How much to feed & when

[Amy G.]

Hi everyone! I’m new here & desperately seeking advice. My Chloe is 14, has either intestinal lymphoma or Irritable Bowel (taking budesinoid for that), and she is now diabetic again (went into remission last summer).

We started her on 1 unit of lantus twice daily and her numbers were all over, but nothing below 300 for the most part. After a week Dr bumped her to 2 units. The first 3 days we saw higher numbers with some 500s. After 3 days of those high numbers I called the vet & he said she needs to see a specialist, it could be an underlying tumor (what??)!

Now, later the same day it dawned on me that I had changed her food about 3 weeks earlier to Hills Perfect Weight from Fancy Feast, which they had no trouble with. After researching it looks like the Hills is higher in carbs than FF? So, I decided to try FF again to see if her numbers lowered..they seem to be better the past 2 days with it being around 280 mid day.

Sorry if it seems like I’m all over the place, but I have so many questions! I guess I need to know how much FF should she be eating & how often. She is lying by her food bowl right now, hungry. The vet wants her on MD glucose management food.

Any insight is greatly appreciated!! I even wondered if maybe 2 units is too much? Thoughts? Thanks for any help at all!!!

Amy

 

[alexthecat]

Cleo will eat two cans of Fancy Feast per day. She gets 4 meals per day (breakfast, lunch, dinner, and bedtime). Before her diabetes was regulated, she would eat about three cans per day. Diabetic kitties are hungry all the time. I think you could feed Chloe as much as she wants. If she is acting hungry now, I would go ahead and feed her.

I can't answer your questions about Lantus, but I know someone with experience with that will be along soon to help you with that.

 

[Amy G.]

Cleo will eat two cans of Fancy Feast per day. She gets 4 meals per day (breakfast, lunch, dinner, and bedtime). Before her diabetes was regulated, she would eat about three cans per day. Diabetic kitties are hungry all the time. I think you could feed Chloe as much as she wants. If she is acting hungry now, I would go ahead and feed her.

I can't answer your questions about Lantus, but I know someone with experience with that will be along soon to help you with that.

Thanks for your reply! I guess my concern is, if I feed her again, will it spike her glucose? Do I divide the 2 cans into smaller meals, and if so, what time of day should be best if I inject at 6am/6pm? Thank you!!!

 

[alexthecat]

I don't think there is any harm in feeding her now unless you are planning to test in less than 2 hours. Then, she needs to wait to eat until after that.

I inject at 8 am and pm. I put down meals right after her injection in the morning, around noon, 5 pm, and 11 pm. If she asks for food between meals, I'll give it to her though. My non-diabetic cat recently switched over to eating canned food. When it was just Cleo, eating Fancy Feast, I'd give her half a can at each meal. I just put the leftovers in the refrigerator and microwave them for a few seconds to warm them up again.

 

[Amy G.]

I don't think there is any harm in feeding her now unless you are planning to test in less than 2 hours. Then, she needs to wait to eat until after that.

I inject at 8 am and pm. I put down meals right after her injection in the morning, around noon, 5 pm, and 11 pm. If she asks for food between meals, I'll give it to her though. My non-diabetic cat recently switched over to eating canned food. When it was just Cleo, eating Fancy Feast, I'd give her half a can at each meal. I just put the leftovers in the refrigerator and microwave them for a few seconds to warm them up again.

Ok thanks so much for your help!

 

[Amy G.]

I don't think there is any harm in feeding her now unless you are planning to test in less than 2 hours. Then, she needs to wait to eat until after that.

I inject at 8 am and pm. I put down meals right after her injection in the morning, around noon, 5 pm, and 11 pm. If she asks for food between meals, I'll give it to her though. My non-diabetic cat recently switched over to eating canned food. When it was just Cleo, eating Fancy Feast, I'd give her half a can at each meal. I just put the leftovers in the refrigerator and microwave them for a few seconds to warm them up again.

One more question for you- it’s the small can of FF that you’re using right? Thanks

 

[alexthecat]

Yes, I was referring to the little cans of Fancy Feast.

Now that both my cats are eating canned food, we use 12.5-ounce cans of Wellness. It takes them a full day to get through that. Some story though. It goes in the refrigerator and is nuked as needed.