cocat
Member Since 2017
Hi there! New to the forum (although I have been stalking others posts since finding out about his diagnosis)! Warning - Long complicated post! I apologize!
Tom cat is his name, and we have been through quite the ringer. He is a 13 year old male Siamese that I've had since he was a kitten.
In February of this year is when his health really started to act up. He has been through five surgeries (four minor, one fairly serious) to repair a hernia/fistula/megacolon situation. He's also apparently got some severe allergies and a heart murmur and gallop rhythm (luckily all under control with no progression). The surgeries went on from February until June. At of the start of July he fully healed from those operations. I still was a nervous mama because I noticed he was eating a lot, still losing weight, and extremely thirsty with lots of inappropriate urination (we have 8 litter boxes for two cats, plus have gone through hundreds of potty pads and two gallons of enzymatic cleaner!). I brought him back in to the vet for blood work and lo and behold - the birth of the diabetes diagnosis.
For two months (Since July 7th) we've been trying to regulate the diabetes with no success. This is a complicated case because of the megacolon (and the required diet he was on to maintain that) as well as lots of lifestyle changes - including a new companion cat for him (adopted early this year) and just recently within the last 3 weeks a big house move. When it rains it pours! I know all of these changes are not good for my baby and could perhaps be contributing to his diabetes treatment not taking. But I'm hoping to find some help here.
He was on a dry megacolon prescription diet (for the last 5 years) which was one of the only things that regulated his colon. He has successful had surgery and we have cautiously switched him first to Purina DM dry, and now (as of 09/02) he is fully on wet purina DM. He is supplemented with fortiflors (a probiotic that also stimulates appetite) as well as psyllium (a fiber powder for his megacolon). He is also on a colonic motility medication called cisapride.
We started his insulin (lantus) at 1.0 units during July. I did not have home monitoring during this time. By August we increased him to 1.5 units and I got the alphatrak (loaner from the vet). We've gone up to 2, back down to 1.5, and back up to 2 again between mid-august and now.
He had one really good day where he was getting low on the 2.0 units and we closely monitored for hypo. We did go back to 1.5 after that day because we thought the low readings were due to his now being fully wet food. But 1.5 didnt seem to be doing enough, so we bumped it back to 2 about 4 or 5 days later.
I've made the spreadsheet. I did misplace some data points during the move
It is the weirdest thing, because you can see the insulin is working sometimes, and sometimes not. I know there have certainly been a few fur shots on my part, but not every other day! Maybe a handful of times since starting this and once in the last week or two. So he is randomly getting these hi spikes and I don't know why.
We are also unsure if his insulin pen might have frozen during the move (we had it in with a few ice cubes trying to keep it from getting hot). It could have some decreased effectiveness because of cold temperature it was exposed to, so we were watching it and I think now we will get him a new pen.
Luckily, I live across the street from one of the best vet schools in the country... oh boy and let me tell you he has LOTS of friends there! He has been a regular to soft tissue surgery, internal medicine, dermatology, cardiology... just the works! And he is such a sweet boy, everyone loves him! So I am so lucky and grateful to literally have a team of extremely caring, competent, and up-to-date with the latest treatment options, vets behind me.
But this has even them stumped. I'm hoping some more eyes on this can help me figure things out.
So a quick run down:
Wet Purina DM (3/4+ of a can 2x a day - trying to get his weight back up)
Lantus Glargene Insulin pen
Currently on 2.0 Units
Diagnosed 07/07
Home testing with Alphatrak (using pad of foot, his ear doesn't seem to bleed, I've seen the sweet spot diagram and still no luck)
Other meds/supplements: Cisapride, Psyllium, Fortiflora
Other conditions: Heart murmur, megacolon, repaired hernia and fistula
Other things I've noticed:
Insulin pen might have gotten too cold
When first switched he was eating an entire can of DM no problem, now he only eats about 3/4's of it, and eats it in sittings (for example he will eat for 5-10 minutes, then break for 10-20 minutes, then go back to eating) this usually last 2-3 "cycles".
He gets his insulin shot in the scruff area (I find it very difficult to tent the fur toward his hind end). We did just start rotating sides to prevent injecting the same site every time.
Insulin is given after he starts eating (during the first "sitting") after I see his appetite is good. He will continue to nibble for an additional 30 minutes to an hour after first bite.
I think that's everything (and my oh my its a lot!) If you're still with me I appreciate it and look forward to any advice, tips, items I've overlooked, etc that would maybe help with this.
Thanks so much! I am about ready to pull my hair out! I feel like I'm doing everything I can and just can't get this figured out
Tom and I both thank you in advance!
Tom cat is his name, and we have been through quite the ringer. He is a 13 year old male Siamese that I've had since he was a kitten.
In February of this year is when his health really started to act up. He has been through five surgeries (four minor, one fairly serious) to repair a hernia/fistula/megacolon situation. He's also apparently got some severe allergies and a heart murmur and gallop rhythm (luckily all under control with no progression). The surgeries went on from February until June. At of the start of July he fully healed from those operations. I still was a nervous mama because I noticed he was eating a lot, still losing weight, and extremely thirsty with lots of inappropriate urination (we have 8 litter boxes for two cats, plus have gone through hundreds of potty pads and two gallons of enzymatic cleaner!). I brought him back in to the vet for blood work and lo and behold - the birth of the diabetes diagnosis.
For two months (Since July 7th) we've been trying to regulate the diabetes with no success. This is a complicated case because of the megacolon (and the required diet he was on to maintain that) as well as lots of lifestyle changes - including a new companion cat for him (adopted early this year) and just recently within the last 3 weeks a big house move. When it rains it pours! I know all of these changes are not good for my baby and could perhaps be contributing to his diabetes treatment not taking. But I'm hoping to find some help here.
He was on a dry megacolon prescription diet (for the last 5 years) which was one of the only things that regulated his colon. He has successful had surgery and we have cautiously switched him first to Purina DM dry, and now (as of 09/02) he is fully on wet purina DM. He is supplemented with fortiflors (a probiotic that also stimulates appetite) as well as psyllium (a fiber powder for his megacolon). He is also on a colonic motility medication called cisapride.
We started his insulin (lantus) at 1.0 units during July. I did not have home monitoring during this time. By August we increased him to 1.5 units and I got the alphatrak (loaner from the vet). We've gone up to 2, back down to 1.5, and back up to 2 again between mid-august and now.
He had one really good day where he was getting low on the 2.0 units and we closely monitored for hypo. We did go back to 1.5 after that day because we thought the low readings were due to his now being fully wet food. But 1.5 didnt seem to be doing enough, so we bumped it back to 2 about 4 or 5 days later.
I've made the spreadsheet. I did misplace some data points during the move
It is the weirdest thing, because you can see the insulin is working sometimes, and sometimes not. I know there have certainly been a few fur shots on my part, but not every other day! Maybe a handful of times since starting this and once in the last week or two. So he is randomly getting these hi spikes and I don't know why.
We are also unsure if his insulin pen might have frozen during the move (we had it in with a few ice cubes trying to keep it from getting hot). It could have some decreased effectiveness because of cold temperature it was exposed to, so we were watching it and I think now we will get him a new pen.
Luckily, I live across the street from one of the best vet schools in the country... oh boy and let me tell you he has LOTS of friends there! He has been a regular to soft tissue surgery, internal medicine, dermatology, cardiology... just the works! And he is such a sweet boy, everyone loves him! So I am so lucky and grateful to literally have a team of extremely caring, competent, and up-to-date with the latest treatment options, vets behind me.
But this has even them stumped. I'm hoping some more eyes on this can help me figure things out.
So a quick run down:
Wet Purina DM (3/4+ of a can 2x a day - trying to get his weight back up)
Lantus Glargene Insulin pen
Currently on 2.0 Units
Diagnosed 07/07
Home testing with Alphatrak (using pad of foot, his ear doesn't seem to bleed, I've seen the sweet spot diagram and still no luck)
Other meds/supplements: Cisapride, Psyllium, Fortiflora
Other conditions: Heart murmur, megacolon, repaired hernia and fistula
Other things I've noticed:
Insulin pen might have gotten too cold
When first switched he was eating an entire can of DM no problem, now he only eats about 3/4's of it, and eats it in sittings (for example he will eat for 5-10 minutes, then break for 10-20 minutes, then go back to eating) this usually last 2-3 "cycles".
He gets his insulin shot in the scruff area (I find it very difficult to tent the fur toward his hind end). We did just start rotating sides to prevent injecting the same site every time.
Insulin is given after he starts eating (during the first "sitting") after I see his appetite is good. He will continue to nibble for an additional 30 minutes to an hour after first bite.
I think that's everything (and my oh my its a lot!) If you're still with me I appreciate it and look forward to any advice, tips, items I've overlooked, etc that would maybe help with this.
Thanks so much! I am about ready to pull my hair out! I feel like I'm doing everything I can and just can't get this figured out
Tom and I both thank you in advance!
.
) to slide under him when he pees to catch a small sample. You're doing very good with him so don't be disheartened that it's been 2 months. There are many who don't see big changes in numbers in the first 1-3 months. An important thing to keep in mind is how is he feeling? Sometimes we get caught up in numbers. 
