? BG 81, should I be worried tonight?

Status
Not open for further replies.
Just took BG on marmalade, a +3. BG 127, insulin vetsulin, just gave more beyond cat food in case BG continues to drop. See SS as referance point. At this point more date highly suggests 1.25?
 
Last edited:
mary hornbeck said:
Just took BG on marmalade, a +3. BG 127, insulin vetsulin, just gave more beyond cat food in case BG continues to drop. See SS as referance point. At this point more date highly suggests 1.25?
Click to expand...
Yes. It seems the 1.5 u dose is too high. I’d go down to 1.25 u tomorrow AM. A few more BG tests over the next couple of hours would be good. She still has some time before hitting nadir.
 
Hi Mary,

I see you've reduced the Vetsulin dose. Be sure to keep your vet in the loop on the nadir BGs and dosing, and also make sure you check regularly for urine ketones.

Looking at Marmalade's pattern of response to Vetsulin with the data currently available it looks like he tends to be at his lowest somewhere between +3 and +7 after the dose was administered so that might be the best window for testing. If he were mine I'd want to get a +3 'before bed' test at minimum each PM cycle for safety. If the +3 is on the low side it would probably be advisable to test again later in the cycle to see just how low he goes.

It may take several cycles before you start to see what the 1.25IU dose is doing.

If the 1.25IU dose doesn't work well enough then it might be time to consider whether switching to a longer-acting insulin with a 'gentler' action profile (Lantus or Levemir) might work better for Marmalade than Vetsulin. (The 'L' insulins are typically better at holding numbers down in better ranges for longer and, again typically, don't tend to drop BG as fast and as far as Vetsulin tends to do at onset.) I'm only mentioning this as a possibility to consider for now.


Mogs
.
 
Critter Mom said:
Hi Mary,

I see you've reduced the Vetsulin dose. Be sure to keep your vet in the loop on the nadir BGs and dosing, and also make sure you check regularly for urine ketones.

Looking at Marmalade's pattern of response to Vetsulin with the data currently available it looks like he tends to be at his lowest somewhere between +3 and +7 after the dose was administered so that might be the best window for testing. If he were mine I'd want to get a +3 'before bed' test at minimum each PM cycle for safety. If the +3 is on the low side it would probably be advisable to test again later in the cycle to see just how low he goes.

It may take several cycles before you start to see what the 1.25IU dose is doing.

If the 1.25IU dose doesn't work well enough then it might be time to consider whether switching to a longer-acting insulin with a 'gentler' action profile (Lantus or Levemir) might work better for Marmalade than Vetsulin. (The 'L' insulins are typically better at holding numbers down in better ranges for longer and, again typically, don't tend to drop BG as fast and as far as Vetsulin tends to do at onset.) I'm only mentioning this as a possibility to consider for now.


Mogs
.
Click to expand...
I think a longer acting insulin would be better but the cost is so far out of my budget for the two you have mentioned. It’s definately worth considering though.
 
Just as a reference, evaluate Levemir. I obtain a 5-pack of pens, from Alan Hamman in the Supply Closet subforum ...whenever I do refills.
300 units/pen, 5 pens = 1500 units
If you used 4 units/day, that is 375 days worth (one year)

If you purchased a single pen
(300 units) / (4 units/day) = 75 days worth (2.5 months)

5 pens are $180 inclusive of shipping.
One pen would be around $35 (not sure about shipping). Let's call it $40.
Over 75 days that would be about $0.50/day (50 cents).
 
Hi critter mom:
B.B. I have been doing 1.25u for wboutb2 days now so can u please evaluate, see SS. Thanks. AMPS and PMPS still pretty high. Thank u

Mary
 
Hi Mary,

Had a look at the spreadsheet.

First up, it can take more than 2 days for a dose to 'settle' before you can get a picture of its efficacy.

At the moment you don't yet have enough tests in to evaluate how low the current dose is taking Marmalade. Looking at Marmalade's pattern of response he tends to have his nadir at some time between +3 and +7 hours after the insulin dose was administered, so those are the periods during which you need test more to find out how he's responding mid-cycle (particularly around the +4 and +5 mark when the Vetsulin is at its most potent and it has been a while since Marmalade was fed).

It's recommended to check nadirs on both AM and PM cycles because some cats have a marked tendency to run lower on one or the other.


Mogs
.
 
Last edited:
Critter Mom said:
Hi Mary,

Had a look at the spreadsheet.

First up, it can take more than 2 days for a dose to 'settle' before you can get a picture of its efficacy.

At the moment you don't yet have enough tests in to evaluate how low the current dose is taking Marmalade. Looking at Marmalade's pattern of response he tends to have his nadir at some time between +3 and +7 hours after the insulin dose was administered, so those are the periods during which you need test to find out how he's responding mid-cycle (particularly around the +4 and +5 mark when the Vetsulin is at its most potent and it has been a while since Marmalade was fed).

It's recommended to check nadirs on both AM and PM cycles because some cats have a marked tendency to run lower on one or the other.


Mogs
.
Click to expand...
Just told k BG 201, at 12p
 
Hi Mary,

Been checking Marmalade's spreadsheet and you've done fabulously with getting data today. :) It would be a great help, provided your schedule allows, to get a +4 or thereabouts on tomorrow's AM cycle.


Mogs
.
 
PS ...

If today's AM+4 is significantly lower than of late, it would be great if you could get some additional tests during the period between +4 and +7 if your schedule allows.


Mogs
.
 
Critter Mom said:
Hi Mary,

Been checking Marmalade's spreadsheet and you've done fabulously with getting data today. :) It would be a great help, provided your schedule allows, to get a +4 or thereabouts on tomorrow's AM cycle.


Mogs
.
Click to expand...
Hi critter mom, unfortunately I will be working until 3:30/4p tomorrow so I could get a +3 in the morning, hopefully.
 
mary hornbeck said:
Hey critter mom, just updated marmalades SS. Numbers really good. What do you think marmalades 6p dose should be ? Stay at 1.25iu
Click to expand...
I don't think Mogs is around today, Mary. I suggest you keep the 1.25 u dose for now and try for some mid cycle tests either tonight or tomorrow.
 
Hi Mary,

Sorry I wasn't around yesterday.

Glad to see Marmalade evening out a bit. I'd suggest keeping the 1.25IU dose for now, unless it needs to be reduced or numbers start showing a marked upward trend. Carry on getting the AMPS and PMPS tests and at least one mid-cycle test each day as close to the time you anticipate Marmalade is likely to reach his nadir BG. Any day that your schedule allows, try to get nadir checks on both the AM and PM cycles.

How is Marmalade feeling/behaving at the better numbers; any changes?


Mogs
.
 
Critter Mom said:
Hi Mary,

Sorry I wasn't around yesterday.

Glad to see Marmalade evening out a bit. I'd suggest keeping the 1.25IU dose for now, unless it needs to be reduced or numbers start showing a marked upward trend. Carry on getting the AMPS and PMPS tests and at least one mid-cycle test each day as close to the time you anticipate Marmalade is likely to reach his nadir BG. Any day that your schedule allows, try to get nadir checks on both the AM and PM cycles.

How is Marmalade feeling/behaving at the better numbers; any changes?


Mogs
.
Click to expand...
He is doing very well and is acting his normal self. He is now eating Merrick limited ingredient cat food and licks the plate clean. His melonoma is getting better as he is on terramycin two times a day for 10 days, for now. According to the vet he will have these flare up for life. I am definately sticking with the 1.25 units. No apologies necessary we all have things to do in life
 
Last edited:
Hi Mary,

One possibility is that Marmalade may be going lower at night and that might have caused a bounce to this morning's AMPS. That said, the pink was just a tad on the high side (though not totally out of kilter with other recent AMPS values after Marmalade dipped into the greens on the previous PM cycle). I'd suggest that if you get a reading that's a lot higher or lower than the recent trend values to immediately retest BG as a precaution to make sure it wasn't a dodgy reading. I'd also suggest that you get a before bed test (probably +3 hrs after insulin dose) on each PM cycle to get an idea of whether Marmalade might go lower during the night (safety precaution - ETA: Marmalade's shown that he can dip into double figures during the PM cycle on the 1.25IU dose already).

I'm very glad to read that the antibiotic treatment is helping Marmalade's eye. (((Marmalade))) Also glad to hear he's generally feeling well in himself.


Mogs
.
 
Last edited:
Critter Mom said:
Hi Mary,

One possibility is that Marmalade may be going lower at night and that might have caused a bounce to this morning's AMPS. That said, the pink was just a tad on the high side (though not totally out of kilter with other recent AMPS values after Marmalade dipped into the greens on the previous PM cycle). I'd suggest that if you get a reading that's a lot higher or lower than the recent trend values to immediately retest BG as a precaution to make sure it wasn't a dodgy reading. I'd also suggest that you get a before bed test (probably +3 hrs after insulin dose) on each PM cycle to get an idea of whether Marmalade might go lower during the night (safety precaution - ETA: Marmalade's shown that he can dip into double figures during the PM cycle on the 1.25IU dose already).

I'm very glad to read that the antibiotic treatment is helping Marmalade's eye. (((Marmalade))) Also glad to hear he's generally feeling well in himself.


Mogs
.
Click to expand...
Hi mogs:
I feel so bad for my poor marmalade. He is getting a double whammy, between the testing and eye ointment he is cowering his head and tries to run away from me. I feel so overwhelmed with everything. Thank god the weekend is right around the corner.
 
Poor Marmalade. How much longer does he need the eye meds? Maybe some extra attention with no meds or tests, just cuddle time with his mom. If he likes cat nip, sprinkle some around for him, I know that makes Colin happy.:bighug:
 
Sharon14 said:
Poor Marmalade. How much longer does he need the eye meds? Maybe some extra attention with no meds or tests, just cuddle time with his mom. If he likes cat nip, sprinkle some around for him, I know that makes Colin happy.:bighug:
Click to expand...
I am hoping that the eye ointment will run its course by Monday but the last time this happened he was on the meds for two weeks. The first go about with this I switched the first ointment to another which was the terramycin. I miss so much seeing both eyes open.
 
Hi Mary,

I really feel for you. From all your posts it shines how much you love your precious boy. Saying a little prayer for Marmalade's eye to improve very soon.

(((Mary and Marmalade)))

:bighug::bighug::bighug:


Mogs
.
 
Hi Mary,

Just checking in to ask how you and Marmalade are doing. (I know first hand how deeply distressing eye issues are - for both kitty and bean.) Sending positive healing vibes for Marmalade.

:bighug::bighug::bighug:


Mogs
.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top