911 hypo? Amps(no shot) +12 67 +13 55 +14 47 +14.5 66 +15 69 +16 102 +20 305 +21 340 +22 283

Aaron and Jasper

Aaron and Jasper

Member Since 2018
I'm distraught and will probably leave out things. He's been going low for a while since the new pen, tips. I figured it was just the new pen effectiveness but it continued to stay low. Every recent green has been met with a small amount of food and a small glob of high calorie sugarlike stuff.
Anyway, I'm really afraid he went hypo last night. I'm in tears right now, he's just acting super confused and trying to sniff out something everywhere. The 67 was low so I decided to no shot, but he's still falling and still acting strange. Very strange when trying to take blood.
I wanted to come on here last night for dosing suggestions but this seems far worse. I feel like I'm going to lose him today :'(
 
I'm very happy you did not give a shot. 2u has been too much to give for the past 2 weeks. You should have reduced after each lime green. Keep feeding and monitoring. If he doesn't improve today, you may want to bring him to the vet to make sure no damage was done.

Moving forward, please go buy half mark syringes and use that to pull out the insulin from the pen. Do not use the tips from the pens. I think you should try 1.5u if he comes up high enough and you can monitor him that cycle, but first make sure he's ok now.
 
If you have an ER vet clinic nearby I'd take him there right away. You don't have much data after injections so it's impossible to be certain. My guess is that 2u is too high a dose and has been for some time. The pen tips don't allow for small fraction dose changes that he probably needs. Also, he's been on the same 2 u dose for months and insulin needs can and do change over time. It isn't a set and forget thing.

Keep us posted.
 
I don't know, this is where I would defer to my vet.

Also, at 55 I would go ahead and give a small amount of something sweet (karo, honey, gravy from fancy feast, etc) now.
 
The range of hypo symptoms is very wide. We pay attention to any odd behaviour when BG is running low. Have there been other episodes like this in the past? I ask because he might have gone too low previously. I still recommend a vet check to assess neuro status and possibly have a glucose drip.

Assuming all goes well please do come back so we can help you get your kitty doing better safely. It'll require more work on your part but you and Jasper will feel better.
 
I would recommend calling the vet and telling them you are on your way. These numbers wouldn't worry me if you had no symptoms, but you clearly are.

How far is it? Take syrup with you.
 
Are you entering the test results on his SS? I don't see anything after amps no shot? If he's dropped lower than 40 you need to get him to a Vet!
Who's been advising you about the insulin dose? He should have had a reduction after the Lime green #'s
 
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Well, within a half hour not only is he on the way up, but (seemingly) isn't as weird or frantic about looking around places. He let me take that test like normal.
Just in full transparency for the group, I'm apprehensive about the vet for money's sake. All the n/as on the chart are a result of my recent basic homelessness.
 
Aaron and Jasper said:
Well, within a half hour not only is he on the way up, but (seemingly) isn't as weird or frantic about looking around places. He let me take that test like normal.
Just in full transparency for the group, I'm apprehensive about the vet for money's sake. All the n/as on the chart are a result of my recent basic homelessness.
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I'm very sorry you're going through such a hard time. Are you getting ready to take him to the vet? Are you sure he's looking better? If you can possibly do it please have the vet check him. When you get back with him post here and we can get you started on a better dosing plan that fits into your living circumstances. It's surprising what can be accomplished when many people put their "virtual" heads together ...
 
The 66 is most recent. Ss is current. He's certainly looking better and acting better. I was hesitant before but he's now actually chilled out, purring and laying on me as opposed to the frantic sniffing
 
I'm sorry, Aaron. How long ago was that 66 since his last shot (13-14 hours, I guess?) and how many strips do you have on hand? We'll let you know based on that whether we think we can work this through at home with you.

Do know that the number could go down again once the syrup wears off. You aren't out of the woods after just one rising test, but good that symptoms seem to be lessening. Test again in about 20 minutes and let us know?
 
THe people here are willing to advise you about the insulin dose but you need to post the test results & provide more information. How old is Jasper? What are you feeding him?
There are yellow sticky notes at the top of the Lantus Forum page. The more you read & learn about the insulin & Diabetes the more you can help your cat.

If you have any questions please ask. Everyone here wants to help you & Jasper!

I hope he is doing better. His Blood Glucose was too low several times. You NEED correct advice about his dose. It has been too HIGH!

Best of luck to you.
 
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I will change the title to reflect the no shot. I have probably 70 strips. I was weighing going to the vet (considering it might be the last) until I came in and he ran over acting normal. That brought on the test. I called off work and am here to monitor. If I need to go to the vet I will but I'm pretty sure what they'll suggest (or most certainly would have this morning if I went during symptoms and we wouldn't even be having this conversation)
 
For later:
  • buy some U100 insulin syringes with half unit marks on them, 0.3 cc (mL) capacity, your choice of needle gauge and length (31 gauge, 1/4 inch is popular) - today if you can. I've read on FDMB that Walmart's ReliOn house brand is cheap but you often have to ask repeatedly for half unit marked syringes.
  • test BG again around +6 or +7 (for now, continue with the more frequent BG monitoring tests) and again at his evening pre shot time. Post the results here.
  • be prepared to alter his dose downward. The 2u dose is too high and has been for quite some time.
  • have a careful look at the yellow info stickies listed at the top of the Lantus form. Focus on the SLGS and TR stickies that clearly lay out dosing guidelines.
 
Aaron and Jasper said:
I will change the title to reflect the no shot. I have probably 70 strips. I was weighing going to the vet (considering it might be the last) until I came in and he ran over acting normal. That brought on the test. I called off work and am here to monitor. If I need to go to the vet I will but I'm pretty sure what they'll suggest (or most certainly would have this morning if I went during symptoms and we wouldn't even be having this conversation)
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We can help you avoid losing your kitty. Work with us.
 
+3 (+15) 69
He had his normal food at amps:
half can of glycobalance plus probably 15 dry kernels

I gave him another half can at +2(+14) because the 47 alarmed me, and he frantically ate it

Two small globs of the sugar/calorie product at some point.

I will definitely ask before I dose tonight, I've tried my hardest to never miss so this will be curious to me
 
Aaron, for future reference, a vet will never force you to put your pet down. And for something as easily treated as low blood glucose, they would likely never suggest euthanasia. Please don't avoid going to the vet next time there's an emergency just because you think they'll deliberately end your cat's life. They won't. The decision will always be yours and they will do everything in their power to help so it doesn't come to that.
 
Something else to think about - and it will save you money: please consider switching Jasper to all low carb wet food like Friskies or Fancy Feast pate style foods. They're cheaper than the Glycobalance and better for Jasper because they're lower in carbs and nutritionally fine. It's best to avoid all kibble. The Glycobalance is too high in carbs. Having said that, it's possible that this high carb food has saved him from symptomatic hypos over the past while at 2 u.

Action plan:
  • U100 syringes with half unit marks
  • Friskies or Fancy Feast low carb wet food (the pates)
  • strategic BG testing for the rest of today
  • get dosing advice here for this evening and going forward
  • read up on the TR and SLGS methods of dosing Lantus.
 
I thought this morning was more than low bg, I honestly felt like I was seeing brain damage. In my defense, I don't necessarily feel like they're malicious, just any bit of help they can offer me goes hand in hand with outrageous costs. They did suggest euthanasia during his dka about 6 months ago but that's more understandable. If he were to still be acting like he was I think it would be a given. When I woke and did amps, the number didn't alarm me, only the behavior. Hes been that low before without acting like that so I was afraid that last night he came way too low and it was irreversible
 
I only just came back to glycobalance actually, I was feeding exclusive wellness canned pate for the money reason. I'm not against that switch, but to be clear I shouldn't use any of the remaining glyco dry or wet? That actually makes a lot of sense about saving the hypos, but wouldn't that have happened with previous pens as well?
 
Here's a theory/possibility: kitty physiology has a rescue mechanism built in to prop up BG when it drops too low. They can mobilize glucose that's stored in the liver in another form to increase BG to make sure the brain, etc. has enough glucose to function. However, there's a finite supply of this stored glucose and if rate of withdrawal exceeds the deposit rate then kitty can get into symptomatic hypo trouble even if it hasn't happened previously - or not that you've seen.
 
Aaron and Jasper said:
I only just came back to glycobalance actually, I was feeding exclusive wellness canned pate for the money reason. I'm not against that switch, but to be clear I shouldn't use any of the remaining glyco dry or wet? That actually makes a lot of sense about saving the hypos, but wouldn't that have happened with previous pens as well?
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Wellness is fairly expensive but is good food. There are a lot of low carb options in the pate style. I feed it to my diabetic. The RC canned Glycobalance is 14% carbs as fed. The dry is significantly higher. It's best to keep % carbs under 10. If you're strapped for cash, go with Fancy Feast Classics.

Here's a really good shopping reference chart made up by a vet with expertise in feline nutrition: https://catinfo.org/docs/CatFoodProteinFatCarbPhosphorusChart.pdf
 
Also, I can't figure out how to adjust my signature. Marje did most of my spreadsheet setup the day of the dka because I was a wreck. Is it through this site or sheets? I can't find it anywhere
 
Mandy & Rex said:
Another suggestion is the big 13 oz cans of Friskies pates. You can refrigerate what you don't feed. I do this. Add warm water to the food when you feed Jasper.
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If you have any "Dollar Tree" stores near you (I assume you are in th U.S.), they usually sell at least one variety of the classic pate for a buck. The store by me almost always has the Mixed Grill flavor. It's a great deal.
 
I'm liking the 102 and will take Sandi's advice, going down to hourly tests. He seems about as normal as can be now, waiting for me by the door, following me around, being as vocal as always (which is a good sign for him)
 
This is obviously a food bump, but it's also presumably a no insulin bump as well. Should I be planning to wait until his next dose time? How high is this likely to get through the day?
 
Not sure how high he will go. He's been in good numbers lately so hopefully no blacks or reds, but no way to know. Doesn't matter much because we are more concerned with the lows than the sporadic highs.

I would give him a little testing break. Maybe +8 and then at +11 and post for help for this evening's dose? You both did good today.
 
Don’t worry about the temporary high. Do you have time between now and tonight’s shot to go out and get half unit marked syringes? Relion syringes at Walmart have half unit and may be the cheapest.

One other thing for the future, never give insulin when he is below 50. Even seasoned people here with tons of data never do that.
 
Sandi & Whisper said:
If you have any "Dollar Tree" stores near you (I assume you are in th U.S.), they usually sell at least one variety of the classic pate for a buck. The store by me almost always has the Mixed Grill flavor. It's a great deal.
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Really? Friskies is always about .50 cents a can no matter where you go here in Ohio!
 
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