Buddy's SS up and going 6th part about dosing

I created this thread because I need help with dosing for Buddy Cat

 

I think this was for me lol. Glad Buddy liked it! I use the Flaked ones more for his "lunches" so 1 can lasts a day and a half (increased it to 1/3 can because he needs to gain a pound or two back) With Maury, he really does not like the pate so I am not strictly following the 8% or less BUT with testing I have realized the next carb bracket (Figuring Low: 0-8% Medium: 9-17% High 18%+), just wet food, does not effect him like medium carb dry does. I try to squeeze in pate when I can, usually also his 1/3 can lunches.
For his meals he gets 1/2 can with about 2T of water to make them "stewy".

 

Buddy must be a real pig, he ate over 1/2 @ AMPS, he has ate the rest this afternoon. He really liked the Friskies Flaked Tuna with Egg. I added water like you said and he loved it. Just trying to see if you have more recipes Buddy would like. Buddy most of the time does not like the pate either. I got some YA for Buddy and this seems to up his BG, but he loves it.

 

Have you tried Fortiflora? It's a probiotic, and I don't know what flavor it has, but both of my kitties go crazy for it. They HATED eating canned food, but when I started to sprinkle that on top, they would dig right in. It's sold in a box of little packets, and I can use one packet for several feedings since I'm just using it as a flavor enhancer, and not so much for the probiotic effect. I don't have to use it every day anymore since they are fully transitioned to canned/raw food now. But I still give it to them as a treat every few days.

 

I ordered Buddy U100 insulin syringes today, then I got scared, thinking I might be looking at the conversion chart wrong. Kris had given me the address to a conversion chart, I printed it out, then I lost it. I printed the conversion chart from FDMB, don't know if they are the same. So would someone who uses this chart tell me if I want to give this amount of U-40 insulin 2.4 U in a U-100 syringe would I draw to a level of 6.0. Or if I wanted to give 6.8 U of U-40 insulin in a U-100 syringe, I would draw to 17.0. Hope I never need to give that amount. I was also wondering about a pet food recall that I saw recently, was 9lives on that list. I bought some yesterday and Buddy ate a small amount of a can called Meaty Pate.

 

Should be the same but to be on the safe side: Conversion Chart

And yes, 2.4 units of u40 insulin would be the 6.0 line in the u100 syringes.

 

You're correct about how much to draw up in a U100 syringe. You'll like all the dose fractions they give you.

 

I have heard of it, but never tried it. Buddy will eat canned food, he does not care for canned food that is pate. I know the vets have Fortiflora, maybe I should try some. Thanks for the information.

 

I

I have the conversion chart in plastic, just trying to cover all my bases.

 

My cats go INSANE for fortiflora. Oreo tore apart an empty packet of it that I left on a table once....

 

Buddy is not wanting to eat, he did not want to eat last night. He might eat the YA, I will try that. I will get fortiflora when he goes to doctor. I was upping his dose to 2.50, now I am going down to 2.25. In the last couple of days we have caught Buddy peeing outside the litter box. I am going to make an appointment with his doctor on Monday.

 

He might have a UTI. Do you add extra water to all his wet food meals? That can help.

 

I gave him some Friskies Flaked Tuna with Egg and I added water to it. Yesterday morning I gave him the FFTwE and added water to it, he ate all of it he could get. Last night he started not wanting to eat. Last night and today he did eat some YA. He has an appointment to go to the vet on Monday. I am keeping him @2.25u, until Monday at least until something changes.

 

Has Buddy been eating quite a bit the last few days? Maybe he's prone to tummy upset. I know you've gone through this recently.

 

Yesterday I gave him some Friskies Flaked Tuna with Egg, I added water to this and he loved it. Buddy ate the whole can yesterday and some YA. Buddy eats 1 can 2X a day of RC wet and they are the smaller cans. He is allowed to have 1 1/2 cans 2x a day of RC wet, I think that would make up more than 1 can of Friskies. He also ate some YA. He might have ate too much, but he is not going to today even if he wants to. I don't think that would cause him to pee outside his litter box, what are your thoughts on this. His vet is only in 1/2 day on Saturday, it was up in the morning when I called, could only get in on Monday.
Hopefully, everything will be alright until Monday. If Buddy should start having more problems, his doctor will be getting a after hours call.

 

One small Friskies can is equal to about 2 Fancy Feast cans. Did the peeing outside the box coincide with adding more water to his wet food meals? If so, maybe stop the extra water as an experiment?

 

A UTI could be cause for peeing right outside the litter box. If it is, he might associate it with pain so he won't pee in the box. How else is he acting, otherwise?

 

It did all happen in the same day. The only time I added water was yesterday, that is the 1st time he ate the Friskies. Buddy's RC wet is the same size as the FF cans. He also had some YA. If my memory serves me right, we had problems when Buddy ate the YA before. I had been holding on till a later date to give it another try. He is going to the doctor on Monday.

 

He has peed in his box and this morning he peed in the other cat's box. He has not peed in his box today, but he peed in the other cats. My Mother this morning saw him pee outside his litter box, yesterday I saw him pee outside his box. I put puppy pads outside their litter boxes to catch litter, these 2 times it caught pea. Yesterday he ate Friskies Flaked Tuna with Egg and some YA, he loved both of them. Then last night I tried to give him his regular food and he did not want to eat. This morning I gave him his regular food and he would not eat. I ended up giving him some Friskies Flaked Tuna with Egg and YA today. He did eat both of them, but he did not get as much as yesterday. I got to check his Ketones very easily yesterday, they were negative. He is going to the doctor on Monday, unless we get into trouble before.

 

If he really likes that Friskies flavour and it agrees with him, why not stick with it to see how he does on it over time ?

 

I could do that, but I thought a cat should eat fish only 1 or 2 times a week. This cat food is friskies flaked tuna with egg.

 

That's true. However, when you're trying to balance multiple factors you sometimes have to bend rules. Is this the only Friskies he'll eat (not counting the sauce/gravy types of course)?

 

This is the only one I can get him to eat of Friskies pate or FF classic. Yong posted about her cats eating this food or I would not have known about it. I was trying to supplement his RC wet, when I bought the YA and Friskies Flaked Tuna with Egg. Now he does not want the RC wet.

 

Have you seen this, Teresa? It's the updated food list from Dr. Pierson, the vet whose food, etc. recommendations are highly regarded:
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/dr-pierson-new-food-chart.174147/#post-1916495

You might find other brands to try Buddy on.

 

I did look at the list the other day, but I will go back and see if anything jumps out at me. Until then Buddy will be eating Friskies, YA or maybe RC.

 

I can give you the other flavours I get for Maury but just be aware they are more medium carb. I've played around with them because he gave me a look when I tried feeding him pate everyday lol. The look like "I'm only going to eat this because I'm hungry" . The medium wet food carbs do not seem to impact him as much as the medium carb DM dry, maybe because they are slightly watered down

 

If you don't mind I would like to know. Seems like the YA brings up Buddy's BS. Buddy is not fond of pate.

 

Friskies
6% - Friskies Flaked with Tuna & Egg in sauce 263

4% - Friskies Flaked Tuna in Sauce 301

13% - Friskies Meaty Bits Chicken Dinner 261

14% - Friskies Meaty Bits Beef 260

13% - Friskies Meaty Bits Gourmet Grill 262

12% - Friskies Concoctions Chicken in Creamy Crab sauce 253

12% - Friskies Concoctions Lamb in Clam sauce 250

13% - Friskies Shreds Chicken in Gravy 305

12% - Friskies Shreds Salmon in Sauce 278

13% - Friskies Shreds Turkey & Giblets in Gravy 306

 

Sorry it took me so long to get back to you. Thank you.

 

@kris,
I haven't seen anything from you, is everything alright. Buddy is going to the doctor in a few minutes. He is eating YA & Friskies Flaked Tuna with egg.

 

Hi Teresa,
Everything is fine. I've been away from the computer a little more the past couple of days. I'm glad Buddy is eating. Looks like he might need to go up to 2.5 u soon. Let us know what the doctor says.

 

I hope Buddy's vet visit went well!

With some cats YA spikes their blood sugar like any other dry food Unfortunately it's not a silver bullet for all our extra-sweet crunchy addicts.

 

I have been away from the computer a lot more the last couple of days also. My Mother is keeping me busy. Buddy is eating Friskies Flaked Tuna With Egg (a little water added to it) and YA. That is great, except I have 3 cases of Royal Canin Glycobalance from Chewy and he won't eat it now. Buddy has a UTI. His doctor gave him a shot & a pill. I hope that stops our problem. According to mail tracking I will receive the U100 needles tomorrow and that should give us a lot more wiggle room with dosing.

 

Buddy is eating the YA and lately I don't think it has caused any spikes. Someone told me about FortiFlora and I got some today while Buddy was at the vet. I believe they said when their cats would not eat they would sprinkle some on their food and then they would eat. Buddy has a UTI that got treated today. Hope this is the end of our problem (peeing in the floor).

 

Teresa - so sorry to hear that Buddy has a UTI! But that's great that it's being treated. Hopefully he'll feel better soon!

 

I hope his UTI resolves quickly. Did the vet find him OK otherwise? Watch his BGs - they could come down as the infection clears up.

 

I hope so, he had been peeing outside his litter box. When that was happening, I knew something was wrong.

 

As far as I know. Always with Buddy the vet will start feeling around on his stomach. Buddy did not seem to be painful, but the doctor did not say anything either. I am overly careful, think that started when the other vet gave Buddy 5u. and at home he got down to 35.

 

Poor Buddy, hopefully the UTI clears up quickly! The UTI could be the cause of his recent higher numbers too. I'm glad the YA doesn't seem to be affecting his blood sugar, I find it really helps my crunchy addicts' cravings and keeps peace in my house.

Fortiflora is like kitty crack - my young kidney cat Randall HATES his new canned kidney food and would much rather eat Hermione's super-bad-for-kidney-disease food. A little Fortaflora sprinkled on top and he vacuums his food right up! I don't even use a whole packet, I use 1/4 packet per meal and stick the packet back in the fridge between meals. I left it out the first time and Randall jumped on my counter and tore the packet to pieces! He's never gotten on the counter before either.

 

Oh poor Buddy! I hope he feels better soon.

 

Last night I sprinkled some FortaFlora on Buddy's wet food and he ate all of it. Today I sprinkled some on his wet food of choice at this time(Friskies Flaked Tuna with Egg) and he has not ate. He did get up in the chair and go to sleep. Buddy is so picky it is hard to have something he will eat. He has had problems with pancreatitis for years, so I never know if he is not hungry or has nausea. Buddy's food of choice is really dry kibble. Hoping the FortaFlora helps us.

 

I hope he feels better soon !! He peed outside the litter box 1 time today. He did get FortiFlora on his food yesterday and today.

 

Kris, do you think they would come down slowly or all at once. I got to thinking about this and realized I did not know.

 

Thank you, for being so caring.

 

I'm not sure, Teresa. It makes sense to me that it would happen gradually as the infection clears. Maybe there won't be any significant change in BGs. Just have it in the back of your mind.

 

I appreciate the reply, I will keep it on my mind.

 

Is he on any pain meds?

 

No. Do they give pain meds for UTI. Rachel if you are there, I just tested Buddy and his #204. I do not know what kind of dose to give Buddy. Do you have any idea. Or if anyone sees this, please post.

 

@Kris & Teasel, If you are on line, Buddy's PMPS is 204. I don't know what u to give him since his number is so low and then again he could come down if his infection is clearing.

 

@Ship This is wolfey. I just took Buddy's PMPS and it is 204. Not sure what u to give him since his number is so low and he could come down if his infection is clearing.

 

When you get an unusually low pre-shot number, I think it's usually recommended to wait 20 minutes without feeding, and retest to see if the number goes up. Hopefully Kris will be here soon to give a better recommendation...

 

I have already gave him something to eat.

 

@Rachel, This is Teresa, when I took Buddy's PMPS it was 204. I do not know what u to give him, plus since he taking meds for UTI he could drop even more. If you are out there let me know.

 

@ShipsCat, This is Wolfey I took Buddy's PMPS is number is 204. I do not know what dose to give him, plus he is being treated for an infection and that could cause him to drop lower.

 

How much did you feed him? To get an accurate reading you should wait 2 hours after he eats to retest. If it was just a low-carb snack you should be ok going by the number you already got.

As far as dosing, you were in high 200s on 2u a few days aga. If you're home to monitor a skinny 2u should be ok. If you're not going to be home I'd go down a bit more - 1.8u if you have u100 syringes, 1.75u if you don't.

 

Hi Teresa,

Just finished my dinner and doing my cats' routine. This drop might be because the antibiotics are helping his UTI. I see on your SS that you gave 1.5 u on a PS of 225 on Feb 22. Your BG isn't that much lower tonight. Why not try 1.5 u and monitor this evening.?

 

I am not for sure what time he stopped eating, because he was in the kitchen and I was in another room. He did eat, guess I was not thinking when I feed him. He ate probably 1tea. of FriskiesFlakedTuna with Egg and some YA.

 

Are you at your normal shot time? You can either wait and retest or test right now and give a lowered dose (1.5 u?). It depends on whether you want to keep your schedule as is or not. I think 1.5 u should be OK but test at +2 to see what he's doing.

 

Thank you for your reply, I am going to give him a S 1.5u.

 

I appreciate your post to me, I was doing his PMPS a little early his normal time is about 7:30. Even if I wait, I could get him back on schedule tomorrow.

 

1.5u is a better choice than what I suggested I'm glad Kris was around!

I was just doing a quick scan of your ss and didn't see the dose on the low 200. And so far I don't have any personal experience with dosing while a cat is on antibiotics either.

 

The slightly higher doses might work too but I know that Teresa wants to be cautious, especially with the antibiotics possibly causing lower BGs by healing the UTI.

 

I agree, much better to be cautious!

 

Hi Teresa! Sorry I was just walking in the door when you posted...didn't see it til just now. Glad Kris was around!

They do sometimes give pain meds for a UTI...depends on the vet and the cat. I usually request it because cats are good at hiding their pain and I want them to feel better ASAP and not associate the box with pain. I think Buddy should be fine, though...usually the pain meds are only for the first 2 or 3 days so Buddy is almost at that mark.

 

I appreciate your reply, I had not saw your post when I saw the one from Kris. I was going to do a S1.5u, then I decided to just wait and retest. Thank you.

 

All docs are so funny about pain meds now a days. I know they hide pain too well .

 

Kris, you always have an good reply.

 

You're welcome!

I'm really not familiar with how antibiotics might affect insulin need, so it's great to have people with more experience. Also I'll never be upset when someone follows different advice than I gave. It's your cat and you know him best!

 

I am happy when someone answers my post. I like to get several different points of view, I do not have much experience with this and everything helps me.

 

This morning Buddy is at 191, I am going to wait 20 minutes with no food and take again. If this does not work, I will be begging for help.

 

I see you were brave last night and woke up to a lovely blue PS this AM. Good for you for taking a risk! What dose are you thinking of for today? Can you monitor?

 

No need to panic, Teresa. This is a great PS. Let's see what the stall brings you.

 

I waited 20 minutes and took again it was 157. I have another monitor of the same kind, took it again it was 175. Buddy is running after me and Mother wanting someone to feed him.

 

Well, he's staying fairly level at a lovely number. You have some choices:

1. don't shoot at all;
2. stall again for 20 minutes up to a total of 60 minutes, testing after each 20 min chunk, until you see if he's going up then give a reduced dose;
3. shoot a very low dose (maybe 0.5 u?) right now and feed him;
4. feed him, wait about 45 minutes, retest and then shoot a reduced but slightly higher dose (maybe 1 u?);

I've done all three things with Teasel before. The least ideal option is no insulin at all. You don't want to lose momentum.

 

@Kris & Teasel,
I waited

I know he needs some insulin. I waited another 20 minutes, took readings with both monitors and got 186 and 183. He does not seem to be going up. Do you think his meds for UTI are the reason his numbers are lower.

 

What do you think of trying 0.5 u? You can monitor today, right? The test at +2 is a good one to give an idea of what he'll do. Yes, I think that treating the UTI is helping.

 

I feed him, for all his begging he ate very little. I was waiting 45 minutes to retest. But if his numbers have not come up a lot, I will give him .5 u. I appreciate your help, you know more about all the things that have been going on with Buddy.

 

@Kris & Teasel, I waited 45 minutes his number was 336. I was thinking of 1U for AMPS and not waiting the full 12 hrs. tonight.
What do you think.

 

Yes, that's a good plan, Teresa. He might have gone lower last night and now he's starting a bounce.

 

Buddy has been eating Friskies Flaked Tuna with Egg and YA for several days. With the Friskies he is eating 1 can a day, at one time he was eating 3 cans of Royal Canin a day. After his surgery he had went down to 2 cans a day of Royal Canin. I believe that Royal Canin has more carbs in 2 cans than 1 can of the Friskies. I don't know about the carbs in YA, it is advertised as no carbs. The YA I have says ZERO carbs. He has not had any Royal Canin since he started eating the Friskies. I wonder if this plays a part in his BG being lower.

 

Yes, this could be a part of it.

 

By changing his food you have decreased his carb intake quite a bit. That can really help with his blood sugar.

Great numbers this morning by the way

 

I appreciate you checking in, I need all the help I can get. Buddy had surgery in February, he frequently had pancreatitis for several years. One morning he was very sick, painful to the touch and running a temperature. I took him to the vet he removed the tail of his pancreas, his spleen, inflamed tissue and inflamed fat surrounding the pancreas. He may be still getting over his surgery and with the diet change maybe it will all make his diabetes better. Plus hopefully getting rid of a UTI.

 

Looks like you can increase his dose a little tonight. Maybe try 1.5 u?

 

I gave Buddy his shot @10:42 a.m. How early do you think it would be safe to give him his PMPS shot. I know a vet that goes only 10 hrs. before a shot. Just wondering what you think.

 

I generally use one hour as my guide for being off schedule. Would 9:42 PM work for you, then you could go to 8:42 AM tomorrow?

 

I could make it work for Buddy's sake. He has had enough problems without me causing him any. I have an appointment tomorrow, I will be gone right when Buddy is at this lowest level. He loves his dry food, maybe if I leave some out that would keep him from BG getting low.

 

I ordered U-100 syringes and I just got them. The ones I received have markings at 10,15,20.25 & 30. I don't understand how to us them, if you use 2.0 u-40 insulin, you would need to draw up to 5.0 in a u-100 syringe. This syringe only goes to 30. The syringes I have are CAREPOINT VET u-100 3/10cc 31G x5/16. If anyone has these please tell me how to use them.

 

I haven't used those specific syringes, but they should work with the conversion chart. They sound like the correct kind.

 

These are the correct syringes, Teresa. Yes, if you need 2 u of ProZinc (U40) you would draw up to the 5 mark on the U100 syringes. Do they have half unit marks on them?

 

I have not opened any of the packages because I thought they were the wrong ones. I believe that the cap is covering a 5 mark. I do not see a half unit mark, but I think that there is either 4 or 5 marks between each unit. How would you draw up 3.0 U-40 insulin, the conversion chart says 7.5 for u-100 syringes, but they only go to 30. Is the 30 u-100 what you would use for 12.0 u-40 insulin. Sorry, I am so stupid.

 

I'm a bit confused I think Teresa...sorry I'm kind of slow in the mind today. The man had a wisdom tooth extraction and I'm exhausted from worrying!

If you have 30 available on the syringe, 7.5 should be something you can get, right? I think I'm just misunderstanding your question....

 

I looked at the pkg again and it says Half Unit Markings. I am stupid.

 

Psht. I could tell you some stories about a stupid person....me. TRUST ME, you won't even compare.

It's good to double check and make sure you've got everything right and there really ARE no dumb questions when it comes to our babies safety!

 

I think I was expecting the mark for 7.0 on u-100 syringes to be bigger than a little mark between 5 & 10
Who is the man.

 

Ahhh I gotcha! My boyfriend...he's doing well, but I always worry when surgery happens!

 

Hope your boyfriend is doing well. Did you read my post about the u-100 syringes. Did what I said make any sense, because I'm still not sure about these syringe. I cannot use these until I am sure about them.

 

I believe they are the right ones Teresa. From what I recall the marks weren't that big.

 

Sounds like the right syringes, Teresa. Don't worry about the 30 mark. You'll never need it to dose Buddy - that would be a very high dose indeed. Be sure to use the chart to draw up doses but a quick way to remember is that whatever dose you want in ProZinc, you need to draw up 2.5 times that on the U100. To use your example, if you want 3 u of ProZinc (U40), you draw up 3 x 2.5 = 7.5 on the U100 syringes.

 

We've all had our extra-derpy moments!

And the only stupid question is the one that isn't asked.