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Viggo's Mom

Viggo's Mom

Member Since 2016
Hi my kitty, Viggo was diagnosed today after tests done yesterday. I can't believe this. I have been dealing with other major health issues for him over the last 9 years which are finally under control, after much drama--and now this. Yes, in shock is putting it mildly. Will be seeing the vet again monday morn to start on insulin and this weekend shopping for Purina DM--which i see now many of you might not use prescription diets so I'll be all over looking into that. I am somewhat aggressive with internet research, and I know from first hand experience that all vets don't know everything or share the same knowledge, so I've bookmarked this page and will be grateful to learn some things from you all. Thank you.
 
Hello and welcome. First the DM food can only be obtained from the vet. It is not necessary to use prescription food. The wet DM is low in carbs and we suggest to keep carbs under 10% . Dry food is usually way to high in carbs. Most people here feed Fancy Feast, 9 lives and friskies.

Home testing can not be stressed enough regardless of what vet says. If your in the U.S. Wal-Mart human meter brand micro or confirm are popular here.

There is so much more to read up on. There are lots of informational stickies throughout this site. Read and ask any questions you might have.
 
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Thanks Woodsywife. Yes I have a scrip for the food but the petsmart i went to was out of it. Viggo LOVES fancy feast, but i have only given it to him as something when he is being finicky. That would be great to know it would actually be good for him. Thanks again.
 
I think @Woodsywife meant it is NOT necessary to feed the prescription foods!

They are no better in quality than foods like Fancy Feast or Friskies (check the ingredients lists!) but they're a whole lot more expensive!

Most of us here feed the Fancy Feast Classics or Friskies pates....9 Lives ground foods are also low carb (you want under 10% carbs)
 
Hi Viggo's Mom; a warm welcome to you both. Great avatar pic!

Viggo's Mom said:
I am somewhat aggressive with internet research, and I know from first hand experience that all vets don't know everything or share the same knowledge, so I've bookmarked this page and will be grateful to learn some things from you all.
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I've had good, indifferent and atrocious vets down the years (some of whom have made mistakes that resulted in losing - or coming close to losing - some of my little ones) so, like you, I do a lot of research. Without question I have found my membership of FDMB to be extraordinarly valuable. There are many members here who are highly knowledgeable about not only the treatment and management of feline diabetes and its complications but also all manner of other feline health issues; such a boon when one's trying to manage the treatment needs of a cat with multiple conditions. I have learned so much here, and I hope that you will, too.

It can take quite a while to work through all the resources in the forum stickies plus there are other reputable resources we can point you towards so if there's anything you need help with be sure to post and let us know. The Feline Health board is a good place to start (lots of useful thread topics and it gets more footfall than the Welcome board).

With regard to the Fancy Feast grub there have been some concerns from some members recently that some of the varieties might have had a formulation change and perhaps might be higher in carbs. In the discussions you'll be able to get a heads-up on which FF varieties seem to be OK and which ones may be suspect carb-wise. Here are links to the relevant discussion threads currently on the Feline Health board:

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fancy-feast-changing-formula.167232/

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/changes-to-formula-for-fancy-feast-pates.168540/


Mogs
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Chris & China said:
I think @Woodsywife meant it is NOT necessary to feed the prescription foods!

They are no better in quality than foods like Fancy Feast or Friskies (check the ingredients lists!) but they're a whole lot more expensive!

Most of us here feed the Fancy Feast Classics or Friskies pates....9 Lives ground foods are also low carb (you want under 10% carbs)
Click to expand...

Yes thans Chris, I meant NOT. I fixed the typo.
 
Woodsywife said:
Hello and welcome. First the DM food can only be obtained from the vet. It is not necessary to use prescription food. The wet DM is low in carbs and we suggest to keep carbs under 10% . Dry food is usually way to high in carbs. Most people here feed Fancy Feast, 9 lives and friskies.

Home testing can not be stressed enough regardless of what vet says. If your in the U.S. Wal-Mart human meter brand micro or confirm are popular here.

There is so much more to read up on. There are lots of informational stickies throughout this site. Read and ask any questions you might have.
Click to expand...
Hi WoodsyWife--is the monitor "ReliOn" brand Micro?
 
Yes....The ReliOn Confirm or Micro are the meters a lot of us use....they take the tiniest sample size and the strips are affordable ($35.88/100)....you can also always get strips since they're available at WalMart (and our kitties have an annoying habit of dropping low at 2am on a Saturday night when we're almost out of strips!)
 
You said that your kitty had a lot of health problems recently. Has she been on steroids?
 
Hi there Marlena, sorry don't mean to be replying to this last question so late, I just missed it. No, he has taken them in the past for various things but never long term. His ongoing issue is hyperesthesia syndrome and epilepsy, and he also battled FLUTD for many years which ultimately lead to PU surgery.
 
Viggo's Mom said:
Hi there Marlena, sorry don't mean to be replying to this last question so late, I just missed it. No, he has taken them in the past for various things but never long term. His ongoing issue is hyperesthesia syndrome and epilepsy, and he also battled FLUTD for many years which ultimately lead to PU surgery.
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Hello and welcome!
Glad you've found us, we are here to help you.
We are a very friendly group so please join us and share your problems, any questions are welcome!
Could you tell us your name? Are you in US?
I have asked about steroids as lots of kitties do get diabetes after prolonged treatments with those. As Viggo wasn't on steroids recently his diabetes was probably caused by something else.
Food is very important, you are really better off not feeding Viggo a prescription diet.
I, personally like homemade raw food and I find it quite easy to make and use for Rocky.
So, how are you treating Viggo's diabetes? How is he doing?
Have you looked at various spreadsheets with BG values to see how we treat our cats?
Sending best regards,
Marlena and Rocky
 
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