8/4 A2 Gizmo amps 315

Last condo:
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/...112-5-350-7-380-11-389-pmps-346-3-232.197086/

Gosh, it's been a while. We've just been hanging on for dear life. Gizmo has been doing fine, and his numbers started coming down. Had a scary moment about a week ago that earned him a reduction, and since then his numbers have been wonky. We had had to skip shots a few times now because hes been low.

I had gotten comfortable with shooting anything over 150, and then then the other night he crashed when starting at 189 so I'm wary of anything under 200 again.

He is acting totally normal. Havent gotten a ketone test because hes a stubborn boy so I finally broke down and bought a blood meter this morning because I am sick of the potty battle.

We used up our first Lantus pen...down the the last drop! I am so incredibly thankful because it lasted us over 2 months and had it not been for this place I would have just tossed it at a month like the vet said and been out lots of $$$.

I dont know what to do. Since I'm too scared to shoot such low numbers and he keeps dipping there I have no idea if i should go down again or what.

Unfortunately i havent been able to switch to TR like I wanted. I have tried my darndest to get at least a +1 or +11 during the week between AM and PM and it just isnt working. I'm frustrated because I want to do the best by him but the work week and commute are just not compatible and I feel like I am failing him

Last night for the first time since Dx, i got to go out and have a "normal" night. My ex hubs wanted to come spend time with the cats and I spent the last week having him come by every pmps to teach so he offered to pet sit last night and tonight. Which was such a load off my chest that I didnt realize was there. Once Gizmos numbers even out (if they even can, grrr) I want to start trying to get him okay with the car so we can travel without completely ruining his progress.

I try to just look at the spreadsheet and realize he has come quite a way from where we started but I still feel like this is a long way to go.

 

Gizmo is quite the bouncy boy, might be a good candidate for Levemir once the new Lantus pen is done...

 

It’s frustrating when you feel like you are doing everything you possibly can (and you are), but they still aren’t making the progress you would hope for. I had to be reminded several times that the sugar dance is a marathon not a sprint. Not at all what I wanted though ... I wanted my kitty better now! I also found that looking at his spreadsheet really helped me to see just how far he had already come. Hang in there, vent here when needed, and keep plugging along.

 

Is that one that can bought in Canada without a prescription too? We still have a quite a bit of the current pen so we have a while to figure out fortunately. We live less than an hour from the border and a CA Costco so it a day trip for us.

He is a bouncy boy. Among the 8 million other nicknames he answers to, he now responds to Pogo as well

 

I order it from Mark's in Canada, but I do have a script. However, I always needed a script for Lantus too since I have the pens shipped.

 

@Christie & Maverick recently tried to buy in Canada without a prescription and was unable to do so.

 

Yup, not sure if pharmacists are cracking down, or now following some "rules" about dispensing prescriptions for cats, or maybe it is just in my area, (or just me! Lol). I went to three different pharmacists who all said not without a script from the vet.

@tobakett , if you were able to get Lantus across the border in Canada at a pharmacy previously, you may be ok, but one of the pharmacies I tried was Costco, and they refused, albeit politely. You could call and double-check, that's a long day's trip to return empty-handed.

 

Check the Supply Closet here. Alan will sell the boxes and single pens. Sometimes someone has some and only ask for shipping costs.

 

You are doing a great job! Since there are not all that many members here who work from home or have the luxury of being home most of the time to test or have a partner/roommate, etc. who can lend a hand with testing, we all do the best we can. There are some good suggestions with regard to negotiating TR if you work in this sticky note at the top of the board. The biggest help for me -- and Gabby was the queen of diving into low numbers usually early in the cycle -- was a timed feeder. It looks to me that you're testing in the PM since you are limited with testing during the AM cycle and you're testing on weekends. It's always disconcerting to not know your cat's numbers if you're not home. As long as your cat can get used to the idea of a timed feeder (and not sleep all day when you're not around), you should be fine.

Ideally, with shooting low, the curve flattens out. You can see this on 7/17. You shot a 170 and the rest of the curve was a lovely blue. I suspect there's a good chance that the more Gizmo is in good numbers, the less bouncing you'll see. It sounds like the challenge is your getting enough data that you feel comfortable with shooting lower numbers. My best advice is to keep chipping away at it (i.e., try to keep working at shooting progressively lower numbers when you're home so you can monitor).

As for switching to Levemir, it is not a guarantee that a cycle will flatten out with Lev. I've seen any number of cats that were just as bouncy on Lev as on Lantus whereas there are others who did better on Lev. There's no way to know. There are also other considerations. I never switched because Gabby's numbers would often plummet early in the cycle. I could shoot early (at 5:00 AM) and not have to leave the house until around 7:30 or so. this gave me enough time to know if I had to intervene with HC food. If I used Lev, onset would be later and I wouldn't have the option of knowing whether I needed to intervene. You need to figure out what's best for your cat.

 

In regards to Sienne post above. Olive works lev like lantus. She plummets at +4 to mid cycle and in a couple of hours she right back to the 300's. I switched to lev because the lantus wasn't bringing her down at all. It was like water, acting like she'd hadn't had any insulin at all. The actual injection started bothering her because of higher dose and she was becoming aggressive on lantus. She still bounces on lev.

Really think out if the switch could be good for Gizmo. We've been on lev now 5 months and she is just starting to stay in the blues for most of a cycle. The possibility of remission is not an option with her. But I think we can achieve flat blues even if PS are yellow, I'm ok with that.

You don't know if he will continue to bounce, have early or late nadir that would affect your life schedule. I'm lucky that I or husband is home with her. It is rare when both of us are gone at same time. And if we are it's no more than 2 hrs. I won't allow it. If we have to be away longer, she comes with us.I

For some reason people believe using lantus or lev prevent hypos. This IMO is false, I know first hand on 2 cats it can and does happen. What prevents (not always though) a symptomatic hypo is home testing. Really think out why you want to change. Either insulin are fine, just don't expect it to work the way you perceive it to.

 

Thanks all,

Oh noooooo, I really hope CA rules haven't changed! I just bought a box in April and they didnt even ask me if it was for a human or animal. I just called a few days before, they told me to call back the morning of so they could put it aside, and when I got there they had it all packed up with a little cool pack which I tucked in an insulated lunch at with another cool pack and just inconspicuously put it on the floor of my backseat (to keep it out of sun) and then had a backseat full of snacks you cant get in the US easily (like far superior chocolate!)

I'm debating whether I should reduce his dose again if he has another super low pre-shot number. Because I hate skipping doses, but after him crashing at 189 I just am too scared to try anything under 200 now.