Do well-regulated cats come back to being "themselves?"

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evakot

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Ok, so I have a newly diagnosed cat and what concerns me is that I noticed that ever since he started showing symptoms (drinking, peeing, hunger) 2 weeks ago he is not being himself. He is normally a lazy bum who sleeps more than the alotted 2/3 of his life, but at least he used to look and act like he was enjoying himself and like he liked his life. He used to watch the birds and look out at the passing cars through the front door glass. In the evenings he would get energetic and chase his little sister, or scratch his scratcher vigorously. He would roll pens under the carpet and hop up on the counter to splash the water from the faucet. He would run from room to room and make a noise of a herd of elephants with his feet.

Now he looks/acts miserable. He mostly sleeps, but not in a content type of way as he used to. He goes downstairs to eat and use the litter box but then goes right back up and just sits or lays on his pillows. My heart is aching seeing him just "exist."

I miss his old, vibrant, silly-goose self. Will he be "back" after his sugar is regulated...?

E
 
From what I've read here, definitely YES! I can't say from personal experience - we were very lucky and never needed to go on insulin - but story after story here has included something about how the kitty acts far, far better than for years once the diabetes is treated. It doesn't even have to be well regulated. The improvement seems to come simply with treatment.
 
Calliope got right back to her old self. In fact, I thought she was better than she'd been in a few years.

She's got arthritis now, CRF and HyperT, but she's still much better now than she was when she was diagnosed.

Don't fret. Regulated sugar kitties live happy lives!
 
they start feeling better within a few weeks of starting insulin and/or changing diet to Low Carbohydrate - High Protein canned food. (getting rid of dry food reduces the blood sugar and burden on the ailing pancreas)
 
Absolutely you will see an improvement if not complete return to normalacy. Pearl as a MILLION ZILLION things wrong and the change after getting on insulin was quite apparent not long after getting on insulin.
 
"Evakot" - sorry, don't know your "real" name!

Yes, you should see the old behaviors return. Within a few weeks, my Porky was so much more energetic: dashing around the house, playing with his "little bro", and being just more interested in everything around him. I just didn't realize how lethargic and listless he had become - but he's back to his kitten-ish self once more!

It's exhausting at times to keep up with him :-D - but I wouldn't have it any other way!
 
Hi "E".

Welcome to our board - this is the best place to be if you have an extra sweet kitty as we do. There are a group of very supportive, well-informed, helpful people on here.

In answer to your above question, I can't speak for all the kitties - some have health problems other than diabetes - but speaking strictly from experience (and from other kitties I've seen who are on the board) Dude is very much the kitty he always has been. He was diagnosed in 2004 - and has been on several different insulins over the past 6 years - currently is on Levemir.

He will be 16 in a few months - and aside from normal age problems, is doing very well. I don't know if he could be called "well-regulated" as he is what is called a "moon kitty" - with every full moon his numbers become a bit erratic and either go high or low - depending (apparently) on his mood (LOL).

Anyway, I thought you might like to see this video taken a little over year ago - but depicting some of his actions even now - to show you that he really does still have a good quality of life and is still a very happy guy.



Good luck - I'll be watching for your posts.

Emmy & Dude (& Mittsi too)
 
Yes! Ask any human diabetic, and they will tell you that they feel awful when their blood sugar is too high (or too low). Cats are the same. Once the insulin gets them back into a good range, though, they will feel better. I can always tell when Sebastian's blood sugar is at a good level because he starts running around acting silly!
 
Yes, Evakot, be patient...It takes some time for the little body to regulate, I too was worried that I lost my little Puttzer's personality...He is two years on Vetsulin and is just as happy as he was before diagnosed...Now, once regulated, you still have to watch for symptoms that may creep up which may involve going OTJ, kibble intake (sneaking Civvies food!), but overall, you should see him back to normal sooner than later....Keep us posted!
 
Emmy & Dude said:
Hi "E".
Anyway, I thought you might like to see this video taken a little over year ago - but depicting some of his actions even now - to show you that he really does still have a good quality of life and is still a very happy guy.
Click to expand...

Hi Emmy,

LOVED the video of Dude! That is really encouraging that a 15 year old diabetic kitty can be so energetic. He is very cute!

Thank you,

Eva
 
Thank you All for your replies.

I really want Big Kitty to have the best life possible and hearing that he still can have fun in life despite being diabetic is encouraging.

Eva
 
oh my gosh YES!
actually patches has more energy and runs around more than he did before I even knew he had diabetes....
after looking back i wasnt "seeing" the symptoms and really no change in him until he was really ill...
but im telling you its like the kitten in him is out!! i actually sometimes have to grab him to slow him down for a few minutes!! :smile:
 
Before my girl Lizzie was diagnosed, she did the same, she never came out of 'her' room, slept all the time, and was totally antisocial. Today, she is well regulated and regularly jumps out at her brother and sister, smacks them when they're out of control and sleeps out on the couch with the rest of the family where she belongs.
So keep the faith, your boy will be back when he feels better
 
Well... Tiger says FD is the best thing that ever happened to her. :-D

She was a barn cat, who became a house cat after she was diagnosed with FD. She's more playful now than she has ever been.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words... Here's Tiger -- 16 years old, 3-1/2 years diabetic, Hyper-Thyroid:
 

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