Cat just diagnosed with diabetes

[Tracy Anderson]

I’m Tracy. My cat Love was a stray when we were blessed with him. He was very skinny then. We took him in, feed him and loved him lots hence the name love. Well we went away for 2 days left him home with food water and 2 litter boxes. We’ve done this several times but thistime we get home he’s different.
He had lost weight, hardly ate any his food and don’t look like he drank water but he used one of the litter boxes. He was very lethargic. I started feeding him wet food thru a tub and water. He keep it down. This was all Sunday. I monitored him all night. Monday morning the same but this time I heard him meow but he didn’t wanna walk too far or much. So I immediately took him to his vet. First upon seeing my love he said looks like billy Rubin but after running tests he said he was a diabetic cat. He’s still there at the vet. Sugar is stable. Not eating on his own. Breathing is good. Still pushing fluids in him. We’re gonna bring him home Thursday regardless of what the vet thinks. They saying if after 3 days noimprovement they suggest to owners to put to sleep. My husband told vet NO!! Run the blood work and we’ll take it from there. We nurse him at home and if he passes at least he’ll be surrounded by love ones. What are my procedures once I get him home? What and how do I feed him? What liquid do I give him? Will I need to have him on an iv here? Will I need to start giving insulin? Which insulin and how much? How many times a day? I’ve written a lot. Sorry
I’m so sad and depressed. I haven’t eaten since he’s been in hospital. Please help us. Thank you very much

 

[Veronica & Babu-chiri]

First of all take a big breath and let me tell you diabetes is totally manageable

Second welcome to the forum this is the best place you never wanted to be

Did the vet mentioned if there's any other issue besides diabetes?

It would be good if you could get a copy of the labs and you post it here to have a better idea of what's going on specially what blood glucose level he has

To treat his diabetes basically you will be need to give him a low carbohydrate food (we can help you find one) give him an insulin shoot every 12 hours and test his blood glucose levels at home with a glucose meter that can be a human glucose meter most of us use human ones because the strips are cheaper and more easily available

There are different types of insulin all of them are OK they just work different a lot of people here use Lantus

 

[Keeper of the fur!]

I'm so sorry to hear about Love! It's easy to become so attached to our critters so fast and you have done that. It's too bad that the surprise inside of him was that he was a sick boy. I'm a newbie to this site as well, but I can tell you that you shouldn't discount everything your vet says and that I would take Love to get a 2nd opinion. You are going to want to work with a Vet that you trust to help get Love on track if there is a path for regulated diabetes for him. These folks on this site are fabulous, but there isn't anything that can take away from the guidance of your vet in combination of working with all the folks and their experience here at FD.com.

A 2nd Veterinarians opinion will help you decide what's best for Love and for you. He may be at a point with his health that he can be helped and you want to know and hear about that from someone with hands-on experience with him at this point. But then he may be at a point were there could be other complicating factors you may have to hear and deal with. So getting that clear in your understanding is the first place I would want to be for him.

You've done a great thing though by reaching out to this group. I certain they will help guide you to do the right things. I'm still getting my hand held by them and I can't tell you how good that feels.
Hugs!

 

[JanetNJ]

Poor Love. Sounds like he had some ketones.

So there are several insulins. A very popular one is lantus if you are able to keep to a strict 12 hours schedule. If you need a little flexibility in the timing, ProZinc has an hour window of flexibility.

All insulins are injected twice a day.

You'll want low carb wet food such as fancy feast classic or Friskies pate.

You'll want to pick up a testing meter. I like my alphatrak pretty meter but most on here use a human meter such as the Walmart Relion Micro or confirm meter.

You'll want

1. Relion micro or confirm meter or some other brand that requires a 0.3 size sample

2. Box of 100 extra test strips

3. Box of 26 or 28 gauge lancets

4. Cotton cosmetic rounds

5. Neosporin ointment with pain relief

6. A treat for you

I have a video in my signature showing how I test my cat CC at home.

 

[tiffmaxee]

Welcome. Please have the most recent labs emailed to you and post here. We can help I bet. About how old is Love? Hang in there.

 

[Tracy Anderson]

First of all take a big breath and let me tell you diabetes is totally manageable

Second welcome to the forum this is the best place you never wanted to be

Did the vet mentioned if there's any other issue besides diabetes?

It would be good if you could get a copy of the labs and you post it here to have a better idea of what's going on specially what blood glucose level he has

To treat his diabetes basically you will be need to give him a low carbohydrate food (we can help you find one) give him an insulin shoot every 12 hours and test his blood glucose levels at home with a glucose meter that can be a human glucose meter most of us use human ones because the strips are cheaper and more easily available

There are different types of insulin all of them are OK they just work different a lot of people here use Lantus

Thank u so much.

 

[Tanya and Ducia]

They saying if after 3 days noimprovement they suggest to owners to put to sleep.

Hi Tracey,
I am so sorry about what you are going thru right now.
We too were told that our girl won't make it - it was 15 months ago - we nursed her to health at home.
What do they know?!
Treatment involved feeding via Etube 1 1/4 5.5 oz can of Friskie's Pate with a lot of extra water, insulin x 2 a day, home testing of course, SQF Ringer's Solution 100 - 50 ml a day for a couple of weeks and some meds for a while.

What I suggest is that you call for updates as often as they will tolerate at the clinic and have your hands on every med record they have at the clinic - the labs, the BG levels, etc. - it's your property. Let us know what 's in there.

I would also suggest you visit Love at the clinic. Bring something with home smell on it - a t-shirt yo u have slept in or a blanket. Knowing that you are there and not abandoned her will help her. My Ducia certainly perked up after we went to see her (a few times in 24 h).

Is there any preliminary Dx?
Has the vet mentioned ketones in Lucy's urine?
Or DKA?
What is her BG levels are like, do you know?

My cat Ducia wasn't eating on her own and she was fit with Esophageal feeding tube for about 6 weeks.
I am huge advocate of this procedure ever since. (I am no medic and I hate procedures and needles and doctors).
Here is the link to Dr. Pierson's blog re: Feeding tubes. Caring for a cat with the tube is easier than one would think. Really. If I could do it so is anyone.

Food is often the only medicine cats need to recover from very dire circumstances.
Ask the clinic if you could come over at the feeding time and see what's going on. Bring in her fave foods.

If all of the reg ways to entice eating failed then perhaps you can discuss the E-tube with the vet?

@Tracy Anderson

 

[Dyana]

My kitty was hospitalized with DKA (Diabetic ketoacidosis) and would not eat at the hospital. He very slowly got better at the hospital. He was there at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine for 8 1/2 days. I went to visit him every day. It was the highlight of my day, because I worried about him every minute I wasn't with him. He came home with a feeding tube. He only needed the feeding tube for a short time. He was 12 then, and lived to be 20.
I also encourage you to visit him, to bring in something that smells like home, to bring his favorite foods or treats and see if you can get him to eat. Don't be afraid of the feeding tube. It saves lives.

Best Wishes to you and Love.

 

[Mags920]

I rarely listen to the vets when they tell me to PTS, even recently with Houston's hypoglycemic episode. I have owned many fur babies over the years & have dealt with many different health issues. I have 1 that had to be put on a feeding tube for several weeks. I was terrified at first but thankful that I was recently unemployed because I had to feed & medicate her via the tube her every 4-6 hrs. Over those weeks she got stronger & we developed quite the bond. I have had to administer sub q fluids to at least 4 the past 10 yrs. All this including administering insulin is a little stressful at first but you need to remain calm because your baby picks on the stress & stresses out as well. It does get easier the more often you do these procedures. I agree, get a second opinion with a vet who knows how to treat a diabetic animal.. I found the vet at the ER was extremely knowledgeable & helped me far more than he local vet. If there is an ER near by consider going there because a lot of them have specialists. Good luck & keep us posted.