12/12 Belle, AMBG 121, +5 82, PMBG 86

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Hi @Tricia Cinco(GA) & Harvey

I actually got a message from another member last week saying that Belle should not be ready for OTJ trail yet.

Please advice

Tricia Cinco(GA) & Harvey said:
Hi Helena.

Some of us have been looking at your SS, and since you've been giving virtually no insulin for the past week or two, we were wondering if you would like to officially start a Trial?

If you would, here are the instructions. Let us know if you have any questions. We wish you and Belle luck!

Start the trial on the next green pre shot.

If he 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 is blue at your normal "PS", feed a small meal and test again after about 3 or 4 hours. If his 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 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 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.

Good luck with the trial!!!

Once he 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 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 monthly. Weight should remain stable. If he seems "off" or sick, or is showing signs of diabetes (excessive drinking, eating, urinating, weight loss), test his 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!
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icesnow said:
I actually got a message from another member last week saying that Belle should not be ready for OTJ trail yet.

Please advice
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I looked back to see who gave the advice and what was said. Gill had some very valid points on Friday. While it is true that there are some blues that are outside of "normal" numbers, you have been giving no insulin most days and .1 on some occasions, and even if Belle starts out blue, he brings himself down, even with no insulin on board. Although this is not the ideal situation for an OTJ trial, the only way to get rid of those blues, which are almost always at AMPS, is to feed a +9 snack at night, which I know you are unable to do. Several of us veterans looked at your SS today and concluded you are pretty much already on a trial, so why not make it official. If it would make you more comfortable, I will ask them to post on your condo to confirm that they think so, and of course, anyone who disagrees can do so, as well. Unfortunately, Gill, who told you Friday Belle is not ready, is on vacation for a week, and probably will not be one of those posting.
 
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Hi Helena!

It was Marje, Tricia and I who thought that it would be worth calling Belle's skipped shots an OTJ trial. I can see exactly why Gill thought on Friday that Belle wasn't quite ready yet. At that point I thought so too! But kitties have a way of changing things, and now it looks like he might be ready.

It's up to you, but what signaled to me that it might be time was when he began having green ambgs on Saturday.

Forgive me if this is a repeat, but have we talked about an autofeeder to get him some snacks during the night? We really liked the PetSafe 5 compartment feeder at our house. Just gotta make sure that the feeding tray is fully seated into the base unit so that it will rotate fully.

When a kitty eats a little bit, it stimulates the pancreas to put out a bit of insulin to take care of it, and that is why a cat will often have lower blood sugar about 3-4 hours after they've eaten. The reason we suggest small frequent meals for a kitty who is diet-controlled is because it is easier on a sputtering pancreas to not overload them. The most recent research shows that in many cats in remission, ie, diet-controlled, the pancreas still has an impaired response to glucose. In other words, even if a cat is off of insulin, once diabetic they often still can't handle carbs in the way a non-diabetic cat can. That's why they are still considered diabetic. The link to the study on this is on both the Tight Reg Protocol and SLGS stickies in the area under remission.

Hope some of that explanation helps a little bit.

Julie
 
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