? Free Feeding, Dosing

A few questions from a newly diabetic cat parent.

Smudge is on .5u Lantus twice daily. He is emaciated/cachexic and on Hill's d/d, but has been refusing to eat for 5 days... since the day before the vet did his curve. I've been force feeding, but I know I can't give him enough food that way.

I was told not to free feed, but he has got to get something more in there. He's on d/d due to vomiting issues, but right now, I think he'd keep more in after vomiting than I'm able to force feed. This morning, he expressed interest in Ziwipeak rabbit/lamb. Would it be ok to water some down and leave down for him? I am desperate to get him to want to eat and am getting cyproheptadine for a stimulant. If he gets hungry, I want him to have something there.

I read in one of the pinned posts not to shake or roll the insulin. Are there some insulins you do that to? I thought you gently rocked the bottle to ensure it was well mixed. Not shaken, just a gently rock. I had to watch a video to learn how to do this and that was what it said.

Last night 5+ his BG was 136. This morning before dosing it was 148. On the days I work, I'll be unable to do mid-feeding testing, so I'm wondering if free feeding him the rabbit will be safe. Honestly, I don't know if I'm going to be able to save him, but he's my sister's cat so I have to try. That's the first time I've "said" that out loud.

 

Many people here got auto feeders and set them to open while at work and at night too so they can sleep. Others freeze some food and leave it out. When it thaws they eat it. I do r know about others insulin’s but lantus does not need mixing. You want to handle it as little as possible and store in tge fridge where it will stay at an even temp. Those are not bad numbers I’d get an auto feeder. Look on Amazon.

 

https://www.amazon.com/PetSafe-5-Me...id=1519076552&sr=8-3&keywords=Pet auto feeder

 

Here's the thread from the main health forum: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/free-feeding-on-lantus.191424/

 

You don't need to shake or roll Lantus or Levemir. Some of the older insulins (such as Vetsulin or Caninsulin) you do need to mix it.

Free feeding is fine, just try to pick up the food a couple hours before preshot, if you can, so any eating doesn't influence the preshot test number. If you have an autofeeder, you can set it to rotate to an empty slot two hours before preshot.

Do you know if Smudge is nauseous? I wouldn't give cypro, unless you have addressed nausea with something like Cerenia or ondansetron (Zofran) first.

 

Only once has he acted like he was going to throw up and that was the first night home from the vet last week. I have ondansetron of my own... what dosage would a cat get? I can use it if he does throw up.

 

Cerenia is a better med for vomiting. I would talk to your vet about ondansetron dosing. Signs of nausea could be lip smacking, going up to the food, sniffing or licking and turning away.