Jaime and Milton
New Member
Hello everyone,
A little over two years ago I wrote this...
http://www.felinediabetes.com/phorum5/r ... sg-1434139
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Milton's Story...
Posted by: Jaime and Milton (IP Logged)
Date: December 27, 2008 06:45PM
Hi there
My name is Jaime and my cat (Milton) was recently diagnosed with Feline Diabetes. Milton is a 10 year old, neutered, long haired tuxedo. He had been fed Science Diet dry cat food his whole life. Recently I started to notice that he was losing weight and hanging out by his water dish. At first I didn't think anything about it. Over the summer we had switched him to a senior formula of Science Diet, so I just figured the new cat food was designed to make him a little slimmer since he had been overweight (avg 15lbs).
However, my curiosity got the best of me and I weighed him on Saturday night (Dec 20). He was 10.5 lbs! So I started to do some online research about abrupt weight-loss and excessive thirst and realized that he could possibly be diabetic and/or have kidney disease. So on Monday morning I made an afternoon appointment with the vet.
After the vet examined him and took his blood, she told me that his blood glucose was high but that the anxiety of the trip to the vet could be the cause of it. But they would know for sure once the results of the blood work was back.
That night, after doing some extensive reading about diet, I got rid of all the dry cat food and treats and bought him the recommended Fancy Feast canned food. He loves it.
The next day (Tuesday Dec 23) the vet called me to tell me that Milton was diabetic and would be needing daily insulin shots. After the initial shock and sadness passed, I went back into research mode. I spent the next couple of days monitoring him, his food intake and his litter box. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Actually, after switching food, he stopped drinking obnoxious amounts of water and seemed to resume his normal activities.
On Friday (Dec 26) we had an appointment with the vet so that could show me how to administer the insulin. When they tested his blood glucose, it was at 280. That's when they told me that it had been at 370 on Monday.
Milton was prescribed Vetsulin. She told me to test his urine and if it was over 180, to give him 1 unit every 24 hours. When I asked about blood testing, she said to go for it if I felt comfortable doing it. She administered 1 unit and we went home. He appeared fine through out the day. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. She advised that I could either administer the next dose the next morning or the next evening.
I was going to wait until the evening but I wanted to see how he was doing. So I bought a glucose meter, some strips, practiced on myself for a bit and testing Milton using some blood from a vein in his ears.
On Sat (Dec 27)
11:00 AM - bg 371
I administered 1 unit (u-40) of vetsulin. Then I proceeded to check his levels every 2 hours.
1:00PM +2 - bg 161
The Vet had asked me to call her today to give her update on Milton. I gave her the numbers and she said that he was responding very well to the insulin. She advised me to stick with this schedule and to get back with her in about a week or so to see if he needs an adjustment to his dosage. She told me not to give insulin if he were under 170.
2:35PM Milton ate some cat food. The vet advised free feeding him so that he could eat when he feels the need.
3:00PM +4 - bg 239
5:00PM +6 - ???
I was trying to do a +6 and failed miserably. After three failed strips and half a dozen new holes in his ears he escaped and went straight to his food which I'm sure will mess with his bg numbers.
The Vet advised only giving Milton one shot of insulin a day. However, I noticed that many people here give more if it's needed at +12. I'm just a little confused and really nervous. I don't want to over do it, but I don't want to under dose him either. Other than to do the same thing tomorrow, I don't know what the next step is.
I'm sorry for being so long winded, but I wanted to make sure everyone knew the background just in case you have some good advice for me and Milton.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and thanks in advance for your responses.
-Jaime
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The reason I am writing is to thank everyone that helped me with Milton's diabetes. This website/forum helped me find all the information I needed to help Milton get better. It's been two years now and I'm happy to say that Milton is doing great! He's 12 now, but you wouldn't know it by the way he behaves.
I ended up having to shop around for a vet that was very well versed in feline diabetes. I found one that actually knew a lot about it and he saved Milton's life. But I would have never known I was getting 'not so knowledgeable information' if it wasn't for all the research that I did because of this forum.
My new Vet immediately changed Milton's insulin to one that responds better to cats. He also changed the dosage and had me give him as much info as I had gathered so that we can get Milton back on track. Almost immediately Milton started to gain all the weight he had lost (almost 1/3 of his body weight) and his blood sugar levels started to stabilize. Within a few months you would have never known that had any health issues. I still have to give him daily doses of insulin every 12 hours, but he's very used to them now and it's now part of our morning/evening routine. Drawing blood from his ears is no where near the ordeal it was when we first started. He just sits there quietly until it's over and then goes about his day.
I hope that people who arrive on this site as scared and upset as I was when I first learned about Milton's condition can find hope with this post. It's NOT over until it's over! Ask a lot of questions and do the research. Once you've armed yourself with the information needed, do not be afraid to challenge a Vet's advice if it doesn't jive with what you've learned. Not that some Vet's don't care, but some specialize in dogs more, so feline diabetes is not their strongest point. You would not go to a podiatrist if you had a heart problem. Do not be afraid to go to another Vet.
Thanks again to all those that helped and had a genuine interest in Milton. He's doing very well and I'm just so glad we were able to catch it in time to be able to make a difference. It's been two years now and I hope that we'll have a lot more to go together.
I hope 2011 is great year for you all and your pets.
Thanks again.
-Jaime
p.s. If you live in the SW suburbs of Chicago, my Vet's name is
Dr. Jeffrey Valenti
Tinley Park, IL
60477
708-614-6500
I don't work for him nor do I know anyone that does (on a personal level). He's just a great Vet who's very knowledgeable about feline diabetes and went above and beyond.
A little over two years ago I wrote this...
http://www.felinediabetes.com/phorum5/r ... sg-1434139
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Milton's Story...
Posted by: Jaime and Milton (IP Logged)
Date: December 27, 2008 06:45PM
Hi there
My name is Jaime and my cat (Milton) was recently diagnosed with Feline Diabetes. Milton is a 10 year old, neutered, long haired tuxedo. He had been fed Science Diet dry cat food his whole life. Recently I started to notice that he was losing weight and hanging out by his water dish. At first I didn't think anything about it. Over the summer we had switched him to a senior formula of Science Diet, so I just figured the new cat food was designed to make him a little slimmer since he had been overweight (avg 15lbs).
However, my curiosity got the best of me and I weighed him on Saturday night (Dec 20). He was 10.5 lbs! So I started to do some online research about abrupt weight-loss and excessive thirst and realized that he could possibly be diabetic and/or have kidney disease. So on Monday morning I made an afternoon appointment with the vet.
After the vet examined him and took his blood, she told me that his blood glucose was high but that the anxiety of the trip to the vet could be the cause of it. But they would know for sure once the results of the blood work was back.
That night, after doing some extensive reading about diet, I got rid of all the dry cat food and treats and bought him the recommended Fancy Feast canned food. He loves it.
The next day (Tuesday Dec 23) the vet called me to tell me that Milton was diabetic and would be needing daily insulin shots. After the initial shock and sadness passed, I went back into research mode. I spent the next couple of days monitoring him, his food intake and his litter box. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Actually, after switching food, he stopped drinking obnoxious amounts of water and seemed to resume his normal activities.
On Friday (Dec 26) we had an appointment with the vet so that could show me how to administer the insulin. When they tested his blood glucose, it was at 280. That's when they told me that it had been at 370 on Monday.
Milton was prescribed Vetsulin. She told me to test his urine and if it was over 180, to give him 1 unit every 24 hours. When I asked about blood testing, she said to go for it if I felt comfortable doing it. She administered 1 unit and we went home. He appeared fine through out the day. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. She advised that I could either administer the next dose the next morning or the next evening.
I was going to wait until the evening but I wanted to see how he was doing. So I bought a glucose meter, some strips, practiced on myself for a bit and testing Milton using some blood from a vein in his ears.
On Sat (Dec 27)
11:00 AM - bg 371
I administered 1 unit (u-40) of vetsulin. Then I proceeded to check his levels every 2 hours.
1:00PM +2 - bg 161
The Vet had asked me to call her today to give her update on Milton. I gave her the numbers and she said that he was responding very well to the insulin. She advised me to stick with this schedule and to get back with her in about a week or so to see if he needs an adjustment to his dosage. She told me not to give insulin if he were under 170.
2:35PM Milton ate some cat food. The vet advised free feeding him so that he could eat when he feels the need.
3:00PM +4 - bg 239
5:00PM +6 - ???
I was trying to do a +6 and failed miserably. After three failed strips and half a dozen new holes in his ears he escaped and went straight to his food which I'm sure will mess with his bg numbers.
The Vet advised only giving Milton one shot of insulin a day. However, I noticed that many people here give more if it's needed at +12. I'm just a little confused and really nervous. I don't want to over do it, but I don't want to under dose him either. Other than to do the same thing tomorrow, I don't know what the next step is.
I'm sorry for being so long winded, but I wanted to make sure everyone knew the background just in case you have some good advice for me and Milton.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and thanks in advance for your responses.
-Jaime
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The reason I am writing is to thank everyone that helped me with Milton's diabetes. This website/forum helped me find all the information I needed to help Milton get better. It's been two years now and I'm happy to say that Milton is doing great! He's 12 now, but you wouldn't know it by the way he behaves.
I ended up having to shop around for a vet that was very well versed in feline diabetes. I found one that actually knew a lot about it and he saved Milton's life. But I would have never known I was getting 'not so knowledgeable information' if it wasn't for all the research that I did because of this forum.
My new Vet immediately changed Milton's insulin to one that responds better to cats. He also changed the dosage and had me give him as much info as I had gathered so that we can get Milton back on track. Almost immediately Milton started to gain all the weight he had lost (almost 1/3 of his body weight) and his blood sugar levels started to stabilize. Within a few months you would have never known that had any health issues. I still have to give him daily doses of insulin every 12 hours, but he's very used to them now and it's now part of our morning/evening routine. Drawing blood from his ears is no where near the ordeal it was when we first started. He just sits there quietly until it's over and then goes about his day.
I hope that people who arrive on this site as scared and upset as I was when I first learned about Milton's condition can find hope with this post. It's NOT over until it's over! Ask a lot of questions and do the research. Once you've armed yourself with the information needed, do not be afraid to challenge a Vet's advice if it doesn't jive with what you've learned. Not that some Vet's don't care, but some specialize in dogs more, so feline diabetes is not their strongest point. You would not go to a podiatrist if you had a heart problem. Do not be afraid to go to another Vet.
Thanks again to all those that helped and had a genuine interest in Milton. He's doing very well and I'm just so glad we were able to catch it in time to be able to make a difference. It's been two years now and I hope that we'll have a lot more to go together.
I hope 2011 is great year for you all and your pets.
Thanks again.
-Jaime
p.s. If you live in the SW suburbs of Chicago, my Vet's name is
Dr. Jeffrey Valenti
Tinley Park, IL
60477
708-614-6500
I don't work for him nor do I know anyone that does (on a personal level). He's just a great Vet who's very knowledgeable about feline diabetes and went above and beyond.
