9/17/2024 New Member

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Michael Ford

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Hello to everyone

My cat Indy was diagnosed with diabetes on 9/11
and was told to change his diet to high protein
low carb wet food also directions to give 3 units
of insulin twice a day after eating.
I guess my main concern is when should I see a return to my old Indy?
Am I freaking out and need to give it more time?
 
Welcome Indy to our diabetes Forum, I know at first is very overwhelming the diabetes diagnose, but we are here to guide you and help you, first we need to know more about Indy here is a link to get your spreadsheet and to gather everything about the insulin type, dose, units etc. no concern is a small concern, and yes, the nutrition is very important diabetic cats need a low carb diet between 0-10% below there's also a Dr's food chart link with many brands to choose from, many members like the Fancy Feast foods, many variety USA made , so no waste goes into our precious kitty's system, the third column will have the contents of carbs, Also you should have handy A HYPO KIT, this includes, Karo syrup, or honey, along with several cans of medium carb and high carb(gravies) foods, in case of a glucose number 50 , it is important that you home test, you can use a human glucometer, example, ReliOn
Premier glucometer and strips, you do not need a pet monitor, the RliOn is very reliable and inexpensive, if you are in USA you can purchase it online at Walmar.com it is important to test before each shot, and periodically during the day, if you are able to, to make sure the number are ok to do so. I do not want to overwhelm you with too much information, for now click on the link help us to help you, take some time to read all the sticky notes in the Main Forum as well :bighug::cat::cat:

https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/new-how-you-can-help-us-help-you.216696/

https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/dr-pierson-new-food-chart.174147/
 
Hi Michael and Indy and welcome to the forum.
Three units of insulin is too high a dose to start with. The starting dose of insulin for a cat is 0.5 to 1 unit.
What type of insulin are you giving?
Did the vet say Indy had any ketones in his urine at diagnosis?
It takes time for a diabetic cat to respond to insulin and feel better. Insulin is a hormone and it’s not like an antibiotic and works straight way.
To get Indy back on track and lead a normal life we recommend the following
  • A good low carb canned food which is fed before every dose and then a couple of snacks during every cycle.
  • Hometesting the blood glucose which will keep Indy safe and it will also tell you if the dose you are giving is too much, too little or just right. We have dosing methods you can follow safely.
  • Have a good insulin which is suitable for cats such as Lantus or Prozinc.
Corky has given you some good advice.
 
Thanks for the post...

Just got back from the vet and his BS tested 160 but this was also after eating and having his shot this morning at 5 am.
The insulin is Novolin N u100. The vet said I could drop him to 2 units and see if I notice a difference.
No mention of ketones.

I still need to pick up a BS test kit...." kind of scared to test thou"...
 
Michael Ford said:
Thanks for the post...

Just got back from the vet and his BS tested 160 but this was also after eating and having his shot this morning at 5 am.
The insulin is Novolin N u100. The vet said I could drop him to 2 units and see if I notice a difference.
No mention of ketones

I still need to pick up a BS test kit...." kind of scared to test thou"...
Click to expand...


Not to worry Michael, is easy as pie, below there's a link on how to test/shoot your kitty. Some suggestions, find a small sock, place some rice in it tie it, place the sock on the inside of the ear, this will help you secure the lancet at the tip of the ear, I have a small flashlight I put in my mouth so I can see the drop of blood, after a few times pricking the vein the capillaries will swell, and it will quite easy, have all tools in front of you, so your kitty familiarizes with them, always have two strips at hand just in case, caress him by placing your arm on his back and hold his head with the palm of your hand between the ears, afterwards reward him with a treat, that way he familiarizes the test with the treat, believe me the first time, I cried it hurt me more than him, a lot of the members use the ReliOn
Premier monitor and strips, inexpensive and reliable if you are in the US Walmart.com has the monitor for $ 19.99 and 50 strips $9.00 /$17.99 for 100:bighug::bighug::cat::cat:
https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/how-to-shoot-your-cat.290439/
 
Hi Michael,
Novolin N is not a good insulin for cats. It hits hard and fast and does not last the 12 hours necessary for cats.
I would definitely ask your vet to change you over to a much more suitable insulin such as Lantus or Prozinc. These are the two insulins recommended by the American Animal Association. Lantus and prozinc are longer lasting and more gentle insulins and are much more suitable for Indy.
With Novolin N you need to be feeding Indy 1 hour before giving the insulin so he has food aboard when the insulin hits.
So the routine is, when you are hometesting (and I strongly recommend you do test), is to test, feed, wait 1 hour, then give the dose.
If the preshot BG is below 250 it is recommended you do not give the dose. You can stall, dont feed and see if the BG rises after 20 minutes but I would recommend you post and ask for help if that happens.
Are you giving a couple of snacks of food during the first half of the cycles? With Novolin N I would give snacks at -2 and +4. A snack is a teaspoon or 2 of low carb food.
Here is a link to USING NOVOLIN N please eat it through thoroughly as it has a lot of information in it.
You will see that the starting dose is 0.5 if you are feeding low carb canned or 1 unit if you are feeding dry food. So it does concern me how much your vet knows about treating feline diabetes. They are not treated like dogs which some vets do as they have little experience with feline diabetes.
Do you have a hypo kit set up in case of low numbers and do you know the symptoms of a hypo?
With testing you will be able to see the blood glucose dropping and do something about it before symptoms of a hypo appear. Once symptoms appear, the BG will be very low.
Here is information about hypo kit and symptoms HYPO KIT and HOW TO TREAT A HYPO AND SYMPTOMS
 
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