Just got word...

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2_Liter_Turbo

Member Since 2012
My cat was just diagnosed with feline diabetes yesterday. He is about 14.5 years old. I've had him since his birth, so he's my buddy. Anyways, signed up because I need to try to keep costs down as I rarely have any extra money, lol. And suggestions are very welcome. We have a "consultation" appointment tomorrow morning with the vet. I can't afford to be "had" by all of this.
 
Welcome! I'm still a newbie to this, too. It's been a week but already things are starting to feel a bit more normal and manageable. So don't fret too much!

Personally, I'd suggest doing the following:
(1) Read up on feline diabetes, particularly some of the great introductions to it on this website. The links under 'Getting Started' on the main page (felinediabetes.com) were really helpful the night I heard about Dusty's diagnosis. There's also a FAQ under the 'announcements' on this forum that is helpful to read.

(2) Find a good glucose reader, test strips, and a lancet. You'll want to check your cat's blood. Seems like most of the folks here use human meters. I use the ReliOn from Walmart. It cost about $15 and the test strips cost something like $25 (for 50). The lancet (for poking) came with it, but you'll want to grab some refills. They're also pretty cheap.

(3) While you're getting a glucose reader, also get some Ketone test strips. They should be in the same place. Diabetic kitties often get a build up of ketones in their urine and this will help you figure out whether your cat should be headed to the vet ASAP. You can do this immediately.

(4) Talk to folks on here about types of insulin and keep those conversations in mind as you talk to your vet tomorrow. I'm not entirely sure about the varieties, myself. My cat is on Lantus, which seems to be one of the best options. It's expensive, but it also has a much greater chance of getting your cat in remission. It's also one of the safer options for cats because it is fairly slow and steady. Others, though, can say much more about that.

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You'll want to begin testing your cat with the glucose meter. Do this before giving insulin (b/c if it's too low you don't want to dose) and during times of the day between doses, so you can get a sense of how the treatment is going. The vet will probably talk about having your cat do a 'curve' where they test the glucose every two hours for a 12 hour cycle. If you have your own glucometer at home, you can do the curve at home and save a lot of money. (I was supposed to bring Dusty in today for her curve. After talking with my vet, though, we agreed that I could do it at home and then just bring Dusty in for a consultation next week some time. That's saving me about $150.)

Mostly, though, don't be afraid to ask questions. The folks here are AMAZING and have been really a godsend to me this week as I've started on my own treatment with Dusty. Good luck!
 
Oops! One more. Think about your food options. Lots of folks here feed their cats Fancy Feasts classics, which is a reasonably priced option. You'll want to get your cat off of dry food, though, and food with a high glycemic index. There are a variety of lists on the forum (one listed in the above 'announcements' to this forum) that will give you a sense of which foods to use and which to avoid.

That said, food also influences glucose levels. So if you are changing your cat's food make sure to keep an eye on the glucose levels so that the food + the insulin doesn't result in a crash.

Oh! And speaking of crashes - read the thread on what a hypoglycemic attack looks like and make sure you have some different things (syrups, high carb wet foods, etc) in case you need to get your cat's blood sugar higher from a crash.

And, again, when all else fails, ask others for advice. Folks are on here all the time and there's always someone willing to help. :smile:
 
No problem! And hopefully others who are much, much more experienced than I will come in with their own advice. But be assured that you can definitely do this and at a fairly reasonable price.
 
Hi and welcome to FDMB!

Read over this list of questions and pick some that matter most to you, especially where costs are concerned:

http://gorbzilla.com/questions_for_your_vet_.htm

The biggest initial costs are
The cost of the initial diagnosis.
The cost of insulin.
The cost of future vet visits.

What are not necessary to spend your money on:
Curves at the vet on a periodic basis.
Any prescription diet.
A "pet" blood glucose meter and test strips.

You can get a human glucometer very inexpensively, some companies even give them away.
The biggest cost associated with home-testing is the cost of the test strips. A meter such as the Relion meters sold at walmart will allow you to test multiple times a day for less than a dollar a day. Strips for specialty "pet meters" like the Alpha Track can cost $1 per strip!

Food - commercial grocery store or pet store foods, as long as they are canned and low-carb are fine for a diabetic cat. Fancy Feast, Friskees, Special Kitty, there are lots of them. Dry food is a no-no. "Prescription" foods like Hills, which many vets advise, are NOT good for a diabetic cat, even though they are marketed that way. And they cost an arm and a leg.

BG curves, which many vets insist are needed on an every week or two basis are NOT needed if you are testing your cat at home. Those also cost a lot of money.

Insulin - There are 3 types that we suggest using. Lantus, Levemir, and Prozinc. They aren't cheap. Prozinc can cost $100 a vial. The "L" insulin can cost twice that. But, they also last for a long time (months), so on a "per-day" basis, it really isn't a big cost. It just seems that way because you have to spend the money up front.

Hopefully that will get you prepped for your consultation. If you have questions after that visit, post them here and we'll help with that!

Carl
 
Cool, good info. Fortunately, he already eats fancy feast, so no need to change that. I have to pull the dry food though (he has normally had both). I will do all testing at home, I can't afford "cruves" all the time, etc. Hoping the vet is reasonable about this. I'm fairly stubborn, so she wont be able to talk me into it! Ha ha. I'll have to take a trip to the store to get some supplies for sure though. Out of those three, which are typically the least expensive? What makes them better than other options? Are shots better than pills (if they exist)? Thanks!
 
Cheapest initially would be prozinc. But as far as a per-dose basis, probably Lantus if you buy it in "pens" instead of a vial.

Pill/oral type insulins like glipizide are not typically effective for cats.
Carl
 
653 is high, but there isn't much value in a one-time test. Do you know if they did a fructosomine test?
Carl
 
Not sure. Also, he has been on prednisilone (spelling?) for almost a year (daily), which is a light steriod for his anemia. I'm wondering if this is what is causing the diabetes. And if so, if I should stop the steriod.
 
Definitely something to ask your vet. Some cases of diabetes can be steroid-induced. But sometimes stopping the steroids is not possible.
Carl
 
2_Liter_Turbo said:
Not sure. Also, he has been on prednisilone (spelling?) for almost a year (daily), which is a light steriod for his anemia. I'm wondering if this is what is causing the diabetes. And if so, if I should stop the steriod.
Click to expand...

Welcome.

If your cat needs the pred for his health, but it causes a need for a bit of insulin, not a big deal.
If you stop the pred and your cat no longer needs insulin, but he's sick because he needs the pred, big deal.

Better to stick with the pred if he still needs it, and give insulin to bring his BG into a good range.

I think I would suggest that you get a meter to test his BG, regardless of your having to give insulin or not. It may be that he will need insulin for just a short time, but you won't know unless you are home testing and can check his numbers at home. The Relion meters are quite inexpensive, and the test strips are the most economical of all human meters.

With such a high BG number, it may be a very good idea if you could also pick up a container of KETOSTIX so you can test his urine for ketones.

The food. There are many cats who are very carb sensitive, but as soon as the dry food (and treats) are removed from the diet, the cat's numbers come down to better range. The fancy feast food is often fed; just be sure it's only the pates and none of the gravy or grilled flavors. Once you remove the dry food and are home testing, you may find that your cat does not need any insulin, or he ends up needed only a small dose.

Other issues can cause high BG numbers, like illness, infections and dental problems. Be sure your vet have ruled out other issues, no infections, and a looksee at the teeth shows any big issues.
Ask your vet if that number was the result from a fructosamine test which is an average of your cat's BG over the last few weeks, or if it was just the glucose value on blood tests that were done.
 
Blue said:
Ask your vet if that number was the result from a fructosamine test which is an average of your cat's BG over the last few weeks, or if it was just the glucose value on blood tests that were done.
Click to expand...

It was just from a blood test. First vet visit in 6 months. They can't figure out why he is anemic, so they started him on the steriod. It seemed to help for the most part in terms of him being "sick", but his red blood cell count is still low.
 
ok good.... just one number does not make your cat diabetic..... remove the dry food and start home testing. Let's first confirm that it's not one fluky number.

Maybe you can ask what your vet's checked so far to investigate the anemia.
What signs did you have before the pred that are gone or lessened now that you are giving pred?
 
We got Prozinc. Just 1 ml dosage for now, twice daily. Pulling all dry food of course, and they are recommending the diabetic Royalcanin wet food. It's not too spendy, so I'll give it a shot for now. They didn't insist on the curve, but said that if I do it, it would be a good idea. They do want to see him in a week for a check up though. As for the Anemia, he was really lethargic, wouldn't eat or drink, and had to breath really fast. When we got his cell count back up with the steriod, he was his typical annoying self again.
 
Insulin fine, dosage fine. I don't know about the food. Check the ingredients; you want to stay away from gravies, rice - any carbohydrate ingredients.

Can we help with hometesting? Here is how we do it: Video for hometesting and some other links: hometesting links and tips We would urge you to start soon. Sometimes the change to wet food can make a big downward difference in bg levels. When we switched Oliver from dry to wet, he went down 100 points overnight. If we hadn't tested the next morning and had given our usual amount, we would have overdosed him.

This is a massive document but has lots of info/links for PZI: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=32799
 
2_Liter_Turbo said:
We got Prozinc. Just 1 ml dosage for now, twice daily. Pulling all dry food of course, and they are recommending the diabetic Royalcanin wet food. It's not too spendy, so I'll give it a shot for now. They didn't insist on the curve, but said that if I do it, it would be a good idea. They do want to see him in a week for a check up though. As for the Anemia, he was really lethargic, wouldn't eat or drink, and had to breath really fast. When we got his cell count back up with the steriod, he was his typical annoying self again.
Click to expand...

Royal Canin is NOT a good option for diabetic cats as they all contain well over 10% carbs (unless it's the Recovery RS). You can check the food list here for which of the FF are low carb and for more food options.
 
2_Liter_Turbo said:
We got Prozinc. Just 1 ml dosage for now, twice daily. ... As for the Anemia, he was really lethargic, wouldn't eat or drink, and had to breath really fast. When we got his cell count back up with the steriod, he was his typical annoying self again.
Click to expand...

That should be 1 UNIT, not milliliter (mL); there are 40 Units in one milliliter of ProZinc. Be very careful how you measure!!!

In humans, there is something called the Anemia of Chronic Disease. If there is something similar in cats, perhaps the anemia is secondary to the diabetes. Worht asking the vet. There are, of course, more dire explanations, but start with the simplest ideas first and work from there.
 
Sue and Oliver (GA) said:
Insulin fine, dosage fine. I don't know about the food. Check the ingredients; you want to stay away from gravies, rice - any carbohydrate ingredients.

Can we help with hometesting? Here is how we do it: Video for hometesting and some other links: hometesting links and tips We would urge you to start soon. Sometimes the change to wet food can make a big downward difference in bg levels. When we switched Oliver from dry to wet, he went down 100 points overnight. If we hadn't tested the next morning and had given our usual amount, we would have overdosed him.

This is a massive document but has lots of info/links for PZI: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=32799
Click to expand...

Thanks for the tips and info. I just bought a tester, test strips and lancets. So I'll test him tonight before giving him a dose and post it up. He has been on wet food (fancy feast, but not the classic) for a good number of months already. He doesn't eat too much dry as it is. I gave him one dose this morning, but wont give another until after I test his blood.


KPassa said:
2_Liter_Turbo said:
We got Prozinc. Just 1 ml dosage for now, twice daily. Pulling all dry food of course, and they are recommending the diabetic Royalcanin wet food. It's not too spendy, so I'll give it a shot for now. They didn't insist on the curve, but said that if I do it, it would be a good idea. They do want to see him in a week for a check up though. As for the Anemia, he was really lethargic, wouldn't eat or drink, and had to breath really fast. When we got his cell count back up with the steriod, he was his typical annoying self again.
Click to expand...

Royal Canin is NOT a good option for diabetic cats as they all contain well over 10% carbs (unless it's the Recovery RS). You can check the food list here for which of the FF are low carb and for more food options.
Click to expand...

It's the diabetic specific Royal Canin. Is that ok? It is "morsels in gravy" though. No rice in it. Here's the food:

http://www.4petsusa.com/index.php?l=pro ... ail&p=4155



BJM said:
2_Liter_Turbo said:
We got Prozinc. Just 1 ml dosage for now, twice daily. ... As for the Anemia, he was really lethargic, wouldn't eat or drink, and had to breath really fast. When we got his cell count back up with the steriod, he was his typical annoying self again.
Click to expand...

That should be 1 UNIT, not milliliter (mL); there are 40 Units in one milliliter of ProZinc. Be very careful how you measure!!!

In humans, there is something called the Anemia of Chronic Disease. If there is something similar in cats, perhaps the anemia is secondary to the diabetes. Worht asking the vet. There are, of course, more dire explanations, but start with the simplest ideas first and work from there.
Click to expand...

My apologies! I meant 1 unit, ha ha. It's just a tiny amount, the first numbered line on the tiny syringe. I'll ask about the ACD for sure. Thanks!
 
2_Liter_Turbo said:
It's the diabetic specific Royal Canin. Is that ok? It is "morsels in gravy" though. No rice in it. Here's the food:

http://www.4petsusa.com/index.php?l=pro ... ail&p=4155
Click to expand...


It contains both wheat and corn starch so I would say NO its not good for a diabetic as both of those are loaded with carbs. Plus many cats are allergic to grains of any sort. Cats are obligated carnivores, so the only corn or wheat that they should ever eat is that which has been eaten by a mouse or bird first. :-D

Mel, Maxwell, Autumn & The Fur Gang
 
I'd see if you can return it back to the vet. There are a lot cheaper and better low carb options (like Fancy Feast Classics or Friskies Pate) than anything a vet tries to sell you.
 
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