Food question!!! I am a newbie.

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christinemarie

Member Since 2013
I found out my cat, who is 14 years old, is diabetic. I gave him his first shot of insulin this morning, and I started him on his new diet over the weekend. The problem i am having is my vet put my cat on a diet of 2 cans of md hills wet cat food and my cat will not eat it. I gave him his old fancy feast food and he is eating a little more. My question is, my vet is trying to get him to lose 5 pounds and feeding him as if he was a fifteen pound cat. My cat is currently 22 pounds, and I am just wondering if I feed him the fancy feast as if he were a 15 pound cat, and should I feed him in small meals all day, or once in the morning and once at night. Sorry, nervous about everything...... :
 
christinemarie said:
I found out my cat, who is 14 years old, is diabetic. I gave him his first shot of insulin this morning, and I started him on his new diet over the weekend. The problem i am having is my vet put my cat on a diet of 2 cans of md hills wet cat food and my cat will not eat it. I gave him his old fancy feast food and he is eating a little more. My question is, my vet is trying to get him to lose 5 pounds and feeding him as if he was a fifteen pound cat. My cat is currently 22 pounds, and I am just wondering if I feed him the fancy feast as if he were a 15 pound cat, and should I feed him in small meals all day, or once in the morning and once at night. Sorry, nervous about everything...... :
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What insulin?
What insulin dose?
How was the dose determined?

As you are already giving insulin, learning to home test the glucose level is your first priority. You will need a human glucometer such as the WalMart ReliOn Confirm (generically available as the Arkray Glucocard 01 fro our shopping partner ADW, link at top of page), test strips, and 27-28 gauge lancets.

A cat losing weight too quicky may develop hepatic lipidosis; it sounds like your vet has forgotten that. Read more about feline nutrition, including safe weight loss at Cat Info written by veterinarian Dr Pierson.
"An optimal weight loss diet should be:
high in protein (over 40% of calories),
moderate in fat (under 50% of calories),
low in carbohydrates (under 10% of calories), and
high in water."
 
Many cats get sick of the m/d food flavour quick so we recommend foods like the fancy feast classic pates or friskies pates. Those are lower in carb so good for controlling the cats blood glucose levels and cheap too.. What types of fancy feast were you feeding before? did they have gravy in them? If so, Those are too high carb.

However I must reinforce what BJ said, if you are also giving insulin you need to be real careful about any food change ( including the m/d food) because a lower carb food will cause a drop in blood glucose and you could be giving too much insulin then. So thats why we say , do home testing first, then change the food!

What kind of insulin is it?


Wendy
 
Thanks for your replies. The classic chicken, fish, beef fancy feast. I was feeding him the gravy before he was diagnosed along with dry food. I do not have him on dry food right now. He started 1 shot of insulin today. 4 units of prozinc in the morning, and the vet said he may go to 2 shots depending on how that goes. I am monitoring his urine with the glucotest packets in his litter. He does not do well with the vet, so they gave me the packets to start with. I was able to give him the shot pretty easily, but i am not sure he will let me get blood sample.
 
christinemarie said:
Thanks for your replies. The classic chicken, fish, beef fancy feast. I was feeding him the gravy before he was diagnosed along with dry food. I do not have him on dry food right now. He started 1 shot of insulin today. 4 units of prozinc in the morning, and the vet said he may go to 2 shots depending on how that goes. I am monitoring his urine with the glucotest packets in his litter. He does not do well with the vet, so they gave me the packets to start with. I was able to give him the shot pretty easily, but i am not sure he will let me get blood sample.
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Your vet screwed up!!!

Insulin should be dosed every 12 hours for optimal results. You run the risk of a hypoglycemic episode dosing 4 units 1 time a day for ProZinc. It doesn't last longer than 12 hours in the cat.

Edited to add: Sorry, that wasn't helpful at all. But sheesh - how can vets get it so wrong???
 
What do I do?? I do not have the knowledge to fix anything the vet told me to do. I am just following the person who should know. I feel overwhelmed, and although I appreciate you saying he screwed up, it doesnt really help my situation.
 
I would divide it into 2 doses, 1 in the morning and 1 in the evening, 12 hours later.

Also, I would strongly suggest you only give 1 unit every 12 hours and begin home testing for your cat's safety.

Because he is not easily handleable, see my signature link Secondary Monitoring Tools for other assessments which may be helpful in monitoring his diabetes.

If you've given 4 units already, please read this post on How to Handle Hypos

To help you become more familiar with managing feline diabetes, and to share with your vet, since he seems rather out of date, please read the American Animal Hospital Association Guidelines.
 
I think what BJ was trying to say is that he is worried your cat may have a hypo. Thats a large dose of insulin. Usually we start at 1 unit and work slowly up. However did the vet mention ketones to you?

How does he feel about having his ears scritched or feet touched? We have seen many cats on here, and have even been able to test the wild and feral ones :)

Are all those fancy feasts classic versions? Or just the chicken.

And what are your names? We havent been properly introduced? Since your kitty is a boy I am thinking you are Christine?
Wendy
 
I appreciate any and all advise. I am really concerned and trying to get as much information as possible. My vet said that he did not have have ketones. He tested his blood, and said we probably would need to do two shots, but was trying one shot because my cat was hard to handle. all the fancy feasts are classics. I pulled a list and made sure they were acceptable for diabetic cats. My cat's name is Spike, a big tabby. Should I change his dose without consulting the vet? I gave him his shot this morning, and he did not seem to really respond that much. He moved around a little more, but his urine is still testing high. I may try to use a glucometer, but not sure if i will be successful.
 
The fancy feast classics are great but again will bring his blood sugar down. I would talk to your vet and consider what we have said. Ask your vet about hypos and starting at a lower dose and working up through home testing.

My sister in law started at a high dose at the vets advice, and the cat had a hypo, she paid thousand dollars to treat it at the same vet and it still died. They said " thse things happen" but I know now it didnt have to. Home testing and a slow increase in dose could have prevented it.

Give home testing a try. .. Worst case you don't manage it and you donate the meter to another newbie!


Wendy
 
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