Conflicting vet reports and now im confused

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Geejay325

Member Since 2015
Hello. I foster a 12+ year old diabetic cat. She is also allergic to the food which makes her skin crusty and scaly. She is losing weight rapidly and her sugar was last up at 460. Her sugar was within normal on D/M but shes allergic. Vet 1 put her on Z/D and Prednisone and her skin cleared within 4 days. But yer sugar went up.

Vet 2 attributes the clear skin to the prednisone. Not the Z/d allergy food and also attributes the higher sugar partially to tye prednisone.

Vet 1 says its ok to give her tuna and boiled chicken as a supplement. Vet2 says no way since diabetics cant process those proteins.

Vet 1 wants to do a day-long glucose curve for $300. Vet 2 says those are stressful for the cat and therefore inaccurate and we would be chasing her sugar numbers. He wants her off the prednisone for a week, then a blood test, then see how her skin looks. Then discuss maybe a royal canin diabetes food or the z/d and insulin.

Im confused now as to whats best. Can anyone shed some light please? Thank you so much
 
Welcome to FDMB.

Maybe reading some of Cat Info will help. It is written by Dr Pierson, a veterinarian.

We figure you treat whatever other conditions are happening and adjust the insulin as needed. Prednisone is notorious for raising the glucose; you may need to work around it for severe allergy.

There are many cats which eat tuna or chicken with no problem, so I am not sure why Vet 2 says they cannot process those.

You can do a glucose curve at home yourself, with a human glucometer, test strips, and lancets. The numbers will be more representative of the usual numbers.
 
Squeaker also has food allergies. His IM suggested Hill's Rx d/d duck or venison. I was never a believer in Hill's Rx food, but when I started to use the d/d it made a difference. The key to food allergies is a novel protein so the d/d venison might be a good option. I also feed Weruva but they are beef and chicken or chicken and duck.
 
I think Vet 2 sounds better than Vet 1, except for the comment about tuna and chicken. However if kitty has food allergies, I agree with Anita: try a novel protein that she hasn't had before. That would mean not giving her chicken and tuna since those might be found more commonly in cat foods.

Are you home testing? If not, let us know and we can provide info to help you learn how. Then you can do your own curve at home, which won't be stressful for the kitty, so the numbers will be accurate.
 
I had 2 civvies that were allergic to fish. Needless to say I have never give fish/seafood flavored foods since and it's been over 15 years. And I had one who was allergic to the Fresh Step litter when they started putting carbon in it.

I agree with Vet 2. My vet actually suggested boiled chicken or beef in place of the dry food. Certainly not as the primary food as so much nutrients are missing. So I use it for the in between meals and snacks. I cut all dry food from Smokey. My 2 civvies still get it though. My hubby left the bowl down this morning and I think Smokey got into it which caused his raise this morning.
 
I could be wrong but, I think Vet 2 was trying to say that chicken and tuna are 2 allergens that your cat might not be able to "process" without an allergic reaction???? Not sure but, it sounds more feasible that way. I like Vet 2 better than Vet 1. :)
 
I think both your vets are a little nutter-butters. But since vet 1 looks like they just want to make money off of you, vet 2 looks like your better option. Just don't let them hand you a bag of dry "Diabetic" Royal Canin. That stuff is a bag of corn.

I have had good luck with EVO Duck for a novel protein/limited ingredient.

For prescription food d/d, though still high, is lower than z/d in carbs. In the end, you may need to treat the diabetes secondary. I would try a few different low carb limited ingredient/novel protein foods before giving up, but if it takes higher carb food and more insulin to keep her confortable, then it is what it is.
 
Not sure what to say about the Vet situation, except to say that I adored my vet, but if I had followed his directions I would have killed my cat. Vets don't always know as much as they should about feline diabetes. Have you considered a raw diet? My neighbor's cat had a lot of allergy/skin issues and switching to raw cleared them right up. It's also been great for my sugar cat. I've used Stella and Chewy's which has to be re-hydrated, and Rad Cat which is a frozen raw. It took a little getting used to, but my cats have never been so healthy!
 
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