Ziggy: Taking care of diabetic cat in a new home

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Natalie and Ziggy

Natalie and Ziggy

Member Since 2018
Hi, everyone. As my username suggests, my name is Natalie, and I'm taking care of my cat Ziggy in my new apartment. You can read the start of our adventure — when he was close to being put to sleep — in this thread.

Currently I am monitoring Ziggy's blood sugar level twice a day, once in the morning and once at night, both times right before he gets his meal. It's a bit of a struggle getting Ziggy to keep still for testing, and my last attempt saw me use four testing strips.

Ziggy's last blood sugar reading was 453 mg/dL, which is much higher than it was this morning (349). I fed Ziggy this morning at 11:00 and gave him his insulin shot while he ate. I then gave him some more food at 4:00pm but did not administer a shot. I then fed him just now (10:30pm) and gave him a shot (I accidentally poked myself with the needle :()

I'm wondering if feeding Ziggy a meal at 4:00pm made a difference in his blood sugar reading? Could that be why it was so high this time? He's also been snacking away at the leftover pieces of food in the meantime, so maybe that could be contributing to his levels?

I have to go to work tomorrow morning, so I'll be getting up extra early to get Ziggy's blood sugar readings. I hope he'll cooperate, because I can't be late.)

(I'll be posting updates and questions in this thread — thank you, everyone, for your help so far!)
 
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I'm taking a look at that page now. It's very helpful.

I've been giving Ziggy his shots while he eats, but it looks like it would be best to give him his shot 20 minutes afterward? I'm just afraid he won't be cooperative if he's not distracted by his food.

My dad just messaged me saying that I shouldn't test Ziggy's blood every day. He says every two weeks should be fine. I...think I'm going to keep testing Ziggy, personally. No offense to my dad.
 
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Another danger of shooting while eating is the cat an come to associate food with unpleasant stuff suddenly happening. You’re better off establishing an « injection ritual » (and « testing ritual ») with something nice at the end (scritches/treat). I know we have stuff explaining that somewhere but can’t search right now.
 
I got up early to have enough time to give Ziggy his test, but I’ve been trying for almost two hours and he just won’t sit still. Now my roommates are awake and Ziggy is hiding from them.

I have to leave for work very soon so there’s no way I’ll get his levels this morning :(

He also has cement paws again and has tracked wet litter all over the house

I don’t think I’ll be able to do this every morning. He just doesn’t know how to stop moving for even a second. I just end up folkowing him around on my knees and hoping he’ll stop for just a second.
 
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Here's something I wrote up for others for testing...maybe it'll help you too!

It can be really helpful to establish a routine with testing. Pick one spot that you want your "testing spot" to be (I like the kitchen counter because it's got good light and it's at a good height....it also already blocked 2 escape routes due to the wall and the backsplash) It can be anywhere though...a rug on the floor, a table, a particular spot on the couch...wherever is good for you.

Take him there as many times a day as you can and just give his ears a quick rub and then he gets a yummy (low carb) treat.Most cats aren't objecting so much with the poking..it's the fooling with their ears they don't like, but once they're desensitized to it and learn to associate a certain place with the treats, they usually start to come when they're called! Or even when they hear us opening the test kit!

You also have to remember...you're not poking him to hurt him...you're testing him to keep him safe and understand what's going on inside his body. There's just nothing better than truly understanding what's going on inside your kitty's body and with this disease, the more knowledge you have, the more power you have against it. The edges of the ears have very few pain receptors, so it really doesn't hurt them. Also, if you're nervous and tense, it's going to make your kitty nervous and tense too. As silly as it might seem, try singing! It forces you to use a different part of your brain!

It's also important to make sure his ear is warm. A small sock filled with a little rice and microwaved or a small pill bottle filled with warm water (check temp against your wrist like you would a baby bottle) works well

For new kitties, using a heavier gauge lancet is also really helpful. A 25-28 gauge lancet pokes a bigger "hole" than a 31-33 gauge lancet does, so look for "Alternate Site testing" lancets that are usually a lower number

Finding the right "treat" will be a great help too! Freeze dried chicken, bonito flakes, little pieces of baked chicken...whatever low carb treat you can find that he really enjoys will help him to associate the testing with the treat! China's Achilles heel was baked chicken, so I'd bake a piece, chop it into bite sized pieces, put some in the refrigerator and freeze the rest to use as needed. It didn't take long for her to come any time I picked up the meter!
 
Natalie and Ziggy said:
He also has cement paws again and has tracked wet litter all over the house
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We switched to Dr Elsey's Senior litter a few months ago from Tidy Cat, and the cement paws have completely gone away. It is a crystal litter, so it absorbs the liquid without making a sticky mess. Just scoop out the solids & stir the crystals every day, and then change it completely once a week. It is so much cleaner and easier than the clay litter used to be, and NO MORE cement paws! Hope this helps! :bighug:

https://www.chewy.com/dr-elseys-precious-cat-senior-litter/dp/32369
 
Just got home and it looks like Ziggy has been a good boy while I was away. He’s so hungry right now, though. I was going to wait to feed him at 7:45, since that would correspond with his blood test, but I feel so bad for him right now. I don’t want feeding him now to affect his blood sugar test and, by extension, his insulin dose, but I don’t want him to go hungry either.
 
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Took 15 minutes to get Ziggy's blood levels, which is half the time it took this morning. I've figured out that giving him his catnip toys gets him to calm down long enough for me to make the poke (catnip doesn't affect blood sugar levels, does it?), but the problem is that as soon as I see the blood forming, he gets up and leaves, so I have to chase him down.

460 this time, which is his highest level yet. I'm updating my spreadsheet, too, but I just want to note the first several tests here.

Could it be that the blood testing is stressing him out, too, causing his levels to rise?
 
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Natalie and Ziggy said:
Took 15 minutes to get Ziggy's blood levels, which is half the time it took this morning. I've figured out that giving him his catnip toys gets him to calm down long enough for me to make the poke (catnip doesn't affect blood sugar levels, does it?), but the problem is that as soon as I see the blood forming, he gets up and leaves, so I have to chase him down.

460 this time, which is his highest level yet. I'm updating my spreadsheet, too, but I just want to note the first several tests here.

Could it be that the blood testing is stressing him out, too, causing his levels to rise?
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Testing will get easier is a matter for the both of you to get used to it and stablish a routine, specially in the morning so that you can be on time for work.

Also you will have to be patient his numbers will slowly go down with a little bit of time but it doesn't happen over night so far you've doing great those readings will help see what's going on and adjust his dose

The testing may be making him a little bit stressed specially because you are stressed they kind of feed in our stress , and there's also the new environment but odds are that he will need a little bit more insulin than what he's getting but we'll need a few more tests to see what's going on
 
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Right, and I think what makes it so tricky to test him is that I always do it shortly before feeding time, so he is excited and anxious for food while I’m trying to prick his ear.

I am wondering about his insulin dosage, and whether I should be in communication with the vet about potentially increasing his dose. If his tests keep showing high levels, I would like to give him a little more insulin, but I don’t feel confident making that decision myself.
 
Natalie and Ziggy said:
Right, and I think what makes it so tricky to test him is that I always do it shortly before feeding time, so he is excited and anxious for food while I’m trying to prick his ear.

I am wondering about his insulin dosage, and whether I should be in communication with the vet about potentially increasing his dose. If his tests keep showing high levels, I would like to give him a little more insulin, but I don’t feel confident making that decision myself.
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One thing that can help with food anxiety around meal test time is to feed a teaspoon or two of the regular food to take the edge off and test right away. There won't be enough time for the food to affect that BG number.

Re dose: it's great that you've been testing before every shot. That's how you know BG is high enough to give insulin. However, a vital piece of information is how low a dose drops the BG. It's been a bit chaotic for you with Ziggy's move so here's what I suggest:
  • leave the dose as is through this week
  • aim to get a before bed test every evening (if that's 3+ hours after his PM shot it'll give you good information on how quickly the Vetsulin is taking effect
  • assuming you're at work every day this week, do a full curve one day next weekend - regular AM/PM tests along with extras at 2 hour intervals between then
  • post here for advice on what to do about dosing - vets tend to want to increase in whole units and that's too much.
 
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Thank you, Kris & Teasel. I’ll try to do a curve this weekend, and I’ll also see if giving Ziggy pre-meal teasers will make him more cooperative. He’s always begging my roommates and I for food, and I’m starting to get worried that he’ll start getting on their nerves soon. He starts meowing loudly at 4am and that just wakes everyone up. He’s always been completely obsessed with food.

It went well, this morning, but when I left the shower, it was a total disaster! Ziggy had made a mess in his litter box and had tracked poop all over the kitchen and living room! Luckily I was able to clean it all up with a swiffer (I don’t know about the rugs, though...) but he’s extra stinky this morning and has poop on his foot (plus he was still starving and begging for food after eating a whole can of Friskies). I didn’t have enough time to change his litter box again before I left, so I hope he doesn’t make any more messes before I get home. I want him to be on his best behavior for my roommates. :(
 
Natalie and Ziggy said:
Thank you, Kris & Teasel. I’ll try to do a curve this weekend, and I’ll also see if giving Ziggy pre-meal teasers will make him more cooperative. He’s always begging my roommates and I for food, and I’m starting to get worried that he’ll start getting on their nerves soon. He starts meowing loudly at 4am and that just wakes everyone up. He’s always been completely obsessed with food.

It went well, this morning, but when I left the shower, it was a total disaster! Ziggy had made a mess in his litter box and had tracked poop all over the kitchen and living room! Luckily I was able to clean it all up with a swiffer (I don’t know about the rugs, though...) but he’s extra stinky this morning and has poop on his foot (plus he was still starving and begging for food after eating a whole can of Friskies). I didn’t have enough time to change his litter box again before I left, so I hope he doesn’t make any more messes before I get home. I want him to be on his best behavior for my roommates. :(
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Poor you! Breathe ... Ziggy has undergone many stressful changes in a very short time while he's been in less than optimal health. Do what you can to clean when you get home - kitty and carpet! Do something extra special for your roomies when you have things under better control. :bighug:
 
Cats before they are regulated are hungry all the time, that-s because the glucose in the blood is not allowing his cells to get the proper nutrition so his body feels like he hasn't eaten, since Ziggy is underweight right now, I wouldn't worry about how much he's eating, give him a little more, specially you could get a time feeder that you can program to open around the time he's waking up everyone at night or even a couple of times during the night so that he can have more food then and mid day while you are at work.

During the weekend once you do the curve, post here, they can help you figure out if he needs a dose increase and how much, usually increases are done in 0.25 units

This are some examples of time feeders

https://www.amazon.com/TD-Design-Automatic-Feeder-Dogs/dp/B01LRMBEN6/?tag=felinediabetesfdmb-20

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000GEWHNS/?tag=felinediabetesfdmb-20

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01BMSY1L2/?tag=felinediabetesfdmb-20
 
Kris & Teasel said:
Poor you! Breathe ... Ziggy has undergone many stressful changes in a very short time while he's been in less than optimal health. Do what you can to clean when you get home - kitty and carpet! Do something extra special for your roomies when you have things under better control. :bighug:
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Haha, thank you. Sorry, I just have a tendency to vent when I’m frustrated or can’t fix something right away.

Veronica & Babu-chiri said:
Cats before they are regulated are hungry all the time, that-s because the glucose in the blood is not allowing his cells to get the proper nutrition so his body feels like he hasn't eaten, since Ziggy is underweight right now, I wouldn't worry about how much he's eating, give him a little more, specially you could get a time feeder that you can program to open around the time he's waking up everyone at night or even a couple of times during the night so that he can have more food then and mid day while you are at work.

During the weekend once you do the curve, post here, they can help you figure out if he needs a dose increase and how much, usually increases are done in 0.25 units

This are some examples of time feeders
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Wow, I love the idea of having a timed feeder for Ziggy. That would help so much overnight and while I’m at work! I might see if I can pick one up today, if there are any available nearby.

Do you (or anyone else) have experience with a particular feeder? Anything you would recommend, if so?
 
Natalie and Ziggy said:
Haha, thank you. Sorry, I just have a tendency to vent when I’m frustrated or can’t fix something right away.



Wow, I love the idea of having a timed feeder for Ziggy. That would help so much overnight and while I’m at work! I might see if I can pick one up today, if there are any available nearby.

Do you (or anyone else) have experience with a particular feeder? Anything you would recommend, if so?
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The Petsafe 5 is a popular one with many FDMB members. You can find it on Amazon.
 
There are a lot of options just make sure is one that opens either by turning or that it opens a lid or something like that and not one of those that let the food drop from the container since those will only work with dry food,
 
 
I bought the Petsafe 5 feeder and am anxious to put it to use!

But now I’m worried about the wet food spoiling, since it’ll be out all day/night.
 
Natalie and Ziggy said:
I bought the Petsafe 5 feeder and am anxious to put it to use!

But now I’m worried about the wet food spoiling, since it’ll be out all day/night.
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Small soft ice packs work under the tray. I thought it comes with one. Others you can do is freeze portions of food and put them in the later time slots, or put an ice cube in the middle of each food portion.
 
I’ve left food out all day without problems. If hot it dries up and won’t get eaten but only after several hours. I’d just put ice under each section. Since it opens at the time you set you can leave some sections empty but timed so it will close sooner.
 
I think I'll try putting some ice cubes in the food anyway, just to see if it'll help. This is probably the dumbest thing I've ever bought, but it's so cool! I hope Ziggy likes it (he couldn't get enough of it while I was installing the batteries).

It was a long and hectic day, but we got through it just fine. My landlord offered to help me test Ziggy's blood this evening, and it only took a total of seven minutes to get it done. I'll set up some food for him to eat throughout the night, so hopefully he won't be waking everyone up wondering where breakfast is. Not that I don't want to be bothered by him — I just want him to be happy and healthy. :)

My landlord also said that it's okay if Ziggy tracks litter and poop and I can't get to it right away. He says it's not Ziggy's fault. I'm so glad he's so understanding.
 
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The automatic feeder worked well! Ziggy was still anxious for food when I woke up, but he wasn’t meowing the whole house awake at 4am/5am like he usually does.

His blood sugars were very high this morning (518). The feeder gave him about 1/8 a can of wet food at 4:30am, and his test was at 6:30am (managed to get blood at 6:47am). I wonder if the spike in his levels is because the test was too soon after his last feeding?

He got about half a can’s worth of food throughout the night, in three increments.
 
I've left food out for a few hours with out any trouble I think someone told me once that about 8 hours as long as is not a very warm day is okay.

I'm glad the timer it worked well, and You just need to withdraw food 2 hours before his preshoot test just to make shure his numbers are not food influenced and is safe to shoot but it doesn't matter the rest of the day
 
Just returned from Ziggy's first visit with his new vet.

The vet said we're doing well with home testing, and that it'll help with Ziggy's regulation for sure. He said I could do a lot better than Friskies in terms of wet food, and I have been meaning to do some research and look over the suggestions I've received from some of you here. He also said there are in fact some dry foods that are specifically made for diabetic cats. He thinks the automatic feeder + wet food + ice cubes for freshness is kind of silly and unnecessary.

He wants to increase Ziggy's dose by half a unit, but he's leery about the Relion Confirm meter I've been using for testing. He says that that meter's readings are typically off by up to 20%, and he would feel better if I used an AlphaTRAK meter to get more precise results. That way, he says, it would be easier to regulate Ziggy's blood sugars, and reduce the risk of hypoglycemia. But he said that if the cost is too prohibitive, I can keep using the Relion Confirm as a substitute, but that regulation will be riskier. He also suggested that, if I increase Ziggy's dose, I should not change his diet. One of those two variables must be constant for now.

He also said Ziggy's teeth are terrible ("they're despicable") and would definitely need to be addressed at some point. I definitely agree! It's just a matter of cost right now.

He was picking off the litter on Ziggy's feet the whole time, which was awesome.

Walked away with some probiotics for his diarrhea and a pack of syringes (so expensive, but I did need more). I've used up a lot of my paycheck for this month already, so I don't think I can afford to go for the AlphaTRAK just yet. Ziggy's numbers have been on the low end of high right now on 2 units every 12 hours, so I'm not sure I'll increase the dose just yet. I think his change in diet has been helping.

(I had the hardest time getting Ziggy in the carrier for the visit. He was struggling to stay out and peeing everywhere! I don't blame him at all after that long trip last weekend. My landlord helped me out and told me not to worry about the pee. Once we got to the vet he was as chill as could be.)
 
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It’s good that his vet likes Home testing. Human meters actually read LOWERtgan the vet ones so less risk of a hypo. In my opinion it’s not worth the extra money for strips so I used a Relion. My vet had never used one but was fine with it. He told me he never had a client manage a cat as well as I did and he’s an older vet., an internist, and has way too many clients. We increase by .25 units unlesss a high dose cat so as not to miss a good dose. If your vet is talking about the RX dry foods, they are high in carbs. There are a couple low carb dry foods, Dr. Elsey’s and Young Again But most of us find canned is better for them. In fact when you read tge two protocols used here you u will find the one used most TR, requires canned only.

I had a cat that urinated every time I put her in the carrier! One of my young ones took about 10 minutes to catch recently to put her in a carrier! I empathize.
 
I think I'll stick with the canned food for now. It seems to be doing him some good.

I screwed up his insulin shot just now -- the needle went through his skin and came out the other side and I just injected the insulin all over the floor. I don't think I'll attempt the shot again, just in case. :(
 
Nearly everyone gets a fur shot once in awhile. Sometimes I thought I did but judging by the numbers he got at least some if it. That’s why we don’t shoot twice you have good instincts.
 
Pretty good numbers for Ziggy today. Definitely an improvement over the past week. I'm starting to be concerned that my non-landlord roommate is getting a little annoyed with Ziggy's constant meowing and begging for food, though. I'll feed him and give him a snack afterward and he's still completely famished.

I'll try to do a curve tomorrow or Sunday!
 
Natalie and Ziggy said:
Pretty good numbers for Ziggy today. Definitely an improvement over the past week. I'm starting to be concerned that my non-landlord roommate is getting a little annoyed with Ziggy's constant meowing and begging for food, though. I'll feed him and give him a snack afterward and he's still completely famished.

I'll try to do a curve tomorrow or Sunday!
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I highly recommend a curve tomorrow or Sunday if you’re at home. Knowing how low a dose is dropping them is very important.
 
Natalie and Ziggy said:
I'll try to do a curve tomorrow or Sunday!
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Can you start getting some tests in on the PM cycle if you can't normally get them on the AM cycle due to work/school?

Most cats do go lower at night so it's really important to know what's going on while you're sleeping. Even just getting a "before bed" test will let you know how he's doing (and IF he's dropping too much, you'll know to set an alarm clock to test again)

The Pre-Shot tests are important for making sure they're high enough to get insulin at all, but it's the tests in between that tell us how well he's doing on each dose.

Natalie and Ziggy said:
I'm starting to be concerned that my non-landlord roommate is getting a little annoyed with Ziggy's constant meowing and begging for food, though
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There's no reason you can't leave down food for him to eat all day if you want to....the only time we don't want them eating is the 2 hours immediately before Pre-shot tests. Since you have Otto, you can put food into all the compartments so he pretty much can eat whenever he wants to. Helpful hint---leave the last compartment empty and schedule it to "open" 2 hours before shot times (so if you test/shoot at 6:30/6:50, at 4:30 it would advance to an empty dish. That way you know he couldn't eat anything for those 2 hours.

Housekeeping note...On your spreadsheet, if you give a furshot, put F.S. in the U cell so we know. NA or N.S. (No Shot) might mean you had a specific reason for not shooting, where F.S. tells us you tried but have no way of knowing how much (if any) got into the cat.
 
Another fur shot... I even made sure I had the angle right, but it just went all over the floor under him again. :(

I was going to do a curve today, too. Should I still try to do so, or try again tomorrow?
 
Natalie and Ziggy said:
Another fur shot... I even made sure I had the angle right, but it just went all over the floor under him again. :(

I was going to do a curve today, too. Should I still try to do so, or try again tomorrow?
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Try again tomorrow. Are there specific steps in giving a shot that you might be having a little difficulty with? Maybe we can help. If it's Ziggy being a wiggle worm, maybe work on some desensitization with him: take him to the injection spot, fuss over him, pull up on his skin as though preparing to give a shot, give a treat and let him go. Repeat often until he's learned it'll be OK.

Re feeding: I agree with the advice to let him graze all day if that's what he likes. Just remove all food at least two hours before thepre shot test.
 
The shots have been going well until recently, and Ziggy has always been cooperative (he comes running when I take out the syringe and doesn’t seem to mind the shot at all). It’s just that sometimes the skin I gather up for the shot is too loose and the needle just goes through and comes out the other side, rather than going into him. It’s hard to describe.

I’m the kind of person who gets worse at something the more I do it. :nailbiting:
 
Natalie and Ziggy said:
The shots have been going well until recently, and Ziggy has always been cooperative (he comes running when I take out the syringe and doesn’t seem to mind the shot at all). It’s just that sometimes the skin I gather up for the shot is too loose and the needle just goes through and comes out the other side, rather than going into him. It’s hard to describe.

I’m the kind of person who gets worse at something the more I do it. :nailbiting:
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You've probably been told this already: pull up the skin tautly to make a tent, feel for the depression at the front (the "tent door) and poke the needle into the middle to lower half of that on a very slight downward angle. That should help. Having tension in the skin is key. I use longer 1/2" needles all the time and with this method have never had a poke go all the way through. Now, having said all that, I still go through the occasional period of what I call "losing my shooting mojo" where the shots don't go well, Teasel tells me they're uncomfortable, etc. I find that going back to these basics and being extra careful in pulling up the skin tautly gets me over the hump.
 
I would think with the fur shot a curve would not be necessary today.

A few thoughts here. On the meters, I have both. With the alpha track, you can't buy strips in the store. You can get them from vet if they sell them (of course they will mark them up higher) or you order on line. If you order you would it would be best to order minimum of 100 since you go through them a lot. I always order 400 at a time, it would last about a month with Smokey. Make sure you account for them in your budget.

On the food. Freeze the portion size you give and put them in the compartments for feeding. They will thaw and provide a bit of extra water. Making it even easier, freeze a bunch ahead of time, once frozen put them in a zip lock baggie that way you can just take them out when needed. In a couple of days freeze up another batch.

On the roommate, is it possible to maybe start getting the roommate involved with Ziggy? Nothing major at first but something like playing or possibly feeding one meal because (make up excuse) your hands a full at the moment. Maybe roommate will start to take an interest in Ziggy as a pet and not a nuisance.

Just some things to ponder.
 
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