hellen_maggie
Member Since 2025
Hi everyone! 
First of all, Maggie is doing great!
She sends lots of hugs, purrs, and big kitty kisses to all her wonderful friends here. We are so incredibly grateful for everything you've done for us.
I have a question that isn't directly about diabetes, but I know there is so much knowledge and experience in this group that I'd really love to hear your thoughts. As many of you know, ever since Maggie was diagnosed with diabetes, she has become an extremely difficult eater. The only food she genuinely enjoys is dry kibble, which has unfortunately been mostly off the menu for many months because of her diabetes. At the beginning of our journey, I tried introducing 3–4 different wet foods, but she didn't tolerate any of them well. Every attempt ended with vomiting and diarrhea, and dealing with that on top of trying to regulate her diabetes was simply too much. Eventually, I gave up on wet food because I didn't want to keep upsetting her stomach while she was still on insulin. That's how we ended up with Ziwi Peak Air-Dried Venison. At the time, it seemed like the best solution because it was a complete food, very low in carbs (3%), and a novel protein. Unfortunately, we don't have access to any other complete air-dried or freeze-dried foods here in Greece. The truth is... she has never really liked Ziwi. I've tried everything I could think of, different toppers, probiotic pastes, and every trick I could find, but nothing really worked. For months now, the only way I can get her to eat it is by lightly moistening it with warm water and rubbing a few Royal Canin kibble crumbs over the pieces to make them smell more appealing. Even then, she'll eat it only from my hand (or my husband's hand). She won't touch it from a bowl, and she certainly won't eat it from an automatic feeder. I was willing to do all of this because I truly believed it was the best medical choice for her. But now that she's in remission, I don't think it's realistic, or fair to either of us, to continue hand-feeding almost every meal for the rest of her life. Because of her suspected food allergies (and possible IBD), I'm trying to keep her on novel proteins only while also keeping her carbohydrate intake as low as possible.
Recently, I've started wondering if I should give wet food another chance. I even tried Ziwi wet food, but it seems she simply doesn't like venison. So now I'm looking for another novel protein option. I've been looking at catz finefood PURE Kangaroo because, at least to my eyes, the ingredient list looks ok:
• Kangaroo 70%, Kangaroo broth 28.8%, Minerals 1%, Evening primrose oil 0.2%. There are no grains, potatoes, tapioca, peas, or other obvious starch sources. However, I'm confused by the nutritional analysis.
The label lists the following analytical constituents:
• Crude protein: 11.5%
• Crude fat: 3.5%
• Crude ash: 2.6%
• Crude fiber: 0.4%
• Moisture: 79%
• Nitrogen-Free Extract (NfE): 3%
Based on these values, the calculator I normally use estimates that about 13% of the calories come from carbs. At the same time, I've found other sources claiming that only 3–6% of the calories come from carbohydrates. Does the calculated NfE overestimate the actual carbohydrate content in a food that's almost entirely meat, or should I rely on the calculated percentage of calories from carbs?
I also have one more question. I'm still feeding Maggie exactly the way I did while she was on insulin, about eight small meals over 24 hours. Since she refuses to eat from an automatic feeder, almost every meal depends on me, and honestly, it has become physically and emotionally exhausting. I still set an alarm during the night to feed her, I'm up every morning at 6:00 a.m. for her first meal, and my husband and I even leave work early on alternating days just to go home and give her one extra meal. It's becoming incredibly difficult to sustain. I know that frequent small meals are generally recommended, but given our situation, would it be reasonable to encourage her to become a grazer again, as she was for her entire life before diabetes, by leaving food available throughout the day? My biggest concern is that, at least initially while she's is still eating Ziwi, I know she probably won't even approach the bowl. The only way I can imagine her eventually accepting food left out for her is if she gets hungry enough to finally give it a try. But I'm worried that letting her get that hungry might somehow jeopardize her remission or put unnecessary stress on her body.
Has anyone been through something similar? How would you handle this situation? Any thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
I'm sorry for such a long post, but I wanted to give you the full picture so you could better guide us and help us make the best decisions for Maggie.
Thank you all so much. Your advice has already changed our lives once, and I truly value your opinions.
First of all, Maggie is doing great!
She sends lots of hugs, purrs, and big kitty kisses to all her wonderful friends here. We are so incredibly grateful for everything you've done for us.I have a question that isn't directly about diabetes, but I know there is so much knowledge and experience in this group that I'd really love to hear your thoughts. As many of you know, ever since Maggie was diagnosed with diabetes, she has become an extremely difficult eater. The only food she genuinely enjoys is dry kibble, which has unfortunately been mostly off the menu for many months because of her diabetes. At the beginning of our journey, I tried introducing 3–4 different wet foods, but she didn't tolerate any of them well. Every attempt ended with vomiting and diarrhea, and dealing with that on top of trying to regulate her diabetes was simply too much. Eventually, I gave up on wet food because I didn't want to keep upsetting her stomach while she was still on insulin. That's how we ended up with Ziwi Peak Air-Dried Venison. At the time, it seemed like the best solution because it was a complete food, very low in carbs (3%), and a novel protein. Unfortunately, we don't have access to any other complete air-dried or freeze-dried foods here in Greece. The truth is... she has never really liked Ziwi. I've tried everything I could think of, different toppers, probiotic pastes, and every trick I could find, but nothing really worked. For months now, the only way I can get her to eat it is by lightly moistening it with warm water and rubbing a few Royal Canin kibble crumbs over the pieces to make them smell more appealing. Even then, she'll eat it only from my hand (or my husband's hand). She won't touch it from a bowl, and she certainly won't eat it from an automatic feeder. I was willing to do all of this because I truly believed it was the best medical choice for her. But now that she's in remission, I don't think it's realistic, or fair to either of us, to continue hand-feeding almost every meal for the rest of her life. Because of her suspected food allergies (and possible IBD), I'm trying to keep her on novel proteins only while also keeping her carbohydrate intake as low as possible.
Recently, I've started wondering if I should give wet food another chance. I even tried Ziwi wet food, but it seems she simply doesn't like venison. So now I'm looking for another novel protein option. I've been looking at catz finefood PURE Kangaroo because, at least to my eyes, the ingredient list looks ok:
• Kangaroo 70%, Kangaroo broth 28.8%, Minerals 1%, Evening primrose oil 0.2%. There are no grains, potatoes, tapioca, peas, or other obvious starch sources. However, I'm confused by the nutritional analysis.
The label lists the following analytical constituents:
• Crude protein: 11.5%
• Crude fat: 3.5%
• Crude ash: 2.6%
• Crude fiber: 0.4%
• Moisture: 79%
• Nitrogen-Free Extract (NfE): 3%
Based on these values, the calculator I normally use estimates that about 13% of the calories come from carbs. At the same time, I've found other sources claiming that only 3–6% of the calories come from carbohydrates. Does the calculated NfE overestimate the actual carbohydrate content in a food that's almost entirely meat, or should I rely on the calculated percentage of calories from carbs?
I also have one more question. I'm still feeding Maggie exactly the way I did while she was on insulin, about eight small meals over 24 hours. Since she refuses to eat from an automatic feeder, almost every meal depends on me, and honestly, it has become physically and emotionally exhausting. I still set an alarm during the night to feed her, I'm up every morning at 6:00 a.m. for her first meal, and my husband and I even leave work early on alternating days just to go home and give her one extra meal. It's becoming incredibly difficult to sustain. I know that frequent small meals are generally recommended, but given our situation, would it be reasonable to encourage her to become a grazer again, as she was for her entire life before diabetes, by leaving food available throughout the day? My biggest concern is that, at least initially while she's is still eating Ziwi, I know she probably won't even approach the bowl. The only way I can imagine her eventually accepting food left out for her is if she gets hungry enough to finally give it a try. But I'm worried that letting her get that hungry might somehow jeopardize her remission or put unnecessary stress on her body.
Has anyone been through something similar? How would you handle this situation? Any thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
I'm sorry for such a long post, but I wanted to give you the full picture so you could better guide us and help us make the best decisions for Maggie.
Thank you all so much. Your advice has already changed our lives once, and I truly value your opinions.
When I hand-feed Maggie, piece by piece, she'll happily eat one piece of Ziwi and then completely reject the very next piece, even though it's from the exact same bag. She'll dramatically turn her head away as if she's saying, "Please get that disgusting thing out of my face!" Then, if I walk away for two or three minutes and come back with that exact same piece, she'll eat it as if it's the most delicious thing she's ever tasted.
I'm really hoping this will finally be the one! Now I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that Maggie likes it... and, just as importantly, that her sensitive little tummy tolerates it well.