Boarding diabetic cat?

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Haley&Diane

Haley&Diane

Member Since 2015
Hi. I'm starting Diane on insulin saturday. We will be starting on lantus 1 unit twice a day. Her levels aren't awful now and she's been managed by diet four years. Her levels are usually right around 300-350. The other night they were 270.

I am going on a trip for a week in September. Having a tough time figuring out what to do while I'm gone. My mother will watch my other animals but I do not think she's up for giving shots. The vet and kennels don't test before shots and would give the shot right before leaving and no one there to monitor.

Is it possible to skip shots for a week? She's never had issues with ketones and her levels stay relatively low just on food. We will be going away two weeks next spring too but I have time to figure out something for that trip. This one is so close though and I really don't want to risk a hypo attack or put the pressure on my mom to do something she isn't comfortable with....

Also we live in the Raleigh, NC area if anyone is from that area and has suggestions on boarding options.
 
Hi. Diane is long overdo for insulin if her glucose levels have been this high for the last four years. So, I would want to start that insulin ASAP. Since you have not even started the insulin yet, and September is still several weeks off, none of us know exactly what things will look like at that point. But, I would not plan on skipping a week of insulin. That could impact the progress you will have hopefully made at that point.

Are you sure you cannot talk mom into taking care of it? Maybe if she practiced testing and giving shots while you are home she would begin to feel comfortable with the idea? If that is totally out, is there a pet sitting service in your area that will do the testing and shots? I have seen this specifically mentioned on some pet sitting websites. Or, maybe there is a vet tech at your vet's office who would take care of it for you?

I have seen people post to get advice on a lowered dose to have given while they are out of town to reduce the hypo risk since the cat will not receive the same degree of monitoring. So, you could always reach out on the Lantus forum about that when your trip gets closer. (Maybe that would make mom feel a little more comfortable, too.)
 
My cat’s previous owners didn’t administer insulin and he ended up barely able to walk and abandoned at the humane society. If you start insulin shortly after diagnosis the cat will likely achieve remission. Now we don’t know if Jackson will ever walk normally, because of the effect of the diabetes.

You don’t want to risk that.
 
Margie and Jackson said:
My cat’s previous owners didn’t administer insulin and he ended up barely able to walk and abandoned at the humane society. If you start insulin shortly after diagnosis the cat will likely achieve remission. Now we don’t know if Jackson will ever walk normally, because of the effect of the diabetes.

You don’t want to risk that.
Click to expand...

Yes, that is exactly what I am trying to avoid! Sorry to hear about is not Jackson. Diane is not clinical in her symptoms which is why she was not on insulin previously per vet recommendations. Bloodwork showed her liver values a bit higher than normal so since that changed she felt it was best to start insulin now. I do wish we received better direction four years ago but it is what it is now. In my post I was only referring to skipping while out of town, but I may look into just lowering the dosage of possible now just to be safe that week...
 
FurBabiesMama said:
Hi. Diane is long overdo for insulin if her glucose levels have been this high for the last four years. So, I would want to start that insulin ASAP. Since you have not even started the insulin yet, and September is still several weeks off, none of us know exactly what things will look like at that point. But, I would not plan on skipping a week of insulin. That could impact the progress you will have hopefully made at that point.

Are you sure you cannot talk mom into taking care of it? Maybe if she practiced testing and giving shots while you are home she would begin to feel comfortable with the idea? If that is totally out, is there a pet sitting service in your area that will do the testing and shots? I have seen this specifically mentioned on some pet sitting websites. Or, maybe there is a vet tech at your vet's office who would take care of it for you?

I have seen people post to get advice on a lowered dose to have given while they are out of town to reduce the hypo risk since the cat will not receive the same degree of monitoring. So, you could always reach out on the Lantus forum about that when your trip gets closer. (Maybe that would make mom feel a little more comfortable, too.)
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info! Diane is overdue for sure, she was never clinical so the vets always advised me to keep her off insulin. I should note that her levels up until this year were usually always 250-275. Sad that I didn't receive the best guidance in the past, but I'm ready to rectify that by starting her asap now.

I will be talking to my mom about it a bit more tomorrow. The idea of maybe lowering the dose seems like a good idea, just to put our minds to ease. I guess I will see how she does on lantus the next few weeks and make a decision after that. I did end up finding a 24 hr emergency clinic that would board her, but she's only be handled by the kennel staff and monitored by then. She wouldn't receive testing either prior to or following any shots...
 
Some vets have techs that will pet sit on the side. This way you have someone already comfortable with giving the insulin, they should know how to check BGs and they know what symptoms of look out for and how to treat any issues.
 
Haley&Diane said:
Thanks for the info! Diane is overdue for sure, she was never clinical so the vets always advised me to keep her off insulin. I should note that her levels up until this year were usually always 250-275. Sad that I didn't receive the best guidance in the past, but I'm ready to rectify that by starting her asap now.

I will be talking to my mom about it a bit more tomorrow. The idea of maybe lowering the dose seems like a good idea, just to put our minds to ease. I guess I will see how she does on lantus the next few weeks and make a decision after that. I did end up finding a 24 hr emergency clinic that would board her, but she's only be handled by the kennel staff and monitored by then. She wouldn't receive testing either prior to or following any shots...
Click to expand...
I found many pet sitters in my area accustomed to giving injections. You can ask at vet offices. Usually there’s a tech who will visit your house. That might be cheaper and less stressful than boarding.
 
My Boris started Lantus in April, 2019, and we had our destination wedding planned for June 8 - 13, 2019. Everyone we would've trusted to take care of Boris was out of town with us, but we managed to find a local pet sitter who was experienced in giving insulin. We didn't have her test, so we cut the dose in half, and she shot blind while we were gone. We reduced his dosage about 3 days before we left, per the recommendations we received on the Lantus forum. We did have a neighbor who was willing to step in if the pet sitter had a problem for some reason, and we taught her how to give Boris insulin as well. Juuust in case!

Shoot blind wasn't our preference, but we worked with what we had, and everything worked out. We also purchased Wyze cameras from Amazon and installed them in the living room and kitchen, just so I didn't go crazy with worry. We got app notifications when the pet sitter was there, and I was able to check on Boris whenever I wanted, just to be sure he was healthy and eating. Best $88 I spent for that trip!
 
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