Need dosing advice ASAP

Already posted in my original thread but posting again for more exposure.

Simba has been resisting his insulin until very recently, and the pre-shot numbers came up much lower than expected today. Tested twice to confirm - results were 157 and 160. This is definitely way too low to shoot our normal dose. Should we skip the shot completely and retest in the AM?

Of course this happened on the one day that we couldn't get more data...

 

He has DKA in his recent history so I wouldn't skip the shot. Try 1 u. Test at +2 to see where he might be heading.

 

Gave him a skinny 1 which was probably closer to 0.75. Will test at +2. This is the first blue we've seen since the spring - very exciting.

 

Wow. Good. Or maybe the infection is now truly resolved...? Dunno. Did he eat his usual amount today?

If it were me, I'd even try testing at +1 just for peace of mind.

 

He ate his usual amount, yes. It didn't sit around for very long either. He ate around 2/3 of his dinner immediately and finished up the rest when I went downstairs to fill the syringe.

 

Ok I just wanted to be sure that he wasn't lower because he hadn't eaten.

We hadn't had the "stalling" convo with you yet, but FYI if you need to stall in the future to ask for dosing advice, don't feed. When you stall, you want to see if the BG is naturally rising or still falling on its own without the influence of food when you retest.

 

270 @ +1. Really wish that we'd gotten more data earlier in the day so we'd have some idea of what happened with him.

 

+1 could either be the food, or he could be starting to bounce already, can't say. I think I would do a +3 next. Probably not much to learn with a +2.

 

I was thinking the same. It at least doesn't look like he's going to hypo territory tonight, which was my main concern.

 

You can't say that quite yet. If he is seeing a bump from the food intake, but the onset of the insulin hasn't occurred yet, he could still go down later. THat is why I suggested +3, because that is usually when you'd see the onset.

 

474 @ +3. Hopefully he doesn't bounce for a whole 3 days again

 

Darn. Ok, well you are safe to go to bed without worry now at least. Tomorrow's another day.

Sleep well, both of you.

 

Try not to worry. That red is most likely from giving a very small dose and could also be the start of a rebound after a big BG drop. You're getting to an active stage of BG monitoring because he' s showing you that 5.25 u is very near his breakthrough dose. There can be lots of wobbling up and down and you will likely have to continue small dose increases (0.25 u) for now to "invite" a better response. What often happens when glucose toxicity "breaks" is he'll want a number of dose reductions in fairly rapid succession.

Glucose toxicity sounds worse than it is. It refers to the effect of prolonged high BGs on the body cells' ability to respond properly to insulin. They lose their sensitivity to insulin - a form of insulin resistance. I've seen the breakthrough point referred to as a "glass floor". Dosing can drop drastically once you're through that floor. As we say here, though, ECID (Every Cat Is Different). Some are dramatic and some aren't. I'm just giving you a heads up that there *might* be exciting times ahead dose-wise.

 

Deep breaths ... ignore the Bounce Black.

 

Very frustrating. We finally saw some good numbers and now he's back in the blacks. Really hoping he gets over it quickly.
Yesterday was also the first time in a while his ketone tests came up strictly negative (instead of trace). Today, he's eating slower (still working on his breakfast) and his ketones are back up to small... Fortunately he's still willing to drink a ton of water and doesn't seem that bad otherwise.

Another thing to note - he's been sneezing every once in a while & sometimes sounds a little congested. We took him to the vet a couple days ago to get it checked out and they said he definitely doesn't have a respiratory infection. It seems to us that he still might, but we don't want to bring him back again when the symptoms haven't really changed at all.

 

The sniffles certainly could be affecting his appetite, but at least he is still drinking well. You could try a humidifier or having him in the bathroom while you shower.

I have put a sniffly kitty in a carrier, covered it with a towel, and pointed a cool mist humidifier at the carrier door. It seems to help a little (if the carrier doesn't completely stress him out).

 

Some people run the shower with hot water to steam up the bathroom and put kitty in there for a while.

 

My Kitty was to the vets several times, after she started sneezing, then later coughing. We were told she had no infections after they took x-rays and blood tests. Took her for a CT scan and she got diagnosed with lung infection. So please advocate for you cat, if he does not get better. <3

I used to make Kitty a "bed" in the bathroom sink and steam up the bathroom when I showered. It made her feel better, and she would eat a lot better for the next hour or so (as she could actually smell the food - my theory)

 

We actually did pick him up a humidifier a few days ago. He loves sleeping next to it nowadays.
& We have been steaming him in the bathroom a bit as well. He actually seems to prefer the cold/hard floor sometimes, so it's not too hard to get him in there.

What did the vet do for the lung infection?

 

When it was finally diagnosed, she got Baytril antibiotics.