diabetes beginner

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jasons mom

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Hi, just found out my male cat has diabetes. Have to say I'm having a meltdown. It makes me physically sick to my stomach to think I have to stick a needle in him twice a day. Not to mention poking his ear to test. I went online and the info is so scary. So many things could go wrong. LIke overdosing, underdosing, hitting a blood vein, the needle bending or breaking. Sure could use some advice or reassurance it's not as bad as it sounds. Going to the vet today to learn how to administer the insulin. Not the mention the cost of it all. I"d do anything for my animal but have to say it's going to a big dent in my budget. I just retired and wasn't planning on an extra 2 or 3 thousand dollars a year. Any suggestions or help would be greatly appreciated.
 
welcome to the site.

It's not bad as you think. Seriously. I have two cats that get insulin and they pretty much sleep through the ear pokes when I home test, so it's not something that is not hurtful as you imagine. And giving shots do not hurt them either - many people test their cats, then put down foods, prepare the shot and give the shot while the cat eats. Cats care less... they are eating!

In the beginning, I think every person felt overwhelmed and expected everything horrifying. Except people who ARE diabetic, and they realize that it's a perfectly manageable condition because they get by quite fine in life as diabetics.

There are so many things that can be done to save money, so don't be worrying about that either. First, you can home test and do NOT need to take your cat into the vet for expensive curves. The resulting numbers will not be true because of stress, so you will be wasting your money. Any old human blood glucose meter from the pharmacy is just fine for testing, and many people get the Relion meter because it's cheaper and so are the test strips for it.

What insulin you are using, and the starting dose which should not be over 1unit twice a day, are important info to post here because some vets start with a dose that is much too high as they base the dose on maybe high BG numbers from the vet visit.

Food is very important and the best foods are wet low carb, not the expensive vet foods, so don't waste you money on that expensive foods.... I bet your cat won't even like it because most cats refuse to eat it. Get some of the fancy feast or friskies pate flavors, no grilled or gravy, and it's cheaper, yummy, and your cat will love it compared to the vet food.
Dry food is very high carb and contributes to your cat's high numbers, so removing any dry food and treats will help your cat.

There are plenty of people here who can help you. After your vet visit, please post info like what insulin and what dose was advised, plus any other info from the visit, and people can help you get started nicely.
 
jasons mom,


Underdosing is a far lesser problem than overdosing, so that is at least one worry you can un-check.

Tell the vet. now when you are going there to learn how to give insulin, to also show you how to hometest.

You can get a beginners kit from here. I think. That is a blood sugar meter and meter strips. We test every 3rd hour, so throughout a day of test from am morning to pm evening, we generally test 4-5 times, so that is 4-5 meter strips. You also need a needle to poke with. If you buy desinfection alchohol, you can clean the needle and use it more than one time.

I was one of those who nearly fainted every time for good over a year or two ... :lol: so I know what you are feeling. But now after nearly 5 years I am less frantic, and my Simba has always been fantastic to give the insulin shots too and taking the blood tests on. So HE helped me.


When it comes to testing the blood sugar, there are conflicting ideas. The first year the vets had me come in and leave Simba there for the day and they did a day's testing. The second year they gave me a blood glucose meter for free and told me to hometest but by doing curves once a week. After coming here the third year, I started to hometest everyday. But I fell ill during 2008, spinal cord injury, making testing very difficult for me so I had to stop and instead go to the vets and do fructosamine blood tests on Simba. I however hometest every now and then, and when not always have the gear ready at hand if he should start showing signs of a hypo attack. For that emergency I have dextrose sugar which I mix with water and syringe feed him fast, and lots of it.


If there is anyone on here that lives near you, several are so helpful that they might be able to come to you and help you. You've come to the right place and you and Jason are in good hands here.

Also find out what insulin you will be using. There are subforums for each insulin type, viewforum.php?f=5 , where the insulin users post their blood sugar test numbers, and get help with dosage. You can give the website address to here, to your vet so he/she sees for herself that you will be in good hands here.
 
I've yet to hear of a needle breaking, so scratch that one off your list too. And if a needle bends, no big deal, toss it and get a new one.

I know exactly how you feel. In fact, meltdown was a word I used often, but trust me that things will get better. First of all, you've come to the right site to get help. The folks here are amazing. Can't say enough good about the help Sam and I received. Secondly, if you want to do this, you can. You just have to resolve not to give into the fear and worry and nerves. Cats are far more tolerant than most people understand. And cut yourself some slack. No one gets the hang of hometesting on the first try. Or the second. Or the third. :mrgreen: It takes doing but with doing comes proficiency.

Also, don't be afraid to ask questions but at the same time, read. I can't stress that enough. There is so much information on this site to take in, but reading through it several times will help tremendously.

Hang in there. We're all in this together.
 
jason's mom,

you are not alone. my male kittie, eddie, has also just been diagnosed. the entire thing sounds horrifying to me...i hate needles, and i absolutely abhor pricking his little ears over and over and over...i mean i *really* hate doing it.

i just joined this forum today..the folks are fantastic here...wow...so much support.

hang in there...i'm also telling myself the same thing...i keep hearing that it gets easier...

:)
 
Good Morning and Welcome to the FDMB Family Jason & Mom,

Oh I think I could have used the word meltdown myself when I learned that my first cat Muse had diabetes. Notice I said my first diabetic cat....The reason is because this is such an easy disease to manage that after Muse passed away (cancer not diabetes) I adopted my current diabetic cat Max from this very board. Trust me I have 9 other cats so if this wasn't something that is very easy to manage after losing Muse and having 9 other cats I certainly wouldn't have volunteered to take on yet another one.

Now I probably wasn't as freaked out by the whole thing as much as some of the newbies when I first got here because I have been living many years with the knowledge of Diabetes as my mother, sister and father in law are all human diabetics, so I at least had some concept of how easy it was to treat and control...But in a cat? Now that was another whole ball of wax. Muse was a dream to test and give insulin to, but we had a long history together, so she was a great "training cat", unfortunately we didn't get to do the sugar dance together very long before she passed. Then along came Max.

Now Max and I had no history together, and he had no reason to trust me, or for that matter to trust anyone, but that is a story for another day. But I tested him within the first 12 hours he was in my home. Now if I can test a cat that has never even seen me before I decided to take a lancet and poke him in the ear, think how easy it will be for you and Jason, who already knows, loves, and trusts you.

And it was a really good thing that I was home testing when Max entered our lives...When he was rescued from certain death, his BG was 485, he went home with a lady from this board while we arranged transport to me here. ( Max was in Boston & I'm in Nebraska). She started him on 1u of Lantus twice a day and the week she had him he stayed in the 200s on his preshot numbers, yet when he got here to my house the first test I took he was already dropping into the low 100s at preshot, And about 4 days later went into remission or off insulin. But if I had not been home testing him, I would not have realized that he was already ready to stop his insulin and could have very easily overdosed him. But because of all the great advice I had gotten here when I first came here with Muse, I knew he was dropping to low to give insulin to. I knew how to test him at home.

To date (2 months after adopting Max) my vet has yet to lay eyes on him. They know he exists, they have gotten his blood work paperwork that he came with when I adopted him, they have seen his spreadsheets which I email them once a month, but since he was 12 years old, neutered and up to date on all his shots when he arrived I have had no reason to take him into the vet's. And unless something besides his diabetes flares up I don't think they will lay eyes on him until everyone goes in for their yearly checkups. So you can check the expense of the vet office visits off your list of things to worry about.

For Max, diet was the biggest factor. Switching him off dry food onto wet canned diet dropped him into remission. Now remember at the very beginning I said I have 9 other cats and Max made number 10, so how do I balance everyone's diet...the answer is I don't..everyone eats what the diabetic eats. I feed everyone just good old fashioned Friskies pate flavors, others also feed Fancy Feast Classics or 9-lives pate flavors etc. Which are far cheaper and just as good if not better than the vet's expensive food. So if you have more kitties in the household besides Jason you can just switch everyone over to the same diet. I can't begin to tell you how much better even my civies (non-diabetic) cats are doing on the diet switch as well as my extra sweet Max. So check off expense of prescription food.

Never yet heard of a needle breaking, bending sure but no big deal just toss it and get a new one. The needles are also so fine they are more like stiff hairs than a needle. They are very tiny and don't hurt the kitty at all. The few shots that I had to give Max he was face first in his bowl of food and didn't even look up. At first he was hard to test because he didn't know me well yet, so in the beginning he would squirm so I would just wrap him up in a big towel so only his head was showing. Now I just shake the container of test strips and tell him "It's Ears Time!" and he comes running to jump up on my bed where I have always tested him. He sits quietly while he gets his ear poke. But he has learned that when he hears the meter beep that there is a treat coming his way. He loves his treats so it is a fair trade for him, he gets a treat, loved on and brushed all for just sitting still while mom pokes his ear. It works for him and me. So there are a couple more things to check off the list of things to worry about.

If you need it you can get a newbie kit from Lori and Tom on this board, we all donate to the newbie kits so that folks like you that overwhelmed or on limited income can get a good start. All Lori asks is that you pay for the shipping which is around $5 I think. That will get you a meter, test strips, a rice sock (for warming their ears), lancets, etc. Or you can just go buy any human meter that takes a very small blood sample. Don't let the vet talk you into an expensive animal only meter. Not only are they unnecessary & expensive, the test strips are only sold through the vet's. Which is great if you don't find that you need one at 2am. Whereas the meter I use (Relion mini) I can just run out to my local Wal-mart any time of the day or night to go grab more strips if I need them. I think when I got mine it was in the neighborhood of $30 for the meter, and 50 test strips.

You and Jason will be just fine as you are now in some of the best hands you could be in. There are years and years of living day in and day out with a diabetic cat here. As well as just about anything else catwise. The only thing I will caution you about is don't change his diet until you are home testing, because sometimes just the elimination of dry food will drop them as much as 100 pts.

Again Welcome...and remember..Just Breathe this is very doable, and you have people from around the world now that will hold your hand and paw through it all.

Mel, Max & The Fur Gang
 
jasons mom said:
Hi, just found out my male cat has diabetes. Have to say I'm having a meltdown. It makes me physically sick to my stomach to think I have to stick a needle in him twice a day. Not to mention poking his ear to test. I went online and the info is so scary. So many things could go wrong. LIke overdosing, underdosing, hitting a blood vein, the needle bending or breaking. Sure could use some advice or reassurance it's not as bad as it sounds. Going to the vet today to learn how to administer the insulin. Not the mention the cost of it all. I"d do anything for my animal but have to say it's going to a big dent in my budget. I just retired and wasn't planning on an extra 2 or 3 thousand dollars a year. Any suggestions or help would be greatly appreciated.
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Getting a diagnosis of diabetes is overwhelming at first, but I promise you that it is not as bad as your imagination. :mrgreen:

One of the first things I will recommend is that you learn to hometest. This is done with any brand of human glucose meter including store brands. You do not need to buy a special "pet" glucose meter. By hometesting, this will greatly reduce any of the things you are worried about.

By testing before every shot, you will know if 1) It is safe to give the insulin, 2) If you need to change the dose, and 3) eliminate the need to take your cat in for routine glucose testing. If you use the storebrand meter, you will find the strips are relatively inexpensive. A good meter is Walmart's Relion brand meters.

Depending on the insulin prescribed there are ways to save on that cost also. If you are using either Lantus or Levemir, ask the vet for a script for either cartridges or prefilled pens. The initial cost is higher than a vial (about twice as much), but it will last you 5 times longer than a single vial. One prescription for a package of cartridges or pens (5 in a package) will almost be a year's worth of insulin depending on your dose. With a single vial, you may get two months worth before it starts becoming ineffective.

By using just these couple of suggestions, your monthly care costs should be less than $100 and that is including the insulin.
 
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