How much food needs to be eaten before giving insulin?

[Nightbird]

Anastasia got her first insulin injection night before last. As of yesterday she is disinterested in her food and won't eat. Last night after she had eaten a few bites and a few snacks after testing her glucose, I went ahead and gave her the insulin. Same story this morning; she had only had a few bites before walking away from her food. Feeling optimistic that she would eat once I left, I gave her the insulin. I got home tonight to see that she ate nothing during the day. And she won't eat tonight. Desperate to get her to eat something, anything, so that I can give her the insulin, I've tried three different kinds of food. On the third, she acted interested but only ate a few bites before returning to her bed. My question is, how much food should be eaten to be safe to give the insulin? Is just a few bites okay?

 

[Sue and Oliver (GA)]

What kind of insulin and how much? Some insulins definitely need food on board because they hit fast and hard. Some are milder so food isn't as much of an issue.

Here are some ideas for getting a cat to eat: http://www.felinecrf.org/persuading_cat_to_eat.htm

 

[Nightbird]

Thanks for the reply, Sue. The link you sent gave me a few ideas. Anastasia is supposed to get 1 unit of Lantus every 12 hours. She is a good patient and hasn't complained too much as I've been learning how to do the glucose tests and give the injections. But I wonder if she is already associating eating with unpleasant injections.

 

[Sue and Oliver (GA)]

I'm sure you have read that we tie the blood glucose tests to treats. Every time you test, successful or not, Anastasia gets a treat.

Do you think the injections are painful for her? They usually aren't. Oliver got his shot while his head was deep into his food and he never noticed. Tell us how you do it. Maybe we'll have some suggestions. Same for the hometesting. Let us know what is difficult for you and maybe we'll have some tips.

 

[Nightbird]

Thank you - you all are such a blessing. Yes, we have been giving treats everytime she has received an injection and every time her glucose has been tested - successful or not . Just a half hour ago I had success with her eating while sitting on my lap. She didn't eat much, but its the most she'd eaten all day. So we gave her the injection. As for the method, my husband has been a wonderful extra set of hands. I hold her, pet her, and sing to her (like I always do), as he tries to find a large enough piece of skin on her back to inject. She has lost so much weight that he says he feels like the needle is going to go into her vertebrae or something. So he pulls the skin up and injects downward, at an angle. She flinches a little when the needle goes in, but doesn't squirm during the 10 seconds he holds the needle in (per the instructions with the pen), so I don't think it hurts her that much. Then I put her down and give her the treats, or sit down with her in my lap and let her eat the treats from my lap.

 

[Sue and Oliver (GA)]

It sounds like you are doing things right. Here is a site with injection info and pictures: http://felinediabetes.com/injections.htm Maybe you will be able to figure out if there is some little thing you can change. I have to admit I haven't heard of the 10 second thing; we just stuck the needle in, pushed down the plunger and pulled it out.

I am giving it up for the night, but wanted to leave you with some hometesting tips also: http://www.sugarcats.net/sites/harry/bgtest.htm I love Harry's page for newbies because there are lots of tips. The thing that helped us most with hometesting was to heat the ear with a rice sack. (thinnish sock filled with raw rice and knotted, heated in the microwave until very warm but not hot) It made such a difference when Oliver's ear was warm.

Glad you got her to eat something and gave the shot. Hope she is hungrier in the morning!

 

[Karrie and Maverick]

My cat lost a lot of weight two years ago. Its a really long story. But we learned about assist feeding - orally feeding with a syringe. Its really easy to learn. There is a yahoo group for feline assisted feeding. When you join one of the files sent to you is how to safely assist feed with a syringe. Often the best appetite stimulant is a bit of food. Maverick needed assist feeding when we cut kibble cold turkey and he would not eat wet food. I had to get extra calories into him to avoid a repeat of feline hepatic lipidosis (FHL/Fatty liver).

It would give you peace of mind to do this and maybe help get her weight up.

 

[Nightbird]

An overdue update - Stasia is now gobbling up her food with no problem. Sometimes I have to put it in her bed, or put a little on my finger to lick off to get her going. Her appetite has been growing everyday. Thanks you KLKelly and Sue for sharing your experiences and tips!