Diagnosed today... grain free food?

[Knotty dee and Jaxon]

Hello, this is my first post as my 9 year old (10 yrs next month) Maine coon named jaxon was diagnosed with diabetes today. This is all too new and fresh with hurt for us. I am wondering about food that is grain free as Jaxon does not tolerate grain. He has blood in his stool when eating a grain diet. this has been an issue for him for many years and he was completely checked out for other causes to this blood in stool years ago. grain free was the only relief he received. Is there such a thing as grain free diabetic food? any help would be great. Jaxon and i return to the vet on monday for his first injection....

 

[Sue and Oliver (GA)]

We like wet low carb food, so yes, grain free. Here is a link to the food chart

http://binkyspage.tripod.com/canfood.html

We feed under 8% carbs.

This vet's website has great nutrition info:
www.catinfo.carb

We would also urge you to test Jaxon's glucose at home, just like you would your 2 legged child. We'd love to teach you how. Sometimes a food change makes a big difference in the glucose levels so keeping track of his levels will let you see how much a food change affects his numbers. When we switched Oliver from dry to wet, he came down 100 points overnight.

Keep reading and asking questions. We'd love to help you help Jaxon.

 

[squeem3]

There is grain-free food but not all of them are suitable for diabetics. Diabetics need foods that are low in carbs. Canned food or raw food is best for diabetics.

Here are the food charts/lists that we use:

Binky's canned food charts
Pet Food Nutritional Values list
Hobo's Guide To Nutritional Values
Dr. Lynne's Wet Food list
List of low carb gluten free Fancy Feast

On Binky's charts, stick with foods that have a number 10 or less in the carbs colum. On the Pet Food Nutritional Values Chart and Hobo's Guide, look at the %kcal from carbs column and choose foods that have a number 10 or less.

Hobo's Guide in particular lists the ingredients in the listed foods so use it to find grain-free brand. You can also check a pet food company's web site to see if there are any grain-free foods and compare those foods with the food charts/lists to see which ones are low carb.

Some grain-free brands that I am aware of that are suitable for diabetics are Nature's Variety Instinct, Merrick, Innova EVO, Before Grain, Blue Buffalo Wilderness, Wellness, and Weruva.

 

[Knotty dee and Jaxon]

Thank you both for the helpful information. I will be completing Jaxon's BG at home as from what understand is that it is less stressful for him and will provide more accurate readings as stress causes the BG to rise.

I am also worried about hypoglycemia and the risk of seizures. does this happen every time the blood sugar drops low? will i be able to hear him if it happens at night?


Thank you

Dee and Jax

 

[squeem3]

I am also worried about hypoglycemia and the risk of seizures. does this happen every time the blood sugar drops low? will i be able to hear him if it happens at night?

Hypoglycemia symptoms tend to show up once the bgs start to drop below 60 mg/dl or so. Symptoms vary for every cat. Some cats exhibit very subtle easy to miss symptoms, like being fussy or more talkative. Other cats do not show any symptoms until the bg get so low that they start have some of the severe symptoms like seizures and difficulty walking. Do you have the hypo treatment sheet printed out? http://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=1122 And be sure to keep these items on hand to use if your cat hypos: http://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=2354 If you think your cat may be acting a little odd and it hasn't been too long since the insulin shot, get a bg test done to rule out a possible low bg.

For your peace of mind, be sure to check the bg before giving each insulin shot so you know if it is safe to give the insulin or not. Newbies shouldn't give insulin if the bg is under 200 mg/dl. Get a bg test before you go to bed so you can be sure that your cat isn't at risk for a potential hypo later in the night.

 

[Knotty dee and Jaxon]

Thank you for the helpful information i will be sure to print out the reference materials.