I am new here so will give you a short synopsis.......My cat is 161/2 years old and was diagnosed with diabetes in October of last year. All was well until he became ill (not eating or drinking and vomiting). He was hospitalized for a couple of days with iv fluids and anti-nausea medication and diagnosed with pancreatitis. He started doing better so they gave him medication to increase his appetite and sent him home off the insulin because his blood sugars were normal. Since then he has been ok all blood sugars and fructosamine levels within normal limits. For the past few weeks his appetite has decreased significantly. Took him back to the vet last Friday and his blood sugar was 400+. He had also lost from 19lbs. down to 16.6 lbs. in 6 weeks. Kidney function blood work was normal, liver enzymes were elevated a bit, and bilirubin was normal. Started on 2 units insulin twice a day again. Since he has been home his appetite has decreased to almost nothing and he is not drinking. Has only peed 2 times (small amounts) in 14 hours, and is hiding under the bed. Spoke to vet tonight and will take him in tomorrow. In the meantime does anyone have any suggestions as to what I should do as far as the feeding and insulin. I have already decreased his insulin to 1 unit. has anyone else had these same problems with their cat? I am very worried and stressed about this!!
In a dilemma
- Thread starter george
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MommaOfMuse
Very Active Member
Not something I have experience in but some questions I know others will want to know to better help you and your kitty.
What insulin and what dosage was he on?
WHat is his current diet?
Are you home testing his Bloodsugars?
Have you ever tested him for ketones in his urine?
Mel, Maxwell, Musette & The Fur Gang
What insulin and what dosage was he on?
WHat is his current diet?
Are you home testing his Bloodsugars?
Have you ever tested him for ketones in his urine?
Mel, Maxwell, Musette & The Fur Gang
MommaOfMuse
Very Active Member
Ketones are something that can come on very quickly, the recipe for ketones is not enough insulin + not enough food + infection. The easiest way to rule out Ketones would be to get some ketostixs just like human diabetics use. The not eating and the reduction in insulin would concern me that you might have a guy headed for DKA which can be life threating.
Almost all of us test our cats at home, so we know by there numbers if they are high enough to safely give insulin too as well as to be able to catch a hypo before it gets serious. You really don't need your vet's permission to home test, if you think of it like this if this was a human child we were talking about no human parent would inject insulin into their child without testing first, why should it be different because the patient is a cat?
Mel, Maxwell, Musette & The Fur Gang
Almost all of us test our cats at home, so we know by there numbers if they are high enough to safely give insulin too as well as to be able to catch a hypo before it gets serious. You really don't need your vet's permission to home test, if you think of it like this if this was a human child we were talking about no human parent would inject insulin into their child without testing first, why should it be different because the patient is a cat?
Mel, Maxwell, Musette & The Fur Gang
MelanieAndRacci
Very Active Member
Hi George,
If it was my cat, I would go to the drugstore and buy ketostix or better yet dialstix since you're not testing, right away and see if he has ketones. That can be a life threatening illness that needs immediate vet care. Its very easy to test. There's a chart that you hold the stick against after catching some urine on the stick or in a bowl or cup or ladle and dip the stick into it. The dialstix, which I have never used, will tell you how much glucose is in the urine and give you an idea of where his blood glucose is at. You can do them both with the dialstix if they have them.
Anything over trace ketones and he needs to go to the vet right away, or an er hospital at this time of night.
Melanie & Racci
If it was my cat, I would go to the drugstore and buy ketostix or better yet dialstix since you're not testing, right away and see if he has ketones. That can be a life threatening illness that needs immediate vet care. Its very easy to test. There's a chart that you hold the stick against after catching some urine on the stick or in a bowl or cup or ladle and dip the stick into it. The dialstix, which I have never used, will tell you how much glucose is in the urine and give you an idea of where his blood glucose is at. You can do them both with the dialstix if they have them.
Anything over trace ketones and he needs to go to the vet right away, or an er hospital at this time of night.
Melanie & Racci
george said:
Ask your vet about the pancreatitis test result; what was the value? The normal negative range is under 3.5.
Your insulin is good, Lantus, and your choice of food is good as well. Now you just need to start hometesting because the fructosamine tests are just an average of of his BG for the last weeks.
When a vet says you don't need to test your cat's BG, I think you should ask your vet if it's the same for a child... Humans would NEVER give themselves a shot without testing their BG first.... that would be insane! So, are our cats less important?
Home testing is done for a few reasons... one is to be sure it's safe to give a shot, and two is to know if your cat is get ready to go OFF insulin. Many cats do not need insulin for life and if you are not testing, how will you know?
Pick up a BG meter from the pharmacy, any except the FreeStyle meter as they do not read well for cats. We test before every shot... if the number is too low, imagine what happens if you are giving shots blindly. Low BG numbers suck; ask any human diabetic.
Testing on cat’s ear
Also, pick up a container of KETOSTIX at the pharmacy so that you can test urine for ketones. If your test shows even a trace, please be sure to post here. With high BG numbers, the danger is greater.
Thank you so very much for the great information and advice!!! Computer went down so I couldn't reply last night.....George did eat some during the night and drank some water, and there was a normal (for him) amount of urine in the box this morning!!! YAAY!! I am going this morning to get some diastix to test his urine for ketones and will also pick up a glucometer to do blood sugars. Have a call in to the vet, but he does appear much improved from the last couple of days! Couple of questions: How does one collect urine from a cat? and also how am I going to do BS's on him because he is fairly difficult? I have some difficulty giving him his shots as he doesnt like them!! Any recommendations for the glucometer? Thanks again so much for your support - I am so thankful to have found this site!!! 
HI George, glad to hear your kitty is doing better. On the meter - many people use Walmarts Relion BG Meter because the test strips are the least expensive (and the $$ is in the test strip cost). You will also need to get some lancets to get blood out of the ear (I think someone posted the link earlier). Make sure you warm up the ear either with a warm ricesock or wet washcloth before poking. I freehand the lancet but some people like the pens which you can get at any pharmacy. Start with touching/rubbing your cats ears and then give a treat to make sure they know its a good thing. Then move on to the ear testing. You may have to wrap your cat in a towel or blanket at first while testing but many people's cats are fine as long as the treats keep coming. The most important time to test is before giving insulin so you know if its safe to administer. Its more work but it will keep your cat safer and save you money in vet bills in the long run. Jan
Just an update on my kitty. He is still doing ok. Eating and drinking and is urinating and pooping better!!! :smile: Have tested his urine each day with Keto-diastix and his ketones have been neg. Glucose is 2 still (not quite sure what that means exactly!) Have not purchased a BG monitor yet - doing some research, but will do so soon. Not quite sure how I am going to test yet as he doesn't like me anymore since I have been giving insulin and hides a lot of the time. When he sees me coming he runs!!! or bites me!!! (any suggestions as to what to do about that?)
Thanks for all the feedback!! :smile:
Thanks for all the feedback!! :smile:
Grayson & Lu
Very Active Member
Hi George -
Someone already suggested treats. I have the freeze-dried chicken and shrimp treats from Petsmart - and Grayson will pull my arm off to get them! If your guy likes them (who doesn't?) he'll associate the "reward" with sitting still for a test - in theory.
Some people wrap up their kitty like a burrito. I did initially w/ a beach towel, then held it w/ my stomach between me & the table - which kept him pretty still. Now I just hold my L arm around him w/ the hand near his head in case I need to scruff him. Usually he just lays down in this "testing spot". Because of the treat, he's pretty okay with it. He's not allowed to get up until after he hears his meter "sing". Then he's happy, kinda like Pavlov's dog... (hear the bell) press a lever, get a treat!
We have used the Relion Ultima for 3 months, and I've tried 3 other meters. The Ultima takes slightly more blood, but I personally like it best. It and the 2 other Relion meters are $9 at WalMart, and the test strips are $36 for 100. I test a LOT, so this is a good choice for me. And our WalMart is 24/7, so I can pick the strips up whenever I need them - definitely something to keep in mind. I posted on health a thread entitled "METER ACCURACY CONCERNS" that you may wish to look at - some little things we do that can impact the readings from our meters. There was also a recent post w/ a study comparing meters that was quite interesting... will see if I can find it (feel free to jump in, anyone, if you remember when/where it was).
Hope this helps and that your baby is doing better by now. We had ketone issues, and you really have to stay on top of them. I always say, it's an insurance policy in a $6 bottle! Glad to see you're testing for them.
One last thing; we turn to our vets to advise us, but the bottom line when it comes to their care, it's really OUR decision - to test, the dose, etc. Early on, one night I tested Grayson for a pre-shot and saw 138 - rechecked and saw 125. I was SO GLAD I was testing him. He'd dropped over 300 points from the morning pre-shot... had I shot him blindly that night, it probably would've killed him. You are the one in the drivers seat. Testing your guy's BG is just part of his care, with or without the vet's support. Hopefully, your vet will come around and ultimately support your decision to do so... but it's truly in your hands.
Lu-Ann
Someone already suggested treats. I have the freeze-dried chicken and shrimp treats from Petsmart - and Grayson will pull my arm off to get them! If your guy likes them (who doesn't?) he'll associate the "reward" with sitting still for a test - in theory.
Some people wrap up their kitty like a burrito. I did initially w/ a beach towel, then held it w/ my stomach between me & the table - which kept him pretty still. Now I just hold my L arm around him w/ the hand near his head in case I need to scruff him. Usually he just lays down in this "testing spot". Because of the treat, he's pretty okay with it. He's not allowed to get up until after he hears his meter "sing". Then he's happy, kinda like Pavlov's dog... (hear the bell) press a lever, get a treat!
We have used the Relion Ultima for 3 months, and I've tried 3 other meters. The Ultima takes slightly more blood, but I personally like it best. It and the 2 other Relion meters are $9 at WalMart, and the test strips are $36 for 100. I test a LOT, so this is a good choice for me. And our WalMart is 24/7, so I can pick the strips up whenever I need them - definitely something to keep in mind. I posted on health a thread entitled "METER ACCURACY CONCERNS" that you may wish to look at - some little things we do that can impact the readings from our meters. There was also a recent post w/ a study comparing meters that was quite interesting... will see if I can find it (feel free to jump in, anyone, if you remember when/where it was).
Hope this helps and that your baby is doing better by now. We had ketone issues, and you really have to stay on top of them. I always say, it's an insurance policy in a $6 bottle! Glad to see you're testing for them.
One last thing; we turn to our vets to advise us, but the bottom line when it comes to their care, it's really OUR decision - to test, the dose, etc. Early on, one night I tested Grayson for a pre-shot and saw 138 - rechecked and saw 125. I was SO GLAD I was testing him. He'd dropped over 300 points from the morning pre-shot... had I shot him blindly that night, it probably would've killed him. You are the one in the drivers seat. Testing your guy's BG is just part of his care, with or without the vet's support. Hopefully, your vet will come around and ultimately support your decision to do so... but it's truly in your hands.
Lu-Ann
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