2/8 Sid Vet Visit

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Lydia & Sid & Jake(GA)

Lydia & Sid & Jake(GA)

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I arrived home from work to find Sid's feeding tube hanging halfway out of his neck! I panicked of course and then spent an hour and a half in the waiting room only to find out that this is normal. The tube had actually worked it's way totally out and was just staying attached because of the bandage. The vet told me the tubes have to be resutured. Really! Sid has been to the vet at least twice per week every single week since he had that tube put in and no one mentioned anything about resutureing it.

Well it is out now and we are going to see how it goes without it. He didn't use it for food, just meds anyway. He is very hard to pill and tonight we ended up with a big slobbery mess. I am not restraining him by scruffing or using a towel any of those other methods either. He got his pills in a couple of treats and ate them just fine. Tomorrow I am going to look for the low carb pill pockets :-D Just hope he likes them. Even the vet had a hard time pilling him. He is a very docile cat but will not let anything in his mouth unless he chooses it!! And it tastes like chicken.

His breathing seemed a little bit better to me today. The vet said it is exactly the same as before right around 60/min. He said that his sides aren't heaving like many cats with pneumonia. I also called the holistic vet to get her opinion and she made a good point that if Sid doesn't seem in distress and his tongue and gums aren't bluish and he isnot open mouth breathing or struggling, then it is not an emergency because being hospitalized in an oxygen tent can be very stressful too. Of course if he needed that, I would take him right over to emergency but we aren't at that point. I did get the impression that the one vet was put off that I took Sid to see the holistic vet probably because he doesn't see the point of the acupuncture. The other part of the situation, which I didn't mention to him, is that if we get to the point of Sid not having quality of life anymore, then the holistic vet is the one who will come to my house for him just like she did for Whisper. That's why I wanted her to meet Sid and get to know him. Plus she is a good listener.

When I tested Sid's ketones on the meter, the result was 1.6 down from 3.1 yesterday. I was glad about that. Sid is working his way back to a BID schedule because there have been a couple oftimes in the last couple of days when I couldn't give him the shot because he was below 200. He just likes to keep me guessing.

last condo http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=65675
 
If Sid can be challenging to pill, could you talk to one of the vets about getting his meds compounded into a liquid or chewable or even transdermal form? Just remember if the meds are being compounded to mention that he's diabetic and they can't use a sugar syrup base.
 
Oh Sid! You got your tube out? Guess you were ready to graduate! Hope the pill pockets work, Lydia. The duck and pea are FD friendly. Hope he continues to improve. You've done wonders with him.
 
Yes compounding is a good idea except that my regular vet never agrees to it because he doesn't believe the dosing can be precisely accurate. If I cannot find low carb pill pockets, then I might have to insist on the compounding though Sid spits out the liquid just as well as he does the pills. He lets long ropes of drool just hang out of his mouth with liquid meds. It is terrible.
 
Hi Lydia,

Oh my on the feeding tube! :o Never a dull moment with Sid, huh? Maybe it's a sign that he doesn't need it anymore! *antijinx* I'm glad his breathing is a little better today! I hope you can find the Duck & Pea pill pockets, you can buy the dog version as well...that's what I do. You just break off a small piece anyway, enough to just cover the pill. I have a hard time pilling my cats, so the PP are a godsend!

I see that Sid has been working his way back to BID! I don't know if you saw that I mentioned in yesterday's condo that you might want to drop the PZ dose down a bit so you could shoot TID...that was based on the ketones rising, trying to give you an option that you can try now. Since the ketones have dropped back down a bit, I think you could go either way with the PZ....either try dropping down a bit and shoot TID, or increase a bit and see if you can get him consistently on a BID schedule. If you are going to increase, I would do it when you are home to monitor...say tomorrow night, to give you the maximum time to let him settle in while you are available to monitor closely. I'm concerned that he isn't getting enough insulin because the ketones are still there....at a low level, but still there. I would suggest not using R if you decide to raise the PZ dose, you want to see what the dose will do and R interferes with the data...not to mention he could go too low. Those are just my thoughts...as always, I encourage you to post in the PZI forum and get feedback from others as well.

I know you are working very hard to balance everything out...Sid has so much going on, and you really do know him best. He is a very lucky kitty to have you!

ETA: On the compounding...you can get meds compounded into treats as well as liquid...that may be an option to consider if the pill pockets don't work out.
 
OMG on the feeding tube! I would have been freaking out too. That is good news on his breathing. I'm glad you guys are doing OK!
 
Ditto Melissa - OMG on the feeding tube! WOW, I would of freaked out nailbite_smile You're such a trooper, Lydia. Sid is very lucky to gave a wonderful Mama. I glad to hear that the breathing seems better. Hopefully, Sid is feeling better too. Have you tried those Freeze Dried Salmon or Chicken treats yet?

I know it must be frustrating seeing his numbers get to a point where ya wanna shoot, but knowing you have to work and can't be home to monitor TID during the weekday. My scale was to shoot Pru TID whenever I saw her go over 150, but we all know every kitty is different. Back on March 2 & March 3, he seemed to be settling into the 1.2 & 1.3 doses. Just keep in mind what Laurie said about using the R.

Sending good vibes your way!
 
Keeping my fingers crossed that you find some low carb pill pockets that Sid likes. And I hope Sid keeps improving.
 
Hi guys .. Things like that frustrate me .. why didn't any of the vets tell you about the feeding tube before that point? Sheesh .. anyways, I hope Sid continues to improve and I hope the pill pockets work for you .. our civvie twix would NEVER take meds, until we shoved them in those pill pockets .. once her pill popped out while she was chewing, and she licked it right back up, thinking it was more of the treat! have a great weekend!
 
For such a tiny kitty, Sid sure is more than a handful. Good luck with his meds, and I hope his breathing continues to improve.
 
Hi Lydia,
I read in one of the condos a couple of days ago (Julie & Punkin?) that several people start off with "dummy" pill pockets. They roll them up into tasty tidbits, but omit the pill. They give several in succession to the kitty, who eats them up, and during the whole process they sneak in the one with the pill inside. It always gets eaten. Something to try! If the choice is between the regular, chicken flavor pill pockets (we know Sid likes chicken) and the "low carb" pea and duck (which he may not like), I would start with the flavor he likes. You don't want him walking away from the flavor he doesn't like. Also, how much carbs/sugars can there be in a little piece of a pill pocket?

We are very glad that Sid's ketones are down today. Hang in there!

Ella & Rusty
 
Sid knew he was ready to be done with his feeding tube! :-D :-D

Binksy really liked the pill pockets...hoping Sid does as well!

Hang in there Sidster...you are my tough little HERO!!

funny-pictures-kitten-is-tough-and-should-not-be-messed-with.jpg
 
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