Diabetic Cat Food

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Baxter & Henry

Member Since 2021
Hi There, I have 2 cats (they are brothers). Baxter and Henry are both 13.5 years old. They were both pretty chunky (maybe 18 lbs), but Baxter is down to 9.5lbs due to Diabetes. I just started him on insulin about a week ago. The vet also wants me to change their food to prescription diabetes food. Since January, they have been on Fancy Feast Pate, but it hadn't helped Baxter's diabetes. My other cat Henry is semi-feral, so he doesn't really go to the vet. He is still pretty plump and I haven't noticed all of the drinking and urinating with Henry, so I'm hoping he doesn't have diabetes. However, I started both cats on Purina Pro Plan DM wet food and they don't really seem to like it. Henry won't eat it at all. Baxter eats it a bit. Will they eventually eat it once they get used to it? How long should I wait and see if they'll go for it? Any recommendations on a diabetic food they will eat? Thanks!
 
Take the DM back and tell the vet the cats won't eat it. You should get your money back on the unopened tins. There is nothing special about that food and many tire quickly of the taste. Fancy Feast pates are low carb and an acceptable option for a diabetic.

What insulin type are you giving Baxter? and what dose? We are strong advocates of home testing blood sugars here, to make sure you are giving a good dose of insulin that isn't taking him too low.
 
Thanks for the info. Baxter is on one unit twice a day of Lantus. We go back to the vet later today for a blood sugar test, so hopefully he doesn't need to go higher on insulin! How do the cats do with blood sugar home testing? I'm just getting the hang of the shots, which are actually not too bad. Baxter is pretty easy going! What would I need to buy to test at home and how is it done?

I guess one of the reasons that I wanted to try the diabetic cat food is because my other cat (Henry) is quite heavy and I'm worried that he could have diabetes issues eventually too. He doesn't seem to be losing any weight on the fancy feast, although like I said he is somewhat feral, so I can't pick him up to weigh him. (He cuddles with me, but just doesn't like me picking him up.) I wish I could get Henry to lose weight and Baxter to gain weight!
 
Cats often test higher at the vet due to stress, so the numbers you get there may not represent the blood sugar numbers you get at home. As for at home, it got to the point where my Neko would purr through testing, because she knew she would get a treat afterwards. We try to associate good thing with testing, and pretty soon they come running once they know they are getting tested. You can buy any blood glucose meter for humans. Getting one that just needs a small blood drop and with cheap test strips (which is what you go through) is best. We test at the edge of the ears, where they don't feel it. There are some pictures and videos on how to do it here. Click on the blue link: Hometesting Links and Tips

Once Baxter's blood sugar gets better regulated, he should gain his weight back. Feeding just low carb wet food should eventually help Henry lose weight too. The "diabetic" food isn't anything special, ingredients aren't good quality, and will not help prevent diabetes. Listen to your cats on this one!
 
Thanks again for the info! Baxter's blood sugar numbers were 346 yesterday (down from 390 from a few months ago). He also did not lose or gain any weight. So, the vet was satisfied with his numbers, but wants to re-check in a week. I'm just glad he didn't need to increase his dose (at least for now). I even managed to get my Mom to do his shots a couple times. I wanted to train her, so that she can give his shots when I'm traveling. She did great too! I'll check out the info. on home testing. The vet also said they could stay on Fancy Feast if they don't want to switch to the prescription food.
 
Baxter & Henry said:
Hi There, I have 2 cats (they are brothers). Baxter and Henry are both 13.5 years old. They were both pretty chunky (maybe 18 lbs), but Baxter is down to 9.5lbs due to Diabetes. I just started him on insulin about a week ago. The vet also wants me to change their food to prescription diabetes food. Since January, they have been on Fancy Feast Pate, but it hadn't helped Baxter's diabetes. My other cat Henry is semi-feral, so he doesn't really go to the vet. He is still pretty plump and I haven't noticed all of the drinking and urinating with Henry, so I'm hoping he doesn't have diabetes. However, I started both cats on Purina Pro Plan DM wet food and they don't really seem to like it. Henry won't eat it at all. Baxter eats it a bit. Will they eventually eat it once they get used to it? How long should I wait and see if they'll go for it? Any recommendations on a diabetic food they will eat? Thanks!
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Hello there, my Linkin was tried on multiple diabetic wet and dry foods through vet, and pet stores, but when mine went down from 16-18 pounds to 6.7, he would not climb in weight even 2 months on diabetic dry food. Long story short and much research into calories and ingredients, next best thing is fancy feast, but only the pate is healthy for diabetic cats-although a vet will never agree, mine agreed it has kept him stable and back up to 12 pounds and down from 2 and half units to 1 and half units. A yr and half later all is great. I hope you give it a try cause I literally was in tears watching his loose skin fill back up to a healthy, happy weight within 3 weeks
 
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