Avoiding relapse

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drjsiems

drjsiems

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I have posted this on the Honeymoon Forum and the Think Tank by suggestion, and it has been suggested that I post it here also since there appears to be a lot more traffic here, and apparently it is a topic many of us want to know about!! Does anyone know if there are precautions I should take to help avoid Jake from falling out of remission? Other than the obvious of no dry food are there other things to avoid to help a cat stay in remission? One thing I was particularly wondering about is stress. I know that stress can falsely (temporarily) elevate blood sugar, but can stress make the diabetes come back?

We are seriously entertaining the idea of getting a couple more cats (kittens) from the Humane Society - they have so many that need a home - but I do not want to jeapordize Jake's health in any way! I don't think that he would even get that stressed about new cats - he has seen many come and go over his 18 plus years - but I do not want to take any unnecessary chances that might cause too much stress that could cause the diabetes to return. Jake's well being comes first. Advice please - thank you!

Judy & Jake
 
Hello. I am glad you posted this cause I was kind of wondering the same thing. My husband and I are thinking about getting a kitten, because squishy has always been around other animals. A couple of months before we brought him home he lost his friend tippy-toes. squishy is not in remission, but I was wondering if getting a new kitten would help him with stress or make him stressed.
 
While there're no guarantees that Jake will never relapse, the three things you can do to lower the chances of him ever becoming a full-blown diabetic again are:

1. stay with low-carb food for the rest of his life.
2. test his blood sugar levels at least once a month, and any time he appears 'off'. That will help you catch a diabetic relapse early, and may also give you warning of developing health issues.
3. treat any health conditions as promptly as possible. Any condition that causes pain, infection or inflammation can raise BG levels; that includes even minor things like tartar build-up on the teeth.

I think getting kittens for Jake would be fine, especially if Jake's seen a lot of them over the years. I'd suggest a slow introduction to the family -- keep them segregated in a separate room at first, let them 'talk' under the door, eventually have the door open but with some sort of grate between them so they can see each other, etc. If Jake does start to stress out, stuff like Rescue Remedy or Feliway can help.

For Squishy, it sounds like he's been with less animals than Jake, but he's also not in remission. If you decide to get him some playmates, 'd still keep the introductions slow, but any temporary elevations in Squishy's BG levels should be easy enough to offset.
 
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