Introducing Curt

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ThomasCat

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My beloved Curt was diagnosed today with diabetes. Although it has been very obvious to me for the last week while he was waiting to see the vet. He is 10 years old, always been an indoor cat, very docile and one of the sweetest creatures you'll ever meet! He used to be a healthy weight for his size, around 20 pounds, when I started noticing in November that he looked skinnier, especially his back legs. I didnt worry too much about it because he still seemed happy, purry and playful, ate like a pig and everything else, so i just assumed it was because he was getting a little older he might be losing some weight. Well then after that I noticed in December he was drinking insane amount of water, and having me change the litter about every 3 days because of how bad he would soak it afterwards. I was still STUPID not to realize then that it was something not normal. What finally caused me to worry was the effect it had on his back legs. He could no longer jump on the bed or couch anymore, almost overnight, and walks very lame now. Sure enough the vet confirmed today he is a diabetic cat :( I am so sad for him. Through all this he still seems so happy and loved; he doesnt act sick at all. But my concern is about his treatment. I nearly faint around needles, it will be very hard to get used to shooting him everyday. The problem is that I work very long hours, at varying times of the day throughout the week. It will be next to impossible to get a schedule to shoot him exactly 12 hours apart every day at the same time. :( Also, the thing im terrified most of is the hypoglycemia. Even if I were to figure out a way to shoot him around the same time everyday, I wouldnt be home a lot to monitor his behavior. Im just worried I will come home one night and find out he went fatally hypoglycemic :( I live pretty much alone, sometimes a roommate (Who hates cats) and not married or family close or anything. Do you think I can do this, or should I see giving him away? :(


Tom
 

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I am home all day and Simba still have had 3 hypos - that's how quick they come on, but I've been very fast to catch them by testing him, the first time which was the first he had 0.8! and then I was quick to fill him up with dextrose. That was an extreme occassion, because I then did what is called super super tight control on him, he was very hard to regulate on 2 insulin times a day, so I split his daily dose into 4 and gave him 4 times a day, so that is why it happened. However don't be alarmed by that, because you will give Curt insulin only 2 times a day.

Do you know what blood sugar numbers Curt have? And what insulin have you been given and are you supposed to give it to him twice a day with 12 hours apart?

The thing where he can't jump and walk right, walking on his hocks is called diabetic neuropathy. They get that if they've had diabetes for a long time and been untreated with insulin. It will reverse once Curt is properly regulated with insulin.
 
oh, on foods

There are many cats here that are food regulated. Meaning, they've taken away the dry food for them. No more dry food for the rest of their life. And instead they buy food from the stores that is diabetic friendly, see Binky's food list of what is out there for Curt. If you are lucky, Curt might be one of them that doesn't need insulin if he just gets the right diabetic adapted food.
 
I can't answer your questions just offer you some sympathy and some of my own experience. I don't have a fear of needles or anything but it did make me feel physically ill when I first started testing Vyktor and making him bleed. I did it because I knew I had to if I wanted him to live and within a week or so I was over it. I guess you are the only one that really knows what you are capable of doing for Curt. I'm so sorry that you have found yourself in this position. :cry:
 
Hi Tom. Doesn't this suck? I just posted my "intro" just now too. So I don't "know" much and like Vyktors mum I just wanted to say hi. I guess I can say this: I didn't want to put needles into my cat Ak, or prick test his ears, but I feel like that's the only way to help him, so I was determined to make it work. And Ak turns out to be pretty good about it all. Well, he's good about the insulin (we think he notices that he feels better from it). He gets grumpy about the ear testing, but its getting there. Do what you can. I think you will be able to find a way through this complicated business. Well, I wouldn't know what the rest of your life is like. So really I should just sympathise, a lot, and leave it at that. And say, this is crazy, and complicated, but I have found some of it is working.
 
Poopy and I welcome you and Curt to the best place to be for diabetic kitties and their daddy beans! cat_pet_icon

I, too, faint at the sight of needles. My family and doctor were very surprised to learn I was giving shots to Poopy! And testing Poopy's blood? They were totally shocked! It's amazing what we can do for our loved ones when they count on us! :-D

Only you can decide what is best for you and Curt. I hope, with Curt being your family, you decide to continue to love and care for him if you can. If your vet recommends an insulin like ProZinc (I'm not that familiar with Lantus and Levimir), it is a bit forgiving if you can't meet the 12 hour stroke for shots. Trying to be as close as possible helps, though, in regulating Curt's diabetes.

Hypo is terrifying to me too. Learning to home test is a must to help prevent it. Doing a test three times a day, with an occasional curve (testing every 2-3 hours, say on a weekend or day off) is all you'd need to do - so it can be done! ;-) We always test before shooting insulin, and try to get a number about 5-7 hours after a shot at least once a day (that's your three tests a day). Keeping track of the tests helps you and anyone helping you, know what to do about the insulin dosage.

One of the first things you can do for Curt is to get him switched to a low carb diet, as carbs play a huge part in their diabetes. I have a link to Janet and Binky's food chart in my signature. Anything <10 carbs is great, and <7 is even better!

Everyone is here to help us help our fuzzy babies. Let us know how we can help you help Curt. :smile:
 
While shooting every 12 hours is optimum, it is not necessary. A couple of years ago I would shoot on the weeks ends at 3:30 AM and 10:30 PM because of my schedule.
 
You may find the attached document with a relaxation technique helpful ... for you!


The next step after learning relaxation breathing is to mentally rehearse the task while doing the breathing until you feel confident you can do it, be it checking the glucose level or giving insulin. Notice the words I used? Those may be less anxiety-provoking than some of the other terms. Its another way to manage any stress issues from the process.

Then grit your teeth and go for it.

You can do it!
 

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Hi Tom and sweet Curt cat_pet_icon


welcome to the FDMB family , it really sucks to find out your fur baby is diabetic , it makes you feel down right helpless , but thats what we are all here for is to help you and Curt !

Tom is there a friend or family member who can learn right along with you ?? and give a hand for checking bg on Curt or giving shots?? were do you live maybe there is a member who can help you !! again welcome from callie and me are fingers and paws crossed for you and Curt
 
Hi Tom. My cat was diagnosed about a month ago. I hate needles too and they used to make me faint. I thought it was over and that my cat would have to be put down. Wrong! The vet showed me how easy it was and honestly, in the 80+ injections I have given, I think he only flinched twice (both my fault). 99% of the time he doesn't even feel it! I give it while he is eating when he is almost done and he could care less. He sees the syringe and runs to his feeding area. You can do it. If you read a majority of the introductory posts, they all seem to start with "I hate needles". It's amazing what fears we can overcome when we have to. Good luck with Curt and you will both be just fine.
 
Wow, thanks everyone for the nice welcome! Tomorrow is Curt's big day.. he is going back to the vet for his first shot and to train me how to do it. During his tests his sugar was over 400? Yikes :(. They said they are starting him on PZI, one unit every 12 hours. But because my work schedule varies daily, sometimes it might be 14 hours and sometimes it might be 10. I will have to ask them tomorrow if this is acceptable, or if theres a way to do it only once a day? I will just have to get over the needle fear, Im going to do this, I cant lose my Curt!! Again just worried if he has a hypo epidsode I will not be here to help him. Unfortunately I dont have anyone I really trust to come over and "cat sit" for me for awhile. In general, he loves to eat and eat and eat, even before is diabetes, so he should be safe from the hypo episodes if he eats a lot? I sure hope so. Right now he is eating Purina Pro Plan canned food.. and also Wellness dry food..but the vet has not said yet what they will recommend for him. Again, thanks everyone for the nice welcome! :)

Tom
 
Hi Tom and Curt!

I just joined as well, my cat Scout was diagnosed yesterday... so I don't have much sage wisdom... but definitely learn to test at home to give yourself piece of mind and to help you understand how diabetes works. If you can watch his behavior and then get a number to go along with it, it will make it much easier for you to keep an eye out for odd behavior in the future. Also, you'll be able to give him insulin with confidence each morning before you leave the house. I'm so scared to leave Scout for 8-10 hours but fortunately my work lets me work from home periodically and I'm taking full advantage. Can you get some leeway with work in these early weeks?

Good luck and give Curt some scritches from me!
Lori
 
Well, I just gave him a shot for the first time tonight, and it was scary but I did it! He didnt even flinch from the shot. His vet actually gave him the first one this morning, and she had to shave his side to expose his skin. He freaked out like crazy from the electric clippers!! I thought oh no here we go, he is going to go crazy every time i shoot him. Then she gave him the shot and he literally didnt blink while she did it!! Same tonight for me, he just sat there eating his Fancy Feast :) I guess the electric clippers are much scarier than the needle to Curt!!
 
It makes such a difference! My husband always says that he thinks they know when we are trying to help, and they are very forgiving.
Good cat Curt! cat_pet_icon
 
Hey Tom, that's great news!!! To be honest I don't think they even feel it. I have been getting Scout while she eats and she doesn't even lift her head up to see what's going on! I bet you feel much better now you've got that first shot under your belt. :smile:

Lori
 
Lori, today was my 2nd day and it hasnt gone as well. Im starting to worry Im not doing it correctly. He yelped very hard when I did it tonight, to the point where I took it out prematurely with only half the injection in him. I had to shoot him again to get the rest of it in :( I pull up the skin to make the "Tent" and then the looking at that long needle it just seems impossible to get it in him. :( Today I went to work at 8 am, left work at 9 am, drove 20 miles back home to give him his shot at 930 and then 20 miles back to work :/
 
ThomasCat said:
He yelped very hard when I did it tonight, to the point where I took it out prematurely with only half the injection in him.
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You might have hit muscle. I have the opposite problem, I used to put the needle "through" the tent and then inject into his fur on the other side.

ThomasCat said:
I pull up the skin to make the "Tent" and then the looking at that long needle it just seems impossible to get it in him.
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My husband is a renal patient, meaning he has about 20 years of experience shooting himself with needles. When I handed the syringe to him to shoot the cat, I noticed that he didn't angle the needle at 90 degrees to the tent, like I was. He angled it at a very low angle, along the tent flap (is that taking the analogy too far?) He has his knuckles against the fur, and the needle makes an angle of about 30 degrees to the tent, in contrast to my 90 degrees. And the line of the needle is parallel to the cat's back. Maybe I should draw a picture.

So when he aims for the base of the tent, the needle goes in along near the bottom of the tent, not across the bottom. Hmm. Picture. let me see.


The word at the bottom there is meant to say "cat". I don't know if this will help, it might not be a very clear picture.
 

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Hi and welcome! I think all of us are overwhelmed at first, but Scooter was just diagnosed in December and here I am welcoming other newbies already. You and your kitty will both catch on to the routine very very fast.

It sounds like you're using long needles and probably accidentally poked into muscle... which hurts humans and kitties alike! PZI is a u40 insulin, and I don't think u40 syringes come in the nice short 5/16" needle syringes like the u100 ones do. That being said, you can easily convert a u40 dose to a u100 dose by multiplying it by 2.5. So if you are giving 1u in a u40 syringe, you would give 2.5u in a u100 syringe. Maybe that will help if you're struggling with the long needles.
 
The shots will become easier as you become more comfortable. :smile: Remember to keep the needle going into the tent and not downward to avoid muscle. Nat's drawing is great!

When I have thought I might be poking through both sides of the tent, I eased up on the tent a bit to lower it while the needle was still in (but not pushing the needle forward or backward). I also always rub Poopy around the shot site to be sure there's no wet fur (what we call a fur shot, where insulin ends up in the fur and not in the cat! LOL).

Have you started home testing yet? If not, I hope you are seriously considering it. :smile:
 
Thanks again everyone..
(and for the drawing!) So I should be putting the needle in at 90 degrees to his tent of skin? Also, do i need to put the whole needle in him?
 
ThomasCat said:
So I should be putting the needle in at 90 degrees to his tent of skin? Also, do i need to put the whole needle in him?
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No no, (sorry to confuse you) you should NOT be putting the needle in at 90 degrees, but at a flatter angle, like 30 degrees or so. I put my whole needle in, but I am not sure if we have the same length of needle. My needle is about 1.5cm long
 
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