new diabetic cat mom

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storm

storm

Member Since 2017
Just saying hello .. my boy was just diagnosed 2 days ago so the shock hasn't worn off yet,
he has a ravenous appetite, is hungry all the time and is not taking to eating only 3 times a day especially considering he has lost so much weight and muscle in the past 2 months .. I normally free feed wet food 24/7 but he has to be on low carb food where as the other 6 cats don't so he and a buddy are closed up in my bedroom so he cant get to their food. I would love to find a low carb dry food they can all eat that doesn't break my bank account every week. Since he is newly diagnosed my vet is giving him a few days to a week to see how he does on the new diet before putting him on insulin but if it comes down to that she would be prescribing a glargine type, like Lantus.

just wondering what i can do about his appetite as he goes nuts at meal time but I'm afraid he will eat until he pukes if I free feed him plus I only bought enough FF to get me through til next pay day as the surprise vet visit was not something I planned on so was a little unprepared for the sudden new cat food shopping I had to do
 
Hi welcome to you and Storm. When kitties have uncontrolled diabetes they are literally starving because their body can not properly use the food they eat. Many of us feed our cats several times a day/night, and some free feed the wet food. The easiest thing is to feed all your cats the same low carb food so you don't have to worry about Storm getting any contraband. The only dry that are ok for diabetics is Evo Cat & Kitten or Young Again Zero Mature. Both are expensive but nutrient dense so they don't have to eat as much. That said, the wet food is best due to the water content.
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/...r-more-than-just-carbohydrate-content.175004/
While you're changing diet, it would be a good time to learn to home test Storms blood glucose. It's easy to do and will tell you how well the insulin is working as well as help keep him safe from hypos.
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/hometesting-links-and-tips.287/ Come to the Main Health Forum and ask any questions you have.
 
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Welcome! That's something I was instantly worried about also. How to feed both cats the same food and how am I going to afford cat food. No sugar coating: it's expensive. ESPECIALLY if 1. You have multiple cats where one of them will not touch wet food no matter what you do (even though diabetic kitty would be thrilled to only have wet food). So we had to settle on finding a low carb option for her that he will eat. It's too much work to separate feeding and making sure she doesn't get into his. We decided on the EVO food that was mentioned. It was $25 for a 6lb bag I think. We anticipate going through 1 a month. And 2. Have a diabetic kitty that won't touch patè wet food (the cheapest). So I have to go out of my way and spend 2 hours in the grocery store calculating carb content of every single food that has gravy in it. There are some but not many!!! She seems to love what I've found but the 30z cans average about $1 each and the 6oz cans $1.50. She gets 6oz of wet food a day and free feeds the evo.

This works for us for now but I'm not going to lie and say her new diagnosis has been good on our wallets. Lol. It's been very difficult but we get by and it's definitely worth it. :)
 
Welcome Storm and Cinnamon! :bighug:
As other's have said, you don't need to stick with the expensive prescription diet. Many feed Friskies pate (non-indoor formula) and Fancy Feast classic (also pate) and do multiple meals a day. Like Sharon said, newly diagnosed kitties body's are literally starving so the old-school thought of 2 or 3 feedings a day doesn't work for a lot of cats. Plus, quite a few kitties lost weight before diagnosis so we're trying to put some back on them as well. There are also multiple kitty households on the forum that can give some more tips too!;)

If she still needs to start insulin, Lantus is a very good one and we have an active group on that forum ^_^. Many in the states buy from Canada and it's much more affordable than the majority of pharmacies, so don't say no to it when your Vet tells you the price, come here! :)

Feel free to post any questions on the Main Health Forum! This is a support group for Cinnamon and YOU :bighug:
 
No problem Sharon lol .... yes its the feeding of 7 cats .. I was looking at the YA Zero formulas as they have 2 .. when I was feeding only dry food a while ago, I was going through a 12-16 lb bag a week with them free feeding so trying to figure out if an 8lb bag would last me a week .. I have gone through the list of canned foods and wrote down all the low carb brands (10% or less ) and types/flavors so I know what to look for with the cheapie brands ( I really like the Tiki brand foods) .. Friskies and 9 lives were 2 I have already been feeding my kids, all pates ( none of them will touch chunks, filets, slices or anything with gravy) which they like except for the whitefish flavor, they prefer chicken, turkey and tuna, they will eat beef but grudgingly, just unsure how much to free feed smaller cans for all 7 as I currently buy the wet for the other 6 in the huge 12-13 oz cans, I put 2 cans down in the morning, splitting it between several small plates with half a handful of royal canine appetite control for spray neutered cats so they have a little something to munch on later .. insulin cost is a factor as well, I know Lantus makers have a discount card I can sign up for, which could make my cost as low as 10 dollars but my vet said some pharmacies wont honor it if its for a pet and i have checked out the GoodRX website so i know which local pharmacies will fill pet prescriptions. Feeding small meals during the day while I am working is impossible as I live alone, work 8-12+ hours a day from spring until thanksgiving and my adult children are not supportive of me even considering treating him and will not be willing to help in any way, they want me to turn him over to a shelter or put him down. I want to do what is best for him but being on a limited budget is going to be hard. A timed self feeder I don't think would work with 7 cats as I have a problem child who is a curmudgeon, he is half Maine Coon half Siamese, I know he would hang out at the feeder and keep everyone else away from it as he does this at bedtime, trying to keep all the others off my bed so he has to go into a crate at night just so I can get some sleep.
 
@JanetNJ feeds YA to her crew, she can probably give you a good idea how long it would last your crew :). You can also freeze portions of wet food, add a little water, and leave them out. I don't want to sound rude or strike a nerve but do your adult kids know if it was one of them you wouldn't give up on them? Your fur babies are no different. People don't (typically) just kill kids that are diagnosed with treatable conditions. Once again I mean no disrespect, you are obviously a very caring person :bighug: Cinnamon is lucky to have you. As for the Lantus, you don't need to tell the Pharmacy it's for a cat :smuggrin:.
 
storm said:
No problem Sharon lol .... yes its the feeding of 7 cats .. I was looking at the YA Zero formulas as they have 2 .. when I was feeding only dry food a while ago, I was going through a 12-16 lb bag a week with them free feeding so trying to figure out if an 8lb bag would last me a week .. I have gone through the list of canned foods and wrote down all the low carb brands (10% or less ) and types/flavors so I know what to look for with the cheapie brands ( I really like the Tiki brand foods) .. Friskies and 9 lives were 2 I have already been feeding my kids, all pates ( none of them will touch chunks, filets, slices or anything with gravy) which they like except for the whitefish flavor, they prefer chicken, turkey and tuna, they will eat beef but grudgingly, just unsure how much to free feed smaller cans for all 7 as I currently buy the wet for the other 6 in the huge 12-13 oz cans, I put 2 cans down in the morning, splitting it between several small plates with half a handful of royal canine appetite control for spray neutered cats so they have a little something to munch on later .. insulin cost is a factor as well, I know Lantus makers have a discount card I can sign up for, which could make my cost as low as 10 dollars but my vet said some pharmacies wont honor it if its for a pet and i have checked out the GoodRX website so i know which local pharmacies will fill pet prescriptions. Feeding small meals during the day while I am working is impossible as I live alone, work 8-12+ hours a day from spring until thanksgiving and my adult children are not supportive of me even considering treating him and will not be willing to help in any way, they want me to turn him over to a shelter or put him down. I want to do what is best for him but being on a limited budget is going to be hard. A timed self feeder I don't think would work with 7 cats as I have a problem child who is a curmudgeon, he is half Maine Coon half Siamese, I know he would hang out at the feeder and keep everyone else away from it as he does this at bedtime, trying to keep all the others off my bed so he has to go into a crate at night just so I can get some sleep.
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Tiki cat is one of the most expensive canned foods. We tried it and Angel wouldn't touch it lol. And it grossed me out because of the actual fish parts in it.
 
no worries .. no disrespect taken .. they just don't think I will be able to afford the long term care between my crazy work schedule from April til Thanksgiving with long 8-12+ hour work days and then work gets slow during the winter months ( I also have a rescue horse that I keep at a friends)
 
storm said:
No problem Sharon lol .... yes its the feeding of 7 cats .. I was looking at the YA Zero formulas as they have 2 .. when I was feeding only dry food a while ago, I was going through a 12-16 lb bag a week with them free feeding so trying to figure out if an 8lb bag would last me a week .. I have gone through the list of canned foods and wrote down all the low carb brands (10% or less ) and types/flavors so I know what to look for with the cheapie brands ( I really like the Tiki brand foods) .. Friskies and 9 lives were 2 I have already been feeding my kids, all pates ( none of them will touch chunks, filets, slices or anything with gravy) which they like except for the whitefish flavor, they prefer chicken, turkey and tuna, they will eat beef but grudgingly, just unsure how much to free feed smaller cans for all 7 as I currently buy the wet for the other 6 in the huge 12-13 oz cans, I put 2 cans down in the morning, splitting it between several small plates with half a handful of royal canine appetite control for spray neutered cats so they have a little something to munch on later .. insulin cost is a factor as well, I know Lantus makers have a discount card I can sign up for, which could make my cost as low as 10 dollars but my vet said some pharmacies wont honor it if its for a pet and i have checked out the GoodRX website so i know which local pharmacies will fill pet prescriptions. Feeding small meals during the day while I am working is impossible as I live alone, work 8-12+ hours a day from spring until thanksgiving and my adult children are not supportive of me even considering treating him and will not be willing to help in any way, they want me to turn him over to a shelter or put him down. I want to do what is best for him but being on a limited budget is going to be hard. A timed self feeder I don't think would work with 7 cats as I have a problem child who is a curmudgeon, he is half Maine Coon half Siamese, I know he would hang out at the feeder and keep everyone else away from it as he does this at bedtime, trying to keep all the others off my bed so he has to go into a crate at night just so I can get some sleep.
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I had 5 of my 7 eating the young again zero, (in addition to wet food... I feed ff classic twice a day and free feed Yaz) an 8 lb bag lasted 3 1/2 weeks. A 25 lb bag lasts about 3 months.
 
ok thank you Janet .. did you find with the YA Zero your cats stayed fuller longer, so they consumed less of the dry?
 
storm said:
ok thank you Janet .. did you find with the YA Zero your cats stayed fuller longer, so they consumed less of the dry?
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Exactly. It's nutrient dense and high in calories so they eat less and the bag lasts longer than most dry foods.
 
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