4/20 Toeby AMPS 223, +3 117, +7 211, PMPS 342

Previous thread: https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/4-19-toeby-amps-259-4-137-5-128-pmps-229-2-212.246358/

Toeby was playful first thing this morning before he ate and had his insulin, then seemed to be bit "off".
I checked his BG's before we went out for a couple hours... I am not sure if a drop of about 50% in 3 hours is a good thing, so I gave him a few high carb treats and made sure he had low carb pate available. Upon return he was back up to previous levels, and at evening preshot he was higher.
I'm not really concerned, I just wonder if you can recognize he may be dropping too fast without having to make a series of checks... is 106 pts in 3 hours too fast?
Laura

 

That is not a huge drop but it might be enough for him to think he needs to dump some glucose into his system.
Are you giving him a small snack at +1 and+2. That may help slow the drop.

 

@Bron and Sheba (GA) , he never gulps down his breakfast or supper in one go, he picks at it over time.
So, at +1 and +2, what would be an appropriate snack?
He'll eat Temptations for me most anytime (of course, because they're junk food), but I'd just like to be sure that a couple of them at each interval would be okay?
Because offering more of the food that's sitting in his dish won't work.
I do also have freeze dried turkey, and chicken breast treats, and freeze dried liver treats, but sometimes they work as a treat, and sometimes not.

Laura

 

As long as he is eating the allocated amount of his food over the period of the cycle, that is OK.
Is he doing that?
Most people divide the amount of food for the 12 hour period into a main meal and a couple of snacks.
I would keep the Temptations, which are higher carb, for when you need them to bring up the BGs, or stop a big drop if he won’t eat anything else.
I know it is hard when you have a kitty with IBD trying to get them to eat sometimes.

 

Yeah. Well.
Most days I think he eats enough.
I've never really allocated a specific amount of food for them.
I am not optimistic I can allocate an amount, and divide it up into a meal and snack and have him eat on command.

All this makes me feel like a bit of a failure.
We adopted these two young cats in March 2006, and until last spring they were both pretty healthy other than barfing more than any cats I'd ever had.
We always put it down to a bunch of reasons, eating too fast, hairballs, whatever....
Last summer we went through a diabetes diagnosis with Toeby, but he was only briefly on insulin.
6 months ago one vet thought Toeby might have IBD, or something worse.
His intestines feel "ropey" as the vets describe it.
We put him on the prednisolone and then the diabetes came.
The only positive thing about the steroids is that his barfing is WAY better.

We always fed them as much as they wanted within reasons, they are big, sturdy cats who were never deemed overweight by the vets.
They were free feeding on hard kibble when we adopted them from the SPCA, and it was a struggle to switch them to eat wet food.
But Toeby was always a bigger eater, and heavier than his brother, until this last year.
Now, his brother has bulked up a bit, probably because of all the food we put out trying to get Toeby to eat.
I suppose that will be the next thing, Aussie will get sick.

(Yes, he's named Aussie after The Land Down Under... there's a story there)

Thanks for the advice on the Temptations... that was my thought too, keep them only for when I really need them so that they're a dependable safe gap.

I do take all your advice to heart, and appreciate it.

 

Please don’t feel a failure. I have had an IBD kitty and I know how hard it can be to get them to eat sometimes. .
It sounds as if you are doing everything right. What we suggest is only that...suggestions. Everyone has to work around those suggestion as best they can and what their kitties will allow. Someone who has a kitty who is really motivated by food has a much easier time with the food side of things than someone who has a picky eater.
Have you seen this link
https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/suggestions-on-how-to-stimulate-kittys-appetite.130770/

 

Toeby is on the left, Aussie is on the right, and here looking at me this morning, wondering why I spend all this time on his brother, when obviously he is powerful cute with his odd coloured eyes.

 

Oh, and @Bron and Sheba (GA) , thank God (touching wood) Aussie is not diabetic because he has ZERO food motivation... At least Toeby will eat treats even when he feels punky.
I'm not sure what motivates Aussie other than playing, sleeping, and freaking out at the mail man.

 

They are a beautiful pair!