Monkie AMPS 199 +2 71 +4 71 +5 68 +7 97 (1st Blue and Green!)

Discussion in 'Lantus / Levemir / Biosimilars' started by Monkie, Jan 18, 2022.

  1. Monkie

    Monkie New Member

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    Nov 15, 2021
    We have went from 1.75u to 2.25u over the past 30 days. (2.25u started two days ago). We've tested much more than the sheet says but this is the first time we have hit under 200 on a human meter. Seeing that 199 and then a 71 at +2 has us excited. She seems to hit her Nadir earlier than most cats.

    My plan was to test her at +2, +4, +6, +8 today as we haven't done a full curve in a while. With this 74 should I be extra cautious and do a +3 as well? We have wet food available close by and karo ready to go if we see signs of hypo.

    She has been improved so much over the past two months and this week she's been super playful, climbing to new places, etc... We have transitioned her down to about 0-5% dry food per day over the past 2 months and the rest is the lowest carb % FF pate's.

    Monkie's Spreadsheet - Google Sheets
     
    Last edited: Jan 18, 2022
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  2. Chris and Checkers

    Chris and Checkers Well-Known Member

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    Jun 10, 2021
    It is always so nice seeing those greens and blues.:D.

    It is a best to be cautious and get a +3 if you can also it is good to feed her a bit of low carb wet so she doesn't drop to quickly. That is usually the advice given to me.

    Do you have any higher carb wet food like 10-15% and some 16-20% in case she gets really low.
     
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  3. Chris and Checkers

    Chris and Checkers Well-Known Member

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    Jun 10, 2021
    Actually that is quite a drop at +2, maybe give her a bit of the medium carb (a couple of teaspoons) now. Hopefully someone with a bit more experience will chime in with more advice.
     
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  4. Monkie

    Monkie New Member

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    Nov 15, 2021
    Thank you :) She did go back to her low carb wet for another snack after the +2. We just did a +4 and got 71.

    We do keep a few cans of higher carb wet food, wet and dry treats, and some american journey dry on hand for her picky siblings.
    I'm also surprised at how fast she responds and gets her nadir. Most of what I've read said the average is 4-6 hours. I've also looked at dozens of spreadsheets from other cats on lantus with similar AMPS/diets/dosages and only a few have nadirs so early.
     
  5. Chris and Checkers

    Chris and Checkers Well-Known Member

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    Jun 10, 2021
    ECID every cat is different :D.

    Often when Checkers gets a low (under 50) he has a big drop at +2 and the low is at +4. But sometimes it is different :p. Nadir can move apparently.

    I have heard others advise to give wet higher carb instead of dry since it acts quicker and the dry takes longer to leave their system.

    She seems to be leveling off, but you should probably get a +5. Are you doing SLGS, then she should get a reduction right:D.
     
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  6. Monkie

    Monkie New Member

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    Nov 15, 2021
    I agree on the avoiding higher carb dry as we've seen it in Monkie's #'s, it keeps them elevated for a longgg time and no progress is really made.

    I will admit, we tried doing TR, then SLGS, then TR, and honestly, kind of dropped the ball sticking to either. We will get a +5 and drop her back to 2u tonight and monitor from there.
     
  7. Monkie

    Monkie New Member

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    Nov 15, 2021
    +5 = 68 :) All low carb FF today other than 2 dry treats after each poke.
     
  8. Chris and Checkers

    Chris and Checkers Well-Known Member

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    Jun 10, 2021
    Looks like she is surfing those greens:D, nice.
     
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  9. Monkie

    Monkie New Member

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    Nov 15, 2021
    We're rooting for Checkers! I see he loves his trout and salmon. Ours loves the Savory Salmon and cod sole & shrimp ff pates but we try to limit her to one or two a week. Lately she's been loving the tender beef & chicken, chicken feast, classic chopped grill chicken, and tender liver & chicken pates. Nope, not spoiled at all...
     
  10. Chris and Checkers

    Chris and Checkers Well-Known Member

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    Jun 10, 2021
    Lol, it's okay to spoil them as long as it is low carb:p.

    I have been trying for a long time to feed him something other than fish but he is really stubborn:rolleyes:. At least the trout has some chicken in it.

    I would love to see Checkers surf some greens too but he usually drops then bounces:cat:.
     
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  11. Monkie

    Monkie New Member

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    Nov 15, 2021
    +7 = 97 :) One of our non-diabetic cats is very stubborn. We even boiled fresh, organic chicken once and she just looked at us like it was prison food lol. She has never walked away from ff classic chopped grill or tender beef & chicken. Maybe Checkers would give in to one of those :cat:. We did cook some frozen tilapia once and all three acted like they hit the jackpot.
     
  12. Katherine&Ruby

    Katherine&Ruby Well-Known Member

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    Oct 8, 2020
    Hi there, Monkie is a very handsome fellow!

    Lantus onsets between +2 and +3, and very often cats will nadir at that time. Ruby used to until she started on pred, but if you look at her 2021 spreadsheet, she was pretty consistently low around that time.

    I'm a little confused by your spreadsheet though. Are you only giving insulin once a day and testing every few weeks? Since this is your first post, I don't have any background on you or your Monkie.
     
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  13. Monkie

    Monkie New Member

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    Nov 15, 2021
    Thank you! Ruby is quite the cutie as well :). She resembles our other kitty, Mollie! That's good to know that early onsets isn't a concern.

    Sorry for the confusion. I just realized I haven't been updating her PM doses. We've been giving her insulin every 12'ish hours since being diagnosed. We have about 50 tests in our meters history and unfortunately missed updating. We have seen mostly 225-310 AM/PM PS's for the past month or so without seeing under 200. This is mainly due to us not being strict with her old dry food... our plan to ween her off dry in a couple weeks turned into about 2 months. (we have two other non-diabetic kitties who we have also weened to 90% wet)

    Starting last week, we became strict (like we should have sooner) as she would be nibbling on dry throughout the day before but still only getting >10% of her daily food from dry. The past five days she has been on only low carb wet which has allowed the insulin get her #'s lower. Unsurprisingly, she has started to appear even more active and happy.

    We are going to drop her dose .25 to 2u tonight and over the next few days and continue to monitor her nadir. I'm hoping that's a good plan, it seems to be according to the stickies I've read and the above recommendation.

    It's all pretty stressful with 3 kitties and two full time jobs but we are trying our best :)
     
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  14. Katherine&Ruby

    Katherine&Ruby Well-Known Member

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    Oct 8, 2020
    Weaning cats off dry food is a struggle I know and understand very well! Both of my cats were on dry food before Ruby's diabetes diagnosis, and it was very very hard at the beginning. I got the cats microchip feeders and only put dry food in the one for my civvie because she would not go near the wet food. Over time I started substituting more and more wet for dry until she was eating dry exclusively. I also went through a period when I had zero dry food in the house because they can smell it and hold out for it. Now I keep a bag of Dr. Elsey's low carb dry on hand as treats and they like them but I only give them a kibble or two each day along with their wet food.

    I work a really intense full time job and have an hour's commute each way so I know how busy one can get. To be most helpful to you, however, it would be good to have the data. Your spreadsheet says you are following TR, but we don't suggest you reduce unless the cat goes below 50 on TR. Here is an explanation of the dosing methods: https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB...-low-go-slow-slgs-tight-regulation-tr.210110/

    Generally, we don't suggest that a cat who is getting dry food follow TR. It's a much more aggressive method because we give insulin with any number above 50, and that requires tweaking responses to insulin with food. It's easier to do what we call feeding the curve with wet food as it hits a cat's digestive system faster.
     
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  15. Monkie

    Monkie New Member

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    Nov 15, 2021
    I appreciate the info. I've went over both dosing methods and have struggled sticking to one honestly. I think we will get back to following the TR method more strictly. Since we just recently have started taking away all dry from her, I think we will reduce her dose back to 2u just to be safe and continue the TR method from there with close monitoring.
     
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  16. Katherine&Ruby

    Katherine&Ruby Well-Known Member

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    Oct 8, 2020
    I highly suggest you consider posting here more often. You've been at this for a few months and I get the sense you understand your cat well. That's more than half the battle. :) If remission is your goal, TR is the method to follow but you will need some support along the way.
     

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