? 2/24 Kitty AMPS 31 +3 99 - No insulin in 3 days

[Julie and Kitty]

Hi everyone,

I'm not sure what is going on with Kitty now, last night and this morning her Pre-shot levels have been super low, like hypoglycemic range. However, she has been acting and looking fine, eating a mix of high and low carb food. Also she hasn't had any insulin 3 days.

Last night I had an event to go to so gave her a bunch of Temptations treats and tested each 1/2 hour until she was in a safe range before going out. When I got home she still seemed to be fine. This morning she's acting just perfectly fine as well.

Any ideas why her blood sugar levels are so low? Is this dangerous and worth a vet visit? I don't know what would cause this, however on a quick google search it *could* be from pancreatitis which she did have severely a couple of months ago but it caused the high BG levels vs. low, and she is eating and not showing any other signs of illness.

Thoughts?

 

[Laura & Chanel]

Hi Julie, Hopefully she decided she had enough with the diabetes and getting back to normal now. I am not sure what is happening, but I think it would help if you can put a question mark on your thread (you can select it). Also, I would ask @Wendy&Neko or the other moderators.
If Kitty is healthy, I hope that this might be a switch to the OTJ path. Keeping fingers crossed

 

[Julie and Kitty]

Hi Julie, Hopefully she decided she had enough with the diabetes and getting back to normal now. I am not sure what is happening, but I think it would help if you can put a question mark on your thread (you can select it). Also, I would ask @Wendy&Neko or the other moderators.
If Kitty is healthy, I hope that this might be a switch to the OTJ path. Keeping fingers crossed

Thank you, I've updated the thread as you suggested. I am hoping too her body was just like nope but now it's producing too much insulin? Is that even a thing that happens?

 

[Sue and Luci]

I've seen one other kitty do this same thing - check out @Briere Fur Mom - and her kitty Ittle. That boy decided one day a while back that he wasn't going to take any more insulin. (that's big 'period') and sure enough he went into remission - just.like.that. WOW!

I didn't know a kitty could even do that...but he sure did it...he was just too low to shoot and stayed there!

Great job on the title! Keep testing - if she stays below 100...well, perhaps she'll be kitty number two for my personal experience who just jumped to the Fall's!

 

[Wendy&Neko]

Here's the link to your last post here. At that point you were just on 0.25 units, but having to skip occasionally.

As for numbers, we have fairly often seen cats in the 40's without insulin (got one at home here). We just don't want cats on insulin that low because it gives no margin for error. We have seen the very odd cat in the 30's, but usually the upper 30's. Since you've now been 7 cycles without insulin, the depot should be gone and you don't need to worry about bringing her up with high carb treats/food. It might still be worth a talk with the vet if you know she's getting enough food but continues to stay in the low 30's. Have you done any recent further changes in her food? It could be Kitty's pancreas has healed.

In the mean time, I think it's time we call this an OTJ Trial. Here are the instructions:

Start the trial on the next green pre shot. (ignore that part, you are on day 3 already).

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!!!

 

[toomanycats]

This is awesome! Good luck! Paws crossed!

 

[Julie and Kitty]

Okay wow this is good news then! She absolutley hates the injections so maybe she just decided to be done with it I am kind of shocked considering how sick she was and how severe her pancreatitis was ("the worst they've seen" - the vet).

I haven't made any other changes to her food and she seems to be eating regularly, and her weight staying the same. We'll probably take her for a check up next month as long as she stays healthy.

I will begin the OTJ trial!