? Snickers: Questions about snacks ; Starting OTJ tomorrow

Hi, so Snickers is holding steady at 1 drop. Starting OTJ trial tomorrow (though I know it takes 6 cycles for the depot to drain).

I'm starting to think that late night/early morning snacks drop Snicker's AMPS numbers. Is that normal? I don't totally get it, because I thought food made their BG go up, not lower.

At 4:00 am today (PMPS + 9) her BG was 82. I gave her a snack, and at 7:00 am today, her AMPS was 63. I guess I haven't done the +9 snacking enough to say for sure yet, but it seems to me like even her afternoon snacks don't really raise her BG either.

Is it the snack lowering her numbers? If so, what does this mean? If don't give her snacks, will her numbers just continue to climb until her next meal?

I just want to understand the snacking thing before I start OTJ tomorrow. I'm confused about how often to give the snacks, and how much I should give her. I feel like I should understand this and have it sorted out already. Any help is appreciated it. Thanks!

 

Chrissy - when on a little dose, yes, those +8 or +9 snacks help! I was advised to do the same thing to bring the AMPS down, and it worked. (I'd always given a + 8 snack in the AM cycle, but not PM.) This means the pancreas is working - the snack actually gives the pancreas a boost. It looks like what you are doing works, and it's exactly what Snickers needs! I wouldn't change anything. We went OTJ Dec. 6 and I'm STILL giving that PM+8 snack, because Tina expects it!

I don't know that the numbers would keep on climbing without a snack, but I don't think I'd mess with what's working!
Awesome spreadsheet, and we are wishing you a great trial!!

 

Awesome, thanks for clarifying that for me! Good luck to you as well!

 

In a non-diabetic, when we eat, our pancreas produces endogenous insulin -- the insulin that is normally produced by the pancreas. In a diabetic, the pancreas is no longer producing it's own insulin and we provide exogenous insulin -- the insulin we shoot. So, for a cat that's going into remission, their pancreas has healed (or is healing) and when you stimulate the pancreas by feeding Snickers, the pancreas responds by producing insulin and lowering the BG numbers.

Snickers' spreadsheet is gorgeous!!

 

Good luck tomorrow!

 

Oops! You might want the OTJ trial instructions:

• Start the trial on the next green pre shot.
• If he/she is green at your normal test times, no need to test further until the next "PS" time; just feed small meals and go about your day.
• If he/she is blue at your normal "PS", feed a small meal and test again after about 3 or 4 hours. If his/her number is lower 3-4 hours after a meal, then the pancreas is working! Post every day so we can monitor your progress and see if any tweaks are needed.
• He/she may have a sporadic blue number. Don't panic but post before you decide whether to shoot so we can have a discussion.
• After 14 days of no insulin, we have a party!!

Sometimes the trial doesn't work the first time and we have to give a little more support in the form of resuming insulin. It's not the end of the world if that happens; we just give him/her the support needed. Our goal is a strong remission and it's better to take our time to get that than to rush into remission just to have it fail later on. Once he/she is through the trial successfully, you enter a new phase. Your cat is still diabetic but has now become diet-controlled. Continue feeding low carb food in the manner successful for your kitty. If you decide to change his/her feeding schedule, let your meter be your guide to the best times to feed. Avoid medications with sugar in them and steroid medications unless they are medically essential. Continue testing blood glucose weekly for the first month and then monthly forever. It's a good idea to weigh him/her monthly. Weight should remain stable. If he/she seems "off" or sick, or is showing signs of diabetes (excessive drinking, eating, urinating, weight loss), test his/her blood glucose right away. Keep the teeth and gums clean and healthy; dental issues can bring a cat out of remission. If you see rising blood glucose numbers, it's time for a visit to the vet!

Good luck with the trial!!!

 

I see. That makes total sense, I just wasn't thinking about it like that somehow. Thank you for explaining!!

 

Thank you!!

 

Thank you so much for this!

 

So I don't check her BG as much during trial? I've gotten so used to checking, I'm not sure I can handle checking less often. It's gonna weird me out. I still want to check every 3 hours... I'll see how I do. .

Her teeth are already bad. They were bad when we got her a few months ago. We went to get them cleaned and that's when we discovered the diabetes. Still need to get them cleaned, vet wouldn't do it when her BG was all high. But I guess her teeth cleaning is for another discussion a little later, after the trial.

 

I would get the teeth cleaning done reasonable quickly because bad teeth is one of the most common reasons cats fall out of remission.
Good luck with the trial!

 

Looking great. Good luck with the trial

 

You can test as much as you want! Habits can be hard to break.