Mom with new diabetic kitty

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Thank you . We are only 2 days in with all this its alot to take in and when i missed it i was worried about how it would effect him
 
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Babydoll said:
Thank you . We are only 2 days in with all this its alot to take in and when i missed it i was worried about how it would effect him
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It happens... Only 2 days in its not your routine yet. Welcome. If we can help with anything let us know.
 
Hello and welcome! I think we've all had 'fur shots'! If you continue to have that problem, you can ask the vet to shave a patch in the area you shoot. Being able to see the skin and see the needle go in helps you get the feel for it.
 
Welcome Babydoll (kitty?) and her Mum!
I know you are still overwhelmed with just starting day 3 today but you've found a great support group. You've learned an important step in the sugar dance, fur shots will happen but never re-shoot. There's no way to determine how much or how little insulin got into kitty. I wanted to give you some information / instruction links that we like new members to have.

We are very data driven here and use Google docs/Spreadsheet to track and share BG (blood glucose) numbers. Each of us who has posted here has a link to our kitties spreadsheets. Most who home test have a similar link in their signature. If you need help setting one up, just ask: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/

The Signature I mentioned is the light grey text that appears under each of our posts. It helps give some quick information about your kitty and helps those of us with bad memories ;): http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/editing-your-signature-profile-and-preferences.130340/

Lastly, I like to give this because it's better to be prepared and I hope you never need it: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/how-to-treat-hypos-they-can-kill-print-this-out.15887/

Feel free to keep asking ANY question on the Main Health Forum. We are a support group for Babydoll and YOU :bighug:
 
Thank you everyone ! its nice to know that theres a support ! I have alot of questions and i have been reading all the info that is out there ... but is it normal for a cat thats diabetic to not drink ? Because Strippers barely drinks his water should i be concern with this ?
 
Strippers and Mum said:
Thank you everyone ! its nice to know that theres a support ! I have alot of questions and i have been reading all the info that is out there ... but is it normal for a cat thats diabetic to not drink ? Because Strippers barely drinks his water should i be concern with this ?
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Hard to say. If he eats wet food that might be enough water for him. Also, if his blood glucose isn't all that high he might not have the thirst we usually see in FD cats.

Post all your questions on the main health forum where lots of people will see them. It'll be a lot easier for us to respond properly if we know:
  • when your kitty was diagnosed
  • what insulin you use and in what dose
  • whether you're testing blood glucose at home and, if so, what meter you use
  • any other meds/medical issues your kitty has.
 
Thank you i have another question strippers has not ate anything all day and due for his shot do i give it to him or not what do i do
 
Strippers and Mum said:
Thank you i have another question strippers has not ate anything all day and due for his shot do i give it to him or not what do i do
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Uh oh.... That could be a sign of ketones. Are you testing home? What is his levels? He may need to see a vet tomorrow. If he hasn't eaten at all I would be hesitant to tell you to shoot unless his numbers are very high
 
JanetNJ said:
Uh oh.... That could be a sign of ketones. Are you testing home? What is his levels? He may need to see a vet tomorrow. If he hasn't eaten at all I would be hesitant to tell you to shoot unless his numbers are very high
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No i don"t test at home and what is ketones ?
 
Strippers and Mum said:
He has only been diagnose less then a week ... so all this is new
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Basically too many ketones in the blood can cause ketoacidosis. Click on section 5 of this document. http://www.felinediabetes.com/fdmb-faq.htm
Ketoacidosis is when the pH of the blood becomes acidic and it's very dangerous. We also refer to diabetic ketoacidosis as dka. You can test for it yourself with strips you can buy at a pharmacy. You put it in a urine sample and anything above a trace needs to be dealt with at a vet.

Not eating could also be other things.... Like pancreatitis.

Either way is plan to see a vet tomorrow morning if he's still not eating.

How is he behaving? What dose are you giving and which insulin? Will he eat if you hand feed him?
 
JanetNJ said:
Basically too many ketones in the blood can cause ketoacidosis. Click on section 5 of this document. http://www.felinediabetes.com/fdmb-faq.htm
Ketoacidosis is when the pH of the blood becomes acidic and it's very dangerous. We also refer to diabetic ketoacidosis as dka. You can test for it yourself with strips you can buy at a pharmacy. You put it in a urine sample and anything above a trace needs to be dealt with at a vet.

Not eating could also be other things.... Like pancreatitis.

Either way is plan to see a vet tomorrow morning if he's still not eating.

How is he behaving? What dose are you giving and which insulin? Will he eat if you hand feed him?
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He is on Caninsulin 10MI and he gets 3 UI and when he does eat its fancy feast he does have a UTI infection as well and the med is called Clavamox62.5mg
 
Strippers and Mum said:
He is on Caninsulin 10MI and he gets 3 UI and when he does eat its fancy feast he does have a UTI infection as well and the med is called Clavamox62.5mg
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Wow that's a high starting dose. What was the bg numbers he had when at the vet? ... As infections clear the bg tends to drop significantly.
 
JanetNJ said:
Wow that's a high starting dose. What was the bg numbers he had when at the vet? ... As infections clear the bg tends to drop significantly.
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It was 22 but the vet said that his liver and kidneys had no sign of any bateria and said that he is at the early stage of the diabeties and that it might revert
 
I'm hesitant to advise you to give any insulin because you aren't testing, and he hasn't eaten at all, and with the infection clearing his numbers are probably lower than at diagnosis.

You can't get him to eat anything? Maybe try sprinkling cheese on his food? Or mixing it with tuna?

How is his behavior?
 
JanetNJ said:
I'm hesitant to advise you to give any insulin because you aren't testing, and he hasn't eaten at all, and with the infection clearing his numbers are probably lower than at diagnosis.

You can't get him to eat anything? Maybe try sprinkling cheese on his food? Or mixing it with tuna?

How is his behavior?
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Well before he was lathargeic but now he's upand all about
 
I have a feeling he may have gone too low with his last shot honestly. The starting dose for canisilun is 1 unit.... 3 is huge.

In going to say skip for now and see a vet since he's not eating. When you resume insulin don't give 3 but instead 1.
 
JanetNJ said:
I have a feeling he may have gone too low with his last shot honestly. The starting dose for canisilun is 1 unit.... 3 is huge.

In going to say skip for now and see a vet since he's not eating. When you resume insulin don't give 3 but instead 1.
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The vet told me evey 12hrs what is the average span between shots ?
 
Strippers and Mum said:
I will be taking him to the vet first thing his first curve is june 16 i am not going to wait that long
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Good plan. He would be safer tonight to be too high than too low.

Are you open to learning to test at home? In my signature I have a link to a video showing how I test my cat at home.

Make sure to tell him that the cat was Lethargic earlier.
 
Strippers and Mum said:
The vet told me evey 12hrs what is the average span between shots ?
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Every 12 hours is correct, but the starting dose for canisilun is 1 unit. My cat was on the same insulin (vetsulin is the same just a different brand). 3 units is triple the suggested starting dose.
 
JanetNJ said:
Good plan. He would be safer tonight to be too high than too low.

Are you open to learning to test at home? In my signature I have a link to a video showing how I test my cat at home.

Make sure to tell him that the cat was Lethargic earlier.
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Yes i am i wish to learn as much as i possibly can i worry alot about if he will wake up in the mornings or not i know that sounds silly but thats how i feel because this is all new to both of us i could not live with myself if i was the cause of that
 
Strippers and Mum said:
Yes i am i wish to learn as much as i possibly can i worry alot about if he will wake up in the mornings or not i know that sounds silly but thats how i feel because this is all new to both of us i could not live with myself if i was the cause of that
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I hear you. I didn't test the first 6 weeks and once I learned how I wished I had from the beginning. I finally started with the encouragement I of this board when I got nervous that my vet wanted to raise my cat from 1 unit to 2... I was scared she would hypo.
 
So it's 11 pm and she hasn't eaten in 24 hours? She may need to be force fed by oral syringe by morning.... Going too long without eating can also cause fatty liver disease in cats.
 
Without a ketone test or BG test, it's hard to know what is potentially going on.

However, the three things that have to be present for DKA to develop from ketones are not enough insulin, not enough food/water, and infection present.

I would absolutely get him to the vet first thing tomorrow and ask them to check his ketones. I would be sure and get urine ketone test strips at the pharmacy tomorrow and if you can get an inexpensive human glucose meter and strips, we can teach you how to monitor his BG.

For tonight, I would try to get as much food and water in him as you can. If he won't eat, you can water down his food and try to syringe it to him. Unregulated diabetic cats usually drink a lot of water and are usually quite hungry. So when they aren't drinking or eating, I worry about DKA.

If you can't get food and water into him and he is lethargic, I'd try to get him to an ER tonight. Ketones, if he has them, can progress quickly.
 
JanetNJ said:
I have a feeling he may have gone too low with his last shot honestly. The starting dose for canisilun is 1 unit.... 3 is huge.

In going to say skip for now and see a vet since he's not eating. When you resume insulin don't give 3 but instead 1.
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Thank you soo much for replying so quickly and all the info . I am actualy quite upset and i think a little angrrey at the vet !!!! If its ok can i message you and let you know what the vet said ?
 
Strippers and Mum said:
Thank you soo much for replying so quickly and all the info . I am actualy quite upset and i think a little angrrey at the vet !!!! If its ok can i message you and let you know what the vet said ?
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Definitely.... I will see it on here if you post tomorrow.... I'll get a notification.
 
Marje and Gracie said:
Without a ketone test or BG test, it's hard to know what is potentially going on.

However, the three things that have to be present for DKA to develop from ketones are not enough insulin, not enough food/water, and infection present.

I would absolutely get him to the vet first thing tomorrow and ask them to check his ketones. I would be sure and get urine ketone test strips at the pharmacy tomorrow and if you can get an inexpensive human glucose meter and strips, we can teach you how to monitor his BG.

For tonight, I would try to get as much food and water in him as you can. If he won't eat, you can water down his food and try to syringe it to him. Unregulated diabetic cats usually drink a lot of water and are usually quite hungry. So when they aren't drinking or eating, I worry about DKA.

If you can't get food and water into him and he is lethargic, I'd try to get him to an ER tonight. Ketones, if he has them, can progress quickly.
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Do you think no shoot tonight?
 
If you can't get him to eat on his own tonight.... Try Chicken, tuna, anything. If still no... Scoop some with your finger and wipe it on the roof of his mouth or if you have a feeding syringe than use that.
 
A human glucometre will do you just fine. A lot of CDNs use the FreeStyle Lite. Strips in Canada are expensive (unless you live near the border and can drive over and pick them up in the US). FreeStyle Lite strips run about $0.72 each. You will go through a lot of strips. The vet may recommend the pet Alpha Trak 2 metre because that is what most vets use. It can be costly. There is no direct correlation between a human metre and a pet metre (other than that 50 on a human metre is 68 on the Alpha Trak). Both metres are used by people on this forum and we can help you understand the blood glucose numbers no matter which one you decide on.

I suggest you start a new post in the Health Forum when you get back from the vet. You will get more eyes on it there. You can copy and paste the link from the Introduction Forum so people can follow the history.

Good luck at the vet.
 
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