| Chukalu:Feline | |
|---|---|
| Female, fuzzy brown tabby | |
| Born | 6-1997, Frederick, MD |
| Dx | 3-8-2002 |
| Oral meds | SAM-e, Milk Thistle, Vitamin E: |
| Regulated | 6-2003 |
|
Regulated between 55 and 225 | |
|
Started TR (Dr. Hodgkins' protocol) on 1-5-07; Testing performed with a FreeStyle Flash meter and ear pricks. | |
| Remission | --- |
| Insulin | BCP PZI U40 |
A Brief History of The Chu
So cute you just wanna poke her ears! Photo: 01/15/07
Chukalu ('choo-ka-loo') is an eleven-year-old diabetic female cat. I do not know how long she was diabetic before I brought her to live with me; her previous owner did not want to keep her due to the health issues which turned out to be diabetes. The country vet in Frederick I took her to confirmed my suspicions, "Yup, she's diabetic." When I asked what we should do next, he said that most people put their cat down when they find out it's diabetic. I knew right away that "solution" wasn't an option and helping Chu live with her condition turned out to be one of the best decisions I've ever made. It's very rewarding to see her every day and know that because of the few minutes I spend giving her insulin and checking her blood sugar, she has lived many happy years beyond what her life span would have been.
Insulin and Diet
Over the past six years we have tried several different types of insulin: Humulin NPH, Humulin Lente, Humulin Ultralente, Lantus, BCP PZI, and PZI Vet. Of the Humulins, Lente worked the best but as of three years ago it is no longer available. I then tried PZI Vet with her and it worked even better than the Lente did, but it was recently discontinued as well. It seems that every time we find an insulin that works for her it is taken off the market within a few years, which is very frustrating. Chu has been a low-carb kitty since 2002; she eats a canned-only diet of Fancy Feast (the ones made without grains, gluten and "gravy") because her blood glucose levels are much more controlled without carbs in her system. She eats two cans per day and is not allowed any dry food or high-carb snacks at all. Her favorite snacks are freeze-dried chicken pieces from the organic market. As a rare treat she occasionally gets a pinch of bonito flakes from the Asian market.
Most Recent Blood Glucose Data & Associated Notes
http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=pmL3bLbYkdVVfr-Z2T9VbEw
Chart of Current Blood Glucose Data
July 2008
Chukalu is no longer on the tight regulation protocol because my husband and I have been far too busy to properly adhere to the dosing and monitoring requirements and because the insulin she does best on (Idexx PZI Vet) has been discontinued. As of right now, she gets 2u of BCP PZI b.i.d. but she has a dental infection that may be making it difficult to regulate her. Hopefully once that is taken care of her dose will decrease to her normal dose of between 1.2-1.5u.
Chu's experience with trying the tight regulation protocol is documented below. Even though she wasn't able to achive remission during the time she was on the protocol (about 6 months in total) she definitely had more energy and her overall health seemed better. We haven't ruled out trying TR with her again if we can find an insulin that is compatible with it and, ideally, if I'm able to work from home so I can always monitor her.
--Kellie & Chu 5 July 2008
Chukla Tries Tight Regulation: January 2007
When I found out more about TR and Dr. Hodgkins' protocol I hoped that perhaps it might not be too late to put her diabetes into remission. Even if that's not possible at this point, we'd have a healthier Chu and that makes it very worth trying.
--Kellie & Chu 12 January 2007
Learn about Dr. Hodgkins' protocol here: http://www.yourdiabeticcat.com/protocol.html
Week 1: Tight Regulation Begins - using PZI Vet insulin
WEEK 1 NUMBERS: http://sheet.zoho.com/publishrange.do?id=578086bbcfe6573ad9ec323ad1ba570c]]
Week 2
WEEK 2 NUMBERS: http://sheet.zoho.com/publishrange.do?id=bca6205e4c987b707e0a72e8853c3520
Week 3
WEEK 3 NUMBERS: http://sheet.zoho.com/publishrange.do?id=fd44b13e8b2359d0e6badccbf6f9b3df
Week 4
WEEK 4 NUMBERS: http://sheet.zoho.com/publishrange.do?id=0e4faf4bb03f51321e866a2e1f4d0e7a
Week 5
WEEK 5 NUMBERS: http://sheet.zoho.com/publishrange.do?id=79058e675f06bfc57ca44252f8776fc9
Week 6
WEEK 6 NUMBERS: http://sheet.zoho.com/publishrange.do?id=b2f1c829b78acfab0e3278f0b6d6d83b
Week 7
WEEK 7 NUMBERS: http://sheet.zoho.com/publishrange.do?id=88b3a7792c6bfc34ee473d5d9f608156
Week 8
WEEK 8 NUMBERS: http://sheet.zoho.com/publishrange.do?id=3108b64332c7451872b163d3aecc0e41