? Griff updates

Hello All,

It has been a long time since I posted, so sorry, life through me a couple of curve balls. But, I have been getting Griff balanced, so to speak. We are at 7 units now (sorry, haven't kept up with the spreadsheet....) his pre-shot blood sugar was 112 tonite before dinner.

I don't think I should give him insulin, but wanted to ask the experts

Thank you!!

Jessie

 

Additional info: I do have the saved BS numbers in my tester. Will post them tomorrow. Right now, I am burning a very late dinner

 

Jessie, I'm so sorry, but without recent data, I can't really advise on that. Sometimes you can shoot a full dose on a lower number, and other times it can be terribly dangerous (seizures or worse). Is there any way you can fill in at least the past week of data so we can see what has been happening recently?

 

Sorry for my ineptitude! I have posted the data from 4/15 till now. And, 117 was tonights reading, oops.

 

And he's been at 7u for all of those cycles? Or did you skip the shots on the greens?

 

If he's been at 7u for the non-green cycles, then I think I would give a BCS dose (Big Chicken Shot ). That's usually half of the regular dose. I would also really recommend that you get a test around +2 or +3 if at all possible to get a sense of how he's doing and make sure he's safe.

If my assumption that he's been at 7u this whole time is wrong, please post again and let me know what the doses have been.

 

When he was low green I skipped. So, this is low blue and don't know if I should skip. Updated the notes.

 

If you skip completely, then based on the green skips, he'll likely be pink or red in the morning. If you give a BCS dose (in this case around 3-3.5u) then he'll still be high, but probably not as high. In addition, if you retest him now, he's likely higher. It's been awhile since we started this conversation.

 

PS overall his numbers are looking pretty good these days!

 

just tested 151. Post dinner, no injection.

 

I know! So flippin' excited! He is now playing with his bro' like he used to

 

I think I'd still go with the BCS dose and see how he does, but it's entirely up to you. If you'd rather skip, it's okay. You hold the syringe and need to make the decision you feel best about.

You've been doing a great job with the reductions over the past few days. That's letting you get closer to two shootable numbers for AM/PM. You'll hopefully need to go to 6.5u soon. Fingers crossed he keeps heading in this direction!

 

Will do! Thank you so much, you rock!!!! I am so happy to be going down in numbers.....finally! I will do 3.0 right now

 

551 this morning. He seems to feel fine though. Will test again a little later.

Thanks!

 

+2 455

 

Normally I would look at those numbers and assume that he needed closer to the full dose and you would have been okay just reducing by a unit or two. However, given his overall lower trend, there is a possibility that he went lower overnight and those high numbers are from his liver dumping glucose. My hunch is he's high because it wasn't enough insulin, but we can't really know for sure without those oh-so-not-fun middle of the night tests.

I'll be curious to see what he does from here!

 

187 last night and 313 this morning. Will see if I can drag myself outta bed to do a night time. How many hours post shot? Thank you Djamila!!!!

 

Somewhere between +5 and +7 would be good.

 

Well, pink is better than black at least! Sometimes after a missed or BCS dose, it can take a cat a few cycles to get back to normal. Hopefully he'll settle back down for your soon!

 

174 just now.

 

seems like he is settling in again!

 

Yay! That's good to see!

 

So, Giffy Giff's numbers are kinda all over the place. I have not been able to do in between tests...........it's spring on the farm, so much to do. Are there any key times I should shoot for and I will make a point to do the tests??!!!

On the upside, Giffy is really acting like his old self again. He now asks (ummm, demands) to be picked up and carried around. He hasn't done that in over a year!!!

 

Wow...he really is all over the place, huh? Typically nadir is +4 to +7, so usually you want to concentrate on those hours. Given how bouncy he’s being, I think anything you can get would be helpful data.

 

righty o! Bouncy bouncy +4 and +7

Thank you!!!

 

One more little house-keeping nudge: could you put the doses in the light blue columns like you were doing earlier in the spreadsheet? It's a lot easier to compare the dose to the impact (BG numbers) when they are over there. I know, I know,...picky, picky . You don't need to go back and re-do the old info, just going forward would be great!

 

Ooops, I did go back and add the info in. He is staying in the blue in the 180's.

 

Fingers crossed those big swings are settling down, and so nice to see his dose coming down too! Keep going, Griffith, you're headed in the right direction!

 

Thank you! It is nice to be going down in units and not up!

 

+6 today was 59 pre-lunch. Will see what tonite looks like.

 

Yay! That's a fantastic +6. Way to go, Griff! (and way to go Jessie sneaking away from the farm duties!). I was just over near Spokane about a week ago and things are definitely busy around there! Do you get bison babies?

 

Yes! So happy for Griff! And, yes, we have 4 baby bison so far. Love the babies

 

Pictures? I bet baby bison are adorable!

 

Of course I have pictures!! This is Puddin' our head cow with her calf a few hours old

 

Oh my gosh! I'm dying! She is so cute!!! Look at those wobbly little legs! And they're so tiny compared to the full grown mamas!

What makes Puddin' the "head cow"? Do all the cows take a vote and elect a leader?

 

OMG! How sweet is that?!

 

I know, they are so flippin' cute! It is fun to see them run around and play!

Puddin' decided she would be head cow, voted for herself and forced everyone to vote for her. Hers was a landslide victory!

 

Dang it! We were doing so good. On 5/5 evening, Griff got startled when I was getting ready to inject. I wasn't sure how much, if any insulin was administered. Clearly none. =( Numbers are way up now.

Should I increase insulin or ride through the bounce?

PS I changed the title of the post to reflect current situation.

 

Ride out the bounce and try hard for an evening test or two. You saw what 6.5 u can do (green) and you want to know if that has been or will be repeated. Broken record: PSs alone aren't enough to assess a dose.

 

Will do! Extra pokies for Griffy today =)

Thanks a million!

 

Okay, today got a couple in between readings.

AM 392
+ 4 231
+7 230

 

This is a tough one. A few days ago, 6.5u was almost looking like too much with that 59. I'm gonig to think out loud here for a minute, so this might get rambly....

Sooooo.....he is either:
A) getting too much insulin and bouncing by the PS's
B) not getting enough insulin so his PS's are rising

How's that for helpful? It's either too much or too little

Today's cycle could be a flat cycle after going too low. And your PS numbers could be looking ugly because he's dropping hard in the middle of a cycle somewhere and then dumping glucose to keep himself safe - which gives those ugly PS's.

Or....those reductions were just some little wobble in his journey and he needs you to raise the dose up again.

Or....those reductions were real, but something new has cropped up like a bad tooth or a UTI that has all of a sudden pushed his numbers back up.

My hunch is that he needs more insulin. The reason I'm leaning that way is that on the earlier cycles when you were at 8u, then 7.5, etc., you could see hints that it was too much insulin with the PS numbers going up and down. Right now they are just steadily going up. There's some variation, but not much.

It does seem weird that he'd be going down for a little while, and then suddenly reverse course though. Which leads me to think there might be something going on with his health in some other arena that is impacting this. But again, it might just be one of those things. Cats are weird sometimes.

So what should you do? I think there are two main choices right now:
1. You could try moving him back to 7u and see how he does. If it's too much insulin he should start to get wonky PS numbers again.
2. You could wait a couple more days, and keep getting mid-cycle numbers from a few cycles in a row to try to either catch a sneaky low number, or "prove" that the mid-cycles are all too high.

The safer option is #2, but in the middle of farming season, I don't think #1 is a terrible choice, as long as you leave some food out for him while you're away all day.

 

Well, I don't think there is anything else going on. I looked at his teeth, fine. He is peeing normally and acting normal.

I will go with option 2. I will be around a lot since we are getting ready for tours. I have an alarm scheduled to get the +4 and +7 during the day. I will try to get some middle of the night, too.

Thanks so much Djamila!

 

+10 379

+12 417

 

Got a couple night readings.

+2 498
+4 1/2 421
This a.m. 293

 

Wow those numbers last night are ugly. If he doesn't show a lower blue or green number during the day today, I'd go ahead and increase to 6.75 or 7u tonight.

For the tests today, it can be anytime between +4 and +7, so if +5 or +6 is easier, those are fine too.

 

Yeah, I was not happy about those numbers. I will get some numbers today.

Thanks again!

 

+4 350

+ 7 260

Guess I will raise his insulin tonite

 

Well, shoot. I was really hoping he would have better numbers today.

 

Yes, me too. I cannot believe that one missed shot caused such a problem. Thanks for your help! I will be modest and go to 6.75.

 

Got a blue! Yay. Raised to 6.75 last night.

Pre-shot last night 296
This AM 393
+4 188

 

Last night 302
This a.m. 453???

Last night his shot was about 1/2 hour-45 minutes late. Had a high risk cow giving birth so had to keep a watch. She did fine. But, could that be the reason his numbers are a little wonky?

 

First of all, I'm so glad the cow is okay. Does that mean you have another new baby?

I don't think being a little late on the shot is the culprit. I think Griff is just a little out of sorts for whatever reason and is needing more insulin. As much as you can, keep trying to grab a test somewhere during the cycles - since he's shown he can do well on less insulin (at least for a little while), you'll want to keep an eye on him - keep moving his dose up as he shows those higher mid-cycle tests, but be watching for when he wants to go back down again.

 

Yes, another new baby!! Love the babies.

406 just now. Will watch him closely for the next few days and do more mid-cycle tests. Today was hectic since we opened for our tour season.
I think I will do 7 units tonite. As always, thank you, Djamila!!!

 

Numbers are still red and pink with the raise to 7. I am so bummed 'cause I was seeing greens and blues.

 

Yay, we are back into the blues and greens. Had a few pinks. Lowered his dose this morning to 7 units. 82 at +7.5

 

Hooray! So good to see some happier colors on his spreadsheet! How is he doing other than numbers? And how are the rest of your critters and tourists?

 

He is doing paw-some! In fact, he is trying to get my attention as I type.....yah, so helpful!! We have 6 calves now, all doing fantastic! And, have been super busy with tours. I hope the next time you are in Spokane you might consider a trip up to visit to meet Griffy and the bison, would love to meet you and thank you in person. We are only about 45 minutes from Spokane.

 

That would be so much fun! I'll definitely let you know next time I'm heading that direction. I don't have any trips planned over there in the near future, but if I wait long enough, I might be able to say I'm visiting the new state of Liberty!

http://komonews.com/news/local/wash-representatives-want-to-make-eastern-washington-its-own-state

 

Yes, please do! yah, not sure about that Liberty state thing......

So, this morning got a 60 reading. Did not give insulin. I am sure he will spike tonite. Should I lower his dose a bit?

 

I just did a +6 and it is 404. I wasn't sure if I should have given him a small dose this morning. 60 scared me!

 

Shooting Prozinc on a 60 would have been rather risky. I think I would have recommended feeding him, waiting an hour, and then testing and shooting a little late. That way he doesn't have to go the whole cycle without insulin, but you can shoot on a safer number (assuming he rose after he ate).

Yes, I would lower the dose a bit. He's probably going to be a little wonky for a few cycles after the NS today, so don't be surprised if he runs high for a day or two.

It's curious that he's going up and down on his dosing needs right now. Thank goodness you're monitoring him!

 

Shoot, I should have tried getting a test after breakfast. Didn't even think about it Yah, I cannot figure out why he is up and down. It is driving me cwazy!! I will keep monitoring! Thank you!

 

Well, did get some spikes yesterday as you thought. A.M. pre-shot was 180 and +4 48 Yikes! I lowered insulin to 6.75. Need to go lower. Should I go to 6.5 or lower? I am feeding him now and will re-test to make sure he doesn't go any lower

 

How much did you give last night? It's hard to say if you need to drop down to 6.5u since the missed shot might just be making things wonky right now. Although two low AMPS numbers in a row...hmmm....yes, I think I'd go to 6.5u and then just keep monitoring.

Maybe Griff is just causing drama because he's jealous of all the attention the baby bison are getting

 

I agree, try 6.5 and see what that gets you. You can always go up again if needed.

 

Hahahaha, that is too funny!

I did 7 units last night since he was in the 500's, then 6.75 this morning. I will go with 6.5 tonite, thank you!

 

Will do, thank you!

 

pre-shot evening 154. I will do 6.5 after dinner.