A new friend

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Ford

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Hello,

My dealings with a DC started May 26. I was in the local vet's clinic talking with the Dr. about the homeless cat I had brought in to get spayed. Had her on the table to start surgery when we found a scar and spay tattoo on her abdomen! At that moment the receptionist walks up and says "....is here to see you." the Dr. sighed and said "they must have decided to euthanize. Tell him I have someone for him to talk to." Five minutes later, he and I had exchanged numbers and stories. Long story short, Ford is their baby. Mr.'s wife is having severe health problems requiring major surgery and they must move to TX (from north MS). They will be living with family Ford and his cat housemate cannot tag along. The family could not find a soul to care for Ford-they saw no other choice but to euthanize. That broke Mrs.'s heart. They were to be called to leave any day, but wanted as much time with him as possible. I said I would take him when they left.

So, today, May 28, I met my new friend. I asked his family to write his routine and his habits down for me, and I had several pages to read (:

Ford came to their family at 7 weeks old in 2005.
I believe he was diagnosed in 2009.
Ford cannot keep down canned food (he throws it up within an hour, every time). Even his vet has tried to remedy this.
He gets 4 units of insulin once daily.

This handsome Siamese is stretched out next to me right now with his lilac tail draped across my leg. Wish us luck.

-Megan and Ford
 
Dearest Megan, and, of course, you too, sweet Ford,

1. I love your heart. Truly.

2. Cats metabolize insulin pretty much twice as fast as humans. I know, it's hard to imagine that any being who naps basically 16 hours a day metabolizes anything faster than a human; but, they do. This is why diabetic cats do better with receiving insulin twice a day, every 12 hours. Can you tell us what insulin Ford is getting? And can you, pretty much immediately, split his dose in two, 12 hours apart?

3. Diabetic cats need to eat. Period. Please feed Ford whatever he wants and will keep down while we help you sort out life with your new furry friend.

4. Please consider home testing. There's a link above to order a kit. It will get you started. I'm guessing you're in Mississippi. If you were in northern NJ, I'd be showing you how to home test right now in the middle of the night in my jammies...

5. I love your heart. Truly.

Welcome to the place you never wanted to be; but, will be blessed for having found.

Much love and countless encouraging, lucky hugs for you both,
Deb and Nikki -- and, Giz, forever dancing in my heart...
 
Bless your heart for giving Ford a new lease on life. I also adopted a diabetic cat that his family was about to put down, and couldn't have asked for a better furry friend to share my home and heart with.

Now lets start teaching you how to dance with a sugar cat.

First off, as Deb as already mentioned, splitting Ford insulin in half and giving him 2u twice a day is going to be much better for him than 4u once a day. Cats metabolize insulin much quicker than either humans or canines, so they do better on a 12/12 cycle. Otherwise they come down for half the day and then spend the rest of the time high again. A rollercoaster ride that isn't very fun for them.

We will bug you about home testing, which is truly the only way to keep Mr Ford safe while he is on insulin. It also helps you and your vet get a clearer picture of just how the insulin is working for Ford. Since all cats, even those that love their vet's will be under stress. So by testing Ford at home you will get truer numbers to help your vet and you determine what is the best dose of insulin for him to be receiving.And you can save yourself a few bucks as well as save Ford some vet stress because you can run your own curves and then just call, email or take those numbers into the Vet's office. Home testing is pretty easy once you get your groove going, now sometimes getting that groove going can cause you to want to bang your head on the floor or any other convient hard surface..lol But really it is pretty easy, we simply prick the edge of their ear to obtain a small sample of blood and test that with a human meter just like a human diabetic. Lori and Tom (see link at top of page) run our newbie kits, which we all donate to, so that folks like you can get off to a great start, they contain everything you will need to begin giving your new best friend the best possible care. It has a meter, test strips, lancets, and even a nice toy for Mr Ford.

Right now I wouldn't worry about his diet too much at this point he has enough changes going on in his life right now, but I do wonder if when he has been switched to canned food in the past if they have just done it too quickly and that is what is causing the tummy to get upset. Very seldom have I seen a cat that can't be transistioned to canned food if it is done slowly, but that is something to worry about for another day. But also all dry foods are not created equally and there are some out there that are better than others for a diabetic cat. I believe, Evo has a couple cat & kitten formulas that are pretty low in carbs, which is what Mr. Ford is going to need.

Again Welcome, looking forward to hearing more about you and your new best friend.

Mel, Maxwell and The Fur Gang.
 
Big kudos for you for adopting a diabetic cat. :RAHCAT

I have had four diabetic cats with two of them being adopted knowing they are sugar cats. I can't even imagine not having a diabetic cat in my house. There is a strong bond that develops when carring for a sugar kitty.

You have already received some great advice. The only thing I can recommend that until you are able to find a canned food that Food can eat successfully, you may want to at least see if he will eat Evo Cat and Kitten food. It has much more protein and less carbs than most dry food. That may help you with managing his diabetes.

What insulin are you giving Ford? 4 units for a single dose is a high amount for most cats unless there are other health issues. The majority of the cats here are on 1-2 unit twice a day. That may be also contributing to his diet issues.
 
Hi Megan,

Congratulations on your new friend.

What insulin did you get? As mentioned by others, BID (twice per day) is better for the kitties. Hometesting is key, as mentioned.

How old is the vial of insulin you have now? With the health problems of the previous family, taking care of the vial of insulin may not have been a priority. When I adopt a new FD, I don't use the insulin that came with the kitty, unless like today, my new little man is traveling up to me with fresh vials of insulin that is be providing for him by folks I trust. The insulin Ford came with might not be very good, I would consider switching. If it's not Lantus or Levemir, let's discuss what insulin you have and what's out there.
 
Thanks for the info and advice. I can't remember the order of statements or questions, so I'll just list the information! Haha

His insulin is ProZinc.

His vet had me check the bottle/dates - it was started in April 2011. I went ahead and ordered a new bottle.

I also talked to Dr. about the canned food. He was eating Fancy Feast (I can't remember more specific type, I'd have to look at my notes) twice a day for a year and still throwing up. They tried other canned foods the years before but results were best with the fancy feast (throws up in an hour instead of 10 minutes which let's him digest more of it).

How do I transition him to insulin BID? Will he feel ok going straight from 4 to 2 units tomorrow morning?

He gets a "snack" after his shot each day. His snack is a regular salmon flavored cat treat, but he always begs for more after he gets his three morsels. He tried to bite the bag open today and when he got frustrated he threw it off the counter. I hid it from him. Is it ok to give him these three treats? He sits patiently for his shot then cries for his snack once the needle is capped.

I'll read back through and See if I missed anything.
 
Hi Megan!

You are so sweet to take Ford in! I also use Pro Zinc but I'm pretty new to this so I can't give you dosing advice but wanted to let you know about the Pro Zinc group. I'm gonna post over there for some of the more experienced people to look for your post here but you might want to post over there also for more specific dosing info. There's not as much activity over there though so until you get testing and all that down you might want to continue to post here. And it seems especially slow this weekend, maybe because of the holiday. :smile:
 
Hi and Welcome Megan and Ford,

You can just make the switch to 2 units every 12 hours apart with your next injection. That way Ford will have insulin in his system during both 12 hour cycles. Prozinc only has a duration of 8 to 12 hours so right now poor Ford probably has high blood sugar for 12 hours a day so once you make the switch he will feel better for much longer.

I want to add that the suggested starting dose of Prozinc is 1 unit twice a day.

Where are you located, largest nearby city, State or Country, maybe there is a member near you that can help you learn to test Ford at home.
 
How many times a day was/is Ford eating?

I'm wondering if more frequent, smaller meals would help him digest his food better. I assume the vet tried probiotics with him.

Try sticking with just the Chicken classic feast. Maybe one flavor would help his belly. Beef can sometimes be hard on kitties and many of the other low carb flavors are beef and something, except for the fish varieties.

2U BID should help Ford feel much better, but hometesting is the best way to guage that.
 
I agree with Jennifer, home testing is the only way to know for sure how Ford is feeling, it will tell you every time you test if he is feeling good or bad. It will also tell you if it is safe to give him his insulin.

Knowledge is power.

Have you seen the stickies at the top of the page? It's alot of reading and a little overwhelming at first but there is alot of really great information there.

Robin
 
Without numbers it's hard to say. But yes, at least split into 2units 12 hours apart. Since Ford doesn't do well on wet, probably enough carbs unless on something like evo or wellness core. I think most of us are told to start with one unit and stick with it a few days then move up by .25 if needed. Four units once a day, probably causes nasty nadirs and bounces. Vets always seem to want to start Prozinc kitties on 2 units twice a day, at least from most of the posts I've seen.
:YMHUG: for taking this sweet kitty into your home and heart.
 
Rob & Harley - we are in northern MS closest place is Memphis, TN.

Jennifer - he is on free feeding of kibble and has been on Fancy Feast's flaked fish and shrimp (.5 can BID). He "only" throws up once per feeding on that but I am worried about the constant regurgitation. He has Evo herring and salmon kibble.

Robin - I will check those out, thanks!

I am going Tuesday to talk with Dr. about everything in more detail and to go through his medical records/etc.

Talk to y'all soon!
Megan
 
Bless you for taking this baby. It sounds like you hinted he's a Lilac Point?
yuck, you don't want him throwing up - bad for the teeth too. I wonder if he has some allergy to some type of food? My friend WC has 4 cats (adopted 2 strays from her neighborhood and one looks like a full bread seal point) and her bengal has problems with keeping food down. I will call her tomorrow and see what she says about her Kenya.

Home testing is important, and I have to admit, it can get frustrating. I still have a hard time with it and it's been several weeks. I bought a Reli-on Micro meter at Wal-Mart and it was around $10. The box of 50 strips are $20.
 
Welcome!

How caring of you to take Ford!

I am not an expert on many things, but one I know too much about is once a day dosing of Prozinc (PZI). When Kitty and I came here in Feb., my vet perscribed PZI 2 units once a day. The group here advised me to split the dose to one unit twice a day-- but, it was hard to take advice from a message board instead of my vet. So, I continued to give 2 units once a day----until Kitty crashed from too little insulin. She developed DKA and spent a week in the emergency vet and vet.

Kitty survived thankfully, but I learned the hard way how much knowledge is available from this group.

If you have any doubt about splitting your dose and giving twice a day, please take my experience as testimony and listen to the group here!

Once again welcome!

Kim
 
He is actually a blue point, but I did hint at lilac! :P Is there a way to a upload picture of him?

We will be heading to the vet for a check up and blood tests "once he settles in" (in his vet's words). I hope his move didn't stress him too much, he acts right at home - he is sprawled out on his back next to me right now. I am afraid to change anything with his food before the holiday is over, especially since I can't hometest yet.

Megan & Ford
 
Dearest Megan, and, of course, you too, sweet Ford,

Ford said:
He is actually a blue point, but I did hint at lilac! :P Is there a way to a upload picture of him?
Click to expand...
Yes. I use a Mac and Firefox as my browser, so don't know if you see what I see. But, below the Submit button and to the left is an Upload attachment tab. If you click on it, it will basically ask you to browse for a file. Once you've browsed and picked, just click the Add the file thingy... We'll see if this works together...

I'm now browsing... Found the file I was looking for... Am now going to click on the Add the file thingy... Wish me luck!

Just previewed and I see Nikki!

Can't wait to see Ford...!


Ford said:
I am afraid to change anything with his food before the holiday is over, especially since I can't hometest yet.
Click to expand...
I think that's a good move about not changing anything with his food just yet. Have you ordered your newbie kit yet? It will have whatever you need to get started being proactive...


Ford said:
How do I transition him to insulin BID? Will he feel ok going straight from 4 to 2 units tomorrow morning?
Click to expand...
You just do it. And there is every chance in the world that he'll feel better than ok getting 2 units ProZinc twice a day instead of 4 units once a day... He'll have better coverage for 24 hours that way... Have you ordered your newbie kit yet? (Nudge, nudge...)

Love and encouraging hugs for you and Ford,
Deb and Nikki -- and, Giz, forever dancing in my heart...

And, here's Nikki!
 

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Hi Megan and welcome to the gang.

I'm a 12-day-old newbie myself so haven't got much wisdom to offer at this point except yes, do please home test. I finally cracked it on Saturday evening and it was just as well, because my Cheeky girl suddenly started chucking lower numbers--nowhere near unsafe but much lower than the 24-hour previous one and naturally my vet was closed for the weekend.

Long story short, I posted on the Lantus Support Group board and they nursemaided me through a 12-hour curve overnight, doing a minor dose tweak to balance her out. She did it again yesterday morning (Monday here in Australia) so I posted again but also was able to call my vet and get them to look at my spreadsheet. Dose was adjusted to 1.0 and I did spot checks through the day (I'd taken the day off after the curve drama) and got a green number at nadir so she got a mini-meal to boost her just in case. I called the vet again.

We decided to check my accuracy, so I retested at 5.25pm (+8) got 11.4 then whipped her round to the surgery for a spot venous blood test--and it was 14. My readings are accurate enough for the vet and her standing dose has now been reduced to 1.0, to be reviewed in a week.

While it was a weekend I truly could have done without, I was a wreck and her poor ears will take days to recover :sad: we survived it, and now I'm MUCH happier about leaving her alone while I'm at work because I'm leaving frozen 'meatsicles' out for them to graze on all day. I'm still working on the foods because my old boy is early CRF so I have be careful to leave out things that won't hurt either of them--because I'll never use kibble again unless it's an absolute emergency.

I hope Ford gets over his chucking (barfing LOL) problems and I'm sure he'll settle into his new routine wonderfully. I love how he gets his shot and then asks for his treat!!

Since we're sharing pics :-D here's my Cheekyface and her old brother Bodie.
 

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Ordered a newbie kit! I have to leave Ford for the first time tomorrow ): (I know he will be fine, my dad will come check on him for me).

These kitcats are gorgeous! I haven't been on my computer today so I can't upload Ford's picture yet, but will soon! Thanks for showing me how.
 
Dearest Megan,
You are getting a very special Newbie Kit! I hope it will fit your needs.
I happen to have just one Alpha Trak. It is especially for cats and dogs and you will need to code it, each time you open a new vial of strips for either cat or dog. It is generally not used here because, well, it is expensive and the strips are too. You are getting one because in the chain of my newbie kits ready to go...this one has to go out. It will contain 2 vials with 50 strips a piece (a gold mine as far as newbie kit goes) It must go out becuase one vial expires 7/11 and the other 9/11.
The only down side is the refill on the strips I believe must be bought at the vet's.
And they may be more expensive.
I don't want this great meter to go to waste so you are getting it and it should get you off to a great start should you decide to switch meters later on...I may even send you another later on.
You'll be getting all the regular goodies along with it, every thing you need to start testing immediatly.
And some toys for Ford, hope he likes catnip pillows.
I just wanted you to know about the meter....it is different than what I normally send out...and perhaps better.
But like I said, the strips may cost you more in the long run.
The 100 should get you off to a great start.
Best of luck Megan, and I'll be looking for you over in the pzi room.
Expect your kit by Thursday ok?
Lori
and tomtom too!
 
BTW, I just set the code for cat on the meter for the vial that expires 7/11...so your all set.
 
Thank you a bunch! I just told two friends (both vet techs) about it, hopefully they can help me some!
 
2 additional things to pick up:

1) some urine ketone testing strips (unless you get some in the newbie kit). These test for the presence of ketones in the urine, which means that a few hours earlier, the cat was creating them, usually due to not enough insulin and too much glucose. Finding ketones in the urine is a red flag for possible diabetic ketoacidosis, so its good to do until you get the insulin and food stabilized. If you detect ketones, a vet visit may be in order, particularly if the cat isn't acting well.

2) some Karo syrup or honey - this is used if and when the cat is too low - hypoglycemia, an emergency. You rub some on the cats gums to get glucose into the system quickly. More tips to print out are here - post them on your refrigerator or other easily seen location.

Someone is online at almost any time of day, so if you hit what seems to be a serious issue, you can post with the 911 icon.
 
About the barfing wet food, one of my civvies (not diabetic) used to do that with pretty much any food, but by pure chance I found out that he is fine on Wellness Chicken. Now I can't remember the last time he barfed!

He gets sometimes Wellness Chicken, sometimes Wellness Turkey. Both of them are grain-free flavors. For several years he did OK on a dry sensitive-stomach food, but gradually he was starting to have problems with it, too. Then I found out that wet would be better for his health in general, even though he does not have any tendencies toward diabetes. So tried a good number of foods. Some would come up almost instantly, some would stay down for a while and then come up, some would stay down usually but occasionally come back up, but only the Wellness would stay down consistently.

My vet says the root problem for us is food allergies, and it is evidently an allergy to some way-down-the-list ingredient, not one of the main ones. I still don't know just what the trigger is, but Wellness Chicken and Wellness Turkey don't have it. (As a bonus, on Wellness, this cat's asthma went from worrisome to once-a-month-if-that.)

The trick with this sort of thing is a lot of experimentation. I bought a *lot* of single cans of food. If one can of a brand and flavor was OK, then I'd buy one more. For quite a while I thought that chicken itself was the problem, but it turned out that most chicken foods have whatever the offending way-down-the-list ingredient is; Wellness Chicken doesn't.

Wellness worked for us. Something else might be the "magic" food for you. Keep trying and you'll eventually find the right thing to feed to avoid the constant barfing, which, you're right, can't be good for your kitty.
 
Ford said:
Rob & Harley - we are in northern MS closest place is Memphis, TN.

Jennifer - he is on free feeding of kibble and has been on Fancy Feast's flaked fish and shrimp (.5 can BID). He "only" throws up once per feeding on that but I am worried about the constant regurgitation. He has Evo herring and salmon kibble.

Robin - I will check those out, thanks!

I am going Tuesday to talk with Dr. about everything in more detail and to go through his medical records/etc.

Talk to y'all soon!
Megan
Click to expand...

Fish is one of the common, known, allergens for some cats. Beef is another.

You could try feeding only Fancy Feast Gourmet Chicken "Classic". Most cats can do OK on
Chicken.

Also, just like for humans, canned fish is high in heavy metals and should not be fed more
than a couple of times per week. Also high in phosphorous, which is hard on the kidneys.
 
My friend called me earlier this evening to talk about her bengal, Kenya. WC says she feeds Kenya "pate" varities of Fancy Feast, Friskies and Merrick. All stuff that has "been thru the grinder," as I like to call it. Kenya does worse with sliced or chunky stuff, she says. I have another friend whos cat has an alergy to poultry. I did start a thread on this topic for him, and some others have posted advice, so you might want to check that out too.

Good luck with Ford! My step grandmother had a bluepoint that she got in the late 1980's. Blue's gone to the Rainbow bridge, but lived quite the life (I'm surprised she wasn't diabetic with all the food Nana gave her... :YMSIGH: )
 
As I type, Ford is determinedly trying to walk across my computer. I am finally able to post a picture of him! Of course, he wouldn't sit still for this picture so it doesn't show off his gorgeous triangle head. Thank you all for the advice and I will post again with any news.
 

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What a gorgeous boy! let us know how you get on with the home testing--I got punctured a few times until I found the knack with my wriggler.
xo
 
I rubbed and tugged (gently) on his ears some today, here's hoping he'll be used to that part by the time the meter arrives!
 
Get something to heat it up. Lori is probably sending you something in the kit. Cedric doesn't might too much, unless it takes awhile. I have several diabetic friends, and the friends here will agree: heat brings the blood to the surface. I had problems with Cedric this am, and when I went to try again a 2nd time about 45 minutes later, I heated my pad up for 25 seconds instead of 20 and got much better results (actually, what I got was a bit of a mess, but I got a reading)!
 
I have to bow down to--is it Lisa's?--Little Pink Sock...literally. A pink (cos I couldn't resist) newborn-size sock, with some rice in it, knotted, 15 secs in the microwave.

Fits perfectly in a kitty ear and warms even the just-been-outside-for-a-wee ear up in about 45 secs.

One day when I think about it I'll post a photo :lol:
 
What a handsome fellow Mr Ford is!!! I have a civie blue point here but he doesn't have that fine chiseled triangle face, he's more of an Apple-headed version. Gotta love those meezers. =)

I can say I am proudly owned by 3, a lynx-point, a blue point and a flame-point and my girl that passed a year ago yesterday, was a seal-point himmie.

Mel, Maxwell, and The Fur Gang
 
I hope I'm just freaking out since this is the first time I've hometested, but Ford's numbers were 442 so I immediately retested and it was 443. This was the first time we successfully got a drop from his ear (wiggleworm).

I know that is high, but too high??

Megan

I'll keep an eye in the forum, but also: Mbridges74@gmail.com
 
Thank you, Lori and Tom! Ford loves his newbie kit! (other than the lancets). He tried to help open the package and immediately rolled on his pillow until he discovered his toy - he carried that little mouse around for ages. I didn't get to use his rice sock today, but he purred the entire time I rubbed circulation to his ears. He proceeded to stop purring when I finally stuck him (he shook his head, wasting that precious drop of blood). I had to prick a second time to get a useful drop -- The meter read 442 ):

I have a couple pictures to upload of Ford demonstrating his thanks for the kit, hopefully I can load them tomorrow!

Thank y'all for the how-to video link.
 
I hold Cedric's head still, sitting behind him. I have better luck with his right ear, i guess b/c I am right handed. Telling him to "hold still" works sometimes, but he has flicked his ear on occasion. I make sure the meter is loaded & ready right next to me. At least I don't shake as much anymore when trying to get the tip of the strip next to the blood drop!

I have to say your Ford is about 1/2 the size that Nana's Blue was :lol: Blue was fat. Ford is quite handsome! you must make him your avitar!
 
Ford said:
I hope I'm just freaking out since this is the first time I've hometested, but Ford's numbers were 442 so I immediately retested and it was 443. This was the first time we successfully got a drop from his ear (wiggleworm).

I know that is high, but too high??

Megan
Click to expand...

Was this before or after the shot? Did you switch to 2U BID or still on 4U SID (once per day)? It's a high number, one that I might want to check urine for ketones, but it may be dropping, have you retested since getting those two numbers?
 
That was 20 hours post shot (4u SID). He hasn't been changed to BID bc vet wanted him to settle in and "get used to the new routine/family", do bloodwork, and go from there. I couldn't get a test this morning, but he was down to 257 at 12:30.

Is there anything to do when the numbers reach 450 or up??

Today is vet day-wish us luck.
 
Ford said:
That was 20 hours post shot (4u SID). He hasn't been changed to BID bc vet wanted him to settle in and "get used to the new routine/family", do bloodwork, and go from there. I couldn't get a test this morning, but he was down to 257 at 12:30.

Is there anything to do when the numbers reach 450 or up??

Today is vet day-wish us luck.
Click to expand...

2 units 2x/day will give him less of a roller coaster.
 
Ditto what Karen said, 2U two times per day will keep his numbers lower, hopefully 24 hours per day. By shooting only once per day you're getting lower numbers for only part of the day, the rest of the day it goes up. Shooting every 12 hours will help bring the BG down.

Agree that he will be getting used to the new family, new routine, but many of my FDs are adopted FDs and they get insulin while they transition to my home, 2 times per day, I monitor the BGs and like my sweet Ebony, she was adopted on April 22nd, and at the end of May she went off insulin due to the food change, less stress and the small amount of insulin that helped her heal.
 
I realize BID is better and I agree with the facts. BUT his vet recommended holding off for a few days. Today was going to be his transition day. I am in grad school and have been trying to rearrange schedule so I could be here at 12 hour intervals, the few days wait gave me time to do so.

2 am - 442
7 am - 4u PZi
12 pm - 257
4:30 pm - 441
 
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