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Peppersmom72

Peppersmom72

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Hi everyone! I'm not one to start trouble and usually I keep comments to myself but this has me baffled. I joined a support group online and was told that due to Pepper having Diabetes, Pancreatitis and possible CKD that I am giving her kitty crack by feeding her FF classic pate and Friskies. That it's too high in carbs and her protein level is too high which is causing kidney issues. I just want someone to give me a straight answer. I'm grasping at straws here, and seriously feel that I am not helping her at all and that she will just slowly keep getting sicker and sicker until she dies.
 
Peppersmom72 said:
Hi everyone! I'm not one to start trouble and usually I keep comments to myself but this has me baffled. I joined a support group online and was told that due to Pepper having Diabetes, Pancreatitis and possible CKD that I am giving her kitty crack by feeding her FF classic pate and Friskies. That it's too high in carbs and her protein level is too high which is causing kidney issues. I just want someone to give me a straight answer. I'm grasping at straws here, and seriously feel that I am not helping her at all and that she will just slowly keep getting sicker and sicker until she dies.
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Here's what I've read here and "out there":
  • Friskies and Fancy Feast pates all have under 10% carbs (exception: Friskies Indoor Cat with green lid) and are fine for diabetics
  • low protein with CKD is "old school" thinking - can lead to more muscle wasting
  • Fancy Feast pates can be too high in phosphorus for CKD kitties.
The dehydration from excessive urination can contribute to constipation and I know she struggles with that. I had a look at your SS and she's still higher than ideal. That will tax the kidneys more. If you can work at getting her into lower numbers more of the time it should help a lot of issues. Here are my suggestions:
  • aim to get a before bed test every days especially when you're out during the day
  • do several more daytime tests on days off to fill in the gaps
  • if this extra testing shows she's rarely, if ever, going lower than blue increase by 0.2 u after no more than 4 cycles because the longer she sits at too low a dose, the more she'll get stuck in high numbers
  • if several weeks (or longer) of increased testing and dose increases don't get her lower overall or give you nice nadirs (dark greens) but still high PSs or lots of bouncing give some thought to trying a depot insulin like Lantus.
I hope this helps. You can also post on the main forum about this. These are issues that come up fairly often. :)
 
Another addendum: pre shot tests are essential to know if the dose is safe to give. However, you need nadir data on several days at a dose to properly judge its effectiveness. I'm sure we can help you get her into a better BG range if you're willing to work at it a bit differently. :)
 
@Kris & Teasel I did a curve a couple weeks ago. I have been extremely tired and have not put the updated information on her SS. I did end up raising her Prozinc, but it seems now that she is drinking less and is getting picky again with her food. She seems to not have a BM, Unless I give her Miralax. The blood work on her SS (3/8) is the last one she had done. It was right after she was very sick and I spent close to $1000 for her care. I'm sorry if I sound like a bad mom, but I can't afford all these Dr visits. I'm trying to support my family and take care of a sick cat on $12/hr.
 
Peppersmom72 said:
@Kris & Teasel I did a curve a couple weeks ago. I have been extremely tired and have not put the updated information on her SS. I did end up raising her Prozinc, but it seems now that she is drinking less and is getting picky again with her food. She seems to not have a BM, Unless I give her Miralax. The blood work on her SS (3/8) is the last one she had done. It was right after she was very sick and I spent close to $1000 for her care. I'm sorry if I sound like a bad mom, but I can't afford all these Dr visits. I'm trying to support my family and take care of a sick cat on $12/hr.
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You're not a bad cat mom! :bighug: I'm sorry it's so hard for you. If you can add in the missing info on your SS that would help. I understand the budgetary constraints and wasn't suggesting you get bloodwork redone. I was interested in knowing whether you're sure she has kidney disease.

Re Miralax: if it works you can give it long term. Many members on FDMB do that.

Re BG numbers: if you can get those extra tests (no need for a curve very often) we can help you with dosing to get her into better numbers.
 
Kris & Teasel said:
You're not a bad cat mom! :bighug: I'm sorry it's so hard for you. If you can add in the missing info on your SS that would help. I understand the budgetary constraints and wasn't suggesting you get bloodwork redone. I was interested in knowing whether you're sure she has kidney disease.

Re Miralax: if it works you can give it long term. Many members on FDMB do that.

Re BG numbers: if you can get those extra tests (no need for a curve very often) we can help you with dosing to get her into better numbers.
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The vet said "probably has" from her blood test results, but she didn't do any urine tests. Also, I have posted on the FB diabetes group when all of this happened, and a few people there said from her results, that she's in stage 2 kidney failure.
I know cats are carnivores, so I'm wondering if that would be better or more cost effective than to buy canned food, since I'm already buying meat for my family.
 
It's just so sad because when she was first diagnosed, and she started her insulin, she was happy and chasing her laser pointer. Now nothing, she wakes me up 2times a night. She wants to eat non stop and she just lays around. It looks like she is peeing a bit more now than she did. I raised her insulin from 1.2 to 1.4 units of Prozinc.
 
Fancy feast is a little high in phosphorus for a ckd cat. For now it's OK but Look at the list and pick foods that are under 10 percent carb and under 250 phosphorus. I found bff helped my ckd cat lower his phosphorus. You don't need low protien.


There's a great group on Facebook for cats with ckd called Cats with Chronic Renal Failure
 
Kidney failure is a frightening term. It would be better to call it reduced kidney function or something less scary sounding. It just means that at her age her kidneys aren't functioning optimally and you need to accommodate that. Lower phosphorus food is a place to start.

As far as her diabetes clinical signs, I'm quite confident that if you can get on top of her BG levels better that will improve and it'll help her kidneys too. It won't involve a lot of extra expense just a little more testing on your part. We can help you with deciding on dose based on BG numbers.
 
Are you still using the AlphaTrak? You can save a TON of money by switching to a human meter. That's what most of us use and they work just fine, plus the test strips are a fraction of the cost of the AT2 strips. The meters do read differently, but the numbers on the human meter give you enough information to take good care of your fur baby.

Also, if you're interested in making food for them at home, I use the supplement powder from Foodfurlife.com. You just add some of that and a little water and blend up the meat. It's super fast and easy, and definitely cheaper than buying food. The powder feels a little expensive at first, but it lasts forever. And they'll send you a sample so you can see if your kitties will eat it before you buy a whole bag.
 
Hey Missy! I've been out of town, so just now getting caught up. I just wanted to pop in and say that you're definitely not a bad cat mom! We all do what we can do with what we have...and since none of us are rich, we have to work around that.
 
Djamila said:
Are you still using the AlphaTrak? You can save a TON of money by switching to a human meter. That's what most of us use and they work just fine, plus the test strips are a fraction of the cost of the AT2 strips. The meters do read differently, but the numbers on the human meter give you enough information to take good care of your fur baby.

Also, if you're interested in making food for them at home, I use the supplement powder from Foodfurlife.com. You just add some of that and a little water and blend up the meat. It's super fast and easy, and definitely cheaper than buying food. The powder feels a little expensive at first, but it lasts forever. And they'll send you a sample so you can see if your kitties will eat it before you buy a whole bag.
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No. I couldn't afford the strips, so I've switched to Relion Prime.
 
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