Flynn's Update

[lozenge89]

I haven't posted in a while but I am back today, not sure if I'm looking for help or rather to vent and unload stress I've been accumulating for the last couple months. Here is my original post from when Flynn was diagnosed with diabetes. http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/i-need-help.227671/#post-2559101 Since he has been diagnosed with acro, i guess i will post here.

Flynn has become increasingly difficult to look after, his acro is completely out of control. I'm at a loss of what to do and I'm an absolute nervous wreck (I've spent many days hiding in the car for hours on end crying because he's driving me insane), He's become extremely hard to test, even just lightly touching his ear he instantaneously flattens it to his head and yanks it away or attacks me. When i have managed to test its always between 20-25, no matter what he has ate or when he has ate.

The main problem we have with him is his hunger, it's absolutely crazy. He cries, yowls almost panic like for hours and hours on end with no more than a 5 min break in between (I really wish i was exaggerating this). He wakes us up even earlier now which means I am only getting about 3 hours sleep per night. I know he's starving, and i know he can't help it but his cry has became like nails on a chalk board. No food satisfies him, we've tried giving him chicken, fish, some vegetables as snacks to help, we've tried adding some water to his food to bulk it up, we put his meals into an ice-cube tray so it keeps him quieter for longer as he eats. But as soon as his meal is done he's howling for more and more.

I feel like a prisoner in my own home, we cannot go to the kitchen, we cannot get up to use the bathroom, we can't do anything as it sets him off. I don't want to overfeed him but nothing is working. He is now on 7 units twice a day and on 1ml of cabergoline every other day. The cabergoline doesn't seem to be doing anything other than giving him horrible diarrhea and making him sick sometimes (even though he likes the taste of it!). As we cannot afford any of the preferable treatment options all we can do now is increase his insulin every couple weeks until we find a dose high enough to help him. I'm so tired and sad seeing my baby like this.

 

[Cleocatra]

I feel your pain, Lauren. Cleo is very similar, but her crazy hunger will last about 2 days, and then she calms down. Our vet attached the Freestyle Libre meter today so I can get 2 weeks of good tests. Cleo is in the 300's & 400's and I've been able to bring it down from the 500's by ramping up the dose. But dr. wants more/better tests before she lets me increase into higher dose range. We'll probably get up to 13-15U range in the next couple of months I suspect. If you look at Cleo's SS you'll see we didn't get any decent drops until we reached 9-10U's. And that's w/ Prozinc! At 10U, Lantus wasn't making a dent. Usually cats switch over to Lantus FROM Prozinc but I'm not arguing w/ my vet at this point.

No, Cleo is not the same cat either. Vet said they have a metabolic disorder and they're not going to be the active, playful cat they used to be. Susan & I, after many tearful discussions, have come to the reality that we'll try to give her the best QOL that we can as long as she looks and appears bright and happy. I try to play w/ her and take her outside to watch the birds etc. but the crazy lovable cat activity is gone. We figure, if she wants to be w/ us and is alert, then she is enjoying her life w/ us. When she's not sleeping, Cleo lays right in the middle of the kitchen and makes everybody step over her while she sits and watches! So we figure, she's not miserable, still shows she's attached to us, still communicates w/ us and isn't exhibiting pain etc.

We are planning to have "the talk" w/ our family vet so we'll know what to look for and how to prepare ourselves. We've never had to let go of a pet, so we want to do it right. I've learned a lot from reading all the posts in this board on how to understand a pet's life perspective and give the animal every benefit of the doubt. We both know that our cat is headed down that road and her days are probably numbered, but we'll try to enjoy the final days/months best we can. But I agree, it will make you a nervous wreck, stress you out, make you angry at the cat, then you'll feel guilty etc. I tell people I'm running a cat nursing home!! When they say cats have staff, we are the perfect example. We're just getting over losing both our Dads in the past 9 mos., and now we have to stress about a sick cat, worry about frickin' Covid-19 and listen to all this crap about riots etc. Not fun.

We have a friend that had Jack Russell terrier that needed lots of surgery etc and paid ~$9k and was told it was not a sure thing, and ended up it wasn't and they still had to put her down. After all that, she admitted it was just crazy to put an animal through all that when the outcome wasn't positive. I keep telling myself the same thing, even though I'm the kind of guy that will do anything to fix something that's broken, but these animals' complicated disorders make it so difficult and expensive to fix. Try to hang in there and give Flynn a fighting chance to have a good QOL but understand what it is we're dealing with. Sorry for the long soapbox speech! It helps me realize what I'm dealing with, too.

 

[JanetNJ]

My acro cat needed 13 at her most. Can you post his numbers? if you are waiting WEEKS before changing your dose, you your doing it too slow. I raised the dose a half unit about every 2 days until it started coming down. How many cans a day is he eating? Maybe overnight freeze some portions in ice trays to make a cat food ice pop. He must be so uncomfortable... but I think increasing his dose more quickly might be the key. They need what they need. It really hit me when she got to 10 units. Something about those double digits hurt... but she needs what she needs.

 

[JanetNJ]

OH, I also wanted to say, My cat was on vetsulin which is the same as caninsulin. I found once I hit 5 units she became angry at shot time... we figured out it was stinging her! This is why I moved to Prozinc... it doesn't sting at higher doses. as soon as we switched she was much happier.

 

[Wendy&Neko]

I'm at a loss of what to do

Step 1 - as hard as this is, you really need to start testing his blood sugars. 7 units can be nothing in terms of what an acromegalic cat can need. It's not uncommon to see doses in the 30's and I've seen in the 80's. Yes, that's units per shot. Each acrocat is different and need whatever they need. Only once a cat gets to a dose where they are spending more time in good numbers (under renal threshold), will they start to feel better and not be so hungry. And it is only with home testing (or the Freestyle Libre) that you can increase safely to a good dose. Are you feeding snacks at each test? Once Neko associated food with testing, it became much easier, Sometimes she would ask to be tested by going to our testing spot. If you are testing frequently, you can increase once a week, or even even 3 days if you test enough. Getting him to a good dose safely is critical.
Step 2 - talk to vet again about Prozinc. Neko started out on Caninulin, and even seeing numbers under 200 (11.1), it wore off too early and she was howling for food several hours before her meal time. Prozinc is also a bit more forgiving at letting you feed multiple small meals. Levemir would be an even better choice, but sounds like you have to pick your battles.
Step 3 - get an autofeeder and start feeding of his meals from there. I think it was Judy? in your previous thread who mentioned it. Once they associate food with the automatic feeder, you no longer become the source of all attention for food.

How much does Flynn weigh? I'd like to double check that he's getting a good cabergoline dose. How many mcg per ml in his solution?

 

[Judy and Freckles]

Step 3 - get an autofeeder and start feeding of his meals from there. I think it was Judy? in your previous thread who mentioned it. Once they associate food with the automatic feeder, you no longer become the source of all attention for food.

Yup, that was me. Conditioned Freckles to the autofeeder and all of her food comes from the feeder. We also put her bed next to it. Now that her numbers are lower, she still has a good appetite, but it is no where near as voracious as it was last fall when she was first diagnosed. One of the civies has discovered the feeder and will occasionally 'score' a meal. Prior to Freckles' numbers coming down, there was NO WAY another cat was going to get close to her feeder. Now, it's not a big deal - Freckles of course would love to have all of the food to herself, but her food intake is carefully monitored as I don't want her getting overweight.

 

[Judy and Freckles]

No, Cleo is not the same cat either. Vet said they have a metabolic disorder and they're not going to be the active, playful cat they used to be.

I would definitely say that Freckles is looking and feeling much much better since her Dx, starting insulin and getting her to a good dose quickly, but safely. She's never been a playful kitty but she will get her energy boost once in awhile and play with some of her toys. Since starting insulin, her coat is MUCH better (not greasy and no more dandruff) and she's gained her weight back.

 

[JeffJ]

Sorry to hear about the frustration. A lot of us have experienced it. As others said, testing is important. So is regulation. If your kitteh is hungry all the time, it could be partly due to lack of sufficient insulin. I would consider moving to Levemir or Prozinc. From ad-hoc evidence on the forum, higher doses of those insulins - does not sting.