My Poorly Boy i need help

Status
Not open for further replies.
H

Hazel

Member
Hi i have a 9 year old Maine Coon i live in England and he has just been diagnosed with Diabetes,
I originally took him to the vet as he was snoring loudly, he has always done this but just thought i would check that he was ok, they said it was nothing to worry about but they gave him a cortisone injection to see if that would settle him, it didnt but then a week after he was being very vocal and he was urinating alot, i took him back to the vets and they took blood and he was at 13 mmol, they said take him home and see how he gets on, he didnt improve, so i went back again and they did bloods this time he was 27 mmol, they said to give two units of caninsulin twice daily, which i did, i brought a home BG kit to test his blood, when i did this the readings read in the high 30's, one week later i went back and they told me to give him 3 units twice daily, again i tested him a week later and he was still in the 30's, again i went back and they told me to give him 4 units twice daily which i did. again no improvement
all the time i was upping the insulin my cat is losing weight he has gone from being 10 kilos down to 6.5 kilos, he is drinking so much water, urinating at the front door and he has terrible diarrhoea.
I then think i gave him a fur shot i wasnt sure i had given him is insulin correctly so i dont think he had the full 4 units at night, i got up the next day and his BG was 36, i tested him throughout the day and he stayed around 30 mmol, just before his shot at night i tested him again as he seemed so much better and he was down to 21 mmol,
he is so unhappy as he keeps getting diarrhoea he is fading in front if front of my eyes, i decided to drop his insulin back down to 2 units twice daily, as i think the increase was just to much for him,
Yogi cannot eat wet food it gives him really really bad diarrhoea, i ave been giving him bits of cooked chicken as he can just about manage that
I have been back to the vets and i have had him tested for cushings,EPI and Hyperthyroidism, which thankfully he doesnt have i also started him on Hyperin Bovine PZI i started him on 3 units twice daily and then a week later i have upped him to 4 units, i only started on 4 units this morning and he is due his next shot soon, but his readings today on the metre have just said HI

am i giving him too much??

Thank you in advance
 
I think you need to phone the vet for advice right now. I was told 2 units twice a day to start with and my cat was half the weight of your boy at diagnosis. If the meter is reading HI there is a risk he will be developing DKA which is an emergency situation and he will need to be stabilised asap. Have you any ketostix to test his urine and have you done so?
 
Hi, yes tested the ketones and they are fine, i always get HI on my metre thats the problem he is coming down at all
 
His blood sugar is still too high he is still symptomatic, I would still phone for advice tonight and dip his urine every time he goes as ketones can develop quite quickly. Did your vet do a glucose curve to assess his response to the insulin? If not then he needs one. Which meter do you have?
 
i have got the alphatrak 2, i do his blood glucose and the lowest i have had it is 26, he has been on insulin now for about 5 weeks, he is eating fine, very perky, drinking, and peeing,

could he be on too much insulin??

Thank you
 
Welcome to FDMB


How often are you testing? You should be testing before each shot and at a minimum at +2 and +4 hours after each shot. Caninsulin is a faster acting, harsher insulin and can bring glucose numbers down quickly. If the numbers drop too low then your kitty's body can release counter-regulatory hormones which can cause the glucose levels to "bounce" back up higher. Without adequate testing there is no way to know how the insulin is working with your kitty. It is hard to judge whether the dose is too high, too low or whether your kitty may do better on a longer acting insulin. Caninsulin with some kitties will only last 8-10 hours before the effect wears off.

The cortisone shot he had could also have pushed the glucose numbers higher. You said it was a shot. Do you remember what type of shot it was? Some steroid shots are longer lasting and can affect glucose numbers for a longer time period. Also dry food is too high in carbs which can keep glucose numbers up.

If you need more information you can post on the Main Health Forum at this link:

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/forums/feline-health-the-main-forum.28/

There are usually more people on that forum and they can offer advice on testing, setting up a spreadsheet and other information you may need. Can you also list what type of meter you are using (human or pet specific), what food you are feeding and some of the readings you have got at home.
 
Hazel. I am not that familiar with the various animal insulins as I'm new to feline diabetes - I specialise in humans! but I wonder if the readings may be related to the change of insulin. I think you should try posting in the main forum with his readings and a timeline of his insulin changes and his symptoms. If he is looking as though he is getting back to his usual self then I would say the dose is ok. My kitty's sugar was 24 at diagnosis. I see someone who knows more has already suggested that.
 
Thank you for replying, i decided to get him of the caninsulin as he was just osing so much weight, he has got from 10 kilos down to 6.4, he seems much better on this insulin but i cant get him regulated, i have done BG every two hours and they range from 26 up to HI, im going to take him back to vets tomorrow, but im just going with what Vets are telling me and i dont think its right, i had to push for the PZI insulin which has cost me more then double in price but i have read its a better insulin,
 
Hazel said:
Thank you for replying, i decided to get him of the caninsulin as he was just osing so much weight, he has got from 10 kilos down to 6.4, he seems much better on this insulin but i cant get him regulated, i have done BG every two hours and they range from 26 up to HI, im going to take him back to vets tomorrow, but im just going with what Vets are telling me and i dont think its right, i had to push for the PZI insulin which has cost me more then double in price but i have read its a better insulin,
Click to expand...


Sorry I missed the part about changing to Hypurin. There are a few people here who are experienced with Hypurin and have found it to be a good insulin for kitties. I will tag Elizabeth to see if she can offer some more advice.

@Elizabeth and Bertie
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top