Cat litter - Pawcheck or Kit4cat

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pawpet

Member Since 2014
My cat was recently diagnosed with Diabetes, we changed her diet and the vet recommended a urine test every 6 month. I checked on line and found non-absorbent litters such as Pawcheck and Kit4cat. Anyone tried either one of these?
 
I tried both and they both worked, but remember that some cats are more difficult about their litters than others.
The Pawcheck is reusable if you have to do it on a regular basis.
 
Most of us caretakers here test our cat's blood glucose level using a human blood glucose meter. We prick the outer edge of the ear to get the blood sample.
We also record the BG values and other information in a spreadsheet. Here is how to setup the spreadsheet if you go that route
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=50130
 
What insulin, dose and schedule?
What diet?

Too much insulin can be fatal very quickly. Too little insulin may result in diabetic ketoacidosis and/or hepatic lipidosis from the breakdown of fat for energy. Both of those conditions are very expensive to treat and potentially fatal.

Home monitoring is absolutely essential for your cat's safety and optimal health. We suggest getting an inexpensive glucometer such as the WalMart ReliOn Confirm, Confirm Micro, or Prime, or purchasing through our shopping link at ADW and getting theArkray USA Glucocard 01 or 01 Mini. Also get matching test strips for the meter and 26-28 gauge lancets to make a tiny prick on theo uter edge of the ear. Practice on an apple and yourself a few times to get a feel for it. Then test on the upper, outer edge of the ear, just between the visible vein and the ear's edge. Many cats tolerate this quite well, especially if a low carb treat is given at each test time.
 
Thank you everyone for your input. Right now, my cat does not need insulin yet, according to my vet. Just mild symptoms of diabetes that need to be monitored. He requested to run a urinalysis every 6 month. Urine collection at home will be somewhat challenging for me...
 
What does your vet want to analyze the urine for?
For many tests a sterile urine sample is required and your vet has to draw such a sample.
 
The vet told me he could either get the urine with a needle, or I can collect a fresh sample and bring it to the clinic. The diabetes has been on and off, the test he ran did not always come positive.
 
If the vet only wants to test for glucose in the urine you can purchase test strips that you place n the urine, You can get those at a human pharmacy. You likely will have to ask the pharmacist since they are frequently in back of the counter.
You want the sample to test negative for glucose
 
Ah. OK.

See my signature link Secondary Monitoring Tools for some additional assessments which may be helpful, as well as a few tips on urine testing.
 
We have kit4kat at my vet. It's a pretty new product for us but we just had a client come in who needed to do urine testing 3 times a day for 3 days for her diabetic cat. Her cat has neuropathy and can't walk well. He pees on the floor & not in his box most of the time. We gave her 2 different things to try. The next week she told me that the kit4kat was "fantastic" and that she and her cat loved it! She said the cat was using the litterbox with it when he normally won't even go in it. I can't guarantee this will be your experience but I was pretty stoked to hear that it worked that well.
 
I bought the Pawcheck litter since it was cheaper. The package was surprisingly small but it worked, I was able to get the urine from my cat. Thank you for all your input, this was much easier than I thought.
 
By the way, my vet did not offer any litter for urine collection. I found them on Amazon, in case anyone is interested.
 
Aquarium gravel seems a good alternative of urine collection, if that works! The vet checked the urine sample, and he told me it showed some low positive for glucose. Just keep monitoring.
 
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