Boarding a diabetic

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Deborah & Gadget

Deborah & Gadget

Member Since 2015
I have been learning so much on the Forum today! But have not found answers to my 2 questions which I will post as two threads since they are unrelated:
I MUST go out of town for work at the end of March. I cannot leave my sugar kitty home because my cat sitter can not give him his shot even if I change the times no way can she do it. But also my other 2 cats are problem eaters one will stop eating wet food with out warning and will starve. I have to start her eating with dry food and then switch her back to wet. The other cat eats too much wet food and is still losing too much weight so probably when I leave will have to put dry food down in addition to wet food. Gadget the diabetic will eat anything (except Tiki Cat and Wueruva not any flavor ever!) But I don't want him to eat dry food. So I have a couple of boarding options just want message board member input/experience with boarding. I can't see any way to keep him at home. Still looking tho.
 
The few times I boarded my diabetic cats, I left very detailed written instructions for my vet's office, where they were staying. It included the dose and don't shoot number. I also left their food and instructions they must test with my meters before every shot. I had 2 diabetic cats that I boarded and they each had their own meter. Even though there were times that my vet's office tried to discourage me from testing before every shot, they followed my instructions exactly as written.
 
Thank you for the reply! I have found 2 places to consider for boarding and one is my vets office the other a more delux pet "lodge" with individual cat rooms however I am leaning toward the vet who is very nice and reliable. But I keep hearing how stressed out my cat will be? He is stressed out at home when I'm gone any way. Did your cats seem traumatized by the experience? I will be gone for a week. Were your cats numbers/readings elevated when you were gone?
 
This terrifies me too! We're going away for 5 WEEKS in May / June and are so scared. Dweezil is IMMENSELY difficult to get blood out of. He has refuses multiple times to do it at the vet, and he is hard to get when we try also. We are going to have to leave detailed instructions for our regular cattery boarding place (who are experienced in feline Diabetes) and lower his dose to keep him as safe as can possibly be without being able to be tested.

We WERE planning to have them take him to our vet halfway through for a fructosamine test so see how he'd been doing the two weeks prior, but after last week when he again got hugely stressed in the vet and they couldn't do anything, there's just no way this can happen. We cannot risk him freaking out completely and refusing to go back to the cattery.
 
Gadget has only spent one night away from home due to surgery. Plus our vet will usually do home visits for my 3 cats yearly exams. So when I do take him in to the vet he is petrified.
It would be nice to leave him at home if only I could find someone to give his insulin but I have failed to find anyone that could come twice a day, be completely dependable, be willing to learn to test and give shots, live close by so the 12 hour time table is practicle, and not be freaked out by all this! And even if I did find someone there is the whole food thing with catering to 3 cats. I'm just going to have to leave dry food down for the one while I'm gone. Thanks to the message board I learned there is an automatic feeder so I've ordered that already. At least she won't be able to eat too much of the dry food!
Any way I appreciate your replys!!!
 
When Colby boards at the vet, they keep him in the front kennels, away from all the regular boarders. They say that they keep all the diabetic cats or others with special needs up front, where they can keep an eye on them. I don't know if all vets do this, but mine does and so does the one where my niece worked. I'm fortunate that Colby is a pretty relaxed kitty and does rather well when being boarded. I hope you have a good experience too!
 
I too have to board my kitties for a week in march. I'm scared but have faith they can handle it..i might lower the dose a bit and just make sure he has lots of carbs and stuff just in case. He still eats some dry food so I dont think he'll be going hypo any time soon. Its only kitties at this place, and it's clear she loves them and does her job well, that makes me feel secure.
 
I've been fighting this exact battle since Tasha was diagnosed last September. Our cat sitter was finally able to shoot, but she can't test and Tasha wasn't regulating well. Tasha wouldn't board well. She's generally not cooperative with anyone but us. We switched vets in January (long story) and the new cat-only vet is amazing. They have great boarding facilities and we've boarded Tasha twice while we were in town as a trial. Yes, Tasha was stressed both times, but we are impressed with how they handled it. They're able to test her if necessary, able to give her (and adjust) her insulin each time (sometimes the cat sitter couldn't do it). We have two cats so this way, they can monitor exactly what Tasha's eating as opposed to Ripley so no dosing on an empty belly, they can give an appetite stimulant, and they even were able to syringe feed once.

The downside - Tasha's more stressed there than at home. She eats better at home, meaning she likely wouldn't need the appetite stimulant or syringe feeding. But she's being regularly monitored and getting her insulin consistently. At home, she probably eats (again, does SHE eat, or does Ripley?), usually the cat sitter can give her insulin, there's never going to be any testing, and the cat sitter scoops, feeds, gives meds, loves on them a bit, and leaves twice a day. The other 23+ hours, kitties are on their own if there's a problem.

We've been fortunate to finally find a good boarding situation. It's not without its drawbacks, but we think the pros outweigh the cons enough that we're going away for 5 days very soon and leaving the furballs in boarding rather than at home. We aren't requiring them to test every time since they've been so good at monitoring other signs. and making adjustments.

I recommend doing a trial boarding of a couple of nights (it can take 24 hours for kitty to settle in) while you're in town if it would make you feel better.
 
I had one of the vet techs from my vet's office take care of Maggie at home. She came twice a day, and was willing to test. I had her call if there was a problem or question, and email me Maggie's numbers (today it would be text). Once there was a problem and she just took Maggie to the vet.

The biggest problem with this was not having anyone there between visits. I wish I could have found someone to stay in the house. But Maggie would never eat at the vet so this was the best compromise for us. (It still made me nuts with worry, though!)
 
When we go away in May / June, it's extra scary because if something does happen, we can't get back as we will be hundreds of thousands of miles away in another country for five weeks.

The first night of boarding we will still be in the country, but after that, we will be a 14 hour flight away. We will be constantly contactable by phone, text and email but I'm still scared. I will be waking up every morning terrified to check my phone in case something has happened.
 
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