Hi, I'm new to this forum and new to testing my cat all together. My cat Louie is 12, on Prozinc, 3 is the amount on his doses. The dose was upped since his old doses weren't working and he gets them twice a day. My main question is regarding testing. I understand that the main test should be done before the cat eats and before the cat gets his insukin shot. What insulin levels should I expect BEFORE my cat eats? If I test my cat in 2 hour increments, what levels should I expect at each time? I haven't found any type of curve or anything to let me know what is good. I downloaded the Google spreadsheet but there isn't a key to let me know what the colors mean, and I also know with how prozinc works the levels are expected to vary. Any detailed info helps. Thanks!
This explains the spreadsheet "shorthand": http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/understanding-the-spreadsheet-grid.156606/ The colour coding is keyed to the blood glucose reading you enter on the spreadsheet. The ranges in BG corresponding to a colour are in the coloured band across the top of the spreadsheet. When was your kitty diagnosed? The 3 unit dose you're on is middle range and we like to know what dose he was started on, how long ago, and how big were the jumps in dose over time. What the level is can vary a lot from too low to give insulin to quite high in an unregulated kitty. We look at it from the perspective of "Is the pre food, pre shot BG high enough for the planned dose to be safe?" If you're using a human meter that number is in the range of 200 in US units or 11 in world units. If you're using a pet meter it would be revised upward to about 250 in US units or 13-14 in world units. Are you in the US? Are you using a pet meter or a human meter? If you're doing a curve and testing every 2 hours, the BG should slowly drop from the pre shot high to the low point called the nadir roughly half way through the 12 hour cycle (cycle = the 12 hours after the shot) and then slowly rise again to a level similar to where it started. The curve is "smile shaped". A drop to a BG that is about 50% of the pre shot level shows a good response to insulin even if the numbers overall are too high. Sometimes that drop won't happen - ie., the curve stays "flat". That can mean that the dose is too low or it can mean that the kitty is in a cycle where BG has rebounded to high levels from a dose that's too high, from too fast a drop in BG earlier, etc. It's complicated but we can help you sort it out. I suggest you set up your signature and include a link to your spreadsheet in it: click on your name in the upper right corner of this page click on "signature" in the men that drops down type the following in the box that opens: kitty's name/age/date of diabetes diagnosis/insulin you're using /glucose meter you're using/what he eats/any other meds or health issues he has. I also recommend that your read this guide to using ProZinc insulin: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/...prozinc-pzi-insulin-for-diabetic-cats.164995/ You're doing a really good thing in starting to test your kitty and setting up the spreadsheet. Feel free to ask any/all questions you have. We're here to help.
Hi, and welcome! Kris has given you some good advice to help you get started, so I'll just say hello! We look forward to getting to know you and Louie!
Louie was diagnosed right at 3 months ago. We upped his dose about 1 month ago. We are using Alphatrak 2. I appreciate you explaining what certain terms mean, and read the guides. Maybe it is because there are so many terms being thrown out and scenarios, but if you could simplify it for me that would be great. 1: What is the glucose level I should desire PRE test/food/shot? 2: What is the glucose level I should desire shortly after a shot? 3: What is the glucose level I should desire 4 hours after a shot? 4: What is the glucose level I should desire 8 hours after a shot? I think just having this information would be very helpful. It would also be helpful to know what numbers would be alarming. I know some of this informtion was available but it was lost in some of the explanations to me. Hopefully you understand.
I really want to emphasize Kris' last paragraph up there in post #5. It does take time to really figure this out, and it's complicated. Please don't hesitate to ask questions, and ask for folks to help out along the way. When I first started I posted every day for a long time, sometimes every cycle when things were complicated. It's a lot to learn, and it's not as straightforward as we sometimes wish it was. We are here to help.
