Jingle Jangle

As I've mentioned several times, the Feline Diabetes Message Board is a site where knowledge and helpfulness abound. If there's something going on with your diabetic cat, you can bet that someone else on the board has seen it and can help you with it. 24 hours a day, there's someone around to offer advice, support, solace, whatever.

I like reading the board. I learn a lot and it can make me laugh. But there's one topic I avoid like the plague: the hypo watch.

A hypo watch happens when a member posts a message that their cat's blood sugar has dropped into dangerous territory, which is pretty much anything from the 40s on down. People from all over jump in to help, trying to make sure the person is covering all the bases - feeding the cat, testing often, watching for clinical signs, getting the car warmed up and ready to sprint to the vet if needed.

Hypos can come out of nowhere. It can be a cat whose insulin needs suddenly change: the dose that's been just fine for months is suddenly too much. It can be a mistake by a newbie or a substitute caregiver: remember Fuzz - accidentally given 20 units by a stand-in who read the marks on the syringe incorrectly? (Note: even three units is a big dose for most diabetic cats. I've never give Isabella more than 2 units.)

The mistakes scare me the most. When I read that Fuzz had been given 20 units, my heart collapsed. When I read recently that someone new to the board had given 4 units to her cat whose sugar was already at 40, I couldn't read any more. There are others and they all upset me.

Even though many, maybe even most, of these hypo watches end just fine - with help from the board the cat's blood sugar goes up and no obvious harm is done - I hate reading them. Fuzz survived his 20 units, as did the cat who was given more insulin when already low. I hate reading them because sometimes, the worst happens. And that reminds me that anyone can make a mistake. Anyone.

That's why I'm always very glad to hear the bell on Isabella's collar when I get home, even before I open the door. If she's jingling, she's okay.