Is a reading of 31 way too low? I hadn't tested Brutis in a long time because he had been doing so well Amber
They said absolutely NO hometesting and to give DM food and to just give 1U twice a day regardless. I would have certainly @#$%& my cat by now.Simba is on a roll! +36 and we're 87!!!
Simba's Mom
Before I got the meter and on the last weekly trip to the vet for a check, his BG was 60! And the vet wanted to raise his dose!! With help from this board, I kept checking and lowering his insulin dose and thank heaven I did for on a couple of days Yoshi had a BG of 36 at nadir. Carol & Yoshi

Yesterday, this lady made the 3 hour trip to see me, and watch me demonstrate how to hometest.She did her first hometest on Grace at 0730 and got a BG of 6.2 111 US.She had convinced herself that she must have done something wrong and retested her 9:30 . This time she was 4.4 (79)
Karen & Rambo(GA) & Conan
Through home testing I found that my cat can be dangerously low and show absolutly no signs.As I grabbed my purse I had an urge to test Riggs one more time before we left. Thank goodness I did. His blood glucose level was at 26.
June & Riggs

Help, first home test and BG is very low.I was so happy to finally get
some blood - Cady's reading was 39!
Linda & Cady

Remember that 80 year lady I taught how to hometest?? she called to
tell me that hometesting saved Foxy's life today..
she tested for her morning shot and she was 62-
Robin and Peri

WHOA!!! +2 59!!!
Bethany

I told her (because of her anxiety over testing) that if she wants she
can let her skip +6 test and just re-test tonight. Her reply was
"Oh, no - I want to see what she is at +6."Well, he was 85 at PS AM
- NO SHOT. She is ecstatic.
Emmy & Dude
Sir had gone hypo for the 3rd time in 7 days. Following the advise from this wonderful group - I stopped the insulin, and started our blood tests. 72 - Thur 10:33p 2hr post snack 77 - Fri 10:22p 5hr post meal Sir's caretaker

And as for upsetting Larry with that awful Home Testing
Larry RUNS and JUMPS onto the dining room table where he
is tested when it is time and WAITS for his poke.

HOLEY MOLEY. Tristan's PS was at 32 this AM
OLM Catnip Cottage

Hometesting helps me help him and also lets me see the progress.
Melinda & Cat

I did it! I just got a bg test on my first try this morning.
You all were right - it was easy!
Carolyn/Sunny

Hmmm... amps 69 no shot pmps 122 no shot
Tracey & George--a.k.a. Mr. Boy
My Accu-Check Active meter just broke.His BG readings seem to be dropping lately, and I am WAY to scared to shoot without testing first.
Lauren in Libertyville

Yesterday I tested her in the morning and she was 586 and then
again at night and she was 476. This morning I tested her and
she was 68,
mondaysmom

Danny's PZI insulin normally gives out at around 11 hours. Just imagine what would have happened if I hadn't tested his blood sugar this morning when he was at +11.5.... he was at 44.
laur and danny
I just gave our Coon his first test. It was 67. I've not done this before, so is this ok?
EJ and Cat

First time hometest of 51
Lee and ChiChi

But, just to show how important home testing is: she had a bg of 49
this morning - if we had given her the 3 IE that the vet told us to....
Sherie & Binti

I decided to start hometesting. I tested this evening for the very first
time at 6:30 right before she was do for her PM shot. She had a reading of 86.
KathyNY2AZ

5:50 pm 64 BG NO PZI given , thank you for advice of NOT to shoot
Pace and Frank

I went and bought a home blood glucose meter. have now tested her
blood glucose several times and not given any insulin.
What on earth is going on?
Katti

hometesting saves the day!had this feeling that he was probably at
a high BG number, but of course, I tested him pre-shot...guess what
...49!!! I am soooo glad I did not give him a unit and leave for work.
amy and max

For the last several days his pretest has had nothing unusual in it.
This morning I tested and the meter showed "30"
This scared me, so I retested and the meter read "low"
Steve

I did not measure Mxxxx's BG before his am feed because in the past it
has been sky high. Gave 1 U caninsulin with a full can of FF At 8:00
(+1) Mxxxx threw up all his food. Measured his BG and it was 2.2!
Name changed to lucky

hometesting is a big part of why Hack & Mack lived as long
as they did with diabetes.
Jane and Hack(GA)&Mack(GA)

I just started hometesting like a week ago and found felix
I guess to be in a honeymoon.
Felix's Mommy

Cat BG at 34. He's never been this low.
sledwidge

I just did my first spotcheck... all by myself!
Cyndi & Arthur

Oh My GOD!! I DID IT.!!!!!!!! Misty's first home test.
Emilie and Misty

Finally if i didnt start hometesting this past friday i would
have never knew my kitty was getting too much insulin by
getting any insulin at all
KittensuzieQ

just did my first home test, all very exciting with accidentally
pricking my flatmate and setting a pair of socks on fire in the
microwave; but it feels great, now I can be in control
Tina and Tom

Izzy B just had a BG count of 88. Today is a good day!!
Hahny

I tested him as usual before giving him his snack... he was 27
MurraysMama

Sweet Max's PM PS = 49.
Having a 49 at shot time, is a great example of why people should home
test. If I didn't, he would have received his usual dose of 4 units
Cat and Sweet Max

Loreli was given .2 HumilinN bid.Loreli crashed, did well
with corn syrup and rallied. I got serious then about
her home testing
JoAnn and Loreli

From 426 to 47 on .5U...GULP!
pilotom

Holly four letter word! Cosmo 72 @+10
Shelly and Cosmo

you might want to start hometesting for yourself. This
really is good advice. IT CAN BE A LIFESAVER and
only recently I experienced a situation in which
hometesting did exactly that. It saved a cat's life
and he is now in great health.
JazzDoc

Had I not been hometesting and I shot him at 80 I would have hypo'd him...and since I would have been at work potentially come home to a dead cat.
Jodie and Slakk

Fuzz +35! = 83!!!!!!! woooohoooooo!!!!! *NM*
Jamie & The Fuzz

I know it saved Meow Meow's life. It saved a coworker's cat.
Before starting insulin, she agreed to let me come over and show
her how to test.The cat was 65.If they'd have started insulin...
Lynette and Meow Meow

Tonight we did a pre food/shot test and Sid was 74
MikeH

121 one hour after meal. I didn't expect to be making
insulin changes so soon into testing.
laura919

This morning Trixters AMPS # was 66! His lowest yet,
and he hasn't had any Insulin for almost 3 days!
TrixtersMommy

+3-+4 LO, 22, LO, 34, 47
I really thought we had her under control and were finally
"regulated"We've never had a LO on the meter before and to
see it and then see her go up a little and then back to LO
again is frightening.I can't begin to stress the
importance of spot checks. 48 hours after her last
shot her BG is 113 this morning.
Pam and Stasha

If anybody wants a horrific hypo and a @#$%@*& vet story, I've sure got
it. Otherwise, they best advice I can give is this: One word,
hometest. Let me repeat, HOMETEST!!!!!!!!!!!

began hometesting approx.1 week into process caught a near
hypo on the first test.
Cindy and Tritone

I can't get Bills numbers UP enough to feel comfortable
giving him a shot
Shirley & Bill

thank you, thank you, thank you for telling me to test before I
give each shot. If I hadn't tested tonight Ella would have
gotten 4.5 units and most certainly would have been hypo after
I had fallen asleep. Yikes! Ella;'s BG is 74 at shot time!
Annie & Ella

Fatbob is currently on the lowest dosage that I've ever had him on,
he's currently getting 0.5u bid Insuvet PZI.... and three times
this week it's been 0.5u sid. I can't believe that I was
giving 17u bid of U when I first came here.
Black and Fatbob

Without this group I would have missed 3 hypos!! My vet
emails *me* to ask me what her numbers are. We are now
a team and it feels good
Carone

Decided to test-it came back 28
Catthom and Max, post,post hypo
BG at 4:46pm 111!!! WaHoo!!!
catthom

Fritz hypo'ed on 1u. and had seizures. None of us wants to go
through a 1a.m. ride to the emergency vet again. We never shot
without testing after that episode, and now Fritz is off insulin
all together. Testing and low carb canned food saved his life!
Donna & Fritz

It's 86 and he just ate just a bit more food I called the vet she
said to not give him insulin for 2 days. She isn't into testing, but
I think it is a good thing I am testing. She said to retest in
2 days. I told her I would retest later.
gizzy

Just this morning, Rob's bg was 4.(72) No insulin today!
It IS a good reminder
Christina & Robert
in the UK

then this morning I tested him at 10:30, and got 7.8 so I didn't
give insulin based on the stuff I've recently been reading online,
and waited till noon. That test read 2.6, so I freaked out and
did another one because I thought maybe the bead of blood wasn't
big enough or something, and THAT test came up3.2
Kara and Madmartigan

On this morning, his PS was 69. Had I not known that, I'd have
given his usual dose I wouldn't have been around when he
most definitely would have HYPO'd
Taco'sMom

This a.m. she was around 90 at 8:30 shot time.
Annie & Ella

he always goes to our testing spot, and starts licking
his lips because he knows there will be food to follow.
dizexhaled

Storm hypoed Labor Day. A trip to vet. ER. Expensive BUT life
saving And informative! I needed & wanted more info. & thankfully
discovered this site. I never heard of hometesting a cat until I
found this web site. I started home testing sept. 6. WOW! This
has improved Storm's health & my mental state.
fagan822

With hometesting we have gone from 2U sid to 1U bid
to .5U about every other day.sassy actually. wakes
us up at night just so we can love on him - he has not
done that in almost a year.
Brenda and Tailor

I tested once before a scheduled 2.8 U dose (PZI VET),
normal behavior, no signs anything was up, and tested
Sardy's BG he was 38. THIRTY EIGHT. Thank GOD for the glucometer
and Karo Syrup. Not testing equals emotionally scarred human.
Sardymeister

If I hadn't spontaneously decided to check before I shot,
I would've had a dead cat.
catthom

My defiant little Leo, who hated me for the first 3 days of hometesting
has started plopping himself down in front of me on the floor
between my legs facing away from me all ready to have his little ear pricked
as soon as he sees me pick up my testing stuff and look over at him.
Dena and Leo

Zak & Buddy usually get their shots around 6:30-7:00...will they be
ok if I give at 5:00? Nervous about this..have you ever done this?
Just took Zak's BG..at first got 64...did again, now its 58...
Donna & Zak

I mastered it just as his needs for insulin were decreasing
due to the switch to low carb food. He is a healthy 17 1/2
year old diet controlled diabetic.
Holly and Spader

Sobering. I could add a couple of lines. I hometested from the first,
Monday I went to the vet committed to hometesting. She said ok: 4
units bid. xxx said Please give him 1 unit. Good thing, too.10 days
and 8 doses later, no more diabetes. But that test kit isn't going anywhere.
Lauren & Coolidge

I just don't want to jinx it, but Cody hasn't had a shot since Sat am
BG# is 3.9 (70) He is his old self again that's for sure. He beats
up on my other male It's so nice to see him enjoying life
Codys Mom

10:45 90
it's been 14 hours since his last shot
Cyndi & Arthur

Doing first hometest - I did It!!
Lisa and Mister Harley

Some of you may remember that my cat Charles Big Boy was
having very high numbers in the morning. What's happened is
astounding.I have reduced his dose from 2 units PZI Vet BID to .6
units 104 +12 no shot
Again, thanks to all of you for making me see the importance of testing
Artemis and Charles (Big Boy)

The results of our very first BG test resulted in no insulin.
With much gratitude for the advice of the active and knowledgeable
members of the FDMB, I am an ardent proponent of home-testing, as on
more than one ocassion low PS numbers might have led to hypoglycemia had I administered a dose of insulin.
Patricia and Princess

This month we've officially made 6 years of her being diabetic.
Shortly after diagnosis, she was on a honeymoon for nearly 3 years.
The only reason I caught it was because I came here and heard of
and then learned to hometest. I would have continued to give her insulin
Jennifer & Korbel

+86 92 Chico was postively bouncing off the walls
it was wonderful to watch. We still are insuling free!
Heather & Chico

just done ruddles ps it was 4.7 what do i do
if i was not testing at home and i would of given her her
full shot not knowing her bg could i have made her ill
would it be like over dosing her
Julie & Ruddles

I was testing BGs at home, otherwise she would have OD'd
Mimi & Betty in NH


I am not at this time checking his bloodsugar levels,
Dr. Hunhultz, said there was really no need at this time.
Sam is taking 6 units of PZI twice a day.
I checked Sam at +13.5 and his BG was 131!!!! WOW
Brenda & Sam

BE1 was 45 at +11
BE2 was 106 at +11
Tillie & Bookends

I don't think we're ever hitting the 100s.
holy crap! Dorian +3 60!
emtavano

A month into giving insulin, I started hometesting after discovering
the board. We had just raised to 4U bid of Lantus at the vet's
suggestion and on the second day of testing, his PMPS was 40
and still dropping.
Alanna and Oscar

Re: 92?!? 85?!? Ok, who's got my cat???
LynCAT and Shadow

Stasha was 28 and I'm not home! EEEEK!
Pam and Stasha

Patriot... OMG 62 PMPS -
Cheri & Patriot

Without hometesting, I would have never known that his BG levels
were dropping due to the change in his diet, and I would have
continued to give him insulin shots when he didn't need them.
I probably would have @#$%& my furbaby due to hypoglycemia
if I hadn't been hometesting. All I can say is get tough,
realize this is for the health of your cat and just do it!
After a few tries, it becomes easier and more routine and before
you know it, you'll be doing curves on your own too!
Vicki and Coke (and Cola too)

.She survived this because I hometested!!!!!!!!
Before this hypo I did not test regularly and I thought
it was okay to take my time to learn! I was wrong.
SweetGrass

Spice is 100% diet controlled and hasn't had any insulin in two weeks!
I have been testing her every few days and tonight ber BG was 98.
Tracie & Spice

Trouble would have died of a hypo because I would have injected him when he was no longer in need of insulin. Makes me shudder to think about it.
TROUBLELAURAK

2/12 PS 459 fed and 7u given
2/26/06 lowered BCP to .2U
2:30 AMPS 169 fed no shot
dian and wheezer

I was so worried about hometesting. I thought the shots
were relatively simple after the first couple. But drawing
blood before each shot?? Well, it saved her life and it's
also become simple enough - even for a newby
vic & sundance

Half an hour later the BG was 3.9.
He should have had his insulin shot after dinner, but honestly
I have not the nerve to give it. I believe it was just luck
that he did not slip into a real hypo incident earlier today.
SwedeCat
[www.spiritdancers.org]

Tonight at PS Elliott was 116
siegyp

Saturday a.m. he was 110 PS, no shot.
Gram and Sam

We were also testing at home, though, and before even that
first week was up, Po's insulin needs had started dropping
and if we'd kept shooting and not testing, we'd surely
have overdosed him. No shot this morning(120), no shot yesterday morning(110).
Rae and Poji

I truly did not think home testing would have this much
impact on me, but after seeing the proof has totally
changed my outlook on the importance of it.
Teddybear

Blackie 62 NO INSULIN
Jackie 57 NO INSULIN
ceil99

You know why everyone on this board at the very beginning
with every newbie suggests - even begs - PLEASE HOMETEST.
Things can change and the numbers can go down and you
would never know without testing - it could be all right
- but then it could been disastrous.
Emmy & Dude

we do home test but not all that often and not pre-shot,xxxxxxxx
and I had our first hypoglycemic episode yesterday afternoon,
boy now there's something you don't want to happen. Her oral glucose
kicked her out of the coma she'd lapsed into in the car on the short
journey to the hospital.
Not named

The second day, the third shot ever that I was to give Panther, his bg
was 66 on a dose that I had immediately reduced from the shelter's dose. 3 weeks later
no insulin. Within the first few days of being home after DKA, Sneakers had a major hypo with seizures and I was lucky to check on her before going to bed, lucky to find her as she was in a hidden spot, lucky that the hospital was 14 minutes away instead of 15 minutes, lucky that she survived. Are you really going to wait till you start?
Ken, Sneakers, Panther and civie queen Missy

These are all the stories with good endings too! Think of the sad stories where the cats were not so lucky.
Jean and Charcoal

These stories continue on every day beyond the tidbits.
Rae and Poji



A voice that echoes everyone elses is not heard.
Speak up for what is right.


Sneakers

Nice to read some good things that have happened on here.

Pam and Lexie

My babies. Lexie and Quin the Drooler.
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