Newly Diagnosed Cat... Mother In Law wants to put down

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PollyPepper

Member Since 2017
Ok, here's the backstory.

My husband's cat from high school still lives with his mother. She is 10 years old and was diagnosed with diabetes 4 weeks ago. Since then, she has been tested at the vet twice and is still not regulated on insulin. She hasn't been eating regularly and only responds to appetite stimulant pills.

MIL wants to put her down. I want to explore more options. Husband is stuck in the middle and doesn't want her to suffer but doesn't want to make a HUGE mistake he can't take back.

As of three days ago, she hasn't drank water or eaten wet or dry food. We have stopped giving her insulin (per vets instructions) when she doesn't eat. We have not tried home testing yet but I've encouraged that this should be the next step... however if she wont eat then I'm not sure how we can give her insulin anyway. What am I missing? What else can we do besides end her suffering?

The vet HAS told MIL (over the phone this morning) that putting her down may be the best option, but I'm afraid he's responding to MIL's doom and gloom. Is there something else that could be happening?
 
Nooooooooooo! Diabetes is very treatable. Four weeks on insulin is nowhere near long enough to say she is still not regulated. But not eating is a sign that something isn't right... have you tried strong-smelling foods like fish or Parmesan cheese sprinkled on her regular food, to tempt her? It sounds as if there could be something else going on here and it is the vet's job to examine and diagnose... on the information given above, it is far too soon to be thinking of pts.

Please do explore other options... reading on this site will give you loads of information and there is a search facility you can use to look for specific words that you feel are appropriate.

Keep coming here anyway and asking questions, and give us more info...
 
PollyPepper said:
is still not regulated on insulin.
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Four weeks is VERY early in the game and it's not at all surprising that she's not regulated yet. You'll read this a lot here: it's a marathon, not a sprint.

PollyPepper said:
I want to explore more options.
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The list is long:
  1. choosing the right insulin
  2. testing blood glucose at home in a systematic way
  3. feeding only low carb wet food
  4. using blood glucose data and advice here to find a good dose range for the kitty.
We can help with all of this if you're willing to be more "hands on" at home.

PollyPepper said:
As of three days ago, she hasn't drank water or eaten wet or dry food.
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This is VERY serious. If you have any intention of helping her rather than putting her down it MUST be addressed ASAP. She needs a vet appointment today to check for:
  1. hydration level - IV fluids by vet
  2. pancreatitis - blood test
  3. hepatic lipidosis - blood test
  4. ketosis - blood test
  5. another infection - eg. bladder or dental, maybe urine culture
  6. meds for nausea, appetite stimulation and maybe pain.
You'll have to decide if you're willing to commit to getting her better. It's possible but will cost money - more the longer you wait - and your own time. We can certainly help you to help her.
 
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PollyPepper said:
THANK YOU. I'm making a list of things to try being agreeing to the "final decision." Parmesan I've read over and over and am going to try tonight.

I think "letting us take the cat for a while" might also be on that list first. :bookworm:
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If you are willing to take her on, that would be wonderful. We adopt (in a virtual sense ;) ) every kitty that comes here and will do everything we can to help. Ten years old is not an elderly kitty.

Keep posting here often to ask any/all questions you have.
 
Kris & Teasel said:
Four weeks is VERY early in the game and it's not at all surprising that she's not regulated yet. You'll read this a lot here: it's a marathon, not a sprint.


The list is long:
  1. choosing the right insulin
  2. testing blood glucose at home in a systematic way
  3. feeding only low carb wet food
  4. using blood glucose data and advice here to find a good dose range for the kitty.
We can help with all of this if you're willing to be more "hands on" at home.


This is VERY serious. If you have any intention of helping her rather than putting her down it MUST be addressed ASAP. She needs a vet appointment today to check for:
  1. hydration level - IV fluids by vet
  2. pancreatitis - blood test
  3. hepatic lipidosis - blood test
  4. ketosis - blood test
  5. another infection - eg. bladder or dental maybe urine culture
  6. meds for nausea, appetite stimulation and maybe pain.
You'll have to decide if you're willing to commit to getting her better. It's possible but will cost money - more the longer you wait - and your own time. We can certainly help you to help her.
Click to expand...

Thank you for the quick reply. I've forwarded this list to my husband so we can talk to MIL.
 
PollyPepper said:
THANK YOU. I'm making a list of things to try being agreeing to the "final decision." Parmesan I've read over and over and am going to try tonight.

I think "letting us take the cat for a while" might also be on that list first. :bookworm:
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. If you do, know there is a community of people here willing to help you every step of the way!!! Diabetes is not a death sentence!!! Just as people can live a long life with it, so can cats. Plus cats have the unique ability for their pancreas to heal and go into remission.

This vet your MIL is using sucks. The first day that cat didn't eat they should have been testing for ketones. At this point it may take appetite stimulants or assisted feeding to get things going.
 
JanetNJ said:
. If you do, know there is a community of people here willing to help you every step of the way!!! Diabetes is not a death sentence!!! Just as people can live a long life with it, so can cats. Plus cats have the unique ability for their pancreas to heal and go into remission.

This vet your MIL is using sucks. The first day that cat didn't eat they should have been testing for ketones. At this point it may take appetite stimulants or assisted feeding to get things going.
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So far, I actually really like the vet (we use him for our own cats as well). However, I'm afraid that MIL has talked him into the diagnosis. She's done that with human doctors as well... She's a FANTASTIC mother-in-law, but is aweful about health, hospitals and doctors. I fear that she's passing these fears on to the cat (you know what I mean). We have been given appetite stimulants, but we're not sure how often she should be given them. Can they be given daily?
 
I'm surprised the vet hasn't recommended any of the above tests cited by Kris?! After several days without eating it seems she should be at the assisted feeding stage now, or at least IV fluid intake!
 
PollyPepper said:
So far, I actually really like the vet (we use him for our own cats as well). However, I'm afraid that MIL has talked him into the diagnosis. She's done that with human doctors as well... She's a FANTASTIC mother-in-law, but is aweful about health, hospitals and doctors. I fear that she's passing these fears on to the cat (you know what I mean). We have been given appetite stimulants, but we're not sure how often she should be given them. Can they be given daily?
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What are the dosing instructions? Often a kitty needs an antinausea med along with the stimulant. Cerenia is a good anti vomiting/nausea med and cyproheptadine (human med) is a good stimulant. Mirtazapine is often given as a stimulant but it can cause odd behaviours in some cats - vocalization, agitation ,etc.
 
My kitty is 11 and after a couple months of diligent testing and raising the dose she is still unregulated. Its not all done yet. Your furbaby deserves all options. I have different circumstances but just saying a couple weeks is not enough time at all. They say here FD is a marathon not a sprint. :) welcome to you and your furbaby! to
the best board on the internet.
 
Diabetes is really treatable, I does require commitment on you part, but the part where she hasn't eaten is really serious and has to be assessed really quick, if she won't eat voluntarily besides all the tests and recommendations they have already gave, I would certainly try assist feeding her, small amounts every time (about 2 hours apart) to keep her from throwing up and alternating with a little water that you may also need to give her with a syringe.

My kitty is 14 years old and I took a lot more months to get him regulated but he's ok now, even got into remission
 
Yes, syringe feed her some plain meat and broth baby food (no onions or seasoning) if necessary. You can also try canned sardines, tuna, salmon, etc. She MUST eat now. I can't stress this enough.
 
Getting her to eat and drink is the big emergency right now! Definitely try canned tuna--you can also try deli meat. My cats will sometimes eat that when they won't eat anything else. If you're near a good pet store, you may be able to get Fortiflora, a supplement you can sprinkle on food that apparently makes it really, really tasty--but I've heard some people have similar luck with buying the cheapest crunchy cat treats they can find at the grocery store, crushing those up into a powder, and sprinkling it on food. And Cerenia (anti-nausea med) made a huge difference for my cat when he was first diagnosed and not eating.

You might end up needing to give her subcutaneous fluids for a few days (if she's doesn't get hospitalized when she sees the vet). If so, don't worry! It's not nearly as hard as it might sound--many of us have done it!

Having the cat live with you, at least while you get her stabilized, sounds like a great idea, since MIL is not up for all this. 10 isn't old, and it may be that when you get the underlying cause of her problems (whatever is making her not eat) straightened out, she could improve dramatically!

Thank you for advocating for this kitty and being willing to do the work to help her feel better!!!
 
PollyPepper said:
So far, I actually really like the vet (we use him for our own cats as well). However, I'm afraid that MIL has talked him into the diagnosis. She's done that with human doctors as well... She's a FANTASTIC mother-in-law, but is aweful about health, hospitals and doctors. I fear that she's passing these fears on to the cat (you know what I mean). We have been given appetite stimulants, but we're not sure how often she should be given them. Can they be given daily?
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I'm sure it will say the prescription dose on the box. Usually yes they can while the problem persists.
 
PollyPepper said:
Thank you all so much for the feedback. I'll keep ya'll updated on the results and probably ask LOADS more questions. My husband and MIL have been going to the vet, so they have more info on doses, etc than I do. We already have a vet appt because of the no eating issue, so hopefully this will get us some answers.
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I'm SO glad kitty is going to see the vet. Looking forward to reading what you have to say afterward and I truly hope we can help you get her on track. :)
 
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