I think this will be my last post here. I just wanted to say thank you for all of the wonderful help and guidance over the last couple of years. I haven’t been posting much lately anyway. Nothing happening to get excited about. Things seem to be going in the wrong direction for Max as far as glucose control. I’ve tried everything I’ve learned and try to stay on top of things with his dose increases, and give him time to stop bouncing, etc. This last time he had some high greens and I thought he could take another small increase so I did that. I’ve been taking it slow and continue to give 0.25 increases because he still has some diving and I was just trying to tweak it so maybe he would stay a little more flat. Acromegaly and IAA just don’t play fair. I didn’t expect it to be easy, but with Max I just can’t seem to get it right at all. He was doing so well in the first part of the summer and I was so hopeful, but he couldn’t handle the decrease in the end and we eventually lost our momentum. SRT did help Max a lot, but I admit that I was hoping to get a little more from it than he did. I’m definitely glad we did it, but I’m not going to put him back through it again. Maybe it’s because of everything else Max has going on that he didn’t get better glucose control. He’s still the same sweet kitty he’s always been and I love him with my whole heart. I’ve given up so much in my life to give him the best care possible and I don’t regret anything. I guess I’ve just hoped for more and over the last few weeks I’ve just lost hope. It’s been two years since SRT so I’m not keeping my hopes up for that anymore. I don’t mean to sound so down, and I’m going to keep taking care of Max until his quality of life is no longer good. I hope that’s a long time from now, but I’m not expecting any miracles with his glucose control. I don’t think there’s any other advice I can get on that. I wish I could have done a better job. I would have been helping others all along if I could have been more confident in caring for Max. I thank you though from the bottom of my heart for everything I’ve gotten from this group, especially Wendy. I’ve learned so much during my time here. I wish everyone all the best, and give all the kitties my love.
I’m s sad to read this Lori. They are more than just their numbers. Just keep loving him and and both of you enjoy life. Managing multiple illnesses is tough. I know. Take care of yourself and know that you have not failed him in any way!
I can only imagine how hard it’s been for you and Max. So much going on with the little guy. I haven’t followed your journey, but I wanted to send hugs and support.
You’ve done so much for sweet Max, Lori. You will be missed and I’m hoping maybe you change your mind because we are all here for you. I can only imagine the frustration you are feeling, you’ve got a lot to deal with in caring for Max. Chin up! You are an awesome cat mom!
Max is so lucky to have you. He would be much worse off if it wasn't for your tremendous care of him. If you decide you want to post again, we'll welcome you back. Take care of yourself and Max.
Taking care of acros is HARD. You are doing a great job with him. How is Max's acro symptoms and quality of life? I ended up focusing more on that than the numbers. I just followed the protocol and did with the dose what it told me to do. With IAA, you really have to go after the resistance. It was best to make sure there were always greens. You might try 0.5 unit increase next. Have you thought about cabergoline at all? More from the point of view of managing his acro symptoms, not so much the dose. It came along too late for me to think about when Neko's SRT effects faded away. At least Max is on a pretty slow increase path, with Neko it was like charging after a speeding train.
PS, you don't need to post and ask for help. But the occasional post telling us how sweet Max is doing would be appreciated. We'll miss you and Max.
Cabergoline has crossed my mind, but honestly I didn’t know if he could tolerate it. I think it does have some GI side effects right? He has chronic pancreatitis and IBD both and is taking a lot of meds with everything together. We are still having trouble managing his blood pressure and I think the kidney disease may have progressed, he also has started snoring when he sleeps. If he could tolerate it, I would definitely try it. I don’t know if his vet is knowledgeable about treatment of acro with Cabergoline. Thank you for those suggestions. I will try the 0.5 units next.
Couple papers for your vet, if you decide to think about it: Paper on QOL and response to treatment for acros and New paper on: Cabergoline treatment in cats with diabetes mellitus and hypersomatotropism When cabergoline first came out, I had to weigh that will all the issues Neko had at the time, and it really was too late to try it. You are right that some kitties get GI issues.
