Feeling overwhelmed and need help

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1967

Member Since 2017
My kitty is 12 years old and was diagnosed as diabetic this past Dec. Long story short we had her on Caninsulin but didn't find it was helping so we recently put her on Lantus. The Vet Tech that we're currently dealing with wants us to feed her twice a day at 2 ounces eat time 1/4 cup. She suggested we give her the food and if she doesn't have it all gone in a 2 hrs period to take it away from her so she becomes used to feeding prior to her insulin shot. She has always been free fed her whole life and I am really concerned this is not correct for her.

Currently I've been going against her advice and feeding her 1 tin of fancy feast and 1 tin of friskies (all pates) but I'm finding lately she's wanting to eat more and more. Is this because she's not regulated? I have yet to do a curve on her as I figured I would give the lantus time to do it's job. I do random checks on her and she's usually always around 14.1 - 15.8

Should I give her a higher protein food or should her insulin be increased? So far the vet tech seems to think she's doing fine at the 1 unit twice a day. She claims that she will eat more as she starts feeling better and the insulin kicks in. My understanding was that once she was regulated she would eat less.

She also suggested we give her shots at 8 am and 6 pm. My understanding was insulin shots should be 12 hrs apart. Am I correct in thinking that?

Open to any suggestions.
 
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Welcome, take a deep breath. I am new here and can not offer advise but tell you this is the best place to get answers. Wonderful cat lovers and more knowledge than you will ever be able to read. You might want to edit your thread heading with the ? Mark. :) they will be along shortly to answer your questions. Welcome
 
Phoebes said:
Welcome, take a deep breath. I am new here and can not offer advise but tell you this is the best place to get answers. Wonderful cat lovers and more knowledge than you will ever be able to read. You might want to edit your thread heading with the ? Mark. :) they will be along shortly to answer your questions. Welcome
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Thank you and I would but I don't know how :(
 
It's done good job. I know it's overwhelming but you do have tons of knowledge at your finger tips. All the forums have stickies you can read to get started. It will be ok, and Alot of us have been in and are in your shoes.
 
HI Holly, welcome to you and sweet Molly! Lantus is a great insulin and doses should be given 12 hours apart. I'm glad you're home testing, it's the best way to see how well the insulin is working. You should get a test before you feed and shoot and some tests mid cycle when possible. If you set up our spreadsheet and begin recording these numbers it will help you, your vet and us to see any patterns. If you need help with the set up, just ask and someone will do it for you.
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/
As for feeding, many of us feed multiple times a day. Is Molly gaining or losing weight? Until she's regulated she will need more food since her body isn't able to properly process the nutrients.
 
Holly1967 said:
wants us to just feed Molly twice a day at 2 ounces eat time 1/4 cup.
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Most of us feed more meals than that although many vets advise feeding only twice a day. Kitties generally prefer more frequent small meals and that is usually better for BG control. The only proviso is that you remove all food at least 2 hours before two key BG test times: before AM and PM meal and injection.

Holly1967 said:
Currently I've been going against her advice and feeding Molly 1 tin of fancy feast and 1 tin of friskies (all pates) but I'm finding lately she's wanting to eat more and more. Is this because she's not regulated?
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Friskies and Fancy Feast pate versions (no sauce or gravy types - too high in carbs) are fine for diabetic kitties. You can take the daily food ration and break it up into several meals, usually a slightly larger one AM and PM just before insulin, a smaller lunch and then another small bedtime snack. Some people use automatic pet feeders so small meals are available around the clock - except for the 2 hours before AM and PM BG tests.
Unregulated diabetics are always hungry because they can't get glucose from food into cells very well. Until your kitty is regulated you can feed more unless she's overweight right now.

Holly1967 said:
she's usually always around 14.1 - 15.8
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Those numbers are on the high side. The testing protocol we recommend is: 1. AM and PM before food and insulin (no food at least 2 hours before) to see if the planned dose is too high; 2. at least one other BG test mid cyce in the day or before bed at night to see how low BG is going. That is the testing minimum.


Holly1967 said:
She also suggested we give Molly her shots at 8 am and 6 pm. My understanding was insulin shots should be 12 hrs apart. Am I correct in thinking that?
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You're correct. Lantus works best on a tight dosing schedule of every 12 hours. Also, with regard to Lantus dosing, there are two protocols that are recommended her - TR (Tight Regulation) or SLGS (Start Low Go Slow). On the Lantus forum there are detailed info stickies describing each. I suggest you go read those and give some thought to which suits your own schedule best.

Holly1967 said:
Should I give her a higher protein food or should her insulin be increased?
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It's the carb content of food that affects BG. You might need to increase her Lantus dose but it's hard to say without having more information about how she's responding to the dose you're using. If you're willing to try the testing schedule I described and set up the spreadsheet we use here to log all of your BG data, we can offer advice about dosing.

Spreadsheet instructions are in the main forum listing in the "Suggestions, Tech Support and Testing Area" forum. Help is available to set it up if you need it.
 
Thanks so much for the warm welcome :)

Molly lost 2 lbs since Dec. I removed all bad treats and her bit of kibble she ate overnight. She currently weighs 14 lbs. So yes I understand the need for her to lose more weight but I think gradually would be better then rapidly.

We currently remove her food 2 hrs pre shot so I know for sure she will eat for us.

I will see if I can figure out how the spreadsheet works.
 
Holly1967 said:
Thanks so much for the warm welcome :)

Molly lost 2 lbs since Dec. I removed all bad treats and her bit of kibble she ate overnight. She currently weighs 14 lbs. So yes I understand the need for her to lose more weight but I think gradually would be better then rapidly.

We currently remove her food 2 hrs pre shot so I know for sure she will eat for us.

I will see if I can figure out how the spreadsheet works.
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Slow weight loss is best for kitties. Is you need help with the spreadsheet let us know. There are techies on here who will do it for you.
 
I have no numbers entered yet but I hope I did the spreadsheet correctly.

But I do have one more question. Do you guys do Vet recommendations?
 
Holly1967 said:
Do you guys do Vet recommendati
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The site does not recommend vets, but if you want to start a thread asking if anyone in your area has one, that's fine. Just put your location and question in your title to get the attention of someone in the area.
 
Sharon14 said:
The site does not recommend vets, but if you want to start a thread asking if anyone in your area has one, that's fine. Just put your location and question in your title to get the attention of someone in the area.
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Thanks so much :)
 
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