? 04/16/18 Squallie AMBG 43/57, +4/73, +6/65, +7/83, PMPS 113, +1/102, +3/73

Squallie's AMPS is only 43!!! I've never had this happen before so I don't know how to handle this. Do I treat it as a hypo and give him some gravy, or do I just feed as usual, and skip his shot?

 

Do you have time to stall and feed and see if he comes up?

If not, I'd skip and feed as normal as long as you can test and make sure he doesn't go lower.

 

Yes, I have time to stall. I'll try stalling for 30 minutes or so and see if it rises. It really sent me into a panic when I saw 43 on the meter! I tested him 3 times because I thought the meter was wrong!

Thank you, Carla!!!

 

As long as he's not showing any hypo symptoms, he should be fine. I'm at work and may not be able to stay on very long. If he doesn't come up, you may need to skip. I'll check back in if I am able to. Hopefully others will check in to.

 

Thank you so much!

 

I'd check again in 20 minutes instead of 30.

 

Okay. I'll check him again in about 5 minutes, then.

He is VERY hungry! (Low BG + breakfast-time = hungry Squallie! )

 

They don't like to wait to eat.

 

Eeek! Squallie, what gives?

Yes, let's see if he's gotten his act together in the last 20 mins. 43 at pre-shot, for goodness' sake!

 

Okay, just checked him, he's come up to 50; that makes me feel a little bit better. Where do I go from here? Stall for another 20-30? Or feed and skip?

 

I would shoot as long as you can monitor, have plenty of strips and Higher carb food if you need it.

 

I can't stay on much longer. I'd try stalling and see if he comes up. If he doesn't come up, I'd skip. Hopefully he can wait that long to eat without driving you crazy.

 

That's what I'll do, then. Thanks for your help, Carla! Hope you have a good day at work!

 

I hope Squallie comes up and you can shoot and he surfs safely.

 

I was about to say, another (short) stall would be good-- I think Bobbie is right that you'd probably be totally fine to shoot (w/monitoring), but that 50 is right on the line, I wouldn't want to do it myself.

 

Bobbie, you credit me with a lot more courage than I think I have, lol! I'm going to stall for another 20-30 min, if you can hang around for a little while? Would you suggest shooting anything over 50?

 

That's what I'm going to do. Lol, I don't want to do it, either!

 

I wouldn't stall too long on this round, maybe 15-20mins?

 

I'll pop in and out and check on you. I would shoot the 50, but you have to be comfortable.

 

I agree, because sometimes stalling they will continue to go down from being hungry.

 

Lucy, you could give him a tsp of his food and bump him up over 50 and then shoot.

 

Rusty has a 64 this morning and he is hardly eating anything, so I gave a "token" drop of insulin (push the plunger all the way in, stick the needle in the insulin pen, and release the plunger; this results in about a drop).
If you have any doubts, if I were you I would skip Squallie's shot this morning (call it a fur shot), feed him, and proceed as normal.

 

Okay, just tested, he's up to 57 so, still rising, thankfully! Feed and shoot? Full dose or reduced dose?

 

Thanks, Ella, I may do that. I'm really a big coward when it comes to shooting low numbers! Hope Rusty's appy improves throughout the day.

 

As long as he is eating well for you, give him the full dose.

 

, lol! Good thing I just bought lots of gravy food!

 

Another approach might be to wait until 18 hours after his shot yesterday evening and then shoot your usual dose. If you do this "18-hour alternative" you would not shoot again until tomorrow morning, at the usual time. This has the advantage of staying on schedule. I have used it when we have had to be out in the evening at shot time.

 

Okay, final decision: I just tested him again and he's at 54, so not really rising any more. I think I will feed his usual, very low-carb food and skip the morning shot. I hope I've made the right decision....

 

Good call. Just call it a fur shot and put a dollar in your "fur-shot basket".

 

What's that I hear? Fur shot, did you say? Darn the luck! [edit: Ella beat me to it!]

It'll be fine. I'm sure he's thrilled to have his breakfast, finally!

I might get a test or two in this morning (even though you haven't shot), just to see when/if he comes up. Just for future reference the next time this happens.

 

He'll be fine with a skip. I need a "Fur shot Basket" it could be my new vacation fund.

 

Thank you all very much for your help!!! I really do appreciate it. I don't know what I would do without this forum and all the great people here!

I like the idea of a fur-shot basket, starting mine today, lol!

 

Hi there

Great job remaining calm in the face of a 43 at AMPS.

For future, here’s some good information from the sticky on shooting low-

Some general rules when stalling (ECID):

** 50s or higher – don’t feed. The number will bump up on its own soon due to the insulin wearing off.
** 40s or lower – you have a couple of choices.

• When 40s occur at the end of the cycle, it can be beneficial to withhold food and test in 15-20 minutes to determine if kitty is on the rise or hasn’t reached nadir yet.
• If they are hanging in the 40s for a while, or if they are still dropping, it is ok to feed a tsp or two of LC and retest. This is very tricky. You want to avoid feeding too much while you’re waiting for them to go over 50, because you don’t want to artificially inflate the number with food.
  
  • --- Example: if kitty is 43 and you feed a whole meal, or feed some HC, and the number bumps up to 52, is that the cat’s natural end-of-cycle rise, or is it food spike? What if it is food spike? Then if you shoot the 52, when the food wears off he might drop back to the 40’s (and when insulin kicks in a couple of hours later, you might have a problem). If the 52 is the cat’s natural rise, then he will probably keep rising for the next few hours until insulin kicks in. If you can’t tell whether the number is food spike or natural rise, it’s safest to wait. Your data will help you here. Study the spreadsheet. How much food spike does the cat usually get? How many hours after the shot does the insulin’s onset usually occur in this cat? At what number is the cat likely to be when onset occurs? If the cat does drop, how easy/hard is it to regain control of the numbers? How carb sensitive is he?

** Test often (every 15-20 minutes, or at most every 30 minutes). You want to catch the rise the minute it starts. With most of our cats, once they start to rise they will really zoom. You want to get the insulin in as soon as possible, because it will be another 2-3 hours before the insulin kicks in and you don’t want to let the cycle get too far ahead of you.

Perhaps the most important guideline in shooting low is that any time you shoot your lowest ever number, you should get a +1 and +2 to give you an idea of how the cycle will go. If the +1 is not higher than PS, or if +2 is much lower than PS, that means “pay attention” over the next few hours. Those tests will also help you become even more data ready for the next time you are presented with a low preshot reading.

Using the overlap by shooting low is a great way to take advantage of Lantus/Levemir’s long, flat cycles, once you have learned to do so safely.

• 
  
  • --- Example: if kitty is 43 and you feed a whole meal, or feed some HC, and the number bumps up to 52, is that the cat’s natural end-of-cycle rise, or is it food spike? What if it is food spike? Then if you shoot the 52, when the food wears off he might drop back to the 40’s (and when insulin kicks in a couple of hours later, you might have a problem). If the 52 is the cat’s natural rise, then he will probably keep rising for the next few hours until insulin kicks in. If you can’t tell whether the number is food spike or natural rise, it’s safest to wait. Your data will help you here. Study the spreadsheet. How much food spike does the cat usually get? How many hours after the shot does the insulin’s onset usually occur in this cat? At what number is the cat likely to be when onset occurs? If the cat does drop, how easy/hard is it to regain control of the numbers? How carb sensitive is he?

** Test often (every 15-20 minutes, or at most every 30 minutes). You want to catch the rise the minute it starts. With most of our cats, once they start to rise they will really zoom. You want to get the insulin in as soon as possible, because it will be another 2-3 hours before the insulin kicks in and you don’t want to let the cycle get too far ahead of you.

Perhaps the most important guideline in shooting low is that any time you shoot your lowest ever number, you should get a +1 and +2 to give you an idea of how the cycle will go. If the +1 is not higher than PS, or if +2 is much lower than PS, that means “pay attention” over the next few hours. Those tests will also help you become even more data ready for the next time you are presented with a low preshot reading.

Using the overlap by shooting low is a great way to take advantage of Lantus/Levemir’s long, flat cycles, once you have learned to do so safely.

As Nan suggests, a few early cycle tests today will give you valuable data ... for the next time...

 

Smart decision Lucy! Always follow your instincts, spidey senses or remember when in doubt, don't.

 

Thank you!!!

 

Mercy ,Lucy You are the Woman of Steel for today

 

Fur shot basket.......... I like that idea.

 

❤️❤️

 

Never a dull moment, lol!

 

Thanks, Sina!❤️❤️

 

Yes, and it's a good thing, too, because after being SO hungry, he decided he didn't like his brekkies so he wouldn't eat very much. Glad I decided to give the shot a miss -
any other morning, he would have gobbled up breakfast without even blinking! I was actually leaning toward giving the insulin but something just told me to hold off.

 

If you didn't shoot this morning, it's AMBG (blood glucose) instead of AMPS.

Neko liked giving the odd wake up 40's first thing in the morning. But like the Sticky Note says, I'd wait 15 or so minutes and she's usually be high enough to shoot.

I hope his appy got better later today.

 

That's a nice +8 for not shooting! Was he off his feed today?

 

Glad Squallie was okay today. I hope his appy picked up. Sending prayers.

 

Thanks, Wendy!

 

Yes, he was this morning, which surprised me because he had been so hungry. Maybe he just didn't like duck for breakfast, lol.

 

Thanks, Carla!

 

Squallie is very snuggly tonight, lovin' it!

 

Thanks, Barbara!