Mommy of 3 fur babies--one is a new diabetic!

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Jeannie & Cairo

Jeannie & Cairo

Member Since 2014
Hi Everyone!

I'm Jeannie and I've been a cat owner my whole life (48 years). My 3 cats are Asia, Sahara and Cairo (the new diabetic) all females. I'd like to say that I'm extremely overwhelmed, disappointed in my vet (and her staff even though I've known her for 12 years), and I'm learning a lot about cats, especially diabetics. I'm very grateful to the creator of this site and I'm thankful that I have a safe place where I feel I can get straight answers, advice and help.

Cairo was diagnosed about 10 days ago. Upon my vets recommendation I started feeding her Purina DM wet and dry. In researching feline diabetes, I learned that Purina DM is not necessarily the best wet food and the dry food is out of the question. I'm curious why my vet didn't share info with me (we learn to trust trained medical professionals).

I cried in front of the pharmacist at Costco when they told me ONE vial of Lantus would cost me $235 and would only last 28 days! I'm teacher working 2 jobs for goodness sakes! I can't afford that! I went home (sans Lantus) and researched. I found a coupon that would allow me to buy Lantus pens for $25 each. I'm crossing my fingers and awaiting approval from Target. In addition, the 28 day rule is not accurate if stored properly. How come no one told me all of this?

Tomorrow, I'm going to get a Relion Glucometer from Walmart. I've never tested Cairo before but I've watched several You Tube videos and I think I can do it. I understand the part about keeping an ongoing log (spreadsheet) of the results.

I am here to learn anything and everything about feline diabetes. I welcome any advice, suggestions and help.

Thanks for reading!

Jeannie
 
Welcome to FDMB!

This is the best place to be to help your little kitty out! A lot of vets just aren't well versed in diabetic cats. We can't expect them to be the experts on EVERY condition our pet could have and since diabetes is different in cats and dogs that compounds the problem. But that is why there is an amazing site like this. You will get amazing support, advice and help from people who have been helping diabetic kitties for over 15 years!

As for no one saying anything about the Lantus....pharmacists are not used to dispensing insulin to cats and a lot of the stuff they put on the packaging they are required to do so by law, as Lantus is a human insulin. The pharmacy I went to told me the same thing and when I said, actually for cats, it lasts a lot longer they seemed very surprised. I purchased my bottle in May of this year and still have about half the bottle left. Keep in mind the 2 day rule would apply to a human.

As for the meter I started with a the ReliOn Prime, but that requires a bit more blood than say the ReliOn Micro. The meters themselves are not bad, but the test strips are where they get ya. Make sure you are getting the lancets for "alternative testing sites" and in this case, you want the smallest gauge lancet you can find as it will be easier to draw up blood. The other awesome suggestion I got from members here was to get some neosporan with pain medication, (I got the Walmart brand). You can put that on your cat's ear about 5 minutes before you test. Right before you test, wipe it off and it will help the blood bead up easier for you.

Welcome to the greatest place you never wanted to have to find yourself! As a fairly new person myself, I cannot tell you how valuable all the help I have gotten here has been.
 
See my signature links
Glucometer Notes - how the work and what the results may mean
And
Secondary Monitoring Tools - supplemental methods to assess your cat

There's a lot to learn. Fortunately, much of it can be printed out for reference so you just need to know where to find it!
 
Welcome to the FDMB Jeannie! Glad to see you made it over here from Facebook!

This is the best place you never wanted to be if you have a diabetic cat! You're going to find some amazing people here and there will be lots to learn, but we'll be with you every step of the way!

You've got a good start. Getting rid of the dry D/M and getting Cairo onto one of the lower carb wet foods is the first step, and as I told you, can be the only step if you're lucky! I know you're supposed to go learn how to give insulin on Tuesday, but it might be even better for you to work on transitioning the food and learning to home test for several days before starting the shots.

Just so you have it again, here's the shopping list:

1. Meter ie Walmart Relion Confirm or Micro.
2. Matching strips
3. Lancets - little sticks to poke the ear to get blood . new members usually start with a larger gauge lancet such as 28g or 29g until the ear learns to bleed. Optional - lancing tool.
4. Cotton balls to stem the blood
5. Neosporin or Polysporin ointment with pain relief to heal the wound
6. Mini flashlight (optional) - useful to help see the ear veins in dark cats, and to press against
7. Ketone urine test strips ie ketodiastix - Important to check ketones when blood glucose is high
8. Sharps container - to dispose of waste syringes and lancets.
9. Treats for the cat - like freeze dried chicken (no "temptations" or anything with grains or sugars...plain boiled or baked chicken is fine too)
10. Karo syrup/corn syrup or honey if you don't have it at home - for hypo emergencies to bring blood sugar up fast
11. A couple of cans of fancy feast gravy lovers or other high carb gravy food- for hypo emergencies to bring blood sugar up fast

When you start getting tests in, you'll want to start using our spreadsheet program too. I know it seems a little crazy right now, but your spreadsheet will be one of your most valuable tools...and your best friend too! It will help you learn how Cairo responds to both the insulin and food and help you to keep her safe.

Keep posting and asking questions as you think of them. Read other people's posts too. They may bring up questions you didn't even know you needed to ask!

Once again, welcome!
 
Printing out my Wal Mart shopping list now Chris! Thanks again for all your help and advice. It's comforting to know that I'm not going through this process alone (which is how I felt for the past 10 days!)
 
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