My 13-year-old cat Mini was diagnosed with diabetes more than a year ago. The nice people on this board helped me get him off insulin and dry Science Diet for good, and onto Friskies Pate, along with his non-diabetic brother Max. Mini's BG numbers dropped dramatically, his symptoms disappeared and everything was wonderful.
Before I changed their diet, they had bellies that looked like footballs, but as their diet changed, non-diabetic Max got leaner, slimmer and more active. They're big half-Maine Coon cats, and as I remember, they both weighed around 14-16 pounds during the transition when I was weighing to figure out how much to feed.
Mini (the one with diabetes) had great blood glucose numbers, he was off insulin, and his neuropathy was gone, so I haven't worried about the fact that he still has a football belly, but we had a flea crisis last week, from which he seemed itchy, very uncomfortable and a little off, and after we treated the fleas, I sort of suddenly realized that he's gotten really solidly FAT. I weighed them both and discovered Mini's gained four or five pounds, while Max is still quite lean. And when I checked Mini's blood glucose for the first time in ages, it was 35. No insulin for a year, but isn't that kind of low?
I feed three cans of Friskies Pate a day, and maybe Mini's just eating more than his share? Or could it be something more ominous? I have no faith in the vet, who prescribed dry Science Diet and insulin for diabetes and seemed clueless even after I showed her Mini's spreadsheet from this board.
Is three cans too much? Any other ideas? Thanks in advance.
Before I changed their diet, they had bellies that looked like footballs, but as their diet changed, non-diabetic Max got leaner, slimmer and more active. They're big half-Maine Coon cats, and as I remember, they both weighed around 14-16 pounds during the transition when I was weighing to figure out how much to feed.
Mini (the one with diabetes) had great blood glucose numbers, he was off insulin, and his neuropathy was gone, so I haven't worried about the fact that he still has a football belly, but we had a flea crisis last week, from which he seemed itchy, very uncomfortable and a little off, and after we treated the fleas, I sort of suddenly realized that he's gotten really solidly FAT. I weighed them both and discovered Mini's gained four or five pounds, while Max is still quite lean. And when I checked Mini's blood glucose for the first time in ages, it was 35. No insulin for a year, but isn't that kind of low?
I feed three cans of Friskies Pate a day, and maybe Mini's just eating more than his share? Or could it be something more ominous? I have no faith in the vet, who prescribed dry Science Diet and insulin for diabetes and seemed clueless even after I showed her Mini's spreadsheet from this board.
Is three cans too much? Any other ideas? Thanks in advance.
