His numbers just seem to be all over the place lately. I was surprised his PM +3 was as low as it was, and had set an alarm for +6 but accidentally slept through it. I have to go to work today and I'm not sure if I should skip. I'm hesitant to shoot at 134 esp being unable to monitor.
I think you made the right decision. One note from your spreadsheet: you've listed a couple of times that there were no signs of hypo. The problem with hypo is that there aren't signs until it's quite serious. So I would encourage you to lower the dose a little until you are more comfortable testing. My hunch is that he may be going low during the night. Not low enough to show neurological signs, but low enough to be a concern. Maybe just bump down to 1.75u and let's see how things look from there. In lowering the dose, ketones are a concern (both too high and too low can be quite dangerous), so we'll want to keep a close eye and make sure you're still seeing those nice blues and greens at night -- maybe just not quite so low until the testing is coming easier, and until we have enough data to know if he hits nadir early, mid, or late in the cycle to better guess what is happening.
I just wasn't comfortable this morning not being able to monitor. I was tempted to bump down a bit this morning and call off work to monitor, but my caseload would be haywire. I just got home and haven't tested yet, but I'll be interested to see his PMPS numbers here in a few. I definitely would agree it looks like he tends to be on the lower side at night. We're getting better and better at the testing, so I'm hoping to get some good daytime and night data this weekend while I'm off work. I think a bump down to 1.75 would be good for now as well. While it's nice to see the green at PM +3, it concerns me a little given I don't have a clear idea of his nadir and patterns yet.
It'll be great to get some more data this weekend and see what's going on during the cycle. Hopefully you can get in a few tests today and get a sense of when nadir might be happening, and how low it is. Is the 2u the starting dose from your vet?
Yeah, 2 was his starting dose. I went ahead and did 2 last night and this morning because he was reading pretty high. Depending on his numbers tonight I may do 1.75. I'm afraid I've thrown everything off by skipping a dose. I have an apt this morning but should be back home around +4 or 5. Planning on getting some naps between testing this afternoon so that I can get enough rest to get some night data tonight.
He dropped 50% from PS to +3 which is a very fast steep drop. He either has an early nadir at night, or he's getting too much insulin. So the higher numbers you are seeing might be bouncing from overdosing. Getting the extra numbers this weekend will help sort out what's going on. Good luck with the naps today! Nothing beats a Saturday afternoon snooze
Oh...what is he eating? And if he gets treats, what kind? Are both cats eating the same food? Are there any other pets that have food out (for example dog kibble?) That could also be a cause of the numbers...
There was an old batch of kibble incident last week. The other two cats are picky as hell with the wet food, so we had been mixing to do the long wean. Gato forced himself into one of those bowls a few days ago, and I also had to have a stern talk with my partner about not putting the old kibble down during the day when he comes home on lunch. Got some Dr Elseys in yesterday so all of the old high carb kibble is officially in the bin and out of our house. Gato loves the wet food, we haven't been mixing dry with his bowls at all. We have been trying different low carb wet options. Mostly Weruva cats in the kitchen chicken frickazee, FF roasted chicken and classics, a few different tiki cat tins that are below 10%. We tried some grain free nulo under 10 today and even our pickiest boy loved it! We top all meals with bonito flakes to entice our more discerning customers. Old treats (Blue) have been in the bin for a few days too. Most of his treats this past week have been plain baked chicken breast, and orijen tundra treats. I should mention that Gato is on an antibiotic for his dental situation, which the vet warned would muddle the numbers a bit and make the insulin less effective. I believe his last dose of that is tonight so I think the bump down to at least 1.75u is a good idea. Not sure what to expect numbers wise when he gets off the antibiotic. He was on it when we started testing. No dogs or any other animals. No access to any other food than what we put in front of them.
Oh that's right! I remember you saying that about your vet. Honestly, I think s/he has it backwards. The antibiotics bring the infection down, and that makes the insulin more effective. The antibiotics themselves don't interfere with the insulin. I'm liking that cycle on 1.5u much better. Those numbers are looking good for now. Much safer. Let's give him both cycles today to stabilize and see what other numbers pop up. And good job getting all the junk food out of the house! Hopefully your picky eater will come over to the wet food eventually too so you don't have to run a kitty restaurant. Although even with both of mine on raw food, they still have different preferences. Ah, cats!
I honestly might be the one who had it backwards. Those first few days after diagnosis were a blur of information overload! I just remember being told that given the dental situation our numbers won't be super reliable the first week or so. Last nights numbers were much more comfortable for me as well. I'm interested to see where today's go.
