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Josie728

Josie728

Member Since 2018
First, I want to thank everyone on this board who tried to help me, gave me great advice and encouraged me. I want you to know, I listened.

4 weeks ago our cat Kevin started losing weight and acting lethargic. His weight loss was very fast. After being tested, the vet told us Kevin was diabetic and started him on 2 units of Vetsulin. I immediately went home and threw away all cat treats (Not going to specifically name the 2 brands I was feeding Kevin, but they are bought from any grocery store, and I hate to admit that they were the primary source of Kevin's diet. So after he was diagnosed, I went home and threw them all away, and started trying to find a food he would eat.)
Through trial and error, I discovered that he loved tuna fish. Posts to this forum alerted me to the fact that Tuna is not supplying him with everything he needs, so I researched and supplemented his diet with Tomlyn Nutritional Supplement Gel for Cats & Kitten by Felovite II, in Tasty Fish Flavor, which the vet reluctantly okayed. I stir about 1/2 teaspoon into both of Kevin's tuna fish meals.
Kevin's first Alpha TRAK Glucose, after 2 weeks of insulin during feedings at precisely 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. each day resulted in Kevin's insulin being cut in half, down to 1 unit of Vetsulin. 2 weeks after that, the vet took him off of insulin completely. Today, after 5 days of no insulin, his reading is dropping to a point where the Vet now has me trying to give him a tiny amount of kibble for carbs to try to balance out the protein.

Kevin has put on a little muscle weight, ... but he does not like kibble, and I am reluctant to put cat treats back into his diet, even though the vet told me I should give him a few of them with each meal.

Any advice? : S

Thank you so much for taking the time to help me with this. I was really lost, and I am grateful to this community for all the information. I realize that Kevin is always going to be a diabetic, and right now he is just in remission. I realize he can have flare ups, and I will need to be vigilant and watch him.

Josie
 
Wow, he went into remission fast! My cat was diagnosed on 5.15, and I am still reeling from it, trying to figure out the best food to give him, researching and reading up on things until I am blue in the face, and I just gave him his first glucose test last night. It had been 420 in the first vet visit, then 390 last Saturday, and at home last night, it was 233 after he ate and after his insulin shot 3 hours prior. I was happy that the insulin seems to be working (Vetsulin, 1 dose twice daily.) Then this morning at 6am, his fasting glucose was 405. I was shocked and discouraged. I guess his glucose numbers are now going to dictate what kind of day I have. It's a real shame that my sweet boy has such a terrible and difficult to treat disease. So far, at least, it has been very difficult. Now with the readings thrown into the mix, it is even harder. I'm trying, but I do mostly feel all alone. I realize there are people on here to talk to, but I am really the only one that cares enough about Jerry to go through all this trouble. My husband has been a tiny bit of help, but like my mother, he doesn't see animals as best friends who give you unconditional love. He does love Jerry, but not to the extent that I do, having him sleep in my bed, catering to his every whim, etc. If Jerry were just my husband's cat, he probably would have put him down. That was not and is not an option for me. He will die when God says it's time, just like his brother George did last October. Anyway, I'm going off on a tangent again. As far as cat treats, the only ones that I have found online that might be sufficient is Young Again (plus I have a sample of their food on its way to me.) You could send a message to them, asking if they will send a sample of treats to you. You never did say what his readings were...? Did you ever do a curve, checking his glucose every 2 hours for 12 hours? I dread that so much. So, you just feed him a regular can of tuna all the time, with the cat supplement? Now there's an idea I haven't thought of. Jerry loves seafood.
 
Hello, Rain.
Ok I saw kevin's numbers- The first vet reading was borderline- like in the mid 300s, then when he tested Kevin, the vet told me through diet alone the numbers weren't falling fast enough. I feel the vet pulled the trigger very early on putting Kein on insulin, because the second time the vet checked him, through diet alone Kevin was in the high 200s. We tried so hard to help the Dr. understand that prior to his original testing, Kevin was eating an almost solid diet of cruddy store bought cat treats. Now, please understand that I offer all 4 of my cats a range of food, but the treats were what he wanted and I wasn't being good to Kevin by giving him just what he wanted and all he wanted of them.
So, fast forward to my being frightened because I am told he had diabetes. I panicked. I went home and threw away all cat treats. I purchased expensive food from the vet. But Kevin would not eat it. He always refused to eat canned cat food of any variety. Time passed and I started to get pretty desperate about what to feed him. I offered him Gerber Baby Food, because it is pure and very low carb. He nosed through it and sort of ate, but he kept losing weight and I was scared. Finally, after 2 days of his hardly eating anything, I started trying to feed him every low carb option I could think of. Eggs, No filler Deli meats by Boarshead- in lower sodium varieties. I chopped up bacon, I offered him steak. ... He would nibble and that was about it. Then I opened up a can of chunk light Tuna in water and I hit paydirt. He ate it like he was starving, which is unusual for him. He's a slow eater.
I read here on these boards that low card human foods do not offer enough nutrients, so I supplemented his tuna with a teas. of Felovite.

So far, so good. ... Try tuna. Try anything and everything, and don't give up. Remember that cats are meat eaters. They do not need a lot of carbs- which is what I think causes diabetic issues in the first place. Felovite is fish flavored and can be added to the tuna to give your beloved Jerry a balanced diet. Kevin's number is now 67 and the vet suggested I feed him about 10 tiny kibble with his meals, because he is dropping too low. I purchased a small bag of real kitty kibble, -not kibble treats- for this.

I wish you good luck. Please do not quit trying. I understand what you are saying about euthanasia not being an option. The vet started quoting frightening statistics to me and I told him and my husband both that it was not an option.

Josie
 
P.S. I dropped Kevin off at the Vet's 2 times to let him curve test Kevin, which took 4 hours the first time and it was a little traumatic for Kevin. I might have done this myself if I had more experience in working with his diabetes, but this is all very new to me, I was very scared and I was starting to get frantic, as you could probably see by reading me. Yes, Kevin did change quickly.... I'm not sure why. Maybe I was lucky. Or maybe the fact that I 180'd his diet on him the way I did. Believe me, it wasn't easy. I have 4 cats and I was facing a mutiny in this house.
 
Josie728 said:
Kevin's number is now 67 and the vet suggested I feed him about 10 tiny kibble with his meals, because he is dropping too low. I purchased a small bag of real kitty kibble, -not kibble treats- for this.
Click to expand...

If Kevin is not on insulin, 67 is a perfectly safe number, especially on the AT

I have civvies that routinely test in the 30's (on a human meter)...that's about 40 on an AT

If there's no insulin, there's no hypo, so I would not risk getting Kevin started back on kibble again. Once a diabetic, always a diabetic!!
 
Josie728 said:
Today, after 5 days of no insulin, his reading is dropping to a point where the Vet now has me trying to give him a tiny amount of kibble for carbs to try to balance out the protein.

Kevin has put on a little muscle weight, ... but he does not like kibble, and I am reluctant to put cat treats back into his diet, even though the vet told me I should give him a few of them with each meal.
Click to expand...

If he's doing ok and as long as the supplement you are giving him is giving him the complete nutrition he needs, I think if it were me I wouldn't risk anything close to high or even medium carbs and jeopardize his remission ( as Chris said once a diabetic always a diabetic) unless it was medically necessary ( like some medicine for some illness ), if he's not on insulin there is no problem on being low there's no risk of hypo.
 
Thanks for your answer, Josie. I put in an order for Young Again zero mature cat food and treats. I also ordered a Fancy Feast seafood pate variety from Amazon. He already loves Sheba pate, but I think it might have more carbs than FF. Jerry has been a grazer since day 1, and yes, I also believe that I (unknowingly, of course) caused his diabetes by feeding him all dry food for years, and I have even had the horrible thought that this blasted Purina Muse GRAIN FREE is possibly what caused it. I had been feeding him Friskies dry kibble for years. Then I switched him to a grain free dry, thinking I was doing him a favor. That's when his excessive drinking/urination started. I'm so glad I caught it before he had ketones in his urine. I really pray that overhauling his diet with probably half a can of FF in the morning, and the other 1/2 in the evenings, along with leaving out the YA zero carb dry food during the day will result in being able to take him off of insulin. His readings haven't been very good, though, usually between the mid 200's to mid 300's. I have of course, taken away the Purina Muse. I did that when someone on here told me that it was 40% carbs!!! This makes me so mad at that company!! This should not be allowed. His continued high readings is upsetting to me, when now he is only eating Sheba pate, and I have taken all the treats away. I feel so freaking bad about it, because he doesn't understand WHY!!! I am sure he is trying to figure out why I am pricking his ear and making it bleed, why is he getting poked twice a day with insulin, why were his treats and dry food taken away????? It makes me angry at the whole situation. I realize it will take time to bring his numbers down. I just want him to be well asap. It can't happen soon enough.
 
If you're looking for carb-free treats for Jerry, try the freeze-dried meat treats. My cat loves the chicken breast ones and gets one after every test & shot.
 
Those sound good, and I have heard of them on here from others. I have been giving him canned tuna, since taking away all of his other treats. I only give him a small amount, because he is so used to eating breakfast with me, and we have a little routine down, where I go sit in a certain chair, and I say "treats!" and he comes and sits next to me and we have our "meal" together. It is one of the sweetest times of my entire day, especially now that we have to deal with the ear pricks and shots. My heart is full just knowing that he still trusts me.
 
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