12/3 Chewie AMPS 102/ +2 100/ +4 71/ +6 79/ +8 80/ PMPS 114/ +2.5 127/ +5.5 145

Virginie & Chewie (GA)

Virginie & Chewie (GA)

Member Since 2022
Yesterday

Almost green this morning, which means she may have seen some greens overnight. I forgot to set an alarm before going to bed, so I don't know how low :(

Her appetite hasn't been great the past couple of days. Part of it is, she's becoming very avoidant of testing and shots, and sometimes will finish her food only after the shot or test, but I hope she is feeling ok otherwise. I'll give her ondansetron and gabapentin once her breakfast has settled, and will get her some proviable or fortiflora to encourage her to eat.
 
100 at +2
She seems listless today. Didn’t finish breakfast which is why I wanted to get a +2 and ensure she wasn’t diving.
Spent some time lying down next to the water bowl and drank a bunch.
Her breathing has been more difficult lately due to the acromegaly, the cabergoline doesn’t seem to be helping that.

Gave her gabapentin and ondansetron at about +1, and right now one her one of her favorite ever treats (glycoflex 3) after her test and she did perk up for that and purred all the purrs. I do think that overall her quality of life is declining, and I started keeping a daily quality of life journal to help me keep track of good and bad days. As heartbreaking as it is for me and DBF (she is his favorite cat, when she was healthy she would spend hours in his lap), we want to do what’s best for her and not keep her around dreading meds and tests and just not feeling any better. So we are trying to prepare mentally and emotionally for it. Wish cats lived forever.
 
I’m sorry Chewie seems off. It sounds like you are doing all the right things for her! I’m sure you have done labs and ruled out anything else that could be affecting her- CKD, thyroid, etc? I hope she feels better soon :bighug:
 
Thanks @Jackie and Biggie and @Kyle & Simon (GA) - yes we did all the labs this summer, everything seemed ok except her BG and SDMA on the higher end of normal.

She is drinking a lot of water today despite lower BG. Found her lying by the water bowl and drinking twice already. Brought her a tiny bit of scrambled eggs (her favorite people food) and she purred like crazy, but still didn’t get out of her hidey hole for it (though she did to drink right after). We will see. It could be an off day, or it could be the beginning of the end. Time and watchful observation will tell.

@FrostD I know you are busy (and congrats on the new baby btw! Hope both you and her are safe from RSV) but if you have a minute, what would you think about switching to daily cabergoline instead of EOD after 2 weeks? I havent seen an improvement in terms of clinical signs, though her BG numbers are trending lower.
 
Virginie said:
Thanks @Jackie and Biggie and @Kyle & Simon (GA) - yes we did all the labs this summer, everything seemed ok except her BG and SDMA on the higher end of normal.

She is drinking a lot of water today despite lower BG. Found her lying by the water bowl and drinking twice already. Brought her a tiny bit of scrambled eggs (her favorite people food) and she purred like crazy, but still didn’t get out of her hidey hole for it (though she did to drink right after). We will see. It could be an off day, or it could be the beginning of the end. Time and watchful observation will tell.

@FrostD I know you are busy (and congrats on the new baby btw! Hope both you and her are safe from RSV) but if you have a minute, what would you think about switching to daily cabergoline instead of EOD after 2 weeks? I havent seen an improvement in terms of clinical signs, though her BG numbers are trending lower.
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Drinking a lot of water and inappétence can also be kidneys. If you haven’t done labs in a while it might be good to do a recheck. There is so much you can do to help if she does have kidney disease. I will be wishing you both the best :bighug:
 
Kyle & Simon (GA) said:
Drinking a lot of water and inappétence can also be kidneys. If you haven’t done labs in a while it might be good to do a recheck. There is so much you can do to help if she does have kidney disease. I will be wishing you both the best :bighug:
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Her new vet did want to recheck kidneys soon, since those can go downhill fast with acromegaly. I will give her a call Monday when they open to see if I can bring them a urine sample asap. I would rather save Chewie the stressful hour in the car if possible.
 
79 at +6, gave 2.5 tsp of LC with lots of warm water added
She ate it all and purred, but I had to drag her cushion halfway out of the carrier to test her, then shove her back in, and she ate her snack inside the carrier too.
 
If you’re in the market for a new carrier…This carrier is ridiculously cute; cats love to sleep in it…it’s like a bassinet…you can put soft blankies in it. It’s really easy to get them in and out of, so she might like sleeping in it and it’s basically half open so easy to access. The downside is it only fits about a 12-13 lb cat at most…
https://www.chewy.com/pet-gear-view-360-dog-cat-carrier-bag/dp/227323
 
I actually think you might be starting to see some cab results at the moment. It could be the insulin dose increase, but typically a 0.5U increase alone wouldn't have dropped her numbers this far into green range.

If it were me I'd hold the cab at EOD for at least another week or two to see what happens with BG. Perhaps next time you're considering an insulin dose increase, you could try going to daily cab instead of increasing dose. Does she have any diarrhea or side effects from the cab?
 
JL and Chip said:
Can you describe this a bit more? Is the breathing just louder/raspier or is it actually labored?
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She and her brother have always breathed more loudly than my other two cats. Vets over the years have concluded that they must have either narrower nasal passages or maybe polyps. It’s always been particularly pronounced when they are very relaxed. Her brother has asthma, but Chewie doesn’t. However over the past couple of years her breathing has gotten louder, and becomes kinda gurgly whenever it’s very humid or at the beginning of pollen season.
Recently it’s been gurgly more often, and louder. Her breathing isn’t labored per se, but there is a bit of abdominal engagement that I don’t like at all. I took videos of her breathing like that at rest, and showed it to the new vet. For her, it’s due to soft tissue growth caused by acromegaly. She listened to her lungs carefully and didn’t hear any sounds suggesting presence of fluids or congestion or anything like that. Still, it doesn’t look very comfortable and I worry about it. The hope is that the cabergoline might help with that.
 
FrostD said:
I actually think you might be starting to see some cab results at the moment. It could be the insulin dose increase, but typically a 0.5U increase alone wouldn't have dropped her numbers this far into green range.

If it were me I'd hold the cab at EOD for at least another week or two to see what happens with BG. Perhaps next time you're considering an insulin dose increase, you could try going to daily cab instead of increasing dose. Does she have any diarrhea or side effects from the cab?
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Thanks Melissa, that makes sense. I remember Wendy telling me that 0.5 unit is usually not enough for a high-dose cat to see an effect, but we have seen a good trend downward.
Sounds good about upping the cab instead of insulin next time she looks like she needs an increase.

She had a bit of loose stools the first week, but not that I have seen lately. I have been feeding raw for half her meals, as that tends to firm up her stools.
 
Jackie and Biggie said:
If you’re in the market for a new carrier…This carrier is ridiculously cute; cats love to sleep in it…it’s like a bassinet…you can put soft blankies in it. It’s really easy to get them in and out of, so she might like sleeping in it and it’s basically half open so easy to access. The downside is it only fits about a 12-13 lb cat at most…
https://www.chewy.com/pet-gear-view-360-dog-cat-carrier-bag/dp/227323
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That does look super cute and also convenient! Too bad I already bought 3 new carriers right before our move :p

A cat rescuer I follow on social media uses those for kittens and feral cats, they look super convenient as well:
https://www.amazon.com/SportPet-Des...rrier/dp/B00EI3ZKP0?tag=felinediabetesfdmb-20
 
Virginie said:
That does look super cute and also convenient! Too bad I already bought 3 new carriers right before our move :p

A cat rescuer I follow on social media uses those for kittens and feral cats, they look super convenient as well:
https://www.amazon.com/SportPet-Des...rrier/dp/B00EI3ZKP0?tag=felinediabetesfdmb-20
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OOh that is nice and they have an XL version of it, which could be good for Biggie. I’m still using a carrier that is big but he really needs one that is bigger!
 
Jackie and Biggie said:
OOh that is nice and they have an XL version of it, which could be good for Biggie. I’m still using a carrier that is big but he really needs one that is bigger!
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Seems like it would be so easy to get them out of it… I bought these for the road trip across the country, and actually used one to take Chewie to the vet it’s great. Lots of room to stretch out and it opens on three sides. The vet and vet techs were very impressed.

https://www.amazon.com/One-Pets-Fabric-Portable-Shelter/dp/B00NGZUB78?tag=felinediabetesfdmb-20
 
127 at +2.5
About to give her second dinner and her dose of cab. DBF sleeping in the guest bedroom so I can test in middle of the night.
Hopefully she will stay in the upper greens and I can give her ears a break, she is getting real salty about it.
 
Virginie said:
Seems like it would be so easy to get them out of it… I bought these for the road trip across the country, and actually used one to take Chewie to the vet it’s great. Lots of room to stretch out and it opens on three sides. The vet and vet techs were very impressed.

https://www.amazon.com/One-Pets-Fabric-Portable-Shelter/dp/B00NGZUB78?tag=felinediabetesfdmb-20
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That looks cozy, too. I bet the kitties felt much more at ease in that than they would have in a hard sided carrier,
 
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