2/17 SCRABBLE pmps 294 +2 319, is this normal?

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Michelle & Scrabble (GA)

Michelle & Scrabble (GA)

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Scrabble was diagnosed a week ago and began treatment 4 and a half days ago. He is switched over to a total low carb diet. The dry is gone forever and now him and his sister Sabrina are eating Fancy Feast cans three times a day. They both enjoy halo freeze dried chicken treats. Scrabble has really seemed happy and back to his normal cat self the past couple of days. When he was first diagnosed he seemed lethargic/out of it/not himself! Now he is playing, eating, sleeping. I have finally gotten the hang of home testing and am pretty proud of myself with all the strides Scrabble and I have made this week! Please comment if you can on his spreadsheet, I would love to know what you think! Also the vet did a urinalysis & fecal test and both came back negative. The vet does recommend a dental which he has never had.
viewtopic.php?f=9&t=6439
 
Re: 2/17 SCRABBLE amps 362/WCR

You're off to a great start, Michelle. So glad you're seeing improvement so quickly.

SS looks good. I realize you work for the PM cycle so no spot checks, but it's hard to know what's going on there.

It's great that you've got some "blue" numbers already.

It takes some time to build the shed initially, sometimes the sixth cycle is the magic one. I hope you start to see some lower numbers today. Maybe some steady yellows, then blues. He might still be giving you higher numbers this morning because his body isn't used to the lower ones yet, but you're getting them!
 
Re: 2/17 SCRABBLE amps 362/WCR

Good morning Michelle and Scrabble

hoorayy for no dry!
Hoorayy for freeze dried treats! yum!
Hooraayy for Scrabble feeling better!
Hooorayy for hometesting getting easier! Told ya!! :lol:

did the vet say why they felt Scrabble could use a dental? cleaning? teeth issues?
Whenever you are ready to go ahead with it, lots of beans here in LL and in the board itself have gone thru this, so when the time comes, ask here in ur condo, ask in Health, you'll get really good checklists of what to expect, what to ask and what to do to prepare.
If it's one thing I've seen here, is a huge amount of info to arm yourself with for dentals.

about the ss...
Yes you are the one that works nights right?
What exactly is your schedule?
You leave the house at what +hour? , in other words - how many hours after PMPS shot do u leave?

One idea is about the same as if you were working in the daytime, they call it an "out the door" check....so if you leave one hour after shot time, grab a test...maybe you leave 2 or 3 hours after shot time, again, in that time frame you can squeeze in a couple more...when you get home, grab a test...little by little these will fill in your spotchecks.

Day time looks good, would like to see a bit more +3 and +9 or +10, but other than dat, you're doing great! :-D
 
Re: 2/17 SCRABBLE amps 362/WCR

It's so good to hear that you're getting comfortable with testing. I know it probably sounded inconceivable when we were telling you that it gets easier - but it does. The other thing to remember is that no matter where Scrabble's numbers are, it's the WCR that's important. Scrabble is more than his numbers. Hearing that he's more like himself is what is truly important.

A couple of housekeeping items..
  • Please remember to link the previous day's condo to your first post of the day. (Just cut and paste the "http" line.)
  • When you have a chance, complete a Profile and link it to your signature. The instructions are in the Tech Forum, but I linked them, as well.
  • Include the date that Scrabble was diagnosed in your signature.
 
Re: 2/17 SCRABBLE amps 362/WCR

Hi Michelle,

Glad to hear that Scrabble is feeling better. Isn't that a great feeling? And great job getting into the testing. Soon, it will feel routine, as odd as that sounds.
 
Re: 2/17 SCRABBLE amps 362/WCR

Thanks for all your help! I am still learning all the "techy" things about this site! :) Yes I am the one that works nights so it is hard for me to grab a test before I leave sometimes because a lot of times I have to leave for work a half hour later after the pmshot. There are a couple of days where I will be able to do this though. Glad to hear he is progressing good. This site has been a life saver for me. Without I would have been doing all this blind and not understanding what is going on. Oh and on the dental part, the vet said there was a lot of bacteria in his mouth (I know this is true because his breath can be bad) hahaha! He is 13 and a half and has never had a dental I will definetely post about that when the time comes. The vet is going to have me do a bg curve on Monday
 
Re: 2/17 SCRABBLE amps 362/WCR/+6 229

Hi Michelle!

Looks like both you and Scrabble and doing better - yay!

Good to hear Scrabble is getting back to his usual self - pretty normal to see that before his numbers come all the way down. But you know something is working if he's feeling better... ;-)
 
Re: 2/17 SCRABBLE amps 362/WCR/+6 229

Hi Jennifer
Yes it is great to see him "back to normal", definetely gives me more piece of mind. Thought I was going to have a heart attack with all the stress worrying about him in the beginning!!! So happy I am finding home testing so much easier, he actually bleeds really quickly! Is it ok to use the same ear every time??? The other ear is harder to get blood out of!
 
Re: 2/17 SCRABBLE amps 362/WCR

Michelle,

When they say in the Health forum, Treating Feline Diabetes is manageable! They're not pulling Scrabble's paw! :lol:

For future ready-ness, is your evening schedule flexible if, as an example, you may need to stall a shot?
This is something that may happen as Scrabble's numbers get lighter - you'll also see him doing funny kitty things and these are all good signs he is feeling better!
....sounds like there's 2 days of the week, which is good, if evening activities and bedtime for u, allow, at the most 2 spotchecks in the evening would fill in what Scrabble is up to - or down to :mrgreen: you'll also again, see it in his behaviour :dizcat kinda like that! :lol:

Just as the testing, techies things get easier too. pc_work
You'll find what works best for u! And if u need suggestions, just ask. :razz:
 
Re: 2/17 SCRABBLE amps 362/WCR/+6 229

The only day that I could really not stall a shot is on Tuesday's because I have to leave at 430pm for work and I give him his shot at 4. I am kind of confused about "stalling a shot". You can do this? I thought you had to give him his shot every 12 hours give or take a few minutes. My schedule is hard because like I said I work nights and sometimes I am gone for close to 12 hours so 4pm/4am is the only good time for me. Still learning all this, thanks for your help!
 
Re: 2/17 SCRABBLE amps 362/WCR/+6 229

Michelle & Scrabble said:
I am kind of confused about "stalling a shot". You can do this? I thought you had to give him his shot every 12 hours give or take a few minutes.
Click to expand...
You may some time come across a pre-shot BG value that you're not comfortable shooting, or one where you want to make sure his BG is coming back up, not still going down. In that case we'll tell you to stall 15-20 minutes and test again, without feeding during that time. That's to make sure your reading isn't influenced by food.

Also, don't be surprised if the tests you get at home are better than what they get when they do a curve at the clinic. Many cats don't eat when away from home, and have higher values due to the stress. You're getting a much better curve at home. :)
 
Re: 2/17 SCRABBLE amps 362/WCR/+6 229

So glad to hear things are getting easier, Michelle, and that Scrabble is feeling better. Isn't it wonderful when they act like they used to? :) I hope you get some great numbers soon, but honestly, you are doing really well! 229 isn't very high at all, especially at first.

You should definitely be proud of how far you have come in such a short time. It's quite an accomplishment, and Scrabble thanks you for it. He is a beautiful kitty. :)
 
Re: 2/17 SCRABBLE pmps 294 yay!

pmps 294, looks like the day has been good, I am going to do another check in 2 hours before I leave for work. Thanks for the encouragement. Hope he can one day be a member of the falls I am hearing so much about! Glad he has had a good start. Is it ok to use the same ear for testing??
 
Re: 2/17 SCRABBLE pmps 294 yay!

hey nice PMPS!

it's ok to use to same ear, unless Scrabble gets all squirmy, u can try other ear, I use to get either same or slightly different readings switching ears, but not by much of a difference.
 
Re: 2/17 SCRABBLE pmps 294 yay! question??

Hey Ronnie, yeah I have better luck with one ear than the other so I have been using the same one, had a little trouble getting the pmps test for some reason and he did get a little squirmy. I was glad to see a ps number out of the 300's!
 
Re: 2/17 SCRABBLE pmps 294 yay! question??

Question about preshot testing. I have been feeding before my pmps test is that right? Basically I feed, test and then shoot all within the matter of 20 minutes or so, is this right? Just wanted to make sure I am doing all this right!? The vet said to make sure he eats before his shots
 
+2 319 after pmshot. Is this normal? I haven't done that much +2 testing because of my work schedule. Still learning. Gotta leave for work soon so will not be able to test til amps @4am, think I am getting pretty good data though
 
yea this is pretty close to the preshot, ur ok, u got food in there too - ur doing ok.

from the stickie up top, New to the Group, this is an excerpt from the curve example u will find in there:
viewtopic.php?f=9&t=157

Learn how YOUR kitty is responding to insulin:
Onset - the length of time before insulin reaches the bloodstream & begins lowering blood glucose
Peak/Nadir - the lowest point in the cycle
Duration - when the insulin is strongest or works the hardest
How to do a Curve

Example of a typical curve:
+0 - PreShot number.
+1 - Usually higher than PreShot number because of the last shot wearing off. May see a food spike in this number.
+2 - Often similar to the PreShot number.
+3 - Lower than the PreShot number, onset has started....


previous question, test, feed, shoot is the usual all within 15 min, 20 is ok, I think, but try to stay under that.
eventually I got it down to all within 5 minutes.

I know I did feed first, test and shoot sometimes, kitties wont stay still for a test, so I gave in and fed first, u can always try a little treat to keep them still before meal time, lol

In my opinion, I would not suggest it all the time - as one day u may get a lower than usual preshot that may require u to hold off on feeding and stall, followed by a retest,
if u take a look around some lower preshot kitties, example tonight's preshot number in Mel/Joe's condo, she is stalling cuz she has a lower than usual preshot which is actually a very good thing!!
 
Thanks Ronnie for the info, my brain has been on overload trying to get all this stuff straight! So if I am reading it right, I should test before I feed? I have been feeding first because when i get home at night the kitties are ready to eat! I test as soon as he is done eating. Should I try testing before food? Thanks for the help!
 
Another question, how do you know when it is time for a dose increase? my vet said he should stay with 1 unit for a week and see how he does, it will be a week on Fri pmshot
 
I would get into that habit, testing right before the preshot meal,

ECID (every cat is different) some kitties BG react soon after eating, and

some it takes about an hour to kick in

and it will get easier and quicker to do as u go.

if u ever have a lower than usual preshot number you can holler for help :-D

next question:
it depends, but I will leave that question to the ones with the experience in dosing decisions
 
Ok thanks Ronnie!!!!! I will try and get a test before he eats tonight. Who are the one's that deal with the dosing decisions? Still getting to know my way around here! Thanks for always posting and helping me out!!! Off to work, will post again for amps!
 
You do not want to feed for 2 hours before your PMPS test. Once you've tested, you can feed. I test, feed, then shoot. When Gabby's face is in her food is when I give her her shot.

You might want to think strategically about test times. I try to get a test at +2 so I have some indication of how Gabby's numbers are going. This may not be possible for you given your schedule.

Dose changes are based on the lowest point of the cycle for decreases. Numbers below 50 warrant a decrease.

From the Tight Regulation (Tilly) Protocol:
Tilly said:
Most cats need to have their dose increased. Do it in 0.25 IU or 0.5 IU steps (0.25 IU if the cat is getting a low dose and/or relatively low BGs, 0.5 IU if the cat is getting a higher dose and/or relatively high BGs). Hold each dose for 5-7 days. However, if the cat is producing continuously high BGs (nadir always >=300 mg/dl), only hold the dose for 2-3 days before increasing it by 0.5 IU. Alternatively, if the cat is continuously producing moderately elevated BGs (nadir always >=200 mg/dl), increase the dose every 2-3 days by 0.25 IU ( if the cat is getting a low dose) or 0.5 IU (if the cat is getting a higher dose). From this point onward test for ketones once per week, or more often if the nadirs are still >=200 mg/dl.
Click to expand...
 
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