FAQ – Adonis's Diabetes Journey

Nope! Home testing is your right and the best way to keep your baby safe. Insulin can do wonders, but it can also be dangerous if not monitored. Vets can’t forbid you from testing — and by doing it at home you’ll save money, avoid stressful vet trips, and most importantly, catch low numbers before they become an emergency. A vet who truly understands feline diabetes will support home testing. If your vet resists or discourages it, it may be time to find one who does.

Nope — that’s not enough. Even if your kitty is only pre-diabetic, learning to test at home is a huge advantage. Vet visits can cause stress, which spikes blood sugar and makes those numbers unreliable. More importantly, glucose levels can drop at completely random times. Adonis has needed intervention on days we never would have expected — and there’s almost no chance you’ll catch a hypo by only testing at the vet. If your kitty’s dose is too high and you aren’t home testing, you could miss a dangerous low and end up at the ER. Home testing is the only way to keep them safe, every single day.

Either is fine! Human meters are cheaper to run, while pet meters read on a different scale. The big difference isn’t in accuracy, it’s in cost. Pet meters and their strips are really expensive — and those costs add up fast. We’d rather save that money for necessary vet visits and tests, because with diabetic kitties you’ll always face both expected and unexpected expenses.

If your vet insists on a pet meter and you can handle the higher costs, then that may be your only option. But honestly, what matters most is picking one meter, learning it well, and sticking with it consistently.

Ideally, blood sugar for diabetic cats should be in the 50–120 mg/dL (2.8–6.7 mmol/L) range when using a human glucometer — that’s the tight regulation range.

With a pet glucometer, the range is slightly higher: 80–150 mg/dL (4.4–8.3 mmol/L).

Of course, we monitor extra closely if he’s flirting with numbers in this range to make sure he isn’t going lower.

But more importantly, we aim to keep glucose below 250 mg/dL (13.9 mmol/L), which is the renal threshold:

💡 When glucose is under that line:

• There’s less kidney stress

• Fewer symptoms like excessive thirst and urination

• Better hydration

• Nutrients (like glucose) are properly used by the body instead of being lost in the urine — supporting weight, energy, and overall health

A glucose curve is a series of tests taken every 1–2 hours over a full 12-hour cycle between insulin shots. Curves teach us three key things:

• Onset — when insulin starts working

• Nadir — the lowest glucose point in the cycle

• Duration — how long the insulin lasts

Every kitty is different. For some, the nadir may be around 5 hours after insulin, for others closer to 8 — and in some rare cases as early as 3 hours. Even Adonis shifts — his onset changes with the seasons!

This is how it works for us with Lantus, and we’re aware it’s the same approach for Levemir and Prozinc.

ALWAYS test before giving insulin. Then add at least one or two more checks mid-cycle to see how the insulin is affecting your kitty. This is how you find the nadir — the lowest glucose point in the cycle. If numbers start to drop, you may need extra tests that day to prevent a dangerous hypo.

Since most kitties on 12-hour insulins get two shots per day, this works out to about 3 tests per cycle, or roughly 4–6 tests a day. That’s what we do with Adonis: preshots, mid-cycle checks, and more if needed.

And here’s the good news — if you’re already testing at different times mid-cycle on a regular basis, you may not even need to run full glucose curves, since you’re already building that data day by day.

We don’t run formal curves with Adonis, because by testing daily (pre-shot & mid-cycle) we already see how his cycles behave.

Whether we decide to follow up with extra tests depends on the general curve overview. For example, if he’s sitting near 80 mg/dL at nadir, we’ll check again depending on the preshot to make sure he doesn’t drop too low.

• If his preshot is low (around 90 mg/dL): it usually means he’s running a very flat cycle and we don’t need extra checks.
• If his preshot is higher (200+ mg/dL): we know he’s going to “curve” more steeply, so we test mid-cycle and follow it like a graph in our heads.

The point is: nadirs and onsets aren’t fixed — they can move around. Daily home testing gives you the same information as curves (and often more), because you’re capturing how insulin really works in your kitty day to day.

If you’re already doing regular mid-cycle tests, you may not even need full curves — you’re building that data all the time

No dose is stable forever! We test to understand how strong each dose is, prevent hypos, and gather data to adjust. Remission can happen weeks, months, or years in — we’ve seen it! Adonis has dropped into hypo range over 10 times in the past year. Thanks to testing, we always caught it in time, and all he’s ever needed was a his hypo kit at home!

Because by the time you see a hypo, it might be too late. Please don’t wait for symptoms — they’re often subtle until they’re dangerous. We rarely test a minimum of 4 times a day. I’ve heard heartbreaking stories from people who didn’t, and it’s not worth the risk 🥺. Adonis sometimes has asked for tests when low, and other times he has not said anything and would sleep through a hypo, maybe never wake up if we were not alert on each cycle trend.

If you see a low number, the very first step is to retest right away to confirm it wasn’t a fluke or a strip issue. Use a fresh strip and warm the ear again if needed. 📉

If that second test confirms a hypo (low blood sugar):

1. Immediately create a post in the Feline Diabetes Support Facebook group and tag “admin” and “hypo.” The admins will guide you step-by-step through how to raise your baby’s BG with high carb food.

2. Not in the group yet? Don’t wait to be accepted. Treat it as an emergency:

   • Rub honey, corn syrup, or maple syrup on your kitty’s gums.

   • Offer high carb food if your kitty will eat.

   • Rush to the ER while continuing to rub sugar on the gums if symptoms are present or kitty won’t eat. A hypo can be fatal if untreated. 🏥

3. Using a Libre? If it says “LO” or throws an error, always confirm with an ear prick. Libre is delayed and can’t be relied on in emergencies.

💡If you’re just asking this to be prepared ahead of time (yay, smart! 👏) — we love that you’re thinking ahead. Watch this video where we walk through how we prevented a hypo on sweet Adonis:

🎥 Watch: How we Handle Hypoglycemia in our Diabetic Kitty

A hypo kit is something you should always have on hand if you’re giving insulin — no exceptions. Even if your kitty seems stable, regulated, or headed toward remission… stuff can change fast. A low number can sneak up out of nowhere. Better safe than sorry. 💛

Here’s a basic hypo kit:

• High carb wet food (gravy-style, “in sauce,” or pouches)
• Simple sugar: honey, corn syrup, maple syrup
• Test strips, backup meter, lancets — please never let yourself run out! Backups are essential.

✨Note: High carb foods vary by country — and labels can be tricky! That’s why we highly recommend joining the Feline Diabetes Support group to get a proper hypo kit list that fits your region. The community will help you pick safe and effective options.

In a rush and trying to check a food’s carb content? Use this calculator:

🌐 http://felinenutritioncalculators.com/carbcalorie.html

Because we test 4–6 times daily, we already have a clear picture from 3 years of data, so a CGM isn’t necessary for us. Our spreadsheet shows consistent results from handheld testing. Also, sensors have about a 15-minute delay, and you still need to confirm drops with a handheld test — so, for us, it wasn’t worth shaving his fur or causing potential discomfort.

That said, a CGM can be a great option for people who are just getting started, feel nervous about testing, are still training, or can’t be at home to monitor daily.

For us, we’d still test regularly. These newer medications, like Bexacat or Sevelgo, can also cause hypos, and honestly, we personally wouldn’t choose them for Adonis. He’s not a test subject, and we want the safest, most predictable option for him — for us, that’s insulin. These meds are still very new, and we prefer sticking to what we know works for his health.

If your kitty is on one of them, we highly recommend joining the FDSG subgroup for Bexacat/Sevelgo support — it’s a valuable resource.

It took a few weeks — maybe about a month. In the beginning, it was overwhelming for both of us, and we failed a lot, especially in the first few days. But failing is part of the journey. Without pushing through it — and using lots of positive reinforcement — he would have never gotten this comfortable and confident.

We actually made a video just about this! 🎥 It walks you through how we built his confidence step by step and made testing a positive experience for him: Watch the video here.

Not really! Unlike humans, kitty ears have very few nerve endings. That’s why most people who don’t know better say “ah, poor kitty” — they assume ears are as sensitive as ours, but they’re not.

Some kitty parents try the paw instead of the ear, and for a few kitties that works better. But many don’t tolerate their paws being touched — Adonis would never let us live to tell the tale if we tried it on him! 😹 We do know a small handful of paw testers, but the majority of kitties end up doing just fine with ear testing once they get used to it.

Kitty ears heal fast! 🐾 If his ear isn’t warm, we warm it up first — a rice sock works wonders. In the early days, we used a slightly thicker lancet to help the blood flow more easily. We also rotate between ears and spots, press gently afterward to avoid bruising, and always pair the whole process with calmness, lots of love, praise, and treats. Now, it’s become a relaxed routine that he’s 100% comfortable with — and he knows treats are coming!

Just fill a sock with rice, tie a knot, and you’re done in seconds. You can also use a hand warmer, but make sure it’s not too hot — place a cloth in between for safety.

If you want one like the cute rice socks in our videos, here is a tutorial!

Not at all! It just helps the blood stay on the surface of the ear instead of getting lost in the fur. A tiny smear on the edge makes the drop easier to collect and makes the whole process smoother.

I was just petting his ear one day — probably trying to warm it up while waiting for the rice sock from the microwave — and started massaging it as a way of giving him love. Then I realized that sometimes a warm ear and Vaseline weren’t enough, but the gentle massage boosted circulation and made testing easier.

I wouldn’t say it’s always necessary, but it definitely helps. With the formula: — warm ear + Vaseline + spa momento — our lancet setting is now at 2 to 2.5 (very low!) compared to the 4–5 we needed when we first started training. Without the massage, we’d sometimes need a 3 to 3.5 setting for a stronger pinch.

Warm them first with a rice sock, gentle massage, or a quick rub to get the blood flowing. In the beginning, thicker lancets (26–28g) work best until the ears “learn” to bleed. After a few weeks, we were able to switch to finer 30g lancets with no problem.

Some days less some days more, mainly more when his glucose is high.

Since Juanuary 2023 - we did not test so well on the first days though, we didn’t know, we were guided to test… when we can…. :( so dangerous!

Data tracking is your best friend. The longer time passes, the more I can read his glucose treands or learn of new ones coming in. His numbers show patterns, and that helps me act early.

On the hard days, we give him space to be spicy if he needs to, and we give ourselves grace too.

Bad days are part of diabetes. It’s not your fault. It’s the nature of it. Don’t panic—use the home-testing data as your ally.

Adonis has been on Lantus since just a few days after his diagnosis. There are several insulins that can work well for kitties, but every kitty responds differently. That’s why home glucose testing is absolutely necessary — without testing, you’re going blind and missing how your kitty’s body is actually reacting to the hormone.

Trick question! 😸 His dose today may not be the same dose in 2 weeks. It could go up, it could go down — that’s just how diabetes works. The only way to know is through consistent home testing and building a history of numbers.

Never base your kitty’s dose on what works for another cat. There is no universal “right dose,” and there’s no manual that applies to every case. We’ve learned how to manage Adonis’s dosing through the Feline Diabetes Support Group, and we still ask questions or get second opinions if we’re ever in doubt. His vet also reviews his data and usually agrees with the group’s approach, adding insights when needed.

We never adjust based on one single glucose number. Instead, we look at trends and history over time. We learned everything in the Feline Diabetes Support Group and our vet agrees with this approach. Every kitty is unique: some do best with micro-adjustments of 0.25 units, others with 0.05. You only figure this out by testing and monitoring.

Two words: digital calipers. We discovered them through the FDSG, and now we wouldn’t go back. Syringes on their own can be very inconsistent — calipers make sure every single dose is the same, down to the tiniest fraction. Once set up, they’re fast and reliable.

Pens might look convenient, but they aren’t accurate enough for kitties. They’re designed for humans, who take much larger doses. A “tiny” error with a pen for a human is no big deal, but for a kitty it could mean a serious difference in glucose control. Syringes (measured consistently with calipers) are simply safer and more precise for our babies.

You may have seen it in our videos — we use a spreadsheet. It was set up for us through the Feline Diabetes Support Group, and it’s the best way to see the big picture.

The sheet isn’t about daily or monthly snapshots — each page is set up by year. That way, we can spot long-term trends, see how changes play out, and use the data to guide adjustments when needed. It’s also a lifesaver if you ever need to share data with your vet or the group for input.

• Feline Diabetes Support Group — our home base. Roxy (Adonis’s mom) is a group expert there, so feel free to say hi! The admins have a huge knowledge base, and we trust them fully along with our vet. This group is a must-join if you have a diabetic kitty.

There are also specialized groups for common companion conditions like:

• Feline Chronic Kidney Disease.
• Cats With Pancreatitis
• IBDKitties

These can be very helpful if your kitty has more than one challenge.

When you request to join, be sure to answer the membership questions with your kitty’s details so you get admitted quickly.

AI is trained on existing online content, and most online resources treat feline diabetes like canine diabetes — so there is a high chance that you may get mixed or misleading answers.

AI apps like ChatGPT can sometimes help with the very basics of glucose testing or general technique tips at most, it’s not something I’d fully trust.

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⚠️ NEVER ask any AI for insulin dosing.

That’s why we built this Sugar Kitty AI Mentor: it’s focused only on glucose testing, with a knowledge base drawn directly from the Feline Diabetes Support Group. It won’t give insulin dose or medical advice, and it is configured to not browse the web, so no mix-ups.

For any free, specific support about your kitty, always post in the Feline Diabetes Support Group and tag admin. That’s where the lived experience, up-to-date knowledge, and 24/7 support really makes the difference.