New Member 4/4/21-Can't give Gabriel insulin until he eats more before shot

[Nikki D.]

Gabriel just diagnosed and I gave him first shot yesterday morning. He is a nibbler and never eats a lot of food in one sitting. I gave him his shot and think he went hypo. He improved after I gave him some honey.

Now vet doesn't want me to give him any further injections until he eats at least 3 oz of food at once. Gabriel is a 17lb grazer. I've been told to feed him once in a.m., a small snack, and then another meal 12 hours after his morning meal. I'm to dispose of his food after he walks away.

Gabriel loves cold bottled water and now is drinking even more. Between his stomach filling up with water and trying to change the habits of the sweetest 17year old, I'm scared he still won't eat at least 3 oz food in one sitting.

Advice? I love him so much.

 

[Bron and Sheba (GA)]

Hi Nikki and Gabriel and welcome.
Can you tell me what type of insulin you are using and what dose please? It does sound as if the dose was too high so do not give that much again.
When you say he went hypo...can you tell me what happened?
What type of food are you feeding?if you have been given a prescription diet, he may not eat it. Many cats don’t. Ordinary low carb canned food is suitable for a diabetic cat.
Here is a list of foods. Look for food 10% or less carbs https://catinfo.org/docs/CatFoodProteinFatCarbPhosphorusChart.pdf

It is old thinking to feed only twice a day and to take the food away when they walk away.
We recommend feeding before the shot and again during the cycle. Some people let the cat graze especially if they have been used to that.
It depends which insulin you are using as to when you must feed before the shot. Some insulins you must feed 1 hour before, another 30 mins before and others just before the dose. So let us know which one you have been prescribed.

I would highly recommend you look into home testing the blood glucose. We all do it here and it will keep Gabriel safe and you won’t be guessing about the dose.
It sounds scary but I promise you it is not hard and both you and Gabriel will get used to it very quickly. Here is a link to hints on how to home test
https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/hometesting-links-and-tips.287/

I would recommend dyou buy a HUMAN meter from Walmart or a pharmacy. Walmart has the ReliOn brand which is not expensive. The ongoing cost is the test strips and they are much cheaper on the human meters than the pet meters. Our dosing methods are based on the human meter.
You don’t need your vets permission to home test. We can help you with it.

I would also buy a bottle of Ketostix from Walmart or a pharmacy while you are out getting the meter. Diabetic cats are prone to getting ketones, especially if they are not eating well or they are not getting enough insulin so we recommend testing the urine for ketones to make sure they are not developing. They are much easier to manage when caught early. All you need to do is collect s urine sample, dip the test strip in the urine and read the result against the colours on the side of the bottle exactly 15 seconds later.

There is a lot more I can help you with but I don’t want to overwhelm you.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Bron

 

[Nikki D.]

Thanks for such a supportive reply. Gabriel diagnosed last Weds. Glucose 428. Ketone -

Using Basaglar KwikPen (glargine). 1 unit every 12 hours after he eats.

After I gave Gabriel his first shot I noticed he was looking very tired and confused. I gave him honey and he perked up by late afternoon.

Gabriel was on a dry food diet (farmina pumpkin,duck,cantaloupe). He decided long ago moist food was not his thing. Used food chart on this site to change to canned food. Currently feeding him moist Blue Wilderness ( carbs 3 percent) and moist Blue Freedom Indoor Mature Chicken (carbs 8 percent). Don't know if he is staying on Blue. Was a very quick decision, but Gabriel likes it because it is extra moist/mushy. Took home from vet case of canned Purina DM but I'm bringing it back. Don't like what's listed on the label.

So the poor fellow's diet was immediately changed to moist food, feels horrible, feeding schedule and expectations upended, and can no longer be a nibbler. Trying vet two meals a day and snack feeding plan. Gabriel eats the food but not 3 oz at once. Trying for two days now and beginning to freak out because vet said no insulin until he eats a greater amount before the shot. How do you get a 17 year old to abruptly change his ways, especially when he hates change?

The little one is being very sweet/social, and is urinating and pooping just fine.

 

[Bron and Sheba (GA)]

So the poor fellow's diet was immediately changed to moist food, feels horrible, feeding schedule and expectations upended, and can no longer be a nibbler.

First of all, don't try and change the food over cold turkey. You need to do it gradually otherwise he might get an upset tummy.
I would take 4 or 5 days to do the swap over to give him time to adjust. Just reduce the amount of dry food each time and add more of the wet,

Using Basaglar KwikPen (glargine). 1 unit every 12 hours after he eats.

It looks as if you are using a pen to administer the insulin .Is that correct?
Pens can only go up in 1 unit increments so I would recommend you buy some U100- 3/10ml 30 or 31 gauge 6 or 8 mm insulin syringes with 1/2 unit markings. Not sure which country you live in but Walmart have their own brand of syringes which are good or they can be bought at most pharmacies. Just make sure you get the specific ones I mention.

With Lantus it is not essential that the cat eats everything before giving the dose. As long as he will eat during the next several hours you should be fine. Lantus does not onset until +2 ...2 hours after the dose is given so you have time for him to eat more.
I would also let him eat during the cycle except for the 2 hours before the next shot.
The regime for giving lantus to cats is test/feed then shoot. This can be done one after the other. Many people give the shot as the cat is eating....as long as they know the cat will eat

Glucose 428. Ketone -

Do you know if the vet tested for ketones?

After I gave Gabriel his first shot I noticed he was looking very tired and confused. I gave him honey and he perked up by late afternoon.

It does sound as if 1 unit is too much. I would reduce to 0.75 unit (3/4 unit) but you will need the syringes.
Lantus is a good insulin for cats.
Do you have a hypo kit set up. Here is a link https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/new-how-you-can-help-us-help-you.216696/

Now vet doesn't want me to give him any further injections until he eats at least 3 oz of food at once

If you are not giving the insulin you need to be testing for ketones. so make sure you buy the Ketostix I mentioned above.