her to be in. She really did have a lovely few days with those blue numbers before the weather got too hot for her, so seeing those back would be great. :) I wouldn't worry too much about Smiffy lashing out at you this morning - their bad moods do tend to get taken out on us because they know we'll forgive them. I had a similar situation with Roxi yesterday - she's been really good about getting her shots, but we had guys here yesterday replacing the windows so all the cats were shut in one room...and I had to somehow get her shot into her while she was snaking her head around trying to bite me because she was furious that she didn't have the run of the house as usual! The important thing is that you got it done...Smiffy will get over her bad mood and she'll do it better with some insulin on board stopping her numbers going too high.
     
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  5. Alexi

    Alexi Member

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    Apr 10, 2016
    Looking good - I think she will be able to cope with a 1.5u dose tonight and if you can get some readings later on it will be interesting to see her response to that.
     
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  6. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    Oh goodness .... I used to love the heat and lie out in the sun all day or garden in the sun but these days (but hopefully not for alwasys as I am going to get better gradually) I can't ake it .....poor cats ....Smiffy and Pasha are flat out ..... yes I hope I get to give her the 1.5 units tonight and stay awake to do the +3 reading :)
     
  7. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    Hello! It is so lovely to hear from you after a little while :)

    Yes Smiffy has been doing well and I am quite the expert now at testing and most of the time Smiffy doesn't mind too much as she gets a nice treat each time! I even manage to give her her arthritis chew in a pill pocket each day disguised as a treat when I do her afternoon reading.

    Smiffy is definitey very responsive to things that are going on albeit weather or a dog in the back garden (hence one of the purple numbers!) - even last night when she got half her poo stuck to her and ran through the house with it still attached to her bottom by a bit of grass I think may have elevated her number a bit - she was visibly embarrassed that I had to wipe her and clear up but gave her a treat and her Daddy gave her lots of strokes :)

    I am really pleased that she has responded so well to Caninsulin and her numbers suggest that it lasts most of her cycle so she is one of the lucky cats. Of course if one day there was cause to change her to Glargine (Lantus) I would not hesitate but for now there is no point trying to fix something that is not broken.]

    How are your two cats - or do you have more than two?

    I am so pleased to see you here again :)
     
  8. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    Thank you Alexi :)
     
  9. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    Right here we are and DH got home late so it is 10.10pm half an hour later for Smiffy's shot ....

    Have just carried in her from the garden and she is preshot 13.5 so not sure whether go give her the 1.5 units or not as the plan was one unit with a preshot between 10 and 14.

    Think it depends how much she eats .. Pasha is still out so Smiffy is distracted but she must be hungry so here goes .... good she is eating ....

    If I give her 1.5 on this number I had better be around for +3 to test her which is going to be 1.30ish am ...... even if I don't test her I will have to check on her ... so far so good and she is eating well - in the bathroom though :)

    Patience .. dum di dum dum dum ..... oopps stopped eating ... more dried chicken on top ....... that's working .... di dum di dum di dum dum ..... she has eaten well and will probably come back for more later ...... I'm going to go for the 1.5 units ...... done ..... I can go and relax now for three hours - back later!

    +3 is 11.3 ...... now that is higher than yesterday preshot 14.2 +3 10.4! Mmmmmmmm she has eaten more? And just had a snack? Not what I was expecting at all - much higher .... humph!

    Maybe I should review my plan and give her 1.5 if she is over 12 at night (instead of 14ish)? Especially if I leave her food out ....

    Will try for a +4 if I don't fall asleep .... it's so hot here - melting .... ughhh.
     
    Last edited: Jul 23, 2016
  10. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    Well +4.5 tonight was 10.6 so her Nadir tonight is more like +4 than +3 as it was last night.
     
  11. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    @MrWorfMen's Mom
    Now I am wondering why Smiffy is 15 preshot this morning and why the 1.5 units last night has not brought down her BGs? Do you all think it will take a bit of time? Patience I suppose.

    Giving her one unit this morning as usual .... she was very irritable with me again ...must be the hot weather still bothering her ......

    I offered her a treat and she ran away ... it's upsetting me a bit that she doesn't trust me .... she will get over it - still hurts every time she shuns me .....
     
    Last edited: Jul 24, 2016
  12. Alexi

    Alexi Member

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    Patience, patience and more patience, she will get there. Are you going to try another 1.5 units tonight?
     
  13. MrWorfMen's Mom

    MrWorfMen's Mom Well-Known Member

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    Alexi is right. Patience is key. Right now, Smiffy is a tad lower at PMPS than she is at AMPS and she didn't drop a lot on the 1.5u last night so it looks like you could safely give her 1.5u during the day cycle as long as her pre-shot is 14/15 and she is eating alright before her shot. Does she eat better at night than in the morning or does she just have fussy times periodically with no real way to gauge? Just asking because the hot weather sometimes puts appetite off and I would only try the 1.5u during the day if she is eating well that morning. This is just food for thought Looby. I know you'd like to see Smiffy's numbers down a bit more but as always, only do what you feel comfortable doing.
     
  14. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    Yes I will as long as she eats enough - you can see how comical in ways the whole ritual is for me each evening - hope that came across - she is so fickle and distracted when she eats :)
     
  15. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    That is exactly my problem .... she eats more in the evening as she is in the house ..... I would not give her 1.5 units in the morning as she hardly eats at that time - she is distracted by the idea of going out and knows that I am going to test her ....... I am so cool about testing her now - it comes as second nature to me now so I am not stressed about it with her - she is just a little tinker when it comes to being messed about with ........

    She is fractious at the moment because of the heat and a bit fed up that I have not taken her for a walk and sat with her in her favourite part of the garden that is some distance from the house ... it is way too humid and hot for me to sit out with her at the moment.

    You can see by my post from last night how comical it is to do her test and feed and shot in the evening .... it takes about half an hour! Hope you enjoyed the narrative? :) She then grazes quite a bit (more than during hte day) so that might have kept her BG up. I think once she has eaten a good amount tonight after her shot I will put the food away so that she is a bit ore hungry in the morning then I could consider giving a morning 1.5 for the time being it is safer to do it in the evening.

    I know I have to be patient ... her low numbers didn't happen straight way last time we upped her dose to 1.5.

    I will definitley give her 1.5 units again tonight. You don't think after all that Capoo is right and that here is something wrong with the pen ... no there can't be as I did a shot into the sink and it was fine and sher BG would not be going down at all after a shot if is was not working ..... a good amount of insulin came out when I shot 1.5 units into the sink.

    Oh bless her she is here wanting to go for a walk ..... I can go out there just to water the greenhouses but I feel too hot and anxious at the moment to stay down there .... she won't go there on her own .... we are so alike :)

    Just as an aside - my computer (or the server or something!) is a bit weird with this site because I had to check to see if there were any posts .... my inbox on yahoo told me that here was one message from Alexi but you didn't come up and when I get on to this site the red alert box takes ages to come up? Also I can be typing something to sombody in a post and then there is a band that says I have a an alert and I have to repeat myself ..... could that be due to my server being slow? Doesn't matter if you don't know .....

    It's strange and difficult for me to keep track of all the alerts as they are not all listed for example there is no record in the alerts of manxcat's alert yesterday ..... don't know how to put this right - I am going to miss alerts if I can't put this right .....
     
    Last edited: Jul 24, 2016
  16. MrWorfMen's Mom

    MrWorfMen's Mom Well-Known Member

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    Looby, the alerts and the timing of them is pretty much the same for everyone. The timing of your alerts or email notifications could be affected to some degree by your internet provider, your connection to the provider and just how busy the server on which the software for this board is at the time. We all experience those delays and yes it can be frustrating but I find that my best solution to see if there are more messages since I started typing mine, is to use the refresh button on your browser. Not a perfect solution by any means, but it has alerted me to messages with the little red alert number on the site far faster than waiting to see an email alert. Sometimes you will get that bar telling you someone else has posted and you can click on that and see what they wrote without losing your incomplete message. You'll often see two people posting on a thread at exactly the same time giving much the same info. It's not because people intentionally parrot stuff or repeat the same info but because the transmissions are not all the same speed and certainly not instantaneous. The joys of electronic communications that we just have to learn to deal with.

    If Smiffy is not eating enough in the mornings then sticking with the lower dose is probably better. Or if Mummy's up to it, maybe you could take her out for a quick breakfast picnic before it gets too hot to entice her to eat more! :woot: Then bring her back in and give her shot and she can do her "pouting" after breakfast and her shot.;) Can you tell I spoil my kitties? :p
     
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  17. manxcat419

    manxcat419 Well-Known Member

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    Smiffy definitely is doing very well! It's always lovely to hear about a cat doing so much better. Treats really do work a lot of the time - there are always some cats that don't want to know about them, but a little bribery works in a lot of cases! :)

    One of our cats is also very reactive to everything...some days she even seems to be scared of her own shadow and it really can be difficult to keep them calm enough. We're lucky because she's not one of the diabetics, but I can imagine only too well what that kind of reactiveness does to test numbers!

    I agree completely - if it's not broken, then there's no reason to fix it. The best insulin for Smiffy is the one that works for her. It's great that she does respond to the Caninsulin because it means you don't have to go through changing insulins at this point - it's not all that difficult to switch, but each insulin varies in the way it works so any switch is a new way of thinking to get used to.

    We have 4 cats here - Rosa, her twin Regan, Roxi and Licorice. Rosa has been really sick so I've only been here on and off recently, and really only looking at information without being all that active on posting a lot of the time.

    I wonder if it's a combination of the hot weather and Dawn Phenomenon - for a great number of cats, the AMPS reading is the very last one to drop towards the normal range as cats, just like humans, tend to have higher readings first thing in the morning. It's never a good thing to wake up to because of the higher number, but it is normal and knowing that can make it easier to be patient and see what happens later in the day. It does hurt when they have days when they don't want to know - I think a lot of cats go through times like that. Rosa would be really very good most of the time about testing, but then she'd have the odd day where she clearly just wanted to be left alone to do cat things. But she always got over it very quickly.
     
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  18. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    Yes I have to be patient and wait before I start to type ..... I don't know where my refresh button on my browser is?!

    Having said all that, I came here just now as I had an e-mail alert that you had messaged and the red box is showing two posts so it is now working again!

    Anyway the solution for me is to be patient and scrool up and down I think ....

    It is difficult to take her out for a walk in the morning because DH is about and Smiffy gets distracted by him so usually he stays out of the way when it is feeding and shot time as he does in the evening too - he just doesn't like to get involved and of course there is our lovely Pasha too .....

    So for the time being I will stick to the evening 1.5 shot and I will try putting her food away at about +5 in the evening so that she is more hungry in the morning ....

    I bet you DO spoil your cats ........ ours are spoiled too ....... they have all the best seats in the house and Pasah gets lots of cuddles .... Smiffy is not a cuddly cat as she spent a lot of time in cage rest when she was little when she dislocated her back knee .... it all happened at a crucial time and then we had to put her and Sally (no longer with us) in a big pen cattery for three months whilst we had our house renovated ....

    Our cats understand lots of words and meows .... Smiffy has over the last few years learned a few French phrases that she repsonds to :)
     
  19. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    Yes thanks for that ...... Smiffy is now all soft on me as and if butter wouldn't melt so she has forgiven me from this morning ...... so you mean that Smiffy is waking to a higher number and doesn't feel as well as she might otherwise do?

    Lovely names for your cats :) poor Rosa ... sending her healing and love ....

    Yes Smiffy seems her old self on Caninsulin so if I can get her numbers to how they were before the heat wave I will be happy ... if they don't budge with the increase to 1.5 units in the evening then I might have to rethink.

    Smiffy has always been a bit nervrous - doesn't like little people or other cats much and doesn't like other people in the house unless they are quietly spoken and flees for her life when the door goes bless her ...... I think she might have been a scard little kitten before we rescued her at 8 months.

    Now I KNOW WHO YOU ARE :)
     
    Last edited: Jul 24, 2016
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  20. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    @scoobydoox @Nederland @Kako & Tux

    Hello you three!

    I see that you have all experience of Caninsulin so wondered if you would pop in and see Smiffy and I from time to time?

    Hope your puss cats are doing well :)
     
  21. manxcat419

    manxcat419 Well-Known Member

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    Pretty much, yes. Even non-diabetic cats are likely to have a slightly higher number first thing in the morning and for a diabetic who is running a little above normal range anyway, that and the heat could definitely be affecting how she feels until her shot takes effect. :)

    Thank you for the kind thoughts for Rosa - she is having a rough time, but we're doing our very best to get her through it all!

    I would give Smiffy a few days and see what happens with her numbers - even with an in and out insulin, you don't want to increase too fast...the last thing you need is to be chasing the numbers on the way down especially the days she isn't eating as much!

    Regan is very much like Smiffy in that respect - everything scares her. If anyone raises their voice at all, she runs...and if the doorbell rings, she runs away growling and hides! But with nervous cats, we can definitely give them a much happier life by understanding that they're nervous and being careful with them...just as you are with Smiffy. :)

    Yes, it's me! :D I haven't been on here as much recently with all that's been going on with Rosa, but I'll make sure to look in on your posts here now as well as on Facebook. :)
     
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  22. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    Apr 8, 2016
    Well I have had to carry Smiffy in kicking and screaming tonight to be tested and she was hissing like mad poor thing ...

    She is preshot 13.8 so I am going to try 1.5 units and make sure I get a +3 number and if possible a +4 number ... last night her +4 was lower tahn the +3.

    She is eating so that is the third hurdle over ..... patience ....... I have had to give her her bowl by the bathroom door that opens onto the garden and she is distracted .... oh she is back eating now .... stopped eating for the second time ... she likes to graze really ... oh eating again ..... I think her number is high enough and she has eaten enough for me to shoot her now ..... I will leave plenty of food out for her until about +7 ......

    That was a bit strange! I know I turned the pen to 1.5 units but the sliding shooter didn't make the same click as usual ... will have to put that in her notes ... will soon find out later if I actually gave her a shot ... nearly gave it to her twice - I messed up maybe ... damn ... oh well it's just one evening ... back later ...
     
  23. Callie & Patches

    Callie & Patches Well-Known Member

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    Jun 18, 2016
    Well, it's better that she gets no shot than 2. I guess you will just have to keep an eye on her.
     
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  24. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    Apr 8, 2016
    The shot of 1.5 units tonight was a success after all ... to recap her preshot was 13.8 and her +3 is 8.7 and her +4 was 9.4

    This is great!

    This is with a good amount of food eaten before the shot and she grazed a bit around her Nadir which tonight seems to have been at +3.

    This also means that I would not risk giving her the 1.5 unit dose in the morning when Smiffy doesn't eat as much.

    It will be interesting to see now after these good readings what her readings are like in the morning .... if she is below 10 I will not give her a shot, if she is between 10 and 12 I will give her 0.5 unit and if she is 12 or over I will give her 1 unit ...sounds like a plan @Alexi?

    I ask you in particular because you are also using Caninsulin but value the opinion of the rest of you too of course :)

    I am really pleased with these numbers @manxcat419 and @MrWorfMen's Mom :)

    @Capoo As a result of these readings I am now convinced that there is nothing wrong with Smiffy's Caninsulin pen but thanks again for making me aware of the possibility :)
     
    Last edited: Jul 24, 2016
  25. Callie & Patches

    Callie & Patches Well-Known Member

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    That's great news. I hope tomorrow morning will be as good and that withholding some of her food tonight will perk up her appetite.
     
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  26. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    Lets hope so Donna Thank you ..
    You must tell me more about your Diabetic kitty
     
  27. Callie & Patches

    Callie & Patches Well-Known Member

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    Callie and her twin brother were born under a shed in our back yard to a feral mother that wouldn't let anyone near her. My granddaughter spent hours taming the kittens who moved inside to live with our other cats. They are just loving sweet cats, spoiled by my granddaughters. I was away taking care of my
    mom for several months when my hubby said he thought Callie had diabetes. I took her to the vet and it was confermed. I feel bad because we missed those months when we could have treated her earlier. She seems to be snapping back to her old self.
     
    Last edited: Jul 24, 2016
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  28. manxcat419

    manxcat419 Well-Known Member

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    What an awesome evening Smiffy's had Looby! :) I love those lower numbers on her. I'm so glad you didn't attempt the shot a second time - with or without the usual click from the pen, she definitely got that dose tonight! I agree, your Caninsulin pen is working just fine to get her down so much on tonight's cycle. :)
     
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  29. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    Last edited: Jul 25, 2016
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  30. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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  31. Olive & Paula

    Olive & Paula Well-Known Member

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    I did this time. Nice yellows. I see some blues too. Question though-did you give less this morning?
     
  32. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    Yes I only give her one unit in the morning as I am not around for her Nadir to keep an eye on her ...

    A few weeks ago she was in the 13s and 14s all day long so I discussed raising her dose a bit with her new Vet Roberta ...... we already know that 2 units twice a day is too much for her as she had two hypos and I was reluctant to raise the dose to 1.5 units morning and night becauase I am not around so we agreed to see what would happen if I just upped her dose in the evening when I can keep an eye on her - especially around her Nadir which seems to be at +3

    Her numbers went into the blues and she didn't seem to need the 1.5 in the morning so all was well - she was even below 10 evening preshot so I didnt't have to give her any insulin... and the most I needed to give her was one unit morning or night .... Robert said below 10 no shot, between 10 and 14 one unit and above that 1.5 units

    But then her numbers went up again as soon as the heat wave came along and her numbers have gone up again until the last couple of nights when I have given her 1.5 units and her numbers are gradually going down a bit last night and today.

    I am at a stage now where I HAVE to do a preshot test now to decide what dose to give her in the evening.

    I won't give her 1.5 units in the morning unless she is a good 14 or over.

    It seems to be working for her so far .....

    I may have to start adjusting her morning number if she is say just over 10 and give her just 0.5 units ....

    I'm at the see how it goes stage with her now

    Do you ever give Smokey a different dose in the morning to the evening?

    Poor Smokey ... looks as if he has a lot of problems .... you must be a great Mum to keep him well as you do :)
     
  33. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    Awww that's a sweet story ..... good job she has you now to look after her .....

    Just looked at her spreadsheet - the last few days she has had some good blue numbers ...... I see you vary her dose a lot .... I have got to the stage where I vary the dose a bit now as you can see ....

    Mostly in the past her numbers seem to jump around a lot don't they? Do you think she is finally becoming more stabalised now?

    Smiffy is very reactive to her environment .... she saw a dog the other dayd and she shot up to a purple number!
     
  34. Olive & Paula

    Olive & Paula Well-Known Member

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    Will be interesting to see how he does. I never gave different doses. I asked vet a long time ago when he dropped really overnight. He said sure give less at night. Then Smokey changed to lows during daytime. So I never did it. He does have some issues but seems to be holding his own for now. The heat and humidity doesn't help even with a/c on. I can't imagine not having it though.
     
  35. Olive & Paula

    Olive & Paula Well-Known Member

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    She got excited over the dog. I would understand if the blood pressure shot up but glucose????
     
  36. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    Yes ...... if you look at her spreadsheet - she had a 16.8 purple number! I tested her when we came in from the garden just to see if it had made a difference and that was her reading!
     
  37. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

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    Apr 8, 2016
    @MrWorfMen's Mom @Alexi @manxcat419
    So Smiffy is preshot 13.9 this evening and she has eaten quite well and will graze so I am going to give her a 1.5 unit shot tonight and see what happens at +3 .....

    Her +3 tonight is 11.5 which compared to last night at 8.7 is really really disappointing ...... mmmmm wonder why - she is really realaxed and she hasn't eaten much?
     
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  38. MrWorfMen's Mom

    MrWorfMen's Mom Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Feb 18, 2015
    Maybe she is just having a bit of a delayed nadir tonight. Nadir's do move a bit for unknown reasons and that +3 is not really that much higher. I wouldn't worry about it.
     
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  39. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    Thanks Linda ....... she has retired for the night now so I am going to leave her for today .....

    Tomorrow is another day :)
     
  40. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    Let us know how you are getting on tomorrow.

    Hope the infection is getting sorted out?

    It would be interesting to see Callie's spreadsheet :)
     
  41. Callie & Patches

    Callie & Patches Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 18, 2016
    I tend to give a dose depending on her PS numbers. I am scared that she might go Hypo, especially when she has some low naders. We have had some bounces after low numbers.
     
  42. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    I am not surprised that you are afraid of hypos as they are very frightening - Smiffy has had two which were before I was testing her.

    I noticed that last night you have Callie's preshot number was in the blue range and you gave her 3 units which seems a bit high and then you had a low +2 number which may have gone on to be even lower at +3 which would be more the time of her Nadir (lowest point).

    But then you seem to have fairly high preshot numbers in the morning.

    I have been told here and by my Vet not to give any Caninsulin if Smiffy's number is below 10 (180).
    If she is between 10 and 14 (180 - 250) to give one unit or at the most 1.5 units
    And about 14 (250) to give 1.5 (Smiffy doesn't tend to go much higher ever than 300 now at any given time unless under a great deal of stress)

    I am wondering if your Vet might give you a similar sort of guide for Callie? I am just concerned that her doses might be a bit high when she has a preshot in the blue numbers?

    Also what does your Vet say about the rather broad range of numbers you are getting generally?

    I am sure it is nothing to worry about .... it is probably to do with the fact that Callie is still getting used to the Caninsulin but it might be worth asking the question.

    Are you able to show this spreadsheet to your Vet?
     
    Last edited: Jul 25, 2016
  43. manxcat419

    manxcat419 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jan 14, 2015
    I think Smiffy is doing fine tonight overall Looby. The numbers do tend to go up and down a bit - as long as she's not spiking really high or dropping really low, I wouldn't worry too much about day to day variation. It's difficult when you see a good run of blue numbers and then they have a day where they stay in the yellow range - we've all been there and it is disheartening, but as long as Smiffy is feeling good, the variation isn't enough to be worrying at the moment. :)
     
  44. manxcat419

    manxcat419 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jan 14, 2015
    I should also say, sorry for the delayed reply Looby. Our Roxi had a massive allergic reaction to the Advantage 2 we used on her this morning...a full on hyperventilating, raised temperature, bordering on hypo from her insulin reaction. So we had to rush her off to the vet who thought it might have been an infection, and then the ER vet who pinned it down to the flea treatment. She'll be in overnight so they can give her a bath and monitor her breathing, but she's going to be fine...it just meant I was offline for quite a while!
     
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  45. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    Oh my goodness .... glad she is going to be OK .... am just off to bed as it is nearly 4.30 am so let me know more about it and how she is tomorrow by FB message ......loads of hugs xxx
     
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  46. manxcat419

    manxcat419 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jan 14, 2015
    I will, and thank you for the thoughts for her. It was really quite terrifying - she was fine one minute and jumping and twitching and hyperventilating the next. So of course we checked her BG, which was low-ish at 54 US, but not dangerously low then figured it had to be something else and rushed her off to the vet! 3 hours and $600 later, at least we know she will recover. :)
     
  47. MrWorfMen's Mom

    MrWorfMen's Mom Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Feb 18, 2015
    @manxcat419 Oh April. you really have had your hands full lately. When it rains it pours! Glad to hear Roxi will be fine but that must have been terrifying for you! Keep us posted!:bighug::bighug:
     
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  48. manxcat419

    manxcat419 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jan 14, 2015
    Thank you Linda. We were really worried about her for a bit - especially when our regular vet said her temperature was over 104! Apparently it was all part of the reaction and it came right back down an hour later, but they were talking about ultrasounds and chest x-rays and IVs for a bit until they figured it all out! I will let you know how she's doing tomorrow, though we're not expecting any long term effects fortunately. :)
     
  49. Marlena

    Marlena Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Nov 25, 2015
    April,
    really sorry to hear about your horrific experience! So glad you avoided all the testing which would be stressful for Roxi and would cost you a lot of money!
    I don't know if you like more natural and harmless treatment but after reading this I would like to tell you what I do with my pets (I really hate strong chemicals to kill flees):
    I USE DIATOMATEOUS EARTH and even with the very hot summer we are having I haven't seen any flees!
    Please google it, I can provide more information if you are interested.
    Could others please share how they deal with flees in more holistic way.
    Hugs to everybody,
    Marlena
     
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  50. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    Wooooooooo Smiffy is 16.8 this morning preshot ... going to risk a 1.5 unit I think!
     
  51. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    Good idea Marlena - best to start a separate thread for that on the main forum so that people will know where to find the information don't you think?

    This thread is about Smiffy's progress and I am trying to keep it on track this time as the last two threads about her have gone off at at tangent.

    I would be really intereseted to see what people think of flea treatment and when and if and how often it is necessary .... will look forward to reading the new thread.

    Hope you don't mind me suggesting this @manxcat419 ...... I know you will understand :)

    In the meantime we are all holding our breath to find out how Roxi is on Facebook xxx
     
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  52. Olive & Paula

    Olive & Paula Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Sep 6, 2015
    So sorry to hear about the reaction and glad everything will be okay. I have been told and have read that if using prescription flea tick treatment on diabetic cats, Revolution is the only one to use. I've been using it long before I had Smokey. Since I don't get it from vet so not marked on records, a new intern was asking if I needed flea control and he is the second professional to tell me Smokey can only have revolution and if I didn't want that then use nothing on him. The civvies can have any brand. Personally I never thought about it or other things like shampoo, toothpaste etc. before FD.
     
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  53. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    Smiffy has gone from preshot 16.8 this morning to 9.2 at +5 on just one unit of Caninsulin!

    It is a great number but such a bit drop - her Nadir could have been earlier at +3.

    The fact that she didn't eat and I gave her her one unit shot and she dropped that much just shows you how careful you have to be with Caninsulin.

    Could it be that the 1.5 doses that I have given her recently in the evenings (with caution) have caught up with her?

    What do you think @Alexi in particular as you used Caninsulin I seem to remember and @MrWorfMen's Mom as you have been following her?

    Perhaps @scoobydoox you might have time to have a look at Smiffy's spreadsheet for me? Thanks.

    I am quite alarmed .....
     
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  54. Alexi

    Alexi Member

    Joined:
    Apr 10, 2016
    No need to be alarmed - it is a good number, her not eating much will have contributed as she normally does get quite flat curves but then she is a grazer, the aim is to try to get her into the blues mid cycle and you have achieved that. Will be interesting to see what her PMPS comes out at. As long as she doesn't drop too fast she will be fine. Cappuccino has had much bigger drops than that.
     
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  55. Olive & Paula

    Olive & Paula Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Sep 6, 2015
    That's a good number, nice blue. Will be interesting to see the PMPS number.
     
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  56. MrWorfMen's Mom

    MrWorfMen's Mom Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Feb 18, 2015
    No need for any alarm. That drop is a good one. It may look alarming to you because you've now become accustomed to the flatter cycles she has been having. ;) Yes she may have gone a bit lower at +3 but if she had gone significantly lower, I would not expect that nice surf through +5 and +6......I'd expect her to have shot up more. She's still a little higher than she was at +5 some days during that nice run of blues she had so completely safe.

    Do you leave food out overnight for Smiffy to graze on? Do you pick up the food at least two hours before pre-shot tests? Just wondering if that higher AMPS could be food influenced in any way and if that might explain Smiffy not being very hungry at test time this morning.

    She's looking good and as everyone else has said, it will be interesting to see what her PMPS is tonight. Right now it looks like she is surfing and surfing is a good thing.
     
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  57. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    Smiffy was 9.1 at +6 so she is dropping a bit and she is wanting to eat now quite a lot so her body is telling her something ..... will keep an eye on her ...

    Still don't understand the big drop from this morning ...... has to be that she didn't eat much - but why it was so unusually high is also a mystery ....
     
  58. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    Thanks Alexi - I am keeping an eye on her and testing her a bit more today ... she has just come in to eat quite a bit so I she knows when her body needs food ...... I want to put it away now so that she is hungry tonight before I decide what dose to give her ... don't know why it was so high this morning in the first place ... DH thinks it was because he was stressed and she felt it .......she didn't eat much last night either ... I tested the pen in the sink and it worked so I definitely think the pen is working.
     
  59. MrWorfMen's Mom

    MrWorfMen's Mom Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Feb 18, 2015
    Looby, Smiffy's +5 of 9.2 and +6 of 9.1 are really exactly the same number. Remember every meter has a variance allowance of 15-20% so either reading could have been up or down at bit from what was displayed. Right now Smiffy is neither dropping nor rising.....she's surfing and surfing in the blues is a wonderful thing to behold in our kitties! Rejoice and don't worry about that higher AMPS. Smiffy is regulating herself with the help of the insulin you give her so while that pink start isn't what you hoped for, it's not bad and to be expected from time to time. Smiffy may have dropped a bit more last night than you are aware of and that higher AMPS is just her way of getting back to numbers she is more accustomed to. Baffling I know but it's gonna happen.
     
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  60. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    I like the expression surfing - that means riding on level numbers?

    I usally leave her food out until about +7 or +8 so that she is hungry for her next shot am or pm.

    Strangely although I gave her the 1.5 shot last night thinking she would graze as she nornally does - she actually didn't eat much and was still not hungry this mornin.

    Pasha didn't eat this morning and I think Smiffy was following suit ... she is very jealous! If Pasah is eating then she will eat as well ....

    I get the cats in at night but Pasha was out a bit late and not there for feeding time so again Smiffy doesn't tend to want to eat alone :)
    I understand ....... still I worry after all these months!

    I look at other people's spreadsheets and actually Smiffy is doing really well by comparison and is a very healthy little cat besides the Diabetes ...

    Yes she is fine in herself - she looks so pretty and young and to think that her old Vet thought I coudn't look after her and that I could consider PTS!

    Will be interesting over the next few days to see how she goes ... I have taken the food away now so that she is hungry later and if she is around 14 I will give her 1.5 but much lower than that just one unit and obviously if below 10 not at all.

    Thanks Linda :)
     
  61. MrWorfMen's Mom

    MrWorfMen's Mom Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Feb 18, 2015
    Exactly! Sometimes folks even post pictures like this one to celebrate those surfs. animated-cat-image-0055.gif Surf those blues Smiffy!
    Ok the board should be blue but you and Smiffy get my drift! :woot::p

    The higher dose you give at night when her numbers warrant it, could cause her to stay in lower numbers longer but we don't know that for sure but that could explain the higher AMPS.

    Smiffy is doing very well and you've proven that old vet's suggestion of possibly considering drastic action was not reasonable. Sometimes when vets make suggestions like that is it a reflection of the vet's experience with diabetic cats and their caregivers in his practice and not necessarily based on the individual animal or their people. This is why your own observations and knowing your own cat and your own limitations/abilities with your pet is so very important for their wellbeing because you know Smiffy better than anyone else.
     
    Last edited: Jul 26, 2016
    Reason for edit: changed underlined "AMPS". Had mistakenly typed PMPS there.
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  62. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    LOVE IT :)

    I will carry that image of Smiffy in my mind :)

    I think you meant AMPS though didn't you?!

    I am proud of myself and of Smiffy :)

    It must have been devastating to have our diagnosis for Menace at only the age of 5 ......... are you still hoping for remission some day - it has been a long time now ...

    You are the only person who really understands that no matter what you try there some cats that just won't eat wet food!
     
  63. manxcat419

    manxcat419 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jan 14, 2015
    I think putting the information in a separate thread is an excellent idea Looby. That way anyone searching for information on flea treatments will be able to find it easily - and it does avoid derailing Smiffy's thread which was absolutely not my intention at all...I just wanted to explain why it had taken me so long to reply to you when I'd said I would take a look. Of course if anything's going to go wrong in our house it will happen just when I was planning to do something else, but I didn't want you to think I'd forgotten to take a look at Smiffy's progress.

    Anyway, let's not sidetrack Smiffy's awesome progress any further here...she's had a beautiful day. Those low 9s are really nice numbers for her, especially on her daytime cycle - she's still nice and safe, but it's lovely to see her in some blue numbers during the day. :) I may not be about much today - we're out most of the day - but I will look in when we get home this evening to see how the rest of the day goes for her. :)
     
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  64. MrWorfMen's Mom

    MrWorfMen's Mom Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Feb 18, 2015
    Yup. My bad!:blackeye::oops: I corrected it so no one reading this other than us, gets totally confused. :)

    Yes I admit I was devastated having Menace diagnosed so young. She was only 4 years old when diagnosed. But she also has a high dose condition called IAA. My vet, whom I adore, and is up to date on diabetes and very proactive treatment wise, tried to discourage me from spending money testing for IAA because it is considered rare. Funny enough, I think my vet worries about my pocketbook more than I do when it comes to my furkids. Anyway, my point is that my intuition told me something other than just diabetes was at play and I went with my gut rather than the vet's advice and proved my gut feeling was correct. Poor vet was astonished as she has never had a cat with the condition before, so we are learning together.

    As for the kibble addiction, I have been trying to transition Menace to wet food since I got her at 10 weeks old. She tries to bury wet food as if it's waste in the litter box. She even tries to bury her step brothers' food (the perfect diabetics diet ironically!:rolleyes:) if I sit a bowl of wet food anywhere near her dish. To this day, if she tells me she wants food and I know her BG is high rather than low, I offer wet food and have a stand off with her but no matter how hungry she gets, that awful wet stuff is not passing her lips! So yes I understand that problem all too well!

    So between Menace's kibble addiction and her IAA, she is indeed a bit of a challenge and a constant source of head scratching for me, but she is my precious baby and we just take each day as it comes and do our best to keep her healthy, happy and safe. I don't hold much hope out for remission but if it should occur, I am sure you will hear me yelping for joy all the way across that big blue pond! :D
     
  65. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    What a great Mom you are with great intuition but I think all of us that love our cats known when something is not quite right .... thanks for telling me Menace's story .... as long as she is happy that is the main thing and you seem to be keeping her that way :)

    I have to admit I have given up with Smiffy to a certain extent as far as the wet food is concerned - at 14 if I haven't been able to get her to eat wet by now I don't think it is necessaryily worth stressing her out about it ...... I just rue the day she was put on a presciption diet for her weight - she ate completely wet before that ... Pasha still has mostly wet and some dry so wet is out for Smiffy to try every day - she just licks off the jelly.

    Have to get on with her shot if I do one that is - she has hardly eaten .....
     
  66. Lisa and Callie

    Lisa and Callie Member

    Joined:
    Jul 2, 2016
    I haven't started a spreadsheet yet. We are more concerned with this infection and all of the fluid build up. It had been 13 days since the last build up. Unfortunately we have had multiple issues since Callie was diagnosed. The expenses are huge and now they are saying we might need a cat scan which is about $1200. I'm not sure what to do anymore.
     
    Last edited: Jul 26, 2016
  67. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    So after Smiffy's blue numbers thoughout the afternoon her preshot tonight is 12.3 but she is not eating much because she ate earlier because she was not used to her body feeling the low numbers so the max dose I am going to give her is one unit and try to do a +3 number ...

    By the way DH thinks there was a cat scrap this morning not long before I tested her so that could also explain the 16.8 elevated number.

    Back to this evening I am going to take her food upstairs with the pen to see if she will eat a bit more up there as is sometimes the case ......

    Nope she really doesn't want to eat so I have just given her 0.5 of a unit just to keep her ticking over .... I have a feeling she is not going to graze tonight so I can't risk a whole unit.

    Will still try to do a +3 number to see if there is any drop on the preshot of 12.3 ......

    Yes +3 is 13.9 so I could have given her a whole unt
    Oh dear I know how expensive things get ...

    I think it would be a really good idea for you to start a thread of your own on the Main Forum so that you could get the advice from some of the more experiences girls here about your cats condition and your finincial situation.

    If you needed help with setting up a spreadsheet then one of the girls would be able to help you as I am not very good with computer stuff but one of the girls more or less set t up for me and then took me through the last part of it step by step.

    Also I know that there are organisations in the States that can help out with bills for sick cats but I dont know their details as I am in the UK.

    You could start a thread called "Callie's Story'- something ike that and tag some of the girls here for example or any of the others that you know and then you could ask them specific questions. That is the way I started. Have you done that already? It really is the best way ...... I'm afraid I have no knowledge of your cat's other condition nor of the organisations that might be able to help you fininancially.

    How do you feel about setting up your own thread for Callie?

    I am so sorry to hear about poor Callie's situation but I promise some of the other girls would be able to help you better than me - it would be wrong of me to tell you any different ......

    Good luck and I will look out for your thread - maybe include Callie's other condition in the title of the thread? Good luck my lovely :)
     
  68. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    @Alexi @MrWorfMen's Momd @manxcat419

    Smiffy is even lower today ... she was preshot 12.3 last night and she didn't eat much so I gave her 0.5 shot

    This morning she was preshot 15.7 so I gave her one unit but again she did not eat a lot.

    Now she is +4.5 and she is 7.1 which is a nice number but I don't know why she is so low?

    She has been under the chair in the bedroom all morning which she usually does when she is feeling unwell or pissed off frankly!

    Do you think after all there might be something wrong with my pen?

    @scoobydoox you are familiar with Caninsulin too - what do you think .... I am not used to seeing her numbers forming a curve like this ... she is usually quite flat throughout the day - I am a bit concerned .....

    She is also having semi loose stools so something is not right .... put fortiflora on her food this morning ...... do you think she might be ill of the pen is giving the wrong dose?
     
    Last edited: Jul 27, 2016
  69. MrWorfMen's Mom

    MrWorfMen's Mom Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Feb 18, 2015
    Looby, that curve the last two days is more like what usually occurs with Caninsulin. There is usually a drop starting about +2, lowest at +3/+4 then a rise and possibly another little dip before the main rise to pre-shot numbers. While a problem with the pen is certainly a possibility, even if the pen is working properly, sometimes it's hard to tell if the insulin is getting right into the subcutaneous tissue or into the skin layer and some areas of the body can absorb the insulin better than others. If memory serves you are shooting in the shoulder area. Some vets suggest that area doesn't absorb as well as others but many folks here use the scruff without a problem so again we end up right back at ECID (every cat is different). Maybe you can pay more attention to exactly where you are giving her shots and see if it makes any difference to her numbers.
    For now, I'm liking that 7.1 a lot! :D
     
  70. Olive & Paula

    Olive & Paula Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Sep 6, 2015
    Smiffy stop being loose. Control yourself.
     
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  71. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    I had to give her a few Hill's i/d biscuits to hep
     
  72. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    I had to give her a few higher carb prescription biscuits to help with her stools that were semi loose or getting that way so now at +6 she is 9 ....

    She is sticking to me like glue today which is worrying me as she usually goes to sit outside ....

    She woudn't just suddenly develop something like pancresaatitis would she? Maybe she is a bit stressed by the new low numbers during the day and that has given her looser stool?

    I have tested the pen twice over the last few days into the sink and it seems fine.

    Yes I give her her shot in the scruff and the needle goes in easily and doesn't 'hit' any resistance ....
     
  73. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    Oh what do you mean? I think I have missed what you mean in translation! Sorry about that - would you expand please?

    I am more concerned about her looser stools than her lower BG ........
     
  74. MrWorfMen's Mom

    MrWorfMen's Mom Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Feb 18, 2015
    I don't think the insulin has anything to do with loose stools. I'd just keep an eye on her and if it doesn't resolve on it's own with the biscuits you could try a bit of plain pumpkin mixed into her food to increase her fibre. My senior and even Menace have both had a day with loose stool and then been fine the next day so who knows. Is she drinking as much or more than usual? I'd make sure she stays hydrated and keep a watch on her. If it continues for another day with no sign of stopping or get worse, then a trip to the vet might be in order. Unfortunately, our kitties are notorious for hiding how they are feeling when ill so it could be nothing or it could be something brewing. And as always your observations of her general demeanour and activity level etc. are key to making decisions.
     
  75. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    I don't have plain pumpkin or anything similar (actually googled it to try to get some some weeks ago and couldn't find any anywhere) so have to rely on the biscuits and the fortiflora.

    I hope you are right and she is just having an off day as we all do from time to time.

    She doesn't drink very much at all but that is normal for her now since she has had treatment for her Diabetes since April.

    I have sent her spreadsheet to the Head Vet standing in for her normal lovely Vet Roberta for her to have a look at and she is going to call me back hopefully and have mentioned her loose stools (well part of them were a bit loose so I may have caught the problem).

    Oh how it is worrying when something is not quite right and things begin to change a bit .... I will one day get used to it! I wouldn't be worried normally - it is only because of her Diabetes ... going to test her again now at +7 .......9.8 now

    It doesn't help that I am here alone and can't drive if something happened ... she is very passive today when I test her - can't be bothered to kick up a bit of a fuss as she normally does!
     
  76. Capoo

    Capoo Member

    Joined:
    Jan 15, 2016
    Let me try to explain (and more difficult : to translate...) what I have exactly in mind:

    The Vetpen works with a screw thread (in black on the picture).

    vetpen_parts-fr.jpg
    If there is a default on the screw thread at a certain level ("piston de dosage" in French), each time you reach this level, you will have problem with the injection (in my personal case, nothing was injected).

    On your SS, it seems that no insulin was injected just after the change of cartridge, that's why I suspected a problem with the screw thread.

    Now, it was just a hypothesis.

    We will check this hypothesis next time you change the cartridge : if when you perform the change of cartridge, you have exactly the same numbers during all day for a certain amount of days, that means that your Vetpen has a problem.

    Otherwise, it's ok.
     
  77. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    I will have a look at this later ....... et je parle le francais!

    Just for now if I were to shoot each dose that I given into the sink - wouldn't that prove to me that it is working?

    I only use 0.5 , 1.0 or 1.5 utis and have just shot each of those into the sink as an experiment and little, more and then more insulin came out accordingly - doesn't that prove that the penn is OK?
     
  78. Capoo

    Capoo Member

    Joined:
    Jan 15, 2016
    Nope!!!!!

    The problem that I'm mentioning could be very localized!
    You have to wait until the new cartridge :)
     
  79. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    Oh .......but I still don't understand how there could be a problem if the shots into the sink are OK?

    What do you mean by localized?

    Excuse moi - je ne comprend pas ce que tu veux dire :)
     
  80. Capoo

    Capoo Member

    Joined:
    Jan 15, 2016
    Lucille,

    Quand tu utilises ton Vetpen, le piston avance.
    Quand tu changes la cartouche, tu "rembobines" le piston, et le remet au niveau 0.
    Si une des dents du piston est abîmée à un endroit, le piston ne tournera pas à cet endroit, et tu n'injecteras rien.
     
  81. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    Ca je comprends mais je viens de produiser de l'insulin a 0.5, 1 et 1.5 ...... meme au minimum position du piston tu vois?
     
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  82. Capoo

    Capoo Member

    Joined:
    Jan 15, 2016
    Le problème n'est pas la dose, mais à quel niveau la dose est prélevée.
    Prenons l'hypothèse que le piston mesure 5 cm.
    Quand tu changes la cartouche, tu rembobines le piston au maximum, et il y a donc 5 cm de piston dans le capuchon bleu.
    Au fur et à mesure que tu utilises la cartouche, le piston pousse l'insuline dans la fenêtre qui indique le niveau de Caninsulin restant dans la cartouche.
    Quand la cartouche est vide, tu peux voir toute la longueur du piston dans la fenêtre.
    Si il y a une dent défectueuse au sommet du piston, tu auras des problèmes lorsque tu changes de cartouche.
    Mais dès que ce niveau de piston sera dépassé, plus aucun problème.
     
  83. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    Mais je n'avais pas de problemes quand j'ai change la cartouche la derniere fois? J'etais au Vet avec l'infirmiere de Diabetes et ils m'ont regrardee changer la cartouche.

    Je comprends que je dois attendre changer la cartouche maintenant pour trouver une dent defectueuse.

    Mais qu'est ce que ca veux dire pour les doses que je donne a Smiffy avant que je la change? je tourne pour un unit par example et qu'est ce qui se passe? Je la donne plus ou moins qu'un unit? Tu veux dire qu'en ce moment le Vetpen n'est pas precis?

    Bon, essayez de m'expliquer en Anglais - peut etre ca vaux mieus apres tout! Desolee :)



    Ahhh tu veux dire qu'il y a deux semaines le Vetpen ne marchait pas et maintenant ca marche?!! Peut-etre?

    En Anglais!
     
    Last edited: Jul 27, 2016
  84. Capoo

    Capoo Member

    Joined:
    Jan 15, 2016
    Si, si, en ce moment, le Vetpen est précis.
    Mais tu dois attendre de mettre une nouvelle cartouche.
    Et si quand tu mets la nouvelle cartouche, tu as à nouveau les mêmes glycemies tout au long de la journée pendant un certain temps, cela voudra dire que le Vetpen a un problème (mais c'est juste une hypothèse).
    En ce moment, pas de soucis, tes mesures de glycemie sont très bonnes.
     
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  85. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    Et bien volia!!!! Merci je comprends maintenant :)

    On verra en a peu pres deux semaines :)
     
  86. Capoo

    Capoo Member

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    Jan 15, 2016
    Perfect!!! :bighug:
     
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  87. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    Smiffy not eating this morning so although she is preshot 15.8 I am reluctant to give her one whole unit ... oh she is eating now that's OK then :)

    This is the problem with Caninsulin (one of the problems apart from the fact that it seems to be working for her) - you have to get them to eat a fair bit before you give them a shot ....

    @MrWorfMen's Mom what is the depot effect somebody was talking about on Facebook?

    Smiffy is much brighter today and no loose stools so far so the Fortiflora worked :)
     
    Last edited: Jul 28, 2016
  88. MrWorfMen's Mom

    MrWorfMen's Mom Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Feb 18, 2015
    Looby, I don't belong to the Facebook group. While I could guess, without benefit of seeing the entire content of the commentary about "depot effect", I could end up misleading you.

    Glad to hear the Fortiflora helped and that Smiffy decided to eat better this morning.
     
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  89. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    That's OK Linda

    Somebody mentioned it when I said that there was a big drop between Smiffy's preshot am and her daytime numbers - never heard the expression before and wondered what it was?

    I didn't think it applied to Smiffy .... just keen to learn :)

    Having said that Smiffy's +5 number today is 11.8 so higher than the last couple of days for some reason ..... there is no rhyme or reason is there?!!!
     
  90. Alexi

    Alexi Member

    Joined:
    Apr 10, 2016
    It doesn't, she is not on a depot insulin and you do want to see her dropping between her pre-shot and mid cycle because it shows the caninsulin is doing its stuff. She could probably have coped with a 1.5 unit dose this morning but then we only know that because of the later readings. Keep going...
     
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  91. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    I am learning to ignore some of the comments I get on FB if they come from people that don't know Smiffy's background - that is the benefit of coming here :)

    I did read today that Caninsulin whilst it starts out as being a short-lived insulin in most cats actually becomes a 12 hour and more lasting insulin in a lot of cats after a relatively short time so it looks like Smiffy is one of the lucky ones.

    Yes I might have given her 1.5 units this morning but after her drop to 7 at +5 yesterday and the fact that she didn't eat very much at all as I left her food out late last night by mistake and her Daddy was distracting her, made me decide that it was too dangerous especially as I was not gong to be around at her Nadir.

    Remember I give her the higher dose in the evening if I can because I am not around for her morning Nadir ...... I have to keep her safe at the risk of her numbers being a bit higher.

    She has not eaten much during the day today so I am hoping that she will be hungry enough tonight for me to feel happy to give her 1.5 units.

    I agree with you - just wary that she is alone at her morning Nadir.

    Do you agree by the way that she needs to eat a fair bit before I shoot her? This affects the dose that I give her as much as the preshot number. Usually she comes back to graze so I am not worried but on a couple of nights she has not done this .... she must have done last night though because she barely had an appetite this morning ...
     
  92. Alexi

    Alexi Member

    Joined:
    Apr 10, 2016
    Can you maybe try lifting her food a little earlier to encourage her appetite? Are you monitoring her weight because as she gets better control she will be able to make more use of her food and may need to be fed a little less if she is putting on weight. Ask the vet for a target weight and try weighing her weekly if you can to monitor.
     
  93. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    OK yes I could do that ...... she is barely eating her 'slimming' allowance already of 70g biscuits though and doesn't really graze much unless her numbers are low ... I would say she eats only about 40g per day.

    Her first Vet gave her the target weight of 4kilos which she hasn't been since she was about 2 years old! Her new Vet Roberta has not given her a target weight but she has lost 0.25kilo in a few months (not a lot!) ....she is currently 5.72 kilos .... I could try to weigh her on our human scales but she aint gonna like it. Roberta was pleased that she had lost the 0.25 kilos and said that it was better for her to lose weight slowly ..... I have to say we have not considered it a priority like her first Vet but if is happens it does and I take her for walks every day as you know or else she would not get any exercise at all! She is not a very active cat ...... I don't want to put a lot of pressure on her losing weight but she seems to be going that way and I can certainly take her food away a bit earlier ...
     
  94. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    @ Alexi am taking Smiffy's food away at about +5 or 6 now .... she is 'surfing' @MrWorfMen's Mom again today at around 8 ... managed to give her one unit last night and one unit this morning as she was a bit more hungry - still growling at me when I shoot her though!

    I take that back - she had some biscuits at +6 and is now 12.3 - big disappointment ....
     
    Last edited: Jul 29, 2016
  95. MrWorfMen's Mom

    MrWorfMen's Mom Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Feb 18, 2015
    Looking good! Not sure what the growling is about and I don't think it's a worry as long as her demeanor is otherwise fine. Some cats just don't like us messing with their coiffure!?;)
     
  96. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    No I don't think Smiffy is ever going to get used to me 'messing' with her whilst or just after she eats ... she is one of those cats that doesn't like to be fussed ....

    I spoke too soon though ... she had some of her biscuits and is no 12.3 .... never mind - at least she is happy :)
     
  97. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    I think it's clear from Smiffy's numbers tonight that tomorrow I can give her 1.5 untis again tomorrow if she is around 14. I was over cautious tonight ....
     
  98. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    Smiffy ate a bowl full of wet food today!!!! I was so shocked! It may be because it was in Pasha's bowl as Smiffy gets jealous of Pasha and bullies her out of the way of her food and licks off the jelly so won't eat the meat ..... I think the secret might be to give her flakes - Encore and Sheba have been suggested .... have to buy food in sachets rather than cans as we have storage issue ...

    Smiffy as NEVER eaten fish or meat off our plates ... still in shock! I will have to get some Sheba Fine Flakes Fish flavour and see what happens :)
     
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  99. Olive & Paula

    Olive & Paula Well-Known Member

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    Sep 6, 2015
    Clean plate is good!
     
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  100. Looby & Smiffy

    Looby & Smiffy Member

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2016
    I am gob smacked ... will try her on some chicken flakes tonight or tomorrow - she wouldn't eat them a few months ago ... hope it is not because she was jealous ..... will try :)
     
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