Rosa - Newly diagnosed

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manxcat419

manxcat419

Member Since 2015
One of my cats, Rosa, was just diagnosed as diabetic yesterday. I feel terrible - she's been eating Royal Canin Urinary SO dry food for years on veterinary advice after having bladder stones removed in 2007 and now I'm reading that this might have caused it. She'd had blood work done in August prior to having her teeth cleaned and one removed - everything came back fine then so now I'm wondering if that procedure might also have contributed to this.

In the last few weeks she'd gone from being a happy, lively 11 yo cat to very lethargic with some digestive issues and for some reason constantly having kitty litter glued to her paws - we changed the brand of litter, little did I know that this might be an indication of sugar in her urine. I'd taken her in to see if she could go back on the SO food as she'd started being a very picky eater and was losing weight and the diagnosis came as the result of a urinalysis to check for struvite crystals. We're back at the vet tomorrow for blood work and to get her first insulin prescription.

Right now I'm feeling guilty for giving her food that might have caused it, getting her teeth cleaned and maybe causing inflammation that way and wondering what I could or should have done differently to prevent this and how to get her accustomed to twice daily injections - she's almost impossible to treat with any sort of medication after being on antibiotics and metacam for a number of weeks when she had the bladder stones. I also feel bad because we're on a planned personal business trip from the middle of next week so she's going to have to go to a medical boarding vet before she's even had a chance to get used to the new regime. She and her twin were feral as kittens and don't deal too well with being away from their familiar surroundings but this is going to have to be the way it is now anytime we have to be away ourselves. Desperately looking for any advice on how to get her (and me) through this.
 
I too just joined this forum yesterday. I was given the news about Tabitha late Friday and spent the weekend feeling sorry for myself when all I wanted to do was comfort her. I haven't had her for very long, since mid-October, when I found out she was going to be put out onto the street. She was slim but had a very healthy shiny coat. I wanted to call her Slick because of her fur and the streak down her nose. Then I found out her name was Tabitha.

At first she didn't eat. It took me some time to find something she would eat, which was only dry food. I found out quickly that, since her front paws were declawed, she would bite with little stimulation and wasn't very sociable. I wanted to help her get use to people then help find her a good home. Since she spent most of her time in the cat room and didn't come out I didn’t realize she wasn’t grooming herself and was losing weight. Over the holidays I was spending more time with her and that was when I noticed the health issues and the fact that she was grinding her teeth when she ate and was drinking water between each bites. On January 5th I took her to the vet then got the news Friday. Friday night I was thinking who will want to adopt a diabetic cat that bites.

Right now I want to only focus on what I can do moving forward and taking it a day at a time. I am switching her over to wet food, purchased the Walmart ReliOn Micro meter and found a pharmacy to purchase the Lantus insulin. Next I will get with the vet to fax the prescription and once I get it will make the appointment so they can get me started on the at home testing and injections etc. I’m focused on doing my best to get her in remission.

You are not alone. I see many new people joining this forum like us. Looks like we are in a good place.
 
Hi extra sweet kitty Rosa and her caregiver! Like many new members, you gave us the most important info, your kitties name but forgot to share your own name. Would you please share your first name with us? :D

Welcome to the FDMB. Now that you have introduced yourself, please head over to the main Feline Health forum for specific suggestions and advice to help you.

Thanks.
 
Please manxcat , try not to feel guilty , I didn't notice my cat was drinking more for ages ( she goes outside ) Most new people come on here feeling awful that it's something they've done, but it probably isn't. Both my two previous cats ate cheapo cat food & lived til they were 19 !

Try not to dwell on the past, just focus on going forward, you'll get there.xx

Sharon, I think you're a really kind person to take on Tabitha,xx I'm sure you'll find a home for her eventually.
 
Thank you for the kind words everyone. I keep trying to tell myself that it can't have been just the food - Rosa's twin, Regan (that's the 2 of them in my pic) ate the exact same food and is the picture of health, so much so that the vet asked me if I was sure about her age when I took her in to their new vet for her sign up appointment in the middle of last year!

Sharon, I feel for you with the new diagnosis - it's difficult to come to terms with. We're off for Rosa's next appointment today, so I'll report back later with new information and no doubt for advice on getting her to switch food etc - they were trying to figure out a good diet for her ahead of our appointment today.

My name is April. I'm originally from the UK, but living in the US since November 2013 - the cats came over with me.
 
Hi and welcome to the forum.

Please don't beat yourself up about the past. You just need to focus on getting the hang of the treatment and doing the best for Rosa now. You never know with luck you can get her blood glucose under good control and some cats even go into remission, my cat remi did after a few months on insulin.

As Sharon has already mentioned the advice for owners of diabetic cats is to discuss with your vet the use of a long acting insulin like lantus or levemir or prozinc, find a wet low carb food and home test your kitties blood glucose.
 
Hello April and supersweet Rosa, and welcome to FDMB. :bighug:

Please don't feel guilty about feeding dry food. Many of us have done exactly the same thing - and on the advice of our vets too.
I thought I was doing the right thing by feeding my cats dry food (Science Diet) until Bertie became diabetic at the age of 8...

A diagnosis of feline diabetes can come as a real shock at first. But the good news is that diabetes is treatable; and with good care a diabetic cat can live as long and as happily as a non-diabetic.

You will soon feel at home here at FDMB. And we're here to help in any way we can. :)

Eliz
 
Welcome to FDMB. I you've a moment, would you please add some details to your signature to help us give you better feedback?

Editing your Profile and Signature
In the upper right corner of the screen, within the dark blue bar, you will see ID, Inbox, and Alerts

Click on your ID.



On the left, under Settings, Click on Signature.
This is where you will put information that helps us give you feedback.
This is where you paste the link for your spreadsheet, once it is set up.
Add any other text, such as
your name,
cat's name,
date of Dx (diagnosis)
insulin
meter
any other pertinent issues like if there are any food issues, history of DKA, hepatic lipidosis, pancreatitis, allergies, IBD, etc.
Click the Save Changes button at the bottom.
 
Thanks everyone. I feel a bit better after talking with the vet today - she reassured me that they often see cat twins where one just seems to have been unlucky in the genetic lottery and the other goes through life with no problems at all. They both started out on Hills Science adult food and then the Royal Canin SO - both on the advice of a vet so they've both been fed dry food all their lives up until now. I'm not decided yet on what to do about Regan's food - she still bounces around like a kitten though of course now I'm concerned it might cause her a similar problem later on. I guess I'll get Rosa under control first and then work out what to do about Regan's food.

So Rosa's blood glucose was 680 today at the vet. She's been prescribed MD food - 3/4 of a can twice a day and 2 units of lantus twice a day. The food may have to change later as when the vet ran her blood chemistry, one of her kidney values was also a bit off (though not dangerously so) so we have to wait to see if it gets back in the normal range once her glucose levels improve. I'm waiting for her to finish her first meal so I can give her her shot - she's taking ages to eat so I'm glad I started the process earlier than I really wanted to give the shot. I'm a little nervous but I know I can do it...compared to our 18 year old kitty with CKD who has fluids twice a week, the needle is small and the amount to be injected is tiny. I will definitely update my signature when I have a little more time - this evening's likely to be taken up with getting the shot into her once she's eaten and some fairly nervous monitoring to make sure she's OK afterwards!

As far as home monitoring is concerned - she was very awkward at the vet today about giving them a blood sample (it was her third visit in a week and she hates the vet office at the best of times) and the vet was concerned I wouldn't be able to get any blood from her for testing. She's very gentle and well behaved with me though so I'm going to raise the issue again at her next appointment - I'm sure I can get better control for her if I'm testing her regularly at home.
 
Well, I got the shot into her. I don't think she even noticed it. I sat her on my lap and petted her, then just got hold of the skin and gave her the shot...she purred all the way through. Now my brave girl is sitting on my lap so I can keep an eye on her - we're going to take her into the bedroom with her blanket to lay on the bed and watch a movie with us and I'm hoping she'll settle there for the night so I can make sure she's OK all the way through. I'm sure the first shot was the worst for me - now I'm looking forward to seeing her start to improve and get her bounce back! :)
 
manxcat419 said:
Well, I got the shot into her. I don't think she even noticed it. I sat her on my lap and petted her, then just got hold of the skin and gave her the shot...she purred all the way through. Now my brave girl is sitting on my lap so I can keep an eye on her - we're going to take her into the bedroom with her blanket to lay on the bed and watch a movie with us and I'm hoping she'll settle there for the night so I can make sure she's OK all the way through. I'm sure the first shot was the worst for me - now I'm looking forward to seeing her start to improve and get her bounce back! :)
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Well done !! I hope you feel a bit more confident now, if she was stressed out at the vets, that could have caused her blood glucose level to rise, I'm sure that's what happened with Squiggles .
 
manxcat419 said:
Well, I got the shot into her. I don't think she even noticed it. I sat her on my lap and petted her, then just got hold of the skin and gave her the shot...she purred all the way through.
Click to expand...
Yay! Well done, April (and Rosa!) :D
I do hope you feel better now that you've got that first shot done.

If you do think you may like to have a go at hometesting (testing blood glucose at home) then you could begin to get Rosa used to the idea now by getting her used to having her ears touched. If you gently hold an ear, or massage it, for a just a second or two it will soon become a familiar sensation to her. And if you reward her with a treat each time she'll start to look forward to it....;) Testing blood glucose is really only a short step further from that point.
Here's a page of pics and info that you may be interested in. (I actually learned to test from this page - and with a bit of encouragement from folks here!):
http://www.sugarpet.net/bloodtst.html

You're doing fine, April. This is a great start!
And it may seem like there's a lot of info to take in at first; but just take things at your own pace.
If you have more questions, you may find that you get 'more eyes' on your posts if you post them in the main health forum. :)

Eliz
 
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Hi Rosa,
I am new to the group and also just received news that my senior rescue, Snickers is now diabetic. I would like to ask everyone on the board what canned foods work best for a very thin senior?
I have been feeding all 5 of my cats canned food twice daily and just put the timed dry food feeder high on a counter where Mr. Snickers cannot get too. He is too arthritic to get on counters.
I like Nature's Variety Chicken, Rabbit and Duck, Canidae all life stages and Pure Vita. I see from Binky's list that Fancy Feast Classics are good because of low carbs. I would love any suggestions.
Visiting the vet this morning to receive instructions and she really pushes their Hills RX diets, which I can see are not the best.
 
Ann Shevin said:
I am new to the group and also just received news that my senior rescue, Snickers is now diabetic. I would like to ask everyone on the board what canned foods work best for a very thin senior?
I have been feeding all 5 of my cats canned food twice daily and just put the timed dry food feeder high on a counter where Mr. Snickers cannot get too. He is too arthritic to get on counters.
Click to expand...

Hi Ann,

And a warm welcome to FDMB! :bighug:

I'm sorry to hear that Snickers is diabetic, but so glad that you've found us. FDMB is a great place for advice and support.

Folks will have a lot of advice about the best foods for Snickers, but, in order to get the most responses to this specific question do consider posting on the main health forum here:
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/forums/feline-health-the-main-forum.28/
You can just 'copy and paste' the text of your post into a new message there.

Best wishes to you and your furry crew,

Eliz

PS. Most folks here do not feed prescription diets, but feed ordinary low carb wet food instead (brands vary depending on where you are in the world).
Good luck at the vets!
 
If you're in the Us, Friskies pates except mixed Grill all are fine and when feeding numerous cats, are helpful on the budget (I'm feeding 16!)

If you've already started giving insulin, though, please don't make any food changes until you are home testing - the glucose levels can drop considerably with a food change and put your cat at risk of hypoglycemia, which can kill quickly. The needed insulin dose may drop by 1-2 units.

Please get an inexpensive glucometer such as the WalMart ReliOn Confirm, test strips, and lancets for "alternate site" testing (they work best starting out as they are bigger) avoid meters with Free or Tru in the name as they may not work as well in cats, despite being OK in humans.
 
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Hi April and the beautiful Rosa and Regan.

manxcat419 said:
I keep trying to tell myself that it can't have been just the food - Rosa's twin, Regan (that's the 2 of them in my pic) ate the exact same food and is the picture of health, so much so that the vet asked me if I was sure about her age when I took her in to their new vet for her sign up appointment in the middle of last year!
Click to expand...

Saoirse's story is very similar to Rosa's. Bladder stones removed and prescribed Royal Canin Urinary s/o for maintenance. She gained weight on it, and started overgrooming her tummy a little. We had just moved to a new flat so the vet put the fur loss down to stress/boredom. I had to switch Saoirse to different low calorie foods, again vet-prescribed. The balding on her tum got progressively worse. After 3 years she developed diabetes. Like you, I thought I was feeding her the right food because it was specified by the vet. I also feel very guilty about feeding her something that harmed her (:bighug:) but in many ways she's much healthier now that her diabetes is controlled and she has the right nutrition (wet, low-carb, species appropriate food (grain-free) - extra water added for urinary health). I take some comfort in that, and also that I'm a much better educated pet parent now. I hope that Saoirse will benefit a great deal from that going forward. Saoirse is diet-controlled now - no more injections! I wish the same for little Rosa. :)

I note that Regan hasn't been affected and I also wondered if there might be a genetic difference between them. Although not formally diagnosed, my feeling is that Saoirse's original problem may have been an allergy to one or more of the ingredients in the Royal Canin foods. Since changing to a species-appropriate diet all the fur on her tummy has grown back. I suspect Saoirse may have inflammatory bowel disease (IBD - not formally diagnosed) and that the inflammation may have been the root cause of her pancreatitis and diabetes (both formally diagnosed). Maybe it might be worth discussing the possibility of Rosa having an allergy to something in the RC food with your vet? One of our members recently had her cat's blood tested for allergies and it helped her cat a great deal when the allergens were identified.
 
Hi Sharon and Tabitha. What a gorgeous tuxedo. :)

I am glad that she found you. She's a very lucky girl.

Saoirse was very moody and withdrawn before insulin treatment. She became so much brighter and more sociable as her blood glucose numbers gradually eturned to healthier values. Fingers and paws crossed that Tabitha will feel brighter soon, too. I hope that Tabitha will start feeling better very soon. It's great that you're getting ready to home test. :)
 
@Elizabeth and Bertie thank you for the link. Rosa will let me touch her ears and quite likes having them stroked so I think if I work quickly and calmly I can get a test from her.

@Critter Mom I do think Regan got the healthier genes in the lottery - I've heard that kittens from the same litter can actually have different fathers so I wonder if that may have something to do with it. Rosa never showed any sign of allergies to the SO until the diabetes showed up, and she'd actually been off the SO for a couple of months at that point but I guess the damage was already done by then. She has, however, shown intermittent signs of IBD when she's stressed recently which may well be linked. I do think the dental work may have accelerated it all as her teeth really weren't good. Her old vet had never mentioned it at any of her regular check ups so I hadn't realized anything was wrong as all the problem was right at the back of her mouth where it's difficult to see, but then he didn't like to spend too much time examining her because she's a complainer. He always thought the growling meant she was going to scratch or bite (it doesn't, she's all noise) so he'd get it done as quickly as possible.

I would really like to think Rosa can finish up diet-controlled though the vet seemed to think it's very unlikely because her glucose was so high. She pretty much said Rosa will be on insulin for life. I'm still hoping that the horribly high reading was stress-induced and that dietary control might be possible in the future - I refuse to be anything other than optimistic about this for now!
 
Oh, and an update for those following from the start. We finished up deciding that hubby will have to go on the trip on his own. There isn't anywhere that can guarantee having someone available all the time overnight for Rosa in one of the medical facilities so with her not being stable yet, we decided it's best if I stay home with her for now. Once she's stable on her insulin, there are places that can give the shots, monitor and take her to the emergency vet if necessary...generally in someone's home. We just didn't think that's a good option yet just in case something does go wrong - I want to be there for her while she gets regulated as I'd be fine with staying up with her all night if it became necessary. I guess I just don't quite trust anyone else with her until she's a little more controlled on the insulin.
 
I think I would have done the same. The first few weeks I felt I wanted to be as close to home as possible and took overall control of remi's treatment, then I helped to teach my partner and my mom so they could help out too.
 
I know, he's not happy about it and neither am I as he could have done with my help there but at the same time we both want Rosa under control as soon as possible and safe so there really isn't any other option. It'll be a temporary thing - once we know she's stable and safe there are plenty of places she can go to for a few days, just not yet.
 
Indeed. The spreadsheet data really helps. I found that as I had more and more information about how Saoirse responded to doses it soothed at least some of my worries. :)
 
I'm sure it will do once I'm getting more numbers filled in over the course of a few weeks. And the great thing about it being a Drive spreadsheet is that I can pass the link on to whoever looks after her so they can see easily what times of day she might need testing to make sure everything's OK. Much easier than me having to worry about whether or not they've remembered that she might not hit a low point quite when they expect.
 
That's a brilliant idea. I share Saoirse's spreadsheet with our vets and it has been a fantastic help for both of us. Like most cats, Saoirse doesn't like cars and really doesn't like going to visit the vetty bean, and I'm agoraphobic. Thanks to the spreadsheet, our vets can do the majority of our consults over the telephone - saving both Saoirse and myself an awful lot of stress. Sharing with someone looking after a kitty with whoever's looking after it while their beans are away is not something I would have thought to do. Clever! :)
 
Spreadsheets are my thing though so I have a bit of an advantage there as I'm used to using them to share information. :) I did have one cat once who really liked cars but wouldn't go in a carrier. She'd sit quite happily on the passenger seat with her front paws up on the dash looking out at everything that was happening. Rosa on the other hand hates the car and hates the vet so I really need to avoid dragging her off there unless it's completely necessary. It's one of the reasons I'm hoping I can get her care in someone's home for future trips once she's stable - I think she'd be much more relaxed in a home environment as in general she loves everyone she meets.
 
Fingers crossed that you'll find something suitable. Rosa sounds like a real honey. And again, she reminds me of my Tara. Tara was like a dog in a cat suit. When we left the village we were living in when I first adopted her, someone said to me that it was OK for me to leave but don't dare take Tara. We lived opposite the village school and she always went to greet the kiddies as they were arriving and leaving. She was a character. It was only when we were leaving that I found out how many people knew her.
 
It's funny you should say that. My Dad usually prefers dogs to cats, but after the first time he met Rosa he said she was the closest in behavior to a dog that he'd ever seen in a cat. He's always had a soft spot for her because of that. :) She really is a sweetheart, though trying to get a vet to believe that is close to impossible. ;) Right now she's in her very favorite place of all - behind me on my computer chair, taking up about 3/4 of it of course, and purring away happily. :)
 
I cat sit for a diabetic cat that lives close to me, next town over. He stays in his home and I go visit him 2 times a day to give him a shot and take care of his 2 civie roomies. After I've taken care of all the cat duties, shot, food, litter box, I sit down and read children's books to the 3 kitties and play laser tag and games. An hour after my arrival, I'm gone and the kitties have some nice company in familiar surroundings.

I think if your kitty Rosa could stay in your own home while you and your DH are away, she would be more comfortable in those familiar surroundings.

Sorry to say, you live on the opposite coast from me, so I can't help you. :( But perhaps you may find a vet tech from your local vet clinic or a high school student that is interested in the veterinary field and would want some experience caring for a special needs kitty like Rosa. Perhaps you have a neighbor or a friend that could help you out. Time to network.:bookworm:
 
That would be the perfect solution for her. I do have some time before I'd need someone so I have time to look through all the local pet sitting sites and find someone who would know how to take care of her properly. We had a regular cat sitter in last year when we went to the UK to visit my family, but I don't think they have experience with shots. I know when we were looking at possibilities for Shadow, the CKD kitty, that there are vet techs in the area who also do cat sitting. But at the time Shadow was on 3 pills a day with a minimum 6 hour time interval between each one plus fluids twice a week so the medical boarding worked out cheaper and safer for her. We'd have had to split the care between more than one person otherwise and the risk of her getting pills too close together would definitely have been there if someone had got held up in traffic for her afternoon pill etc. For 2 shots a day, I'm sure there were a few people who said they could do 2 visits with medication. I'll ask hubby to dig out the emails he got from the people who could have done 2 visits and ask them first if they'd be able to help.

Failing that, our housemate's gf is very good at medicating cats and Rosa knows her really well. She was able to do Shadow's fluids just fine on the first attempt so she'd certainly be fine with the little Lantus shots. Rosa would have to go and stay at her house, but she'd most likely be very relaxed there as she wouldn't be with anyone unfamiliar. Our housemate would do it, but he's often out at work for up to 14 or 15 hours 4 days a week so just can't fit 12 hourly shots into his schedule.
 
OOOHHHH! You have a housemate! Teach your housemate as well as the housemate's GF to test and give the shots. Yes I know you said the housemate has crazy long hours, but there may be a time or two when the housemate is home and could test for you. Perhaps getting those mid-cycle tests sometimes. It's worth a try at least. The more helpers the merrier when it comes to taking care of a diabetic cat. Member @KPassa has taught most of her family members and friends how to hometest and inject insulin for her kitty Michaelangelo. You really need assistants in this sugardance.
 
That's true, though he really hates needles. He managed to stab his finger with one of Shadow's huge needles once and doesn't really want to deal with them again. I'll try and show him just how easy it is while we have time for him to learn at his own pace. I agree, the more people who know how to help the better - it would only take for me to be massively delayed in traffic or similar at some point when she's due a shot for me to need that help. And because he's not on a standard schedule, he is home 2 days a week when (once I'm working) I'd have to be out at work.
 
Basically anyone who shows up at my house gets a quick lesson in home-testing a cat. ;) I started doing it because a month after Mikey's diagnosis, I had to travel for work. Mikey is also a part-feral and is really skittish around strangers and I discovered that through testing, he grew less fearful of those "strangers" so I took advantage of that, too.

I found when teaching others, first show them how you do it for a couple of tests. It's important for the cat to be in the same position with you as they are with the "Surrogate Tester" because it helps the cat know it's "testing time" even if you're not the one doing the actual testing.

I also found that they all prefer using lancing devices instead of free-handing the lancet (so far, at least). For your needle phobic friends, if you don't have a lancing device, it might be worth investing in one.

I have a few other tips and tricks up my sleeve so let me know if you run into any difficulties.
 
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I do have a lancing device - I find it easier with that than free-hand, though I did try both. Neither he nor hubby like any needles at all. Hubby was freaked out when I tried using one of Shadow's needles on Rosa's ear the first night. He was holding the flashlight for me and getting as far away as he could. He does give Shadow her fluids though and would give Rosa a shot and do a test if he had to. He'd find the shot easy - it's so close to the same technique we use with Shadow but a much smaller needle he'd be just fine. I'll persuade our housemate by showing him how good Rosa is and how she'll just sit there while he does it so there's no risk of him hurting himself if he just takes his time and relaxes with it a bit - it helps her too if I'm relaxed when I walk up to her with a needle. I do need him to learn though - I need backup in case of an emergency. He is prepared to watch her for a bit if I have to go out somewhere and he was all good with the emergency hypo treatment when I showed him - it's pinned up in the kitchen as well as me having a copy in the bedroom so I think he just needs to see that the needles aren't a problem for her. I can't leave her for long until he's happy to test her - treatment for a hypo might not be right if the only 'symptom' she's got is crying...sometimes it's just because she wants food or attention.

I will definitely ask if he still seems to be struggling with it after I show him a few times - thanks for the offer. I'm hoping I can show him a few times then watch a couple of times to make sure he's all good before there's any chance of him having to manage on his own. And yes, she likes to sit on my computer chair while I test her or inject her - it's her happy place. :)
 
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