New here, Need help

M

miraneta

Member Since 2026
Hello everyone, thank you for creating this space to help people with their cats.

Yesterday my 14-year-old cat was diagnosed with diabetes. He drinks a lot of water, urinates a lot, and eats very little, right after having received a corticosteroid injection a month ago. He has been prescribed Prozinc 2 IU, and I’m very, very scared. I live alone and I work, so I’m out of the house from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. — how can I manage this without something happening to him and me not being able to handle it? I really need your advice.

I’ve bought a glucometer to get started because the vet hasn’t told me much more, and I won’t see her again until Tuesday because it’s a public holiday here in Spain. I’m even considering delaying things further so that there are vets available.

There’s still one test pending — fructosamine — but in the blood test his glucose was very high. Could anyone advise me? I’m very worried because he’s also eating very little and seems lethargic. Thank you.
 
Hi.
Can you go to a pharmacy and buy some urine ketone test strips, and test his urine for ketones? I am worried about the eating very little and lethargy.
I keep a plastic spoon by the litter box and when I see him peeing, I just catch a little urine and test it with the test strips. Anything over a Trace needs a vet appointment.
 
Dyana said:
Hi.
Can you go to a pharmacy and buy some urine ketone test strips, and test his urine for ketones? I am worried about the eating very little and lethargy.
I keep a plastic spoon by the litter box and when I see him peeing, I just catch a little urine and test it with the test strips. Anything over a Trace needs a vet appointment.
Click to expand...

The veterinarian performed a ketosis test yesterday, and it came back negative.
 
Ketones can happen very quickly. I would suggest buying the urine ketone test strips (or a blood ketone monitor) especially when a cat seems "off" and testing daily for a while to make sure there are none.
My first diabetic J.D, went into DKA and had to be hospitalized for over 8 days.

With Jackson, my vet wanted to try changing his food first to low carb, and I kept testing his ketones daily, and as soon as they showed up I started insulin.

You do not want to go through the 8.5 days I went through when J.D. was admitted to a hospital over an hour a way. I went to visit him (I LIVED to visit him) every day, and he so so so slowly got better and came home with a feeding tube. He lived, for 9 more years with diabetes thanks to this forum.
Did they say anything about a possible infection, and check his teeth?
 
Have you started home testing the blood glucose yet?
Would you like to set up a spreadsheet and enter the BG data into that?
You will find a link to the spreadsheet and other useful information in this link Help us help you.

Can you tell us what type of glucose meter you are using and what food he uses eating please.? If he is not eating much, let him eat whatever he will eat at the moment . It is really important he eats well. You might need to get an antinausea medication from the vet such as cerenia or ondansetron.
 
Dyana said:
Ketones can happen very quickly. I would suggest buying the urine ketone test strips (or a blood ketone monitor) especially when a cat seems "off" and testing daily for a while to make sure there are none.
My first diabetic J.D, went into DKA and had to be hospitalized for over 8 days.

With Jackson, my vet wanted to try changing his food first to low carb, and I kept testing his ketones daily, and as soon as they showed up I started insulin.

You do not want to go through the 8.5 days I went through when J.D. was admitted to a hospital over an hour a way. I went to visit him (I LIVED to visit him) every day, and he so so so slowly got better and came home with a feeding tube. He lived, for 9 more years with diabetes thanks to this forum.
Did they say anything about a possible infection, and check his teeth?
Click to expand...
At night he ate a bit more and was more active. Today I’m receiving a device that measures glucose and ketones, so I’ll do that. The thing is, the vet has only told me to give him 2 IU of insulin and to go to the emergency clinic if I see him lethargic—nothing else. No monitoring device, no guidelines, nothing. Also, there are still two test results pending that I’ll get on Tuesday: fructosamine and something related to the pancreas. And yes, they checked his teeth.
 
Bron and Sheba (GA) said:
Have you started home testing the blood glucose yet?
Would you like to set up a spreadsheet and enter the BG data into that?
You will find a link to the spreadsheet and other useful information in this link Help us help you.

Can you tell us what type of glucose meter you are using and what food he uses eating please.? If he is not eating much, let him eat whatever he will eat at the moment . It is really important he eats well. You might need to get an antinausea medication from the vet such as cerenia or ondansetron.
Click to expand...
I haven’t started anything yet because they told me on Thursday, and here in Spain Friday was a public holiday, and now on Saturday and Sunday there are no vets available.

I will be grateful for any help you can give me for the rest of my life. I bought the glucose and ketone meter myself—the vet hadn’t told me anything about that.

The food he eats is Hill's z/d because he had been diagnosed with IBD. He was vomiting, they did an ultrasound and his intestines were inflamed. I recently switched him to wet food with kangaroo protein along with the same dry food, and since then he hasn’t vomited.

About a month ago, he was given corticosteroids because he had a wound on his ear, and since then that’s when he started drinking water constantly and urinating a lot. Then he started eating less. His blood glucose came back very high, but he also gets very stressed when he goes to the vet.
 
Most likely it was the steroids which caused him to have the high BGs.
The Hills Zd is very high carb.
But don’t change anything until you are testing the BGs.
We can help you with everything!
2 units is a lot to start with. I would be inclined to go back to 1 unit twice a day. I will tag @Suzanne & Darcy about The dosing as she is a Prozinc user.
You need to test before every dose and before you feed the meal, and then if you can get a test in about 4 or 5 hours later that will tell us how well the dose is working.
Also give snacks of food during the cycles.
Can you tell us the type of meter you have bought please.?
Don’t forget to set up the spreadsheet and signature please
 
Bron and Sheba (GA) said:
Most likely it was the steroids which caused him to have the high BGs.
Tbr Hills Zd is very high carb.
But don’t change anything u til you are testing the BGs.
We can help you with everything!
2 units is a lot to start with. I would be inclined to go back to 1 unit twice a day. I will tag @Suzanne & Darcy about The dosing as she is a Prozinc user.
You need to test before every dose and before you feed the meal, and then if you can get a test in about 4 or 5 hours later that will tell us how well the dose is working.
Also give snacks of food during the cycles.
Can you tell us the tote of meter you have bought please.
Don’t forget to set up the spreadsheet and signature please
Click to expand...
I’m trying, but it’s a bit difficult because of the language—I’m Spanish (about the spreadsheet). My cat weighs 8 kg, but he has lost about 500 grams just this past month. The vet says the steroids didn’t cause it because it was a one-week injection, but I don’t really believe that anymore.

Helios doesn’t want to eat dry food right now, so I’m giving him canned food from a brand called Criadores, which only contains kangaroo protein. I think it’s low in carbohydrates.

The meter is called VECHECK GO—I bought it on Amazon. It arrives today, and I’m waiting for it to make a decision.

I can stay at home today, but the rest of the days I can’t, so I won’t be able to monitor him as closely.

He has 471 mg/dl on Thursday...
 
Last edited:
As soon as I have the meter, I’ll let you know. Thank you all—I don’t know how to repay you for this.

And my other concern: what am I going to do when I’m at work if he has a hypo? What should I do?
 
miraneta said:
I’m trying, but it’s a bit difficult because of the language—I’m Spanish (about the spreadsheet). My cat weighs 8 kg, but he has lost about 500 grams just this past month. The vet says the steroids didn’t cause it because it was a one-week injection, but I don’t really believe that anymore.

Helios doesn’t want to eat dry food right now, so I’m giving him canned food from a brand called Criadores, which only contains kangaroo protein. I think it’s low in carbohydrates.

The meter is called VECHECK GO—I bought it on Amazon. It arrives today, and I’m waiting for it to make a decision.

I can stay at home today, but the rest of the days I can’t, so I won’t be able to monitor him as closely.

He has 471 mg/dl on Thursday...
Click to expand...
Well done setting up the SS.
Don’t forget the signature please.
We are happy to help you with anything.
Is he the only cat in the house? I’m wondering if you can leave food out for him when you are at work
 
Yes, he is the only cat at home. What worries me is that he might not eat, because since he’s been like this he hasn’t been eating much of his dry food.
I’m going to try to buy another one. I’m not sure which, but since he had vomiting issues due to IBD, I don’t know what to do.
 
You should have these printed out just in case:

Sticky - How to treat HYPOS - THEY CAN KILL! Print this Out!!
Sticky - jojo and bunny's HYPO TOOL BOX

Is there another vet in your area you can go to? The current one doesn't sound very good or experienced in diabetes. There have been members from Spain on the board but I don't think any are still active.

You don't need the ZD for the IBD issues. Don't change the diet yet because that will have an impact on blood glucose levels. Take a read through these web sites to get more info on IBD treatments:

IBDKitties – Helping Save Lives…One Paw at a Time
Feline IBD - Healing can happen!
 
I measured his glucose as soon as the device arrived—it was 29mmol/L, which was very high, so I decided to start insulin. I only gave him 1 unit. The cat seems fine for now, but I’m terrified. I hope I did it right. I’ll measure again in 5 hours.
 
Yes 29 mmol is high but don't worry. The numbers will come down with insulin. Have patience🤗 You generally don't see an effect on blood glucose levels with the first new dose of insulin so don't be discouraged when you do your check at +5. Insulin need a few days to work. Definitely check ketones when you can.

The kangaroo canned food should be ok for both the IBD and diabetes. Novel proteins are best for the IBD.

For your question about what to do if your cat hypos when you are not at home.... I'm not entirely sure. It does and can happen. One way to prevent a hypo is to test the blood glucose level in the morning and decide if you can safely give insulin or not. If unsure because you have an lower than usual number and you can't post on FDMB to get help, it's best to skip insulin. Leave snacks out for your cat to eat in case your cat is looking for munchies because of low levels. A programmable timed feeder works great.

Here's the info on ProZinc: Sticky - PROZINC DOSING METHODS
 
I tried to measure him after 5 hours, but it was impossible—the device wasn’t giving any result, and one time it showed “Lo,” but I doubt that’s correct. What can I do now...? It’s very difficult to get enough blood, and I’m running out of test strips.
 
Hometesting Links and Tips

Are you warming the ear first? If the lancets are too thin, try a thicker lancet. You may need a new lancet device to go with it as many devices only work with one type of lancet that is available in one gauge. Adjust the device depth setting. Be sure to press the device firmly against the ear.

If the meter times out before you get blood, the easy fix is to get the blood first then push the test strip into the meter to turn it on. When the meter is ready, then apply the test strip to the blood drop.
 
squeem3 said:
Hometesting Links and Tips

Are you warming the ear first? If the lancets are too thin, try a thicker lancet. You may need a new lancet device to go with it as many devices only work with one type of lancet that is available in one gauge. Adjust the device depth setting. Be sure to press the device firmly against the ear.

If the meter times out before you get blood, the easy fix is to get the blood first then push the test strip into the meter to turn it on. When the meter is ready, then apply the test strip to the blood drop.
Click to expand...
Yes, this morning I tried warming up his ear a bit. I managed that, but when I pricked it, hardly any blood came out, and his poor ears are already marked, so I gave him the insulin anyway. This afternoon, when I have to do it again, I’ll try again—maybe using the pads of his back paws.
 
Today he has urinated much less and has been drinking less. It’s only been one day on insulin, so it’s a bit strange, but I’ve completely switched him to a wet food diet.
 
Bron and Sheba (GA) said:
Have you been able to get any BG tests done yet?
Even if you have not been successful but have given the dose of insulin, can you put that into the spreadsheet please so we can see and add remarks , into the remarks column, such as urinating snd drinking less
Click to expand...

​

No, it was impossible to check his glucose, and on top of that, I’m already hurting his ears.
I’ve updated the spreadsheet, thank you
 
Hello and welcome.
We do have a few lovely members, Xelo and Gil in Spain, who may be able to give you help since they live there @xelo y sinver @Gill & George

Do you think you can get an auto timed feeder to use when you are out of the house and to open so snacks can be eaten to help keep your kitty safe and eating?
It works with frozen cold packs you put in the bottom.

You could also consider using a Freestyle Libre CGM sensor to keep an eye on the glucose 24/7.
Here is information about using one
Getting Started With Continuous Glucose Monitors (CGMs) for Diabetic Cats

Please keep us posted and let us know how we can help.
 
Staci & Ivy said:
Hello and welcome.
We do have a few lovely members, Xelo and Gil in Spain, who may be able to give you help since they live there @xelo y sinver @Gill & George

Do you think you can get an auto timed feeder to use when you are out of the house and to open so snacks can be eaten to help keep your kitty safe and eating?
It works with frozen cold packs you put in the bottom.

You could also consider using a Freestyle Libre CGM sensor to keep an eye on the glucose 24/7.
Here is information about using one
Getting Started With Continuous Glucose Monitors (CGMs) for Diabetic Cats

Please keep us posted and let us know how we can help.
Click to expand...
I’ve always left dry food available for him because he tends to eat little by little, so that wouldn’t be a problem. The issue now is that since I’m giving him wet food, it’s a bit more complicated because it can dry out, so I’m giving it in small amounts throughout the day. This week they’ve allowed me to work from home all week as an exception, so my stress level has gone down a bit. I’m still waiting for the fructosamine and pancreatitis tests. For now, Helios has eaten more today than in previous days—I’m not sure if that’s good or bad, not more than he needs, just more than he had been eating, which was very little.

The vet mentioned the Freestyle, but I’m afraid he might pull it off, and it makes me really sad to see him like this. I’m having a hard time—what encourages me is that since yesterday he’s been eating more and I’m starting to see him more like his usual self. With the insulin, I’m going in blind because I’m not able to measure his glucose, but I’m only giving him 1 unit. I hope I’m doing it right. Tomorrow he’s having an ultrasound—I’m scared they might find a tumor or something like that. I’m terrified.
 
miraneta said:
I’ve always left dry food available for him because he tends to eat little by little, so that wouldn’t be a problem. The issue now is that since I’m giving him wet food, it’s a bit more complicated because it can dry out, so I’m giving it in small amounts throughout the day. This week they’ve allowed me to work from home all week as an exception, so my stress level has gone down a bit. I’m still waiting for the fructosamine and pancreatitis tests. For now, Helios has eaten more today than in previous days—I’m not sure if that’s good or bad, not more than he needs, just more than he had been eating, which was very little.

The vet mentioned the Freestyle, but I’m afraid he might pull it off, and it makes me really sad to see him like this. I’m having a hard time—what encourages me is that since yesterday he’s been eating more and I’m starting to see him more like his usual self. With the insulin, I’m going in blind because I’m not able to measure his glucose, but I’m only giving him 1 unit. I hope I’m doing it right. Tomorrow he’s having an ultrasound—I’m scared they might find a tumor or something like that. I’m terrified.
Click to expand...
They do get used to using a freestyle libre. I’ve been using one on my cat for over three years constantly. I keep a little tube top on her to cover the sensor so she can’t pull it off. Many people use a little T-shirt or bandage wrap. Read the documentation I sent. It has lots of ideas.
But some cats don’t even mind it and don’t mess with the sensor.

The wet food does not dry out when you use the automatic feeder since there is a cold pack you use underneath, which essentially keeps it refrigerated.
 
Staci & Ivy said:
They do get used to using a freestyle libre. I’ve been using one on my cat for over three years constantly. I keep a little tube top on her to cover the sensor so she can’t pull it off. Many people use a little T-shirt or bandage wrap. Read the documentation I sent. It has lots of ideas.
But some cats don’t even mind it and don’t mess with the sensor.

The wet food does not dry out when you use the automatic feeder since there is a cold pack you use underneath, which essentially keeps it refrigerated.
Click to expand...
Thank you very much for the ideas, I’ll have to look into it.
 
miraneta said:
I’m trying, but it’s a bit difficult because of the language—I’m Spanish (about the spreadsheet). My cat weighs 8 kg, but he has lost about 500 grams just this past month. The vet says the steroids didn’t cause it because it was a one-week injection, but I don’t really believe that anymore.

Helios doesn’t want to eat dry food right now, so I’m giving him canned food from a brand called Criadores, which only contains kangaroo protein. I think it’s low in carbohydrates.

The meter is called VECHECK GO—I bought it on Amazon. It arrives today, and I’m waiting for it to make a decision.

I can stay at home today, but the rest of the days I can’t, so I won’t be able to monitor him as closely.

He has 471 mg/dl on Thursday...
Click to expand...
Hi, I'm from Spain, and I think the breeder's food is high in carbohydrates. If you have trouble with the language, you can send me a private message in Spanish if I can help. I've been here for three years and I use a translator because I barely speak English, but we've communicated very well during this time. If you have any questions, let me know. There's a carbohydrate calculator on the forum that I could help you use, or I could give you advice or recommendations for cat supplements on Spanish websites. I'm here for whatever you need.
 
miraneta said:
As soon as I have the meter, I’ll let you know. Thank you all—I don’t know how to repay you for this.

And my other concern: what am I going to do when I’m at work if he has a hypo? What should I do?
Click to expand...
I have automatic feeders that work very well. It's complicated to understand so many things at once, but you should read the manuals little by little and calmly, and it will help you understand many things. I also have security cameras, which makes me much more at ease when I go to work.
 
Hello. I’m very glad that you chose to begin with only 1 unit. We need to work on you being able to get a mid-cycle test and the two tests before you give the insulin. We will base decisions on the dose on that information so it is very important. A cat’s ears don’t have very many nerve endings in the outer portion of the ear (the pinna) as their primary function is to collect sound. It doesn’t cause a great deal of pain to use them for blood glucose testing (it causes our hearts more pain because we are afraid of hurting them and because sometimes we will see a bruise in some cats — you can apply light pressure to the ear after you have pricked it to help with this.)

Tips that may have already been shared with you are:

Always give a low carb treat after every test and every attempt to get a test (even when you fail.). Keep things positive.

Apply a small amount of petroleum jelly (Vaseline) to the ear to help the blood drop form a bead

Warm the ear with a small bottle containing warm water or a small child’s sock with a little rice in it — heated in the microwave.

Massage the ear gently before testing

Scrape the blood onto the surface of the nail of your thumb and apply the test strip to that drop of blood.

Don’t use the smallest lancet size when first learning to test.

Hold the lancet in your hand and insert it at a 45 degree angle. Do not use a mechanical lancing device if your cat is sensitive to the sound. You will have much better control with your hand.
1777910771032.jpeg
 
Suzanne & Darcy said:
Hello. I’m very glad that you chose to begin with only 1 unit. We need to work on you being able to get a mid-cycle test and the two tests before you give the insulin. We will base decisions on the dose on that information so it is very important. A cat’s ears don’t have very many nerve endings in the outer portion of the ear (the pinna) as their primary function is to collect sound. It doesn’t cause a great deal of pain to use them for blood glucose testing (it causes blood our hearts more pain because we are afraid of hurting them and because sometimes we will see a bruise in some cats — you can apply light pressure to the ear after you have pricked it to help with this.)

Tips that may have already been shared with you are:

Always give a low carb treat after every test and every attempt to get a test (even when you fail.). Keep things positive.

Apply a small amount of petroleum jelly (Vaseline) to the ear to help the blood drop form a bead

Warm the ear with a small bottle containing warm water or a small child’s sock with a little rice in it — heated in the microwave.

Massage the ear gently before testing

Scrape the blood onto the surface of the nail of your thumb and apply the test strip to that drop of blood.

Don’t use the smallest lancet size when first learning to test.

Hold the lancet in your hand and insert it at a 45 degree angle. Do not use a mechanical lancing device if your cat is sensitive to the sound. You will have much better control with your hand.
View attachment 78080
Click to expand...
Blood comes out, but not enough—the meter doesn’t detect it.
 
I cried a lot when I was first learning to test blood glucose. It took about a week before I could reliably get blood and get a meter reading. I told myself it would never work, but I was wrong.

How is your Helios handling it so far? Is he a calm cat, or is he giving you trouble? What are you using for treats after you attempt a test?
 
Warm the ear with your hands, rub it; it will make it easier for the blood to flow. You can also use a sock filled with rice, warm it slightly in the microwave, and hold it near the ear without it being too hot. The first few injections are the hardest, but then you'll see that the skin is different and you'll know where to inject. You can alternate ears; that's better. Sometimes you get little cuts, but the best thing, if you can afford it, is a free sensor. You put a baby onesie on him so he doesn't touch it, and they work wonderfully. You forget about the ear injections. I could never get the sensor out of my cat's ear because he hates having his ears touched, so I got it from a vein in his arm. One day, when they diagnosed him with diabetes, I saw that when they drew blood from his arm for tests, it didn't bother him, and from then on, he got it from there. In the end, everyone starts to get to know their cat and how they react to diabetes. And don't worry, we've all been nervous at the beginning, and the vets aren't much help. not to mention anything at all...
 
Suzanne & Darcy said:
I cried a lot when I was first learning to test blood glucose. It took about a week before I could reliably get blood and get a meter reading. I told myself it would never work, but I was wrong.

How is your Helios handling it so far? Is he a calm cat, or is he giving you trouble? What are you using for treats after you attempt a test?
Click to expand...
He is very calm, but when I’ve tried three times, blood comes out and dries quickly, and he starts to get a bit upset.
 
You should put Vaseline around the ear so the drop doesn't slip and if it dries, it will leave a firm drop of blood. Currently, people on the forum aren't answering because it's a different time zone than ours; they usually reply when it's nighttime for us, which is practically when they're just getting up.
 
miraneta said:
He is very calm, but when I’ve tried three times, blood comes out and dries quickly, and he starts to get a bit upset.
Click to expand...
It does sound like you could really use the Vaseline on the ear that I mentioned in my list of tips above. That can help it to keep from going into the fur and dispersing in the fur of the ear so quickly.
 
xelo y sinver said:
You should put Vaseline around the ear so the drop doesn't slip and if it dries, it will leave a firm drop of blood. Currently, people on the forum aren't answering because it's a different time zone than ours; they usually reply when it's nighttime for us, which is practically when they're just getting up.
Click to expand...
It’s almost 4 p.m. here (US Eastern time) and almost 10 p.m. in Spain. There is either a 5 or 6 hour time difference for me (depending upon whether we are on stupid daylight savings time or not.) I find I can communicate with my members in Europe all right. I get up at 5 a.m. so that is about 10 or 11 a.m. your time. The times of day when I can be on the forum varies. I try to answer any urgent questions that are on the ProZinc forum or if I receive a tag.
 
Oh… don’t forget you can quickly scrape the blood up onto your fingernail too. First you could “milk” the ear and get a little more blood, and then you could quickly scrape it onto your fingernail. Different tricks will work for different people. At least if you do that while he’s not used to having his ear tested, you could let him go more quickly without having to apply the meter and test strip to his ear, you could just release him. And then give him a treat as soon as you get the number…. once he begins to associate the treats with the process it should be fine….. It is for most cats. Some people do use a paw pad to draw blood, but those are more sensitive than an ear, although some cats seem to tolerate it.
 
Hola!
Respira profundo, tú puedes hacerlo! son muchas cosas nuevas para aprender y asumir. Intenta no agobiarte 🤗 poco a poco podrás ayudar a tu peque.
(Take a deep breath! You've got this! There's a lot of new things to learn, try not to get overwhelmed, little by little you will be able to help your life little one)

I had a similar experience with my vet, back in 2016, I was sent home with a diagnosis and insulin and told to take it slowly, I cried all the way home.
I found this site (2016), and with the help of many people here I was able to learn to take care of my boy,, he was 16 went into remission and he lived to the ripe old age of 25. Try to keep positive.

It's good he likes his ears rubbed, I used to rub them and get them warm, initially you don't get much blood after some days you will find you get more blood so it will be easier to get a reading. What meter are you usy? Maybe it requires a large sample size?
I would also give him some low carb treats before and after the testing that way he will come for the test.
Ive just got back from the vets (poorly cat). And I have to get up at 6am, I'll pop round tomorrow.

As Xelo says, we are here to help you use us as a resource.

Animo
 
Gill & George said:
Hi how is Helios? And how are you?
🤗
Click to expand...
Helios has had a mild pancreatitis episode and has been diagnosed with diabetes. He’s now going to take pain medication and continue with insulin, and this week he’ll get the Freestyle sensor. At the appointment, we measured his glucose: my machine showed 10.3 mmol/L and the vet’s was around 200 mg/dL, which is much lower than it was on Thursday or Saturday.

Now I’m worried that his glucose might be dropping naturally and that he could become hypoglycemic, but since I’m giving him a very low dose, that shouldn’t happen, right? Today he ate a bit less, but he’s calm and he’s no longer drinking so much water or going to the litter box as often.

I’m feeling a bit better, but also sad because I feel so limited in my day-to-day life. I can’t even go out for a coffee or leave the house without thinking about this all the time…

Thank you for asking and for checking in on us.

I still think all of this was caused by the steroids and that it will go away.

Also, the ultrasound showed that none of his organs are severely affected.
 
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