Nutter -- Able to Test. Low. Shoot or no Shoot

I was finally able to get a BG reading AMPS. It was 59 after is Purina DM. I'm figuring I should skip his morning 2u since I have to leave for work shortly. I'd rather not take a chance. All of a sudden the boy is low. Is this a good sign?

I'll call the vet from work. Maybe if I can test him tonight and he needs a shot, we can lower the dose.

Thanks all.

 

That is a beautiful number well within the "normal" range

Mel & Muse (GA)

 

Thanks. That's what I thought. All the more reason to learn how to home test ... what if I had shot blind and given him 2u ProZinc. Yikes!!

My mantra...I will learn to home test, I will learn to home test, I will learn to home test.

Thanks.

Linda

 

Hi Linda,

So glad Mother of Muse was able to confirm no shot for you this morning. Wouldn't find me up that early.

Didn't realize you were on ProZinc. My guess is with a different food, NutterButter might just go OTJ (off the juice).

DM is very expensive. Why don't you try grain free Wellness canned with some Fancy Feast canned. That way both cats could eat the same food. I just mix them up.

Claudia

 

what a beautiful number to start the day out at!!!

 

I agree with everything you said - no shot at this PS, and consider lowering the dose going forward. With PZI you want to have a no-shoot # - the lowest would be 150, and a lot of times people just starting out keep it at 200 for a little bit, then you gather some data on shots given around that PS, and if the data tells you your dose is safe at that PS, then you lower it to 180, and with more data, down to 150.

When you get a PS that is below your no-shoot, then if you can you retest in 30 minutes or an hour, and once the # is over your no-shoot, go ahead with the insulin. Alternately, if your PS is above 150 but lower than what you normally shoot on, you can try a slightly lowered dose, and collect data on that.

This # is SO low though, I probably wouldn't bother retesting in 1/2 hour. Going a few hours out will probably mess too much with your shot schedule, so I would skip it (assuming you are heading out for the day), and pick up where you left off with the PM shot. If you are home and can be more flexible with the shot timing, you can retest anytime you want and shoot then if the # is high enough. I haven't had a chance to look at any data you have on her so far, so I can't recommend what dose, but I would definitely drop it down some from what you are shooting now.

 

I just got home. I had called the vet and was told to not give any insulin for the weekend and to get at least one reading on Sunday. I should call them on Monday with the number. I, of course, will try to get more readings than that.

I give the grain free Wellness to my other cat and both have been eating that along with other high quality foods for the last year. No kibble for over a year. The reason I'm staying with the Purina DM for the moment is that I only want to have one factor (in this case the ProZinc) being adjusted up or down with the food being totally consistent. Once I have my dear boy regulated or, dare I say, diet controlled only, then I'll go back to the other food and see how he does with those.

I'm going to try testing again tonight. Hope he keeps up the good work.

Linda
Nutter and Boo's Mom

 

Hi Linda - I would swap your approach - get the food where you want it, and let that dictate the insulin needs.

The problem is that regulation often isn't straightforward, and often a food change is the key element in regulation happening sooner rather than later. If you get him on optimal food, that gives him the best chance of being diet-controlled. Often people switch foods and see immediate improvement, and end up having their cat go OTJ in a manner of days (not to get your hopes overly high here, more often it takes weeks to get regulated).

Bix was a tough sell on canned food, so I struggled for months (unsuccessfully) to get him regulated on higher carb food (I know you aren't using anything high carb of course). Once I finally got him to switch foods, things fell into place. Especially if you are thinking of holding off on insulin for a few days, sounds like the perfect time to switch foods and see if the #s improve on their own (I would still consider giving insulin though, but at a lower dose).

I'm not sure what the carbs are on the DM, so if it is under 10% it may not matter too much, but even a few % points can make a difference. We use Wellness, which is 4% - I stick with just the Turkey & Chicken flavors, since those 2 have the same carb level, some of the other flavors are slightly higher, so I avoid those. I do agree you want consistency in what you are feeding from shot to shot...

 

Thanks for your thoughts on this. I'm just staying on this for the weekend and see where that takes us. I may make a switch sooner rather than later, but styaing the course for the weekend.

Nutter's AMPS was 111. Not bad for 24 hours without insulin. I'm starting to get the hang of home testing (Ok, truth is Nutter is getting the hang of it and has stopped flinching). With a little more experience and some numbers to work with, I should be able to work with my vet on a new feeding plan along with the insulin.

The vets office where I take Nutter really seems open to home testing and listening to my ideas about the feeding. I want to build a good working relationship for Nutter's sake. A good vet that I can trust is hard to find.

Linda

 

linda, i'd keep testing and if your cat's number goes over 150 i'd give at least a partial shot. the longer we can keep them in lower numbers the more time their pancreases have to heal and increase the chance of remission.

 

I can test tonight. I'll call the vet's office today and let them know that I am getting better at testing and see what they advise if the numbers get higher. It's such a learning curve but I'm starting to get the hang of this slowly but surely.

 

sounds good. just remember to give praise and treats, no matter what the number is, so it stays a positive experience. lots of cats here actually come to their owners for tests, once they understand how they profit from it. oh, and treats for you, too, like chocolate.

 

I am wicked psyched right now (Ok, can you tell I'm from Boston). I just did a PM test right after dinner and he's 108. Almost 2 days without insulin. And he's being so good about the testing now.

I sing to him first (woops, maybe that's not praise...but he seems to like it a lot). I sing "I love you a Bushel and a Peck" while I cuddle him. He looks me right in the eye while I sing. Then I slip him between the arm of the sofa and my leg. Everything has already been set up, including the lancet, the meter, a flashlight for my aging eyes and a guaze pad. He's getting so good at this. After I get the number I just praise him for being such a good boy...and sing him another verse. Thank God there are no vidoes of this. I'd never be able to show my face in public again.

But my sugarbaby is doing good -- 111 this morning and now 108. I'm holding my breath.

Thanks all again for your encouragement and support.

...and I had my chocolate at work today...leftover chocolate pudding from a seminar downstairs...the best. Tonight, all is well with my world.

Linda
Nutter and Boo's Mom

 

Wow, those are awesome #s, hoping the good news continues!!!

p.s. I sing that song too (not during testing, but to the kitties).

 

The good news continues....AM test 98!!! And we start day three without insulin. I'm cautiously optomistic (and now quite convinced it's really the singing that does it -- NOT)

Again, my mantra....home testing, home testing, home testing. Without the home testing the outcome here would have been completely different. I might not even have my sugarbaby today with blind shooting at 59 and then going off to work for 11 hours. Scary to think about it!!!

Linda
Nutter and Boo's Mom

 

Woohoo may not be long and Nutter will be joining some of the others here in OTJ land! Really glad I was up the other morning to comfirm that no shoot at 59. Keep up the good work.

lol I sing to my kitties all the time, they don't seem to mind that I'm completely tone deaf and change the lyrics.

Mel & Muse (GA)

 

Nutter tested tonight at 83...just a perfect little baby.

Equally as important, I noticed that he has stopped inhaling his food and actually walked away and left some on his plate. Unheard of in the last few months. He was absolutely ravenous and no amount of food would satisfy him. Tonight, he took 15 minutes to get through a can of Purina DM. He didn't finish the whole can. He actually took time to chew his food. I'm in shock. He's my sweet little baby again. Since he's the weight the vet thinks is fine, I'm lowering the amount of food from 1 can to 3/4 can if the vet thinks that's fine. I'll ask on Monday.

Linda

 

Linda, your boys are beautiful.......I love Nutter's face. Fantastic news on the numbers and once again, canned food.......little insulin to help.......and hometesting to save the kitty......and almost safe to say Nutter is OTJ. Diet change to canned and some Lantus......what a great combination for newly dx'd kitties. Great job with the hometesting.

 

Tested this AM at 85. Looks like we're stabilizing. I can't wait to call the vet tomorrow!!!

 

dancing_cat dancing_cat dancing_cat dancing_cat dancing_cat dancing_cat dancing_cat dancing_cat dancing_cat dancing_cat dancing_cat

 

Love the kitty dance!!!!

 

dancing_cat dancing_cat dancing_cat dancing_cat joining in the happy kitty dance for Nutter Butter..He is just a doll, I love those eyes on your avatar! How can you not fall in love with a face like that!

Mel & Muse (GA)

 

Curry and I say HOORAY for Nutterbutter. dancing_cat dancing_cat dancing_cat dancing_cat

How long has he been on the insulin?

 

Nutter has only been on insulin (ProZinc) for about three weeks. Started with 2u twice a day, but after 10 days his number at the vet was 371 (If I remember correctly). They changed the ProZinc to 3u twice a day. He wasn't on the 3u very long, maybe less than a week. That's when I really learned to hometest. It took awhile for us to get into the groove, but my second successful test was the 59. He's been off insulin since Thursday. Maybe we caught this early....Here's hoping the boy keeps up the good work.

Yup, he's a sweetie with a personality to match.

Linda
Nutter and Boo's Mom

 

Wow! That's amazing!! Keep it up, Nutter!!

s

 

Nutter was ansy tonight and I had to poke more than once. Poor baby. But it was worth it -- 71. I can't wait to call the vet tomorrow!!

Linda
Nutter and Boo's Mom