Yesterday Fortune was admitted back to the hospital. The blood transfusion was effective and he is back to being "feisty," and eating heartily. To be honest, hearing that he is still agitated being at the hospital is just heart breaking. We aren't sure what caused his anemia, but his is also azotemic. He kidney numbers came down since yesterday, but they are still high. They are trying to figure out if it's because his left kidney has more advanced kidney disease, if it's a kidney infection, or if he sustained kidney damage from the anesthesia. Poor bunny. We were told that advanced kidney disease doesn't have a treatment, that he may need more transfusions. I did bring up the darbepoetin, since he received it last Friday. We aren't sure if that's an option yet, either. Right now, they are giving him a higher than maintenance level of fluids to flush his kidney, and would like to do an ultrasound to look at his kidney tomorrow. Which means he may not come home til Tuesday. I have no clear prognosis or sense of his quality of life. We are struggling to wrap our minds around everything, and are still holding our breath for the biopsy results. Very upset that he isn't home again, and our other cat Marty seems pretty depressed, so we are trying to lavish him with pets and cuddles. The doctor did comment that Fortune doesn't seem like a senior cat based on how he behaves and eats, and seems to have a lot of fight and life in him. We are just grappling if he needs to be hospitalized this frequently, what his quality of life is because he is so unhappy in the hospital. OH - I brought up that his BG has been higher, and asked how it is. They are keeping him on his regular glargine dose of 2IU, and it's been between 250-350. She brought up the Freestyle Libra which goes on for two weeks to check blood sugar instead of pricking his ear. I wanted to ask if anyone had experience with it, and if it's easier/better for the cat when they have a lot going on. They would use it in the hospital and we would use it at home instead of the regular blood tests...We don't want to add an actual medical device to Fortune if it's going to be uncomfortable or unnecessary.
A lot of people have used the libre (I haven't personally). I think it's success hinges on keeping the device on the kitty (some kitties don't like the device on them) though if you have Fortune in a t-shirt or that hospital suit, that may help keep it on. Sending lots of love and healing vines
We've had a number of people use the Libre. It's a good option if you can't test much, are going away on holidays and need someone to watch, or you suspect you might be missing some lows, or just want to see general trends. I've also seen that Libre lows should be double checked with a hand held meter. And as Susanne said, we've had some cats where it only lasted two days. If you want to read more about it, there are some descriptions of it being used here: (2020) Updates in Feline Diabetes Mellitus and Hypersomatrotropism and this post in Think Tank. As for his high numbers, it did look a lot like a bounce with too little insulin. Wish he knew what happened to his BG on surgery day. Keeping our fingers, toes and paws here crossed for Fortune.
If the anemia is caused by the kidneys darbopoetin will help. I’m not sure but don’t think it helps with anemia caused from other reasons like cancer but I am not sure. The first step is to figure that out. If from CKD I know someone who can help.
Thank you for the well wishes! I’m torn on the Libre - I want to see him bounce back from the hospital visit before we implant something in him, but also recognize the value in getting more info on his lows...He is just so skinny and shaved down right now We are going to talk more about it with the vet - like would they be interpreting the info and advising? I agree with you @Wendy&Neko his dose is too low. They bumped it down a week and a half ago at the other hospital for no good reason other than they want us to drop from 2.75 to 2 following the brush hypo (we went to 2.5 and it was fine until his collapse). I appreciate they want to be proactive about managing his diabetes. Our GP is still MIA... There is no sign that it’s from cancer, so that’s good? It’s coming from his kidney, we just don’t know if it’s a. CKD that has progressed quickly because his right kidney was compensating for his left b. An Infection (waiting for results of the urinalysis) or c. Kidney damage from the anesthesia We should hear from the doctor this afternoon. I really want to see him so he knows we haven’t left him.
I've had two Libres placed on Ruby and it stressed her out a lot. The first one last maybe a week and second one only lasted four days. I have heard some cats don't even notice it, but Ruby kept scratching at hers and barely moved from the bed when it was on. I think it bothered her when she had to jump. I loved the convenience of it and seeing the numbers I wasn't getting while I was sleeping but I won't do it again with Ruby. ECID.
Very possible that a kidney infection or UTI is causing higher values. That all could clear up when treated. And yes it’s a very good thing that the anemia is not cancer related because there’s lots that can be done.
Thank you! Fortune is stable and hungry, no indication that it’s an infection based on the urinalysis, but we should know more when we get the culture. We decided against the Libre, so they are going to start a curve overnight to get more data. I also shared my tracker with the doctor. He will get his insulin and fed as usual at 8pm, and they promised to give him extra! I hope that helps him. Tomorrow the plan is to do an ultrasound to see what is going on with his one remaining kidney, and we are going to visit!
Darbo is very effective for anemia if it’s kidney related; I have used it with great success. I am hoping and praying that things will continue to improve with Fortune. Hang in there. Fortune is hanging in there. Focus on him coming home soon. I do think it would be an excellent idea for y’all to visit with him to keep his spirits up! So are they currently giving him antibiotics? Then they can switch antibiotics based on any culture results that may come in? Many times my cat has been sick and only really began to improve on antibiotics even though the exact location of an infection was never pinpointed.
I agree Suzanne but that’s the one thing my vet is stingy with, an antibiotic if there’s no culture. In this case since there was surgery involved it seems like it might be a good idea but I defer to the vets. I just read on groupsio a post from the vet there and he would not treat either.
Happy to hear Fortune is stable and hungry. So so happy you can go visit him. Give him lots of kisses and tell him all his aunties are rooting for him ♥
