Robyn and Penny
Member Since 2013
WE ARE HAVING AN OTJ PARTY!! Sorry...long post but SHE EARNED THIS!!
Some of you may ask..what the hell is Robyn talking about?
Read on…
Penny was diagnosed with feline diabetes on September 6, 2013. I thought it was the end of the world. I had NO CLUE how I was gonna give her twice daily insulin shots and when some really experienced people told me I was gonna have to stick her ears several times per day to test her blood glucose, I thought “no way can I torture this poor cat like this!”
But then I learned all of that is the SAFEST and most effective way to manage diabetes in cats. So we learned that if I gave Penny her shots while she was eating really yummy wet food, she didn’t even realize she was getting a shot. And Penny learned that if she sat still through me poking her ear with a tiny little lancet, she would get a raw chicken snack as a reward, so she figured it wasn’t so bad, after all.
So we did something called “Tight Regulation” and got her into remission the first time by October 31, 2013. Just 6 weeks after changing her food to low carb and starting insulin. She stayed in remission for 14 months.
In that time, what with Dad being sick and passing away and me just barely able to hang on, I allowed her to gain almost 4lbs. She had an episode that led to a diagnosis of spinal arthritis. And was put on Neurontin for pain. She was 18lb2oz the day she was diagnosed.
January 3, 2015, we had to resume insulin. She had come out of remission and chances were pretty slim that she’d ever go back into remission.
I knew the weight gain had a whole lot to do with it, so we started her on Adequan injections for the arthritis and an intensive daily exercise regime. She was down to under 16lbs by the time the kittens moved in last Fall. When she relapsed from her diabetes, she spent 10 months in the WORST case of glucose toxicity. I could not get her blood glucose down under 300 consistently. She was up to 9 ½ units of Levemir daily, which is a pretty high dose for a cat.
And I had to get aggressive. So grateful that I work from home and we home test because I had to get radically aggressive with her insulin dosing and her blood glucose numbers to break through her insulin resistance. And she did. Right around the time we rescued the kits, her blood glucose numbers started to bottom out and she was earning dose reduction after dose reduction. Thank God for the people at Feline Diabetes Message Board, who taught me how to safely do this without putting her into insulin shock. As aggressive as we were, she never once went into insulin shock. ''
February of this year she was diagnosed with end-stage renal failure. I’m sure the glucose toxicity, originally caused by her being obese, was a major contributor.
THIS PAST TWO WEEKS, PENNY MANAGED TO DO SOMETHING THAT VERY FEW DIABETIC CATS HAVE BEEN ABLE TO DO AND THAT’S ACHIEVE A 2ND REMISSION FORM HER DIABETES. She is also a much-healthier 14lb12oz today. And she has not needed any pain medication for her arthritis since her 2nd week of Adequan injections in early 2015.
She is officially “off the juice” (OTJ-off insulin) again. This is so bittersweet because she worked SO hard to get here, but the kidney disease is progressive and incurable. No matter how much we fight, it will eventually win.
BUT…
Penny is the absolute TOUGHEST and most resilient cat I have ever met. Just incredible, her will to fight and succeed and be “normal”. Although she thinks she’s part dog and part human, anyway. And even though her “end” may still be closer than I ever imagined or wanted, this is not for nil. She is living a QUALITY LIFE today. She runs and plays like the kittens sometimes. She’s spoiled and pampered and loved. She gets new toys every week to keep her running, jumping and playing. And she’s HAPPY.
And she has taught me that I can accomplish ANYTHING that I set my mind to!
Way to go Penelope! I love you more than you will EVER know! Off to celebrate with rotisserie chicken (de-skinned and boned, of course), play time with the kits and she’s getting a brand-new ceramic water fountain this weekend!
As you can see, she would NOT let me put her OTJ Party Hat ON her! lol
Some of you may ask..what the hell is Robyn talking about?
Read on…
Penny was diagnosed with feline diabetes on September 6, 2013. I thought it was the end of the world. I had NO CLUE how I was gonna give her twice daily insulin shots and when some really experienced people told me I was gonna have to stick her ears several times per day to test her blood glucose, I thought “no way can I torture this poor cat like this!”
But then I learned all of that is the SAFEST and most effective way to manage diabetes in cats. So we learned that if I gave Penny her shots while she was eating really yummy wet food, she didn’t even realize she was getting a shot. And Penny learned that if she sat still through me poking her ear with a tiny little lancet, she would get a raw chicken snack as a reward, so she figured it wasn’t so bad, after all.
So we did something called “Tight Regulation” and got her into remission the first time by October 31, 2013. Just 6 weeks after changing her food to low carb and starting insulin. She stayed in remission for 14 months.
In that time, what with Dad being sick and passing away and me just barely able to hang on, I allowed her to gain almost 4lbs. She had an episode that led to a diagnosis of spinal arthritis. And was put on Neurontin for pain. She was 18lb2oz the day she was diagnosed.
January 3, 2015, we had to resume insulin. She had come out of remission and chances were pretty slim that she’d ever go back into remission.
I knew the weight gain had a whole lot to do with it, so we started her on Adequan injections for the arthritis and an intensive daily exercise regime. She was down to under 16lbs by the time the kittens moved in last Fall. When she relapsed from her diabetes, she spent 10 months in the WORST case of glucose toxicity. I could not get her blood glucose down under 300 consistently. She was up to 9 ½ units of Levemir daily, which is a pretty high dose for a cat.
And I had to get aggressive. So grateful that I work from home and we home test because I had to get radically aggressive with her insulin dosing and her blood glucose numbers to break through her insulin resistance. And she did. Right around the time we rescued the kits, her blood glucose numbers started to bottom out and she was earning dose reduction after dose reduction. Thank God for the people at Feline Diabetes Message Board, who taught me how to safely do this without putting her into insulin shock. As aggressive as we were, she never once went into insulin shock. ''
February of this year she was diagnosed with end-stage renal failure. I’m sure the glucose toxicity, originally caused by her being obese, was a major contributor.
THIS PAST TWO WEEKS, PENNY MANAGED TO DO SOMETHING THAT VERY FEW DIABETIC CATS HAVE BEEN ABLE TO DO AND THAT’S ACHIEVE A 2ND REMISSION FORM HER DIABETES. She is also a much-healthier 14lb12oz today. And she has not needed any pain medication for her arthritis since her 2nd week of Adequan injections in early 2015.
She is officially “off the juice” (OTJ-off insulin) again. This is so bittersweet because she worked SO hard to get here, but the kidney disease is progressive and incurable. No matter how much we fight, it will eventually win.
BUT…
Penny is the absolute TOUGHEST and most resilient cat I have ever met. Just incredible, her will to fight and succeed and be “normal”. Although she thinks she’s part dog and part human, anyway. And even though her “end” may still be closer than I ever imagined or wanted, this is not for nil. She is living a QUALITY LIFE today. She runs and plays like the kittens sometimes. She’s spoiled and pampered and loved. She gets new toys every week to keep her running, jumping and playing. And she’s HAPPY.
And she has taught me that I can accomplish ANYTHING that I set my mind to!
Way to go Penelope! I love you more than you will EVER know! Off to celebrate with rotisserie chicken (de-skinned and boned, of course), play time with the kits and she’s getting a brand-new ceramic water fountain this weekend!
As you can see, she would NOT let me put her OTJ Party Hat ON her! lol
