New Member: Pros and Cons of Home BG Testing?

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Katherine&Ruby

Katherine&Ruby

Very Active Member
Hello and allow me to introduce ourselves! I'm Katherine and my soulkitty Ruby was diagnosed a little over a month ago after I took her to the vet because she was losing weight and not eating. She had DKA and it's been quite an emotional (not to mention extremely expensive) journey since then! She spent three nights at Blue Pearl here in New York and got what I hope is the best care she can get.

Since arriving home, we've changed a lot of things:
-New litter box for Ketodiastix testing (Smart Cat Litter Box with the convenient pee drawer using Tidy Cat Breeze pellets--an amazing system that I wish I discovered ages ago!)
-Switch from predominantly dry food (Solid Gold Let's Stay Indoors)/small portion wet (Solid Gold Tuna and Mackerel) to predominantly wet food (Purina DM)/small portion dry (Hill's Glucosupport). I keep the dry food as a topping to encourage her to eat before her shots.
-Sure Feed Microchip Feeders acquired to keep her prescription food separate from her healthy sister Olive's less expensive and tastier food.

At the beginning, Ruby was started on 1 unit of Lantus twice a day. We brought her back to the vet 7 days later and had a Freestyle Libre installed on her back that she hated and scratched at until it fell off 7 days after implanting. Using the results from that, Ketodiastix indicating trace ketones high glucose levels, and the fact that she remained in bed sleeping almost all the time, the vet did a blood test and upped her dosage to 1.5 units per dose about two weeks ago. This week, I started to see some results: Ruby is noticeably more energetic, she is jumping on tables and windowsills and is chasing her sister around the apartment. She is also spending less time in bed. However, her Ketodiastix still show high glucose and trace ketones.

The vet would like for me to send her back next week to install another Freestyle Libre. I don't want to do this as it's expensive to buy, expensive for the vet to implant it, and doesn't last for 14 days as she will scratch it off before then. Plus, the presence of the sensor makes Ruby miserable. The vet has NOT advised me to test blood glucose at home. Should I be doing this instead of the Libre? I see so much information on home testing here but I'm wary of pricking her all day long.

So happy to have found this forum through a suggestion from the r/Cats forum on Reddit. Wish I had discovered this community sooner!
 
Hello and WELCOME to FDMB!
I'm going to direct you here
New? How You Can Help Us Help You

I also want you to know that it is not unusual your vet didnt speak to you about home testing. There are 3 reasons this happens
first they believe their client wont or CANT do a simple prick to collect blood.:oops:
second For some reason they all say, home testing will ruin your connection to your cat :rolleyes:
third..and I hate saying it but...look at all the money they make, doing all this for you (which really isnt the best for your cat)

Home testing is difficult at first but believe me, there are ways to make it the least worry of your day.

You have landed in a safe place. We are all dedicated to helping anyone who needs to keep their kitty safe.

WELCOME TO OUR FAMILY. :bighug:
jeanne
 
Hey Katherine,

Expect some more seasoned members here soon, just found this forum a few months back. Thanks for the heads up regarding Reddit though, hadn't thought to check there for our cats health needs! In our short time here, the only cons I can think of for not testing is possible stress for you and your cat, but there are simple measures that can be taken for overcoming that. I thought my cat Peeka would be hard to test, but she is actually pretty tame. If you make it a calm experience and provide some treats, most cats actually look forward to testing. We use the ReliOn Prime from Wal-Mart, pretty cost efficient.

The pros are helping regulate your cat, making sure you are safely shooting, and also providing extra safety for your cat to ensure you don't go hypo.
Like I said, there are going to be more experienced people reaching out to you here. But you've landed in a great spot, you're going to have a wealth of knowledge here, and everyone is so supportive and caring!
 
Thanks everyone! Reading the "How You Can Help Us Help You" thread is making me nervous as outside of the times the Freestyle Libre was implanted, I've been pretty much giving her shots blindly, without knowing if she was hypo at all. Her bright, perky behavior in the past few days leads me to believe she's fine, but it's always hard for anyone to tell. Will look into the ReliOn, thank you!
 
PerfumedCatMom said:
Thanks everyone! Reading the "How You Can Help Us Help You" thread is making me nervous as outside of the times the Freestyle Libre was implanted, I've been pretty much giving her shots blindly, without knowing if she was hypo at all. Her bright, perky behavior in the past few days leads me to believe she's fine, but it's always hard for anyone to tell. Will look into the ReliOn, thank you!
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Awww I didnt mean to make you nervous. :bighug:

Whatever questions you have about the thread can and will be addressed to your satisfaction. Thats the beauty of FDMB if one of us (like me) cant answer your question, there will be at least 3 others at any given time, that can. Best of all is we ALL care. We want the best for you and Ruby. We strive for the best.;)
 
PerfumedCatMom said:
Thanks everyone! Reading the "How You Can Help Us Help You" thread is making me nervous as outside of the times the Freestyle Libre was implanted, I've been pretty much giving her shots blindly, without knowing if she was hypo at all. Her bright, perky behavior in the past few days leads me to believe she's fine, but it's always hard for anyone to tell. Will look into the ReliOn, thank you!
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I have 2 diabetic cats, and I blind shot one for 3-4 years and he is actually the better of the two currently. Don't recommend continuing like that, but just letting you know. We've all made our initial mistakes.
 
Hi Katherine and Ruby! Glad you found your way here. This group has been a lifesaver for me and my cat. My cat was diagnosed the beginning of august and she went into remission a couple of weeks ago. And I have to say that probably 75% of being able to achieve remission was because we did home glucose testing. My vet, who was blown away by the accomplishment, also attributed our success to diligent home testing and following the guidelines I found in this group. If I would've just followed my vets advice, it most definitely wouldn't have happened. My vet did encourage home testing but didn't advise me of when to do it or any of the specifics involved, just that it would help if I could. I can tell you that I was skeptical at first and had a hard time believing the people on here when they told me their cats just come right up to them and let them poke their ears multiple times a day. I decided to try it and started out with poking her paw since it was easier to keep her from running if I had a hold of it and easy to do when she was laying down and relaxing. She tolerated it and I was able to always test her before both shots and then tried to do 1 or 2 more tests throughout the day. About a 1.5 weeks into it, I attempted her ear and it was actually 10x easier than her paw! At about 2-ish weeks into testing I was shocked when I found my cat WAITING for me to do her morning test! She was meowing and circling me and trying to get me to go into the bathroom (which is where we did her tests) I basically trained my cat without even trying. It was awesome! I'd say the key to this was finding a treat that she loved and sticking to a routine. Some members told me they have a special blanket or towel they use for testing so the cat knows when the blanket comes out, they're going to get their treat and test. Since I brought my cat into the bathroom for tests, she would know it was time when I went to the fridge and grabbed the Ziploc bag with the fish treats in it. She even got to the point where she would see me do certain things (like putting the dogs to bed at night or using the remote start on my keychain) and know it was almost her test time so she would just go in the bathroom and wait for me even before I got the baggie. I tried to test about 4-5 times a day (including the two pre-shots) and would do a curve on Sundays. I started off using freeze dried fish or chicken pieces that she liked well enough but switched to a fresh filet type treat about a week or so in and she became obsessed. I added a pic of the filet treats I use in case you're interested. I buy them in bulk on Amazon. Fancy Feast also makes a filet but I can't always find it in stores. I also made a video showing how I do KittenCat's glucose testing if you want to see how I do it. I posted it on my instagram in case it might be able to help someone else that's in the same boat and didn't think home testing was possible. Sorry for the long post :D Good luck to you guys! You've come to the right place! Insta name is sillycock21 :smuggrin:
 

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Jenifer said:
Hi Katherine and Ruby! Glad you found your way here. This group has been a lifesaver for me and my cat. My cat was diagnosed the beginning of august and she went into remission a couple of weeks ago. And I have to say that probably 75% of being able to achieve remission was because we did home glucose testing. My vet, who was blown away by the accomplishment, also attributed our success to diligent home testing and following the guidelines I found in this group. If I would've just followed my vets advice, it most definitely wouldn't have happened. My vet did encourage home testing but didn't advise me of when to do it or any of the specifics involved, just that it would help if I could. I can tell you that I was skeptical at first and had a hard time believing the people on here when they told me their cats just come right up to them and let them poke their ears multiple times a day. I decided to try it and started out with poking her paw since it was easier to keep her from running if I had a hold of it and easy to do when she was laying down and relaxing. She tolerated it and I was able to always test her before both shots and then tried to do 1 or 2 more tests throughout the day. About a 1.5 weeks into it, I attempted her ear and it was actually 10x easier than her paw! At about 2-ish weeks into testing I was shocked when I found my cat WAITING for me to do her morning test! She was meowing and circling me and trying to get me to go into the bathroom (which is where we did her tests) I basically trained my cat without even trying. It was awesome! I'd say the key to this was finding a treat that she loved and sticking to a routine. Some members told me they have a special blanket or towel they use for testing so the cat knows when the blanket comes out, they're going to get their treat and test. Since I brought my cat into the bathroom for tests, she would know it was time when I went to the fridge and grabbed the Ziploc bag with the fish treats in it. She even got to the point where she would see me do certain things (like putting the dogs to bed at night or using the remote start on my keychain) and know it was almost her test time so she would just go in the bathroom and wait for me even before I got the baggie. I tried to test about 4-5 times a day (including the two pre-shots) and would do a curve on Sundays. I started off using freeze dried fish or chicken pieces that she liked well enough but switched to a fresh filet type treat about a week or so in and she became obsessed. I added a pic of the filet treats I use in case you're interested. I buy them in bulk on Amazon. Fancy Feast also makes a filet but I can't always find it in stores. I also made a video showing how I do KittenCat's glucose testing if you want to see how I do it. I posted it on my instagram in case it might be able to help someone else that's in the same boat and didn't think home testing was possible. Sorry for the long post :D Good luck to you guys! You've come to the right place! Insta name is sillycock21 :smuggrin:
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WOW! Amazing that your cat went into remission so quickly! Started following you on Instagram and watched your video! I only wish Ruby was more treat-oriented, but perhaps I just need to get those yummy looking filets! Ruby is actually quite mellow. Aside from a week where she was hiding from me when she knew I was going to give her a shot, she's been tolerating it well since I now inject her while she is chowing down and distracted. I'm going to get a testing kit and give it a try. Which kind of meter are you using?
 
PerfumedCatMom said:
WOW! Amazing that your cat went into remission so quickly! Started following you on Instagram and watched your video! I only wish Ruby was more treat-oriented, but perhaps I just need to get those yummy looking filets! Ruby is actually quite mellow. Aside from a week where she was hiding from me when she knew I was going to give her a shot, she's been tolerating it well since I now inject her while she is chowing down and distracted. I'm going to get a testing kit and give it a try. Which kind of meter are you using?
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KittenCat isn't super food motivated either but she loves those filets for whatever reason so we got lucky. I'm glad Ruby isn't hiding from you anymore. That makes it even tougher than it already is in the beginning....... :(
I use the AlphaTrak2 pet meter and the Freestyle Lite human meter. They both take the same strips so it was convenient and you can get the strips online through walmart or a diabetes supply store for pretty cheap. I initially tried two different ReliOn meters and couldn't get either of them to work so that's when I got the Freestyle Lite and the AT2 and I've never had an issue with either of them. i know lots of people on here use the ReliOn though and works just fine for them. I'll keep my fingers crossed for you! You've got this! :D
 
Critter Mom said:
Does Ruby like being groomed, or is there any other one-to-one activity she enjoys with you? If yes, you could try giving her mini fuss-fests in place of treats.


Mogs
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She loves her Furminator but she gets really riled up when she even sees it and can't stay still when I'm brushing so I'm not sure if it's a great idea!
 
UPDATE: Talked to the vet about doing Ruby's next BC curve myself. She said the Freestyle Libre would be less stressful for me and the cat, but Ruby was MISERABLE and stressed during the week it was stuck on her and I want to avoid that, not to mention the cost of buying the sensor, the cab ride to the hospital, the fees for putting the sensor on, etc. etc. etc. She agreed, but only on the condition that I use the Alphatrak and not a human glucose meter. It's still less expensive than having them do it, so I agreed. It's arriving by mail in a few days, will ask you guys if I have any questions about the best way to do it! If Ruby won't let me prick her ear or if it's just too traumatic for me to handle, I will take her to a local vet who is cheaper and they can implant the Libre sensor.
 
Testing can be very stressful...IF you let it. Theres a trick to it which surprisingly works very well SINGING any silly song or a fave song. I use to hum You Are My Sunshine... Many use children's songs. It eases tension. When you are tense or stressed that tension travels down your arm, right to your cat. Kitty becomes confused and thinks uh oh whats wrong??? and acts accordingly.
Here are some other tips:

Hometesting Links and Tips

Let us know how it goes ok? ;)
 
I think it’s a vet thing. Really. Human meters are fine and you’re the one who is going to have to pay $1 a strip on the alphatrack not your vet so I say you get to pick what meter you want to use. I’ve used the freestyle and now I use ReliOn. I can get 100 strips for $17 which lasts me less than a month so $17 as opposed to $100 is a huge difference to me. Plus all the members here who help me with dosing are used to reading human numbers. It’s your choice, but I wouldn’t let your vet make that decision for you. It’s your cat and your wallet.

btw, welcome and Ruby is GORGEOUS! :bighug::bighug::bighug:
 
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PerfumedCatMom said:
UPDATE: Talked to the vet about doing Ruby's next BC curve myself. She said the Freestyle Libre would be less stressful for me and the cat, but Ruby was MISERABLE and stressed during the week it was stuck on her and I want to avoid that, not to mention the cost of buying the sensor, the cab ride to the hospital, the fees for putting the sensor on, etc. etc. etc. She agreed, but only on the condition that I use the Alphatrak and not a human glucose meter. It's still less expensive than having them do it, so I agreed. It's arriving by mail in a few days, will ask you guys if I have any questions about the best way to do it! If Ruby won't let me prick her ear or if it's just too traumatic for me to handle, I will take her to a local vet who is cheaper and they can implant the Libre sensor.
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Like others have mentioned, the Libre IS a human meter. It can’t be calibrated for cats or anything so the vet insisting on the Alpha after pushing the Libre is kind of funny. Mine actually had the same protocol as your vet though and insisted on the AlphaTrak2 for home testing if i wasn’t going to have them install the Libre. And a lady I volunteer with at a local rescue who takes care of all the diabetic cats also highly recommended the AT2 so it’s not like you can really go wrong using it. It all just comes down to cost really. Here’s a tip I learned the hard way: order your strips online beforehand. Walmart. Com has them for .50 ea. but you only get that deal online and can’t pick it up in the store for that price. I didn’t know that and went to the store when I was running low after checking online to make sure they had them in stock. But when I got there it was $80 for a box of 50. I about died!!!! But I was almost out of strips so I had to buy them. I think I already mentioned it but the AT2 and Freestyle Lite take the same strips so when the bottle that comes with your meter runs out, you can just order the Lite strips instead and save a lot of money. Another thing that i don’t know if someone mentioned already or not is the poking. Your meter comes with a spring loaded poker but we never used it. The noise it made was too “scary” and had a negative impact on getting her used to testing. Figured I’d mention it just in case. You can do this girl! :cat::bighug:
 

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Aleluia Grugru & Minnie said:
Oh and for me, no cons for home testing only pros. I feel in control of my cat’s diabetes because I know her bg levels daily and I can adjust the dose as needed instead of having to cause my vet for guidance.
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I think the vet is trying to discourage me from making adjustments to the dosage without her and that makes sense to me because I’m not a doctor.
 
It may seem odd, but you don’t need to be a vet. The folks here in this forum know way more about dosing insulin for diabetic cats. I’ve never gone back to my vet on dosing advice especially when they barely study feline diabetes in vet school. The advice you’ll get from your vet will be very different from the advice we give here, starting with increasing or decreasing by full units. We do it by .25 units so you don’t skip right past the ideal dose. Waiting for your vet to chime in may also waste precious time. Just speaking from my personal experience. If I’m trying to decide if I should skip a shot or not at night time, there’s no way I’d be able to get my vet to get back to me on time. But the folks on this forum are here 24/7.

I should clarify that when I say I can adjust the dose as needed now is because I’ve learned about dosing from the experienced members in this forum. When I was a newbie, I posted and asked for advice. After a while you start to understand how it all works and you gather enough data about your cat to understand how it reacts to certain changes in numbers. Every cat is different and you’ll learn from the data you collect how to handle yours.

Members here can understand both pet and human meter numbers, so for us it makes no difference. It’s really about you and what you can afford. You asked for pros and cons, I guess paying so much more for pet meter strips would definitely by a con for me! Luckily I posted here and asked what meter I should get before so I never did go for the alphatrack. As some posted already, if the libre gives you human numbers what is your vet opposing to really?
 
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PerfumedCatMom said:
She loves her Furminator but she gets really riled up when she even sees it and can't stay still when I'm brushing so I'm not sure if it's a great idea!
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Hi Katherine, my current diabetic girl was quite a challenge to test at first because she absolutely hated having her ears touched. And she has thin flimsy little ears that don't bleed easily.
She does, however, love to be brushed and groomed, so I do her tests in the middle of a little brushing/grooming session and she barely notices the test.
She can be a bit of a fidget, but as long as she stays on the chair (she gets tested on her favourite armchair) the fact that she moves around a bit is OK.

I use a warmed 'rice sock' to warm her ear to make it easier to test her. She likes the warmth of that. So, I stroke it over her head and down over the ear that I want to test, just holding it there for a couple of seconds at a time if she'll let me do that.

Our tests are a bit like this...
When she hears me setting up the test kit she often goes to her chair and waits there to be brushed (see photo below). :cat:
I sit next to the chair and make sure I've got everything I need for the test; her brush, the warmed rice sock, and my test kit (with the test strip pushed just part way into the meter).

I brush her, and scratch under her chin, and generally make a fuss of her. I brush her slowly because this seems to calm her down so she isn't quite so 'bouncy'.
I also stroke her with the warmed rice sock, stroking over her head and down over the ear I want to test.
When the ear feels warm I very quickly take hold of it and prick the outer edge. Then I immediately go back to brushing her or scratching her under the chin. And I just keep an eye on the spot where I've pricked to see if the blood is beading up.
If I see a blood droplet forming I push the test strip all the way into the meter to switch it on. Then I scratch her under the chin until I see the meter is ready for the test. Then I quickly but firmly hold the edge of her ear so that I can touch the blood droplet to the test strip. Then I put the meter down, and give her more brushing and scritches under the chin. And if I can I also press the little spot where I've pricked with clean finger and thumb for a couple of seconds.
But the whole process begins and ends with grooming her, with something that she loves. The test itself is just sneaked into the middle of that.

I don't know if something like this will work for your kitty. But maybe it could be worth a try...?
Maybe take it in stages, just seeing at first if you can get your kitty to a particular spot, brush her, and also start to incorporate ear-touching into that just for a second or two at first, not enough to stress her. And you could also try stroking her with a warmed rice-sock to see how she is with that...and take things from there...? If you make that spot the 'only' place where she gets brushed she will very soon start to learn that nice things happen in that place...

Here is a picture of my girl waiting on her chair for her test; something I really didn't think would ever happen when I first started trying to test her...


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Elizabeth and Bertie said:
Hi Katherine, my current diabetic girl was quite a challenge to test at first because she absolutely hated having her ears touched. And she has thin flimsy little ears that don't bleed easily.
She does, however, love to be brushed and groomed, so I do her tests in the middle of a little brushing/grooming session and she barely notices the test.
She can be a bit of a fidget, but as long as she stays on the chair (she gets tested on her favourite armchair) the fact that she moves around a bit is OK.

I use a warmed 'rice sock' to warm her ear to make it easier to test her. She likes the warmth of that. So, I stroke it over her head and down over the ear that I want to test, just holding it there for a couple of seconds at a time if she'll let me do that.

Our tests are a bit like this...
When she hears me setting up the test kit she often goes to her chair and waits there to be brushed (see photo below). :cat:
I sit next to the chair and make sure I've got everything I need for the test; her brush, the warmed rice sock, and my test kit (with the test strip pushed just part way into the meter).

I brush her, and scratch under her chin, and generally make a fuss of her. I brush her slowly because this seems to calm her down so she isn't quite so 'bouncy'.
I also stroke her with the warmed rice sock, stroking over her head and down over the ear I want to test.
When the ear feels warm I very quickly take hold of it and prick the outer edge. Then I immediately go back to brushing her or scratching her under the chin. And I just keep an eye on the spot where I've pricked to see if the blood is beading up.
If I see a blood droplet forming I push the test strip all the way into the meter to switch it on. Then I scratch her under the chin until I see the meter is ready for the test. Then I quickly but firmly hold the edge of her ear so that I can touch the blood droplet to the test strip. Then I put the meter down, and give her more brushing and scritches under the chin. And if I can I also press the little spot where I've pricked with clean finger and thumb for a couple of seconds.
But the whole process begins and ends with grooming her, with something that she loves. The test itself is just sneaked into the middle of that.

I don't know if something like this will work for your kitty. But maybe it could be worth a try...?
Maybe take it in stages, just seeing at first if you can get your kitty to a particular spot, brush her, and also start to incorporate ear-touching into that just for a second or two at first, not enough to stress her. And you could also try stroking her with a warmed rice-sock to see how she is with that...and take things from there...? If you make that spot the 'only' place where she gets brushed she will very soon start to learn that nice things happen in that place...

Here is a picture of my girl waiting on her chair for her test; something I really didn't think would ever happen when I first started trying to test her...


119125175_3557976087559938_2891165076895467896_o.jpg
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Your cat is so beautiful! Thank you so much for walking me through how you do it. It's so helpful!

Ruby is actually an incredibly sweet and mellow cat who will pretty much let me do anything to her without much fuss, so I'm not that concerned except for doing the BG curve when I'll be poking at her A LOT. Am getting the Alphatrak soon and will start testing once a day and then I plan to do the BG curve towards the end of next week when she's a little more used to it. If all else fails, I'll do the Freestyle Libre.

It's interesting to me though that the vet was almost trying to talk me out of doing this. She thinks that doing periodic curves and testing her urine with Ketodiastix for glucose and ketones will be enough to help monitor her.
 
Testing once a day will not give you an accurate picture of how insulin is working in Ruby's body. At best a test before EACH shot of insulin, is needed to keep Ruby safe.
Look at it like this way: "Would you shoot insulin into your body or your child's body, without knowing its safe to do so?"
Please reconsider this action plan going forward.
jeanne
 
jt and trouble (GA) said:
Testing once a day will not give you an accurate picture of how insulin is working in Ruby's body. At best a test before EACH shot of insulin, is needed to keep Ruby safe.
Look at it like this way: "Would you shoot insulin into your body or your child's body, without knowing its safe to do so?"
Please reconsider this action plan going forward.
jeanne
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Good point! Would twice a day, once before each shot, be all right then?
 
Jean is right. We recommend that you always test before the shots, which we call preshot tests. So it should go like this, test, feed, then give the insulin. The reason being that you need to know if her number is safe to shoot. For the preshot tests, she should not have any food at least 2 hours prior so the bg you get is not food influenced. Lantus is a great insulin for cats because it’s gentle and long lasting. You have about 2 hours before it starts to kick in so we also suggest a midday test so you can figure out when her nadir is, lowest point in a cycle, since we dose by that number and not by the preshot numbers. So, I’d suggest alternating to see what kind of numbers you get. One day try for a +4, then next day +5, then +6 and so forth and you’ll eventually figure out when her nadir is happening. Most of the time with Lantus is at +6 but not always and as we always say ECID, every cat is different. You have to learn about yours by testing and collecting data of these tests. Makes sense?

we also recommend an evening +2 since most cats tend to go lower at night so you can see where she’s headed. If that +2 is going up, it’s a good indication she’ll be fine overnight
 
99% of the vets don’t recommend home testing. I had a vet that actually said to me I’d drive myself crazy if I tested her daily. However, no one has ever said to a diabetic human that. If a person wouldn’t give him or herself insulin without testing first, why would cats be any different? Especially when they can’t tell us that they’re not feeling so well and need food right away because their bg is going down? :p
 
No cons to home testing as far as I'm concerned. If you establish routine, some kitties actually come if you shake the strip bottle or say it's time to test let's go. I could do Ollie in her sleep. Sometimes she would hit me to let me know, mom I need test and food now.

Vet doesn't have to know right away. Then you go in with spreadsheet of tests and they can not deny the progress.
 
Aleluia Grugru & Minnie said:
Jean is right. We recommend that you always test before the shots, which we call preshot tests. So it should go like this, test, feed, then give the insulin. The reason being that you need to know if her number is safe to shoot. For the preshot tests, she should not have any food at least 2 hours prior so the bg you get is not food influenced. Lantus is a great insulin for cats because it’s gentle and long lasting. You have about 2 hours before it starts to kick in so we also suggest a midday test so you can figure out when her nadir is, lowest point in a cycle, since we dose by that number and not by the preshot numbers. So, I’d suggest alternating to see what kind of numbers you get. One day try for a +4, then next day +5, then +6 and so forth and you’ll eventually figure out when her nadir is happening. Most of the time with Lantus is at +6 but not always and as we always say ECID, every cat is different. You have to learn about yours by testing and collecting data of these tests. Makes sense?

we also recommend an evening +2 since most cats tend to go lower at night so you can see where she’s headed. If that +2 is going up, it’s a good indication she’ll be fine overnight
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THANK YOU ALL FOR THE CLARIFICATION AND ENCOURAGEMENT! I’m WFH right now so I do have time to test her more than twice a day. All of your suggestions make sense. I wanted to go slow on her at the beginning so that she (and I) could get accustomed to it. I have fears the needle will go through her precious little ear.

I remember from the first time Ruby had the Libre on her nadirs were very steep during the day and not as dramatic at night. ECID! it would be interesting to see if anything has changed since we upper her dose to 1.5 units BID.
 
Olive & Paula said:
No cons to home testing as far as I'm concerned. If you establish routine, some kitties actually come if you shake the strip bottle or say it's time to test let's go. I could do Ollie in her sleep. Sometimes she would hit me to let me know, mom I need test and food now.

Vet doesn't have to know right away. Then you go in with spreadsheet of tests and they can not deny the progress.
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Well, the vet has already given me her blessing because I need to send her the results of a BG curve next weekend. But I like how you folks roll around here!
 
Welcome :)!

First, I am so sorry for the added stress you have had. I’m a HUGE fan of the Libre BUT as an additional tool to be used with BG vs in 100% in place of it right now. Unfortunately, as the vets are using it (and learning to use it) vs those having extensive experience with it, people end up having a bad experience vs a positive and helpful experience with it. The vets often 1) use quite of a bit of Vetbond adhesive which for those vets who have used the Libre more extensively, they have learned to use very little to no Vetbond because it tends to cause irritation as days go on vs just using the adhesive that is part of the Libre 2) they put the Libre on the back vs toward the back of the neck where a simple padded Kitty Kollar can be put on the cat loosely and protect it. Little pearls of wisdom that allow it to be worn for longer period of time without an issue and doesn’t bother the cat. I will post a picture of T with his on. I say keep it in the toolbox because it will be a tool you can use again :cool: to really, really know what is happening dynamically with BG. Don’t toss it out the window entirely!

I’m not sure how many days they were able to see data but it can help with getting a sense of the dynamic patterns/trends quickly and easily to make dose adjustments even with less than 14 days. At some point, even if it’s to give the skin a little break (especially if it got slightly irritated) BG testing is important. It’s also important because if the Libre reads “LO” (below 40) which with the original Libre its actually a little higher than it is reading, you want to grab a BG to check where it’s at. The glucose in the blood compartment occurs first followed by the glucose in the interstitial fluid compartment.

Regardless, test your cat :). My T sits patiently, albeit sometimes flaps his ear to let me know he’s not exactly thrilled about it, whereas in the beginning it was :arghh::banghead::nailbiting::woot::confused::mad:......for all involved LOL.

As for the IM at BluePearl, there are some IMs who follow & believe strongly in “loose” management of cats even in the early days of diagnosis. There is a vet from TX who speaks extensively regarding the ability to gets cats to remission with loose regulation and he cites his experiences but it is not a head to study—a lot of cats but again, not a study. However, there is one actual remission study which is head to head and actually manages one group of cats with loose regulation vs what is known here as tight regulation (keeping the cat in euglycemia). It’s not a huge study, most vet studies aren’t, but it’s at least some data to work with that maybe your vet hasn’t read. The cats managed by keeping them in euglycemic ranges did better. Hopefully, your vet is open to it and if not, well....honestly, you probably want to find a vet who is on the same page as you (they do exist) so that you are able to feel supported and a team working to accomplish the same goal vs opposite sides and a struggle and stress every time you interact. No one needs that :banghead::p!
 

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PerfumedCatMom said:
. I have fears the needle will go through her precious little ear.
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We've all done that, plus stick ourselves with the needle. Forget to give shot. Feed or give shot before testing. Give shot to wrong animal. Etc.

It's part of the journey. We aren't perfect. Neither are the cats, but they like to think they are.

Remember to breathe, try to relax. You got this.
 
PerfumedCatMom said:
Well, the vet has already given me her blessing because I need to send her the results of a BG curve next weekend. But I like how you folks roll around here!
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You won’t find a finer group of folks to help you through this. Absolutely no cons to home testing - it can be a lot of work but when my cat was diagnosed I couldn’t fathom shooting blind.

I didn’t see in the comments anywhere about diet - the Rx diets aren’t strictly necessary and you may find better low (preferably NO) carb wet foods to help treat her. One word of caution is that if you dramatically change the carb load in her diet it can have a profound effect on her BG. I got my girl into remission with Friskies and a Canadian store brand.

I also found it helped to prick my cat’s ear while she was eating. Her “pre-shot” value wasn’t affected since I took the reading within a moment of her starting to eat.

You are a wonderful parent to Ruby!!! Best of luck to you both.
 
Brashworks said:
You won’t find a finer group of folks to help you through this. Absolutely no cons to home testing - it can be a lot of work but when my cat was diagnosed I couldn’t fathom shooting blind.

I didn’t see in the comments anywhere about diet - the Rx diets aren’t strictly necessary and you may find better low (preferably NO) carb wet foods to help treat her. One word of caution is that if you dramatically change the carb load in her diet it can have a profound effect on her BG. I got my girl into remission with Friskies and a Canadian store brand.

I also found it helped to prick my cat’s ear while she was eating. Her “pre-shot” value wasn’t affected since I took the reading within a moment of her starting to eat.

You are a wonderful parent to Ruby!!! Best of luck to you both.
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That’s a great tip actually! I do that with Minnie in the mornings. She’s starving and won’t sit still so I let her eat and I immediately follow with the test. Like within 5 minutes so I know the food hasn’t has time to affect the bg. The rest of the day she waits, but in the mornings it’s a screaming fest over here until they get fed
 
There are lots of tips about testing here and each of us does something that helps so you can take what works for you and leave the rest. For me:

1. Warming up the ear, as someone already mentioned with the nuked sock filled with rice, is key. Her ear needs to be warm to the touch and then I know I’ll get a nice size droplet
2. Start with a larger lancet gauge like 28 or even 26. They make slightly bigger pricks and you’ll get more blood out. As you get better at it, you can switch to a 30 gauge - larger numbers indicate smaller needle tips
3. I use a few cotton ovals that I place behind the ear for support so it’s a) easier to apply the needed pressure with the lancet and b) it protects my finger in cases the needle does go through
4. Apply pressure with the cotton oval onto the spot after you got the blood out so it won’t bruise. You can also apply some Neosporin cream. Not the ointment
5. Always aim for the sweet spot
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6. As the ears get used to bleeding and grow more capilares, it gets easier to get the amount of blood you need on the first try. If she won’t stand still, you can get the blood onto a clean finger nail and test from there
7. I always sing a lullaby as I’m testing. It works to calm us both down and now when Minnie hears the lullaby she knows it’s testing time
8. I use a small flashlight that I hold in my mouth and aim at the spot so I can see well what I’m doing and the bevel of the needle going in, which could be bevel side up
9. I always give her either food or a treat immediately after
 

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