New diagnoses

[mesamom76]

A little back ground ...we have 5 cats and one of them is very psycho (Isabell) and frequently attacks our old kitty that has been diagnosed with diabetes(Tasha). We feed all the cats the raw diet on catinfo.org
They have lived in the same house for 5 years now. My husband had his old cat and I had my 4 cats when we moved in together. We don't know why Isabel (psycho) attacks Tasha. Attacks are random but multiple times per day. Tasha our 12 year old cat has been declining in health. She's slowly been loosing weight and had a poor appetite and frequent vomiting. She would also get these dried out crumbly hard poops.

Our house is very small and we also have 4 kids so it's difficult to keep them separated. We have multiple litter boxes and kept Tasha in our girls bedroom most of the time. We never forced her to stay in the bedroom she just did because I think she felt safe. Periodically the door gets left open and psycho goes in to attack and we find a potty mess on one of our daughter's beds. (don't get me started on the amount of laundry we do!)
We started adding slippery elm and psyllium to her food a few months ago. We did this after referencing a book called the New Natural cat. Her appetite improved and the vomiting became less frequent and no more dried out poops. She seemed to be doing be doing really well.

A few weeks ago she decided (Tasha) that she didn't want to live in the bedroom anymore and started acting different. Tasha has decided that she wants to live in the kitchen and sleeps on top of our cockatiels cage. It's cozy with the cage cover folded on top and has a window view. She now has a voracious appetite and we cannot prepare food without her jumping on the counter. She has frequent accidents (pee) on top of the cage on the blankets we cover the cage with at night.
This last friday afternoon she was running back and forth from her perch in the kitchen to the litter box. She Kept assuming the potty position like she had to go and seemed to be straining pretty much anywhere she was. My regular vet could not get us in. So I took her to another local vet at 5pm on friday. They were open until 6 so I didn't have to pay emergency fees at least.
The vet ordered blood work, x-rays, and urine sample.

Xray findings- large amount of gas in abdomen, small heart (vet said this is very rare), colon and bladder empty
blood work didn't show anything notable
Urine- showed glucose and ketones
Before lab results came back she recommended antibiotic for possible infection indicated by gas in the belly. Then recommended one of the Hill's foods for digestion. She also wants a stool sample (she couldn't get one) to check for parasites.

Over the weekend Tasha seemed ok and enjoyed the crappy prescription food. She had a few pee accidents on the bird cage blankets. No vomiting.
Today I received the call from the vet with the urinalysis results. She said they are closed tomorrow but wants me to bring her in Thursday morning for a repeat blood glucose. If it comes back with the same results she wants to keep her for several days to get her stable.

So far this has cost us almost $600. My husband is disabled and we have 4 kids. We are beyond strapped. We want to help our cat! So this vet is not there over night why would they keep her there? Wouldn't she be better at home where she can be watched? We are totally prepared to be hands on and give injections or what ever it takes to get her stable. I just don't have several thousand dollars.
I called my regular vet and made an appointment for her there on Thursday (closed Wednesday too) because I felt like this new vet is trying to squeeze as much out of us as possible. I hate when you feel like you are buying a car when you go to vet that wants to sell you everything. This is one of the reasons I love my regular vet. I feel like they suggest what really needs to be done not what will make them money. I could be totally wrong about this vet but something tells me to see my regular vet.
The thing that I am also concerned about is the ketones. From what I am reading that can be serious but I am supposed to wait until Thursday? My cat seems to be acting ok.

Thanks if you are still reading all this! Any thoughts or advice appreciated.

 

[BJM]

1) Ketones can kill - high levels may indicate diabetic ketoacidosis, a complication of unregulated diabetes. Keep hydrated - maybe add a tablespoon of water to the food. Most Rx foods aren't helpful for diabetics. You can check them on the food list at Cat Info

2) The other cat is attacking because Tasha is ill. Until she is better, whether that be on or off insulin, that is likely to continue. Stacked baby gates (it'll take 4, overlapping) in a doorway allow interaction without harm; check Craigslist or other 2nd hand. Feliway diffuser plug ins may help reduce the stress on the other cat. Keep the aggressor's nails clipped.

3) Feline Constipation has tons of options for managing constipation, which could be added to the raw diet. You likely don't need the Rx food. I'd return it and get your money back. You can find canned foods with under 10% calories from carbohydrates on the Cat Info food list.

4) infection will raise the glucose level; treating it should reduce that some, but still may require insulin. Insulin is dosed per unit. Cost per unit, lowest to highest, is BCCP PZI, ProZinc, Lantus, and Levemir; these insulins last roughly 12 hours in the cat. Other insulins do not last as long (Humulin/Novolin last 6-8 hours, Vetsulin/Caninsulin 8-10 hours in the cat), and tend to have a much harsher action. I wouldn't wait to get her on insulin if ketones were detected. The lab work you have is yours, so if you need to find another vet until yours is open, get that, and use the Vet Interview Topics in my signature link.

5) Inexpensive tarps may be laid down to protect absorbent surfaces and reduce your laundry volume. The excessive urination happens because glucose has exceeded the renal threshold and has to go out through the kidneys.

 

[Sue and Oliver (GA)]

Did the vet give you any kind of number for the higher glucose reading? I am wondering "how" diabetic she is and whether food might make a big difference.

What is the prescription food? It can be a big unnecessary expense. I would put it aside and buy some large cans of Friskies pate(cheapest alternative). You can return the food to the vet and say she won't eat it. :mrgreen: Sometimes (not always by any means) cats can be diet controlled.

Ketone strips are cheap at the drug store. You stick the strip in the cat's urine stream. (if that sounds like an impossibility, we have other ways). That will help you stay on top of any ketone problems.

We can teach you how to test her at home so the vet visit to check her levels is eliminated. Let us know if you want a shopping list and info on that.