Intro Post for my sugar kitty Norman

T

TooFar McGee

Member Since 2025
I'm still in the "well equipped but overwhelmed" stage, I think.
Norm (~14ish neutered male, currently 8.75#, was about 11 at last known "well" a couple years ago) has had an IBD dx for about four years, this spring had a negative workup for EPI and leukemia.

His initial problem was regurgitation and vomiting- enough so he lost a fair amount of weight. I didn't realize what was happening, really, because his chonky housemate "cleaned up after" him. Eww.

I put him on prednisolone and he improved somewhat, but then started vomiting again. Cerenia has been a godsend... the vomiting stopped, but he stopped eating as much, too. His labwork suggested the prednisolone was edging him toward diabetes, so we cut his dose back... but then he started having diarrhea and other gut problems. Ok, so back on the prednisolone and okay for a while... then more weight loss and while no vomiting, lots of drinking and peeing. Oh no.

So this past Thurs he was diagnosed with diabetes with initial numbers in the upper 400s and we were prescribed 1U bid of PIZ. the 1U didn't touch his numbers, so the vet bumped it up to 3, which dropped his BG fast enough to scare me a little. I'm in daily email contact with my vet and we have discussed this cycle being 2.5U and letting his system adapt. A little mirtazapine and he's eating well again, looking better, more energy, numbers still sky high initially (above 600 pre-shot) nadirs in the upper 300s. This is using a Libre 3 and human glucometer (OneTouch).

My big questions:
Since diabeetus often occurs with IBD, what do US-based "cat maids/butlers" feed their sensitive sugar kitties? Norm is currently on a dry hydrolyzed diet he has grown to dislike. The vet sent us home with cans of a/z hydrolyzed wet food that he actually genuinely enjoys. (even though he has poops that come in at a spicy 8 on the Bristol stool scale, like going to 11)

I'm reading all the posts about being able to leave wet food out all day and freezing half the portion for later and I never would have thought of that/LOVE the idea! My boys have Sureflap RFID chip-activated feeders.

That brings me to the second question: Norm's housemate Lou is a big, fat beggar and convicted food thief. He has gotten even tubbier over this last ordeal, waiting for sick Norm to step away from his food (or for me to turn my back for half a second) an absolutely hoovered Norm's ever-present and always-available food.

I'm gathering from posts here that it's easier to have everyone in the household on a diabetes-friendly diet, and low carb, low/zero grain diets are better and healthier for everyone anyway... so again, what does everyone reccommend? I work pretty long hours and up til now have been away on trips close to a week long every month/every other month, so convenience is good (like most people) and that lead me to dry food (like most people) but I know it's not the best, and... well... I want to give my boys the best.

Any other advice is quite welcome. I work in healthcare and have a pretty good grasp of human treatment, etc but cats are, well, a whole different animal!
Thank you in advance!
 
Low carb canned food is best for all the cats :) Less to worry about who is eating what.

My diabetic also has IBD. I feed him a commercial freeze dried raw food in rabbit. Rabbit is the only protein that will agree with his sensitive tummy. I've always fed a raw diet so there wasn't a need to transition.

A home cooked or raw diet also works but not all cats will eat those.

There are commercial low carb canned foods in novel proteins that work well for diabetics with IBD. Rawz, Koha, and Rayne are some brands.

IBDKitties – Helping Save Lives…One Paw at a Time
Feline IBD - Healing can happen!

@Suzanne & Darcy can comment on the Prozinc. I use Lantus for my cat,
 
There's a great website for raw feeding -- Raw Feeding for IBD Cats. I've had my IBD kitty (not a diabetic) on a partially raw diet for years. The website has information on the supplements needed for a raw diet. They recommend FoodFurLife. Typically, the hydrolyzed diets are high in carbs. You want to feed your IBD cat a diet that involves novel proteins (e.g., rabbit, venison).

If you switch both cats to a low carb diet, there's a good chance Norm (aka the "Hoover") may lose weight. Cats are obligate carnivores and they don't process carbohydrates efficiently. This is a great website on feline nutrition. On the menu bar on the right side, there's a link to a food chart that lists nutritional info, including carbs. You want to keep your cat on a diet that's less than 10% carbs. Most members feed their cat a food that's in the neighborhood of 5%. Most people here feed their diabetic cat Fancy Feast or Friskies. The issue is that these are not novel protein diets. I use ZiwiPeak venison as one choice and feed a homemade raw diet, as well.
 
Another solution I've seen to help a skinny kitty with a fat hoover buddy is to get a box or other such container, put a door in it that is large enough for skinny cat but not fat cat. Place food inside the box.

My IBD, not diabetic, cat eats rabbit, turkey, and sometimes lamb or pork. There are quite a few low carb brands besides those mentioned above, even for rabbit. Mine gets bored of the same brand so I need variety. If you do a novel protein diet, start with one protein only, including treats and make sure it's OK, before adding another protein. If you aren't giving probiotics yet, Visbiome is the one I use. A pinch of psyllium husk fiber can help as a prebiotic.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
Another solution I've seen to help a skinny kitty with a fat hoover buddy is to get a box or other such container, put a door in it that is large enough for skinny cat but not fat cat. Place food inside the box.

My IBD, not diabetic, cat eats rabbit, turkey, and sometimes lamb or pork. There are quite a few low carb brands besides those mentioned above, even for rabbit. Mine gets bored of the same brand so I need variety. If you do a novel protein diet, start with one protein only, including treats and make sure it's OK, before adding another protein. If you aren't giving probiotics yet, Visbiome is the one I use. A pinch of psyllium husk fiber can help as a prebiotic.
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Thank you! (And thanks to everyone for their input!) I laughed out loud about the Tiny Door of Discouragement. Unfortunately, I've tried something very similar and it was a hell of a thing watching Lou HUFF his way through, like being birthed through the "food hole". They're both formerly strays, but Lou's been holding onto that food insecurity feeling for years now.

Thanks for the input on brands and info! I'm not sure if I'm ready to take the raw diet plunge just yet (still a little overwhelmed trying to figure out flattening Norm's curves) but I'll definitely be looking into those commercial novel protein, low carb diets!

Norm's getting a daily 'soup' with ION humic acid supplement, visbiome and fortiflora but I'm not adverse to adding a little psyllium to bulk things up a little.
 
Novel protein foods are pricey 🫤 I buy cases of food for Leroy's snacks.

You could look into brands that have a LID (limited ingredient diet) variety.
 
Some people buy a meal completer like FoodFurLife's EZComplete, TC Feline, or Alnutrin and add to cooked meat if not up to doing raw. I am lucky enough to live 5 minutes away from an organic exotic meat butcher. Neko (not IBD) would get all sorts of meat, including buffalo, elk, venison, rabbit, wild boar, kangaroo, lamb. I priced out what it cost to make food, and it was cheaper than some of the canned cat foods - depending on meat cost of course.
 
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