Diabetic aggressive cat is keeping us from traveling :(

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Lisabee

Member Since 2012
My cat, Francesca, was diagnosed last April. She is on 1.5 units humiln twice daily. Since becoming diabetic, we have only left town once. During this vacation, we hired a pet sitter that was familiar with Francescas diabetes and aggressive behavior. All went well the first few days, then on the third day Francesca turned. She wouldn't let the pet sitter anywhere near her to shoot her. She had missed 2 doses at this point...I had to call a neighbor(a neighbor that always fed Francesca pre-diabetes) over to help my pet sitter with Francesca. As soon as my neighbor walked in the door, my cat came running at her full speed like a crazy cat. My cat bit her and scratched her badly. My cat sitter and neighbor were so scared to go back into my apartment. I had to deal with all of this while on the other side of the country :(. I called my vet to get a sedative for the cat. My cat sitter was able to go back and get the pill in her food, wait an hour, then with the help of another neighbor, get Francesca in her carrier to take her to my vet. ( they agreed to board her until we returned home 3 days later)

We are leaving again this weekend, so we decided our only solution was boarding her. My vet doesn't board usually, the last time was just a favor to me and my cat sitter, so we had to find a new place. It's amazing how little cat boarding services are available in a huge city like Chicago. Well, we found a place, took my cat in for her initial exam and she was not happy. She was a pain in the ass and attacked me badly while I was getting her back in her carrier. It shocked and upset me soo much. The vets said they will still board her, but she may need to be sedated and wear some sort of muzzle thing. They will have to have 2 people hold her to give her her shot. She gets so stressed out in a new environment around people she doesn't know, I dont want to board her and make the vet techs go through the stress. I don't know what to do! We are leaving in 2 days!!!!
 
You haven't a lot of choice other than canceling your trip.

At the vets, they do have meds they can give her to help her remain calm and keep everyone safe. She may need to be on them regularly - Prozac is just one medication which could help her.

When you have some time in the future, you may want to do some reading on managing problem cat behavior. "Psycho Kitty" by Pamela Johnson - Bennett may give you some ideas for helping your cat behave better. Any of the behavior therapy options take time, so its too late to do anything significant in 2 days.

Things that may help:
If she likes to play, active play sessions for 5-10 minutes, 2 to 3 times a day, may help reduce stress and bleed off some energy.
Feliway Comfort Zone plug-in diffusers release calming friendly, facial pheromones which help many cats relax.
Bach Flower Essences have been helpful to some.
 
Meanwhile, leave her carrier sitting out with a comfy towel in it and perhaps a small pinch of catnip (unless it makes her behavior worse)

Put a small low carb treat or too in it so she associates a positive thing with the carrier.

Put it in a warmish area a bit off the main paths of the house.

This gives her some time to hang out in it and feel safe in it.
 
Do you monitor her blood glucose levels? I've noticed with my own cat that when his levels are fairly high (>200), he's sometimes a grouchy, angry, bully that won't even let me pet him without attacking (might also happen if they're too low). Maybe she needs an insulin dose adjustment?
 
I worked with Dawn Allen, animal communicator, to improve the behavior of my aggressive cat (not diabetic, but hyperthyroid)

It was horrible to take him to the vet in a crate. What we now use is a "Cat Sack". We can handle him fine at home, so we pop him in the cat sack and carry him. He gets his head inspected first during exam -- then I put a muzzle/mask on him and unzip the cat sack for the vet to feel his innards. I hold his front end and whisper sweet nothings into his ears. Blood is drawn from his hind leg(s) while I am holding his front end. Zip up the cat sack to go home, remove mask/muzzle.

Dawn can help communicate why your kitty is so upset at the vet, and possible ways to make it better for all involved.

Buster said that he didn't like being "messed with" and they were rough and hurt him. I said they were rough because they were afraid that he would bite and scratch, and if I held him and we used the mask, they would not be afraid, and be more gentle.

bottom line - he used to be sedated for blood draws. After a few animal communication sessions and some changes in how we do things (cat sack, mask), he has not had to be sedated since 10/2008.

also --- Humulin N is a kind of harsh insulin lasting usually 8-10 hours. You may want to look into Levemir - this has a nice gentle effect and keeps your kitty in normal blood sugar range for longer duration.
 
Sorry to hear about Francesca...

I've only heard bad things about Humulin, but have no personal experience...

I like the idea of Thunder Coat for calming...but that's really just because cats in clothes make me laugh...

I really have no useful information...at all...find a friend with those crazy long vet gloves?

Best of luck...and sorry for my post...I had too much coffee at work...

R
 
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