Mac just diagnosed - pretty scared

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dustygoddess

New Member
Hi - My cat Mac - neutered male - was just diagnosed; took him to the vet because there was a lot of pee in the litter box and he was drinking like crazy. He is a big cat when about 18lb vet put him on metabolic diet (which he disliked) and he ballooned to 22lb (he was eating a combo of metabolic and FF Gravy/Pate).

I'm feeling horribly guilty; I feel like I gave him diabetes by making him too fat.

He was tested at the vet's and his BG was 370. He was put on PZI - 1.5 units. I took away his metabolic and left him to eat FF Pate, which he likes. He was given PZI 1.5 units the first evening, and I was told to test the following day, 6 hours after food/dose. He doesn't like having his ears poked.

His numbers look like this (6 hours after):
Day 1 - 323
Day 2 - 222
(He was very drowsy after dosage on day 2 so I called the vet's office and reduced dose to 1 unit)
Day 3 - 273
Day 4 - 333 (was very stressed out during blood draw, licking lips, threw up right after)

What's happening with him?

Thanks!

ETA posted same in intro too, later found this forum.
 
That's pretty normal for a newly diagnosed cat. If you can set up a spreadsheet that would help. Good job getting testing going right away. If you give him a (low carb) treat when you test it will help him associate the test with happy things. Keep at 1 unit twice a day a few more days while you get used to testing. If it's not enough we will recommend a slight increase.

Can you get a preshot number as well so you can make sure he's high enough to inject and so you can see how far he's dropping later.

Here's instructions for the spreadsheet http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/
 
If it makes you feel better my cat didnt even get a number under 300 for almost 3 months.
 
When he was started off on 1.5u, an hour or so before meals he was 254 (am using Alphatrak2). I checked him right after he'd eaten (no insulin) and it was 400, so I gave him 1 unit instead of 1.5, been giving him 1 unit since.

It's hard to get pre-shot numbers because he's still not used to getting his ears poked.
 
Hello and welcome. We have all been there and I can promise you it will all get better - the testing, the food and feeling guilty. DON’T feel guilty. The fact that you are treating him and testing is more than many would do. Take a deep breath and know you have found a great place to help you through this. With more tests / data you will learn his patterns and get into a routine with the BG tests Please try to get a pre shot test before every shot and if possible some mid cycle tests and put them on the Spread sheet. . That will help the experienced people on here guide you and eventually it will all make sense. Wishing you peace. Again take a deep breath and know this is not your fault and you are doing the right thing to help him on the journey get better :bighug:
 
I've had old and sick cats and I feel the same way. All the pills and the yucky mirtazapine that made my cat drool, until I gave it to her in two smaller doses. I felt bad.

After reading some advice here, I have bonito flakes from the Asian market (you can get them on Amazon too, $8 for 100g, they are shaved thin and last a long time) that I ALWAYS give to my kitty whenever I take her into the bathroom to torture her. She's has CKD so she gets poked with a large 18 gauge needle every other day and gets subq fluids. I've been doing this for a couple of weeks and now I notice that she often comes into the bathroom when I go in to use it! I reward her with more bonito flakes. I would have laughed in your face if three weeks ago you told me she would do this. I've also read that singing calms cats too. I don't sing to my cats, but I have noticed they like being talked to with soft, cooing, baby talk. They will start purring.

Using these techniques will help you and your cat get over the anxiety of what feels like constant poking.
 
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