New Member

[Nemo2005]

Hello,
New member here. Our 15 yr old cat has type 2 diabetes, currently using vet recommended diabetic wet food, but there are very few flavor choices and he is very finicky. Have been reading that other high protein, low carb foods can be supplemented, can anyone offer some advice and possibly options on this?

 

[Nan & Amber (GA)]

Hello and welcome!

Yes, absolutely there are other foods. Often, what you buy in a pet store will be better (and cheaper!) than some of the vet-recommended foods.

Are you in the US? If so, you can use Dr. Lisa's chart (her post is a yellow sticky at the top of this forum): [url]http://catinfo.org/docs/CatFoodProteinFatCarbPhosphorusChart.pdf [/URL]. Many of us feed Fancy Feast or Friskies pates. If you're somewhere other than the US, you probably won't find many of the brands listed there, but if you let us know where you are there may be someone here who can make some recommendations.

You want foods under 10% carbs for everyday feeding, and then it's also good to have a few cans of something high-carb in case your cat ever needs to boost his blood glucose quickly.

 

[Critter Mom]

Welcome!

Is the current diabetic wet food a low carb one (under 10% carbs)? I ask because if your kitty is currently eating medium or high carb foods (and yes, some of the 'prescription' diabetic foods do fall into those categories) then it's vital for your kitty's safety to be monitoring blood glucose at home during a transition to a lower carb diet because it is likely that the insulin dose will need to be reduced in line with the reduction in carb load.


Mogs
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[Nemo2005]

Hello and welcome!

Yes, absolutely there are other foods. Often, what you buy in a pet store will be better (and cheaper!) than some of the vet-recommended foods.

Are you in the US? If so, you can use Dr. Lisa's chart (her post is a yellow sticky at the top of this forum): http://catinfo.org/docs/CatFoodProteinFatCarbPhosphorusChart.pdf . Many of us feed Fancy Feast or Friskies pates. If you're somewhere other than the US, you probably won't find many of the brands listed there, but if you let us know where you are there may be someone here who can make some recommendations.

You want foods under 10% carbs for everyday feeding, and then it's also good to have a few cans of something high-carb in case your cat ever needs to boost his blood glucose quickly.

Thank you so much!!..Was just reading Dr. Lisa’s list. Fancy feast pates, especially the naturals were his favorite wet food before we found out he had diabetes. He is now taking a pill twice a day, so knowing we have alternative’s is great news!
Don

 

[Chris & China (GA)]

He is now taking a pill twice a day, so knowing we have alternative’s is great news!

Is the pill for his diabetes? Like Glipizide or Metformin?

We really don't recommend using the oral diabetes medications because the way they're designed to work is to try to force the pancreas to make more insulin. Cat's have the unique ability to have the pancreas heal and resume working, but to do that, it needs rest. By using the oral meds, although they may work at first, almost always, the cat ends up needing insulin anyway but by then, the beta cells have been burned out trying to work hard. You lose the chance for a remission.

Some insulin's are better than others too. Glargine (Lantus or Basaglar), Levemir and ProZinc are the most effective types of insulin, but they can be pricey. Most of us buy our Glargine or Levemir from Canada because it's so much cheaper (1/3 to 1/2 the price of the US) Where do you live?

While getting started on insulin can be expensive, $200 worth of Lantus/Basaglar or Levemir bought from Canada can last the average cat at least a year and some up to 2 years. A 5 pack of pens is 1500 units. (each pen is 300 units)

ProZinc is a little cheaper up front (a little over $100) but a 10ml vial is only 400 units.

 

[Nemo2005]

Is the pill for his diabetes? Like Glipizide or Metformin?

We really don't recommend using the oral diabetes medications because the way they're designed to work is to try to force the pancreas to make more insulin. Cat's have the unique ability to have the pancreas heal and resume working, but to do that, it needs rest. By using the oral meds, although they may work at first, almost always, the cat ends up needing insulin anyway but by then, the beta cells have been burned out trying to work hard. You lose the chance for a remission.

Some insulin's are better than others too. Glargine (Lantus or Basaglar), Levemir and ProZinc are the most effective types of insulin, but they can be pricey. Most of us buy our Glargine or Levemir from Canada because it's so much cheaper (1/3 to 1/2 the price of the US) Where do you live?

While getting started on insulin can be expensive, $200 worth of Lantus/Basaglar or Levemir bought from Canada can last the average cat at least a year and some up to 2 years. A 5 pack of pens is 1500 units. (each pen is 300 units)

ProZinc is a little cheaper up front (a little over $100) but a 10ml vial is only 400 units.

Yes he is taking Glipizide 2x a day, his sugar was originally in the 400’s and being he was having a hard time switching to diabetic food, vet decided to put him on glipizide. Taking him to vet this coming week for a check up and will discuss how to check is glucose at home. Since he has been on it, his health has improved dramatically.

 

[Sienne and Gabby (GA)]

Chris is correct. Glipizide -- or any of the oral diabetes meds -- are not really recommended. They tend to put far too much strain on the pancreas and can cause pancreatic amyloidosis. Generally, Glipizide is only recommended if you're unwilling to give your cat insulin. That said, it sounds like your cat is responding well. You may want to discuss this further with your vet.

 

[Chris & China (GA)]

hard time switching to diabetic food

Good think Nemo likes the Fancy Feast naturals because they're a much better choice! The "prescription" foods are higher in carbs. You're paying a premium price for inferior ingredients with a fancy name. The good news is that they are all 100% guaranteed so you can return them for a refund. Most of us just told our vets that our cats refused to eat another bite.

There are much better things to spend your money on like a blood glucose meter and strips so you can see how well he's responding to treatment!

 

[Nemo2005]

I appreciate your feed back, he loves fancy feast. 2 nights ago had to take him to an emergency vet, thought he might have blockage in his urinary tract because he kept going to litter box, but nothing came out and started throwing up. Turned out he was dehydrated and sure was up over 600...he went into keto acidosis, they were able to bring it down with fluids and insulin, not at his reg vet and hopefully will be able to stabilize it.