Hi everyone, My cat is on the Libre 3 and has had 2 episodes of hypoglycemia (50s) this week. He is currently on ProZinc 5u BID. We feed him only fancy feast in gravy (recently cut out dry food because I wanted to see how that affected his numbers since every time we did a glucose curve at the vet, he was reading 400-600, thus how we ended up at 5 units.) his numbers recently have been hovering between 100-400 throughout the day. He is currently reading 95 on his Libre3 and insulin is due in 1.5 hours. We talked to the vet yesterday and she told us that even if he is reading 70-100, we should still give the full 5 units of insulin……… I’m a nurse and this obviously freaks me the heck out. Am I crazy? Should the insulin be reduced or held? Do I need to seek a second opinion? Advice please
Wow. That is very bad advice, in my opinion. What did you do? Do you have a spreadsheet set up so we can help you? We can help you get a spreadsheet set up if necessary. And yes, as you have seen, cutting out dry (or any high carb) food makes a huge difference in reducing glucose numbers and can result in a need for less insulin. Let me know how your cat is doing. I am concerned about the vet’s advice.
Also, if it’s the “Gravy Lover’s” Fancy Feast then those are high carb— we keep those in our “hypo kits” to raise blood glucose when we need to. The FF classic pates are what a lot of people here feed, as well as a few of the grilled flavors and even some of the chunky pates are low carb. But be very cautious when switching from any HC to lower carb options— make sure you will be at home to monitor the cycle and intervene if necessary.
Also, generally 50s are okay numbers - unless you’re using a pet meter like the Alpha Trak. I am not overly concerned with a Libre telling me a cat is in the 50s because the Libre sensors tend to be unreliable in the lower numbers. They often read lower than a handheld human meter would. We recommend a backup handheld meter like the ReliOn meters available at Walmart or a similar meter. When people check a low number on the Libre it usually isn’t as low as what the Libre is indicating. Also, normal BG numbers for a cat are between approximately 50 and 120 so our members who are following the modified ProZinc method have as a goal to keep their cats between those numbers. Others who are following the Start Low Go Slow method try to keep their cats between 90 and 150.
Literally right after my post, he dropped to 40 on the Libre. we feed him fancy feast grilled whitefish and tuna… I ended up feeding him 4.5oz and the number barely increased, so I gave him another 2oz with a little honey mixed in. By the time 7am rolled around the Libre was reading 155, then I saw your post (I think it was yours) about how to do a regular stick and where on the cats ear and used my dads glucometer and it read 237 I ended up giving the 5 units at that point. I also just ordered the AlphaTrak 3, because I was reading that human glucometers can read higher due to the serum levels? I’m so overwhelmed and exhausted I just want my buddy to be okay. I also have no idea how to do the spreadsheet, but would be willing to learn!
Yes. I would not trust the Libre when it says 40. It really alarms people. Generally, the Alpha Trak will read a little higher than a human meter. For example, with a human meter the “take action” number is 50. With the Alpha Trak, the take action number is 68. If a cat drops below 50 on a human meter (or 68 on an Alpha Trak) we would use a small amount (teaspoon) of high carb food such as FF Gravy Lovers and retest in 20 minutes to make sure the BG is rising. If not, add in some karo syrup. Karo syrup can also be given straight in an oral liquid syringe (mixed with a little water or rubbed directly on the gums if the cat’s BG just won’t come up to/above 50 (68 AT). If it does come up you can feed a small amount (teaspoon) of regular LC food and retest in 20/30 minutes. If it’s dropping back down below 50 (68 AT) then you repeat the previous food/karo procedure. If the BG is rising or stable you can just give a little LC but keep testing frequently to make sure numbers don’t go back down again. They should be relatively stable or rising. The rule is to keep testing for 2 hours after giving HC. As the numbers rise or stabilize then you can extend the time between tests. Obviously, if it’s a prolonged “hypo” you have to keep up feeding small amounts and keep testing frequently.
I forgot to mention that the idea is to feed small amounts when working with low BG because you may really need to keep the cat hungry during a prolonged period of low BG. If you fill the cat up too quickly it becomes a lot more difficult to get them to eat the HC food that you need them to eat. You then have little left to do except force some karo into them. It only takes a small amount of HC food to raise BG (or even just a spoonful of the gravy from FF Gravy Lovers since that’s where most of the carbs are.) I don’t think that FF grilled food you fed is very high in carbs so that’s why it didn’t budge his BG.
https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/how-to-create-a-spreadsheet.241706/ and Make sure your signature is up-to-date. On the left, under Settings, Click on Signature. This is where you will put information that helps us give you feedback. There is a limit of two lines which may include two links; you may separate pieces with commas, dashes, | etc. This is where you paste the link for your spreadsheet, once it is set up. Add info we need to help you: Caregiver & kitty's name DX: Date Name of Insulin (do not include dose or frequency) Name of your meter Diet: "LC wet" or "dry food" or "combo" Dosing: TR or SLGS or Custom (if applicable) DKA or other recent health issue (if applicable) Bexacat or Senvelgo (if applicable) and dates Acro, IAA, or Cushings (if applicable) Spreadsheet link. Please put the signature link on the bottom line of your signature information, on its own, so it is easy to find. Please do not put any information about your location in the signature for security reasons. If you wish to add your country location, please add it to your profile. Be sure to click the 'Save Changes' button at the bottom. If you need help urgently it is important we know these things at a glance. We don’t want to waste valuable time finding out information.
