Huckleberry diagnosed July2013

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fleur

Member Since 2013
Hi,

I am overwhelmed by this situation. My almost 10 year old Maine Coon (Huckleberry) furball was just diagnosed. I don't know if I can cope with this. I already have a major depressive disorder and dysthymia. My husband and I have another cat, same age, Persian. Huck has been like my shadow ever since we bought him at 8 weeks of age. I love him very much.

Two blood tests and one urine test all were consistent with diabetes. He had no symptoms. We had just taken both cats to the vet for an annual checkup. I am now administering 2 units of Lantus 2 times a day. He is now drinking a lot and the litter box has an extremely harsh urine smell. Is there any way to prevent this? I have to scoop out half the litter all the time and put in new litter. Does anyone know a litter that is inexpensive but does the job. Right now I'm using Feline Pine for my 2 big boxes. We're feeding him 1/2 Purina dry for diabetes and Royal Canin kidney food as last year his Bun was elevated. I think my vet would prefer canned food. When I last started giving them canned food, they both drove me crazy crying for more constantly, so I stopped using it. they were fine in a couple of days.

I know I will need lots of support and help from this site. Please, anyone who is willing to share and communicate with me via phone or email, please respond. I am very, very overwhelmed and scared from this whole thing.

I'm 72 years old and don't function as well as I'd like to because of my depression issues for which I am on lots of medication.

Thank you for your support and for this site.
 
Hi and welcome to Huckleberry and his caregiver. What is your name?

Where do you live? country, state/province, city. So we can give you country specific advice.

We can help you with your cat Huckleberry. We live and breathe feline diabetes 24/7 and can share our knowledge with you.

p.s. Could you edit your very first post please? Change the candle icon to the question mark one? The candle is for cats who have died.
 
It will be OK. You've got a lot on your plate, as do many of us.

Feline diabetes is a chronic disease that can be treated and we have most of the information you'll need. Note that per the message board guidelines, all advising is done with posts on the boards and that any private communications are then summarized in a public post, so that any errors, ommissions, or other ideas may be given.

Since you are already giving insulin, the most important thing you can do for the safety of your diabetic is to learn how to test your cat's blood glucose level.

- Testing before a shot makes sure the glucose is not too low to give insulin. At first, we suggest that if the glucose is less than 200 mg/dL that you not give insulin

- Testing about halfway between shots let's you see how well the insulin is working. The ideal nadir, the lowest point between shots, should be between 50 - 120 mg/dL

You will need a human glucometer, test strips for the glucometer, 27-28 gauge lancets, optionally, some Neosporin ointment (not cream) with pain relief, and some low carbohydrate treats.
 
Welcome. You're in good hands for advice here. People are online in this group day and night around the world. Hang in there. Huckleberry is a new diabetic so there's a very good chance you'll be able to get him into remission so that shots won't be necessary (after an initial period of getting him on the proper diet and monitoring his blood sugars.. which is frustrating at first, but gets surprisingly easy....people here will advise you and have pictures to show you how to do everything)
Just take it slow, one step at a time....sudden changes in diet without monitoring blood sugars can be dangerous because the amount of insulin needed will change as well.
It's important that you let people know what Country you are in so they can better advise you.
The diagnosis and having to give shots can be quite a shock to you in itself so take time, read the permanently posted messages at the top of the board page, ask questions and we'll help you along the way.
Hopefully Huckleberry will be OTJ ("off the juice"/insulin) after a few months.....
By the way, as you get his blood sugar regulated with proper diet and insulin, the massive amounts of pee and the extreme thirst and hunger just go away, and you'll start to see him doing things you remember from kittenhood..he'll be feeling so much better. Hang in there! You're doing great just agreeing to give him
shots and you're on Lantus which is a super good insulin with high possibility for remission.
 
Thanks for answering and your help.

My name is Marilyn and we live in Portsmouth, NH, USA. My vet is Dr. Schafer at Sagamore Animal Hospital.
 
Litterbox notes:

1) Use an unscented clumping litter, such as the PetCo generic, with refillable containers. Most cats do not appreciate the scents that humans do. Unscented litter with baking soda or activated charcoal may work and be more expensive.

2) Vets recommend you have at least 1 litterbox per cat, plus 1 more. I use cement mixing trays from Home Depot, as they are sturdy, deep enough, and large enough to count as 1.5 boxes (14 cats in my place - the basement has 9 big boxes alone!)

3) Its important to have enough litter in the box - at least 3-4 inches deep, so the litter can't stick to the plastic and can be removed by scooping.

4) Scoop daily, or more often. Its unsanitary for the cat to step into piles of used litter. It won't smell as bad if you do it more often and is less likely to become saturated to the bottom.

5) Getting the diabetes well controlled will help a great deal by reducing urination due to high glucose levels. Urine produced by moderate to severe renal disease may be so dilute as to have almost no odor.
 
Welcome Marilyn and Huckleberry :YMHUG: Everyone feels overwhelmed and scared in the beginning. We are here for you.
 
Hi Marilyn from Portsmouth NH. My name is Deb, my sugarkitty is Wink and we live in Newbury, MA just down the road from you.

First off, take a deep breath, hold, release, take a deep breath, hold, release, take a deep breath, hold, release.

Second thing, please read this. A Message From Your Cat.Just click on the blue underlined words and it will take you to this other post.

Finally, we can provide lots of wonderful advice. Don't worry, we'll help to get you and Huck through this rough spot.
 
After you are successfully testing glucose, you may make diet changes that are likely to reduce the glucose level 100 mg/dL or more.

The issues with wet food you noted previously may have been due to a rapid switch in foods. Fast food changes are notorious for provoking diarrhea, vomiting, or upset stomach with reduced or no appetite. If you transition foods no faster than 25% per day, that can reduce the GI upsets.

Veterinarian written Cat Info discusses why a high protein, low carbohydrate, canned or raw diet is best for cats and provides es a printable food list with nutrition details such as % of calories from protein, fat, and carbohydrates, plus phosphorus levels (important to control in renal disease.

Tanta's Feline CRF web site will provide you with more info about renal disease in cats.
 
When you go to the main Board index, there's a category called "Health Links"...it's got a grey H sign icon, like a Hospital road sign...this link has all sorts of information you will find valuable.
The most important things for you to learn are how to home test your kittie's blood sugars http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=287 this link contains more info and videos...plus you can do a search on youtube and find good videos.

Being able to test blood sugars helps you to figure out what dose of insulin kitty needs as he gets better (people here will help consul you with that too, but they need to know these sugar values)
Testing also helps you to know if his sugar's gotten too low from too much insulin (either due to change in diet, or kitty won't eat or vomits after his shot etc)....we call this "hypo"....which can be deadly...Keeping high carb wet food on hand just in case is a good idea (any tinned food that says "gravy lovers" on it is pretty high carb...also honey or karo syrup, to rub on kitty's gums to bring their blood glucose back up quickly) It can be lifesaving. There is a post in "Health Links" on what to do in case of Hypo too. Since you are already giving Huckleberry insulin...you should read this. Even if you are not able to test yet, it's good to know the physical symptoms so you can help him.

Testing can be really awkward and intimidating at first. My kitty Molly was Hell on Wheels...pardon the expression, but she was so grumpy and feral acting while she was feeling poorly that I thought I'd never be able to test....but after a few days I had it down! and she began coming to me to be tested because she wanted her treats that came afterwards :lol: People will give you tips! There are lots of BG meters to choose from but watch the cost of the test strips,
some brands can be very expensive for the strips. I found the Walmart "Relion" brand meters to have the cheapest strips and the "micro" meter needs such a tiny drop of blood that testing was over in seconds.
Also, for treats....freeze dried chicken or shrimp from "Pure Bites" is awesome and no sugar or dextrose in them to make kitty's sugar levels spike.
They're sold at Petsmart and Petco, not sure where else.
 
About your litter question...
With one diabetic cat and one cat with thyroid and kidney issues...I have certainly tried lots of kitty litters!
I wanted to be environmentally friendly but the pine ones just had too much odor for kitties who peed copiously!
and the clumping litters...well they are sooo dusty that it gets all over the house and you have to clean everything
But, I've found a clumping litter that is amazingly low in dust now, which I'm sure is much better for the cat's respiratory system too.
I buy it at petsmart. It's called Dr. Elsey's Precious Cat clumping litter.
http://www.preciouscat.com/product/ultra-scented/
 
Sorry, but you need to be told that many cats show NO signs of a hypo until they are in a coma or having seizures. I have seen cats test in the 30s and they are perfectly fine!
Vomiting after a shot can be many things and certainly not hypo; it does not happen that fast unless you gave a shot of R instead of your usual basal insulin.
Not eating could be anything from constipation to pancreatitis.

List of Hypo symptoms
How to treat HYPOS-They can kill! Print this out!
Jojo’s HYPO TOOLKIT

The best way to keep your cat safe is to home test.

Gayle

ETA: Once you have your cat on the correct dose of insulin and regulated, the first sign will be less urine output. You can speed up the process by home testing.... if you see that your cat's numbers are all high across the entire cycle, it will be obvious you need to give MORE insulin.... if you see that your cat's numbers take a HUGE drop around 3hrs after the shot then bounce high to the 400s or 500s, it will be obvious that your cat needs much LESS insulin.
 
Hi I am new but I believe that you need a different food. I heard that Royal is awful. You need friskies of fancy feast Pates and classics. I also you whiskas Purrfect chicken as a treat. Just my opinion. Thanks for listening.
Hugs,
Carrie
 
Thank you everybody for your kind help and advice. There is so much to decide about, especially when many people say different things or disagree with my vet.

I have so much to read and think about and a terrible nervous feeling in my body.

Hugs to all of you and your sugarbabies.
Marilyn
 
For sure its hard to know who to trust. The key is to listen to everyone and consider - after all she is your cat. Come back here and ask questions specifically around why we differ from the vet in what the vets says.

Whats the vet saying thats different?

Wendy
 
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