New feral diabetic-need help :(

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Ohio_Dawn

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Hi,
My cat Rocky was diagnosed about 2 weeks ago. I have yet to give him any shots. I am ready but he is not. He is a rescue feral, he has to come to me on his terms. Once he is in my lap, he is like butter and I know I can give him his pokes, but my worries are the timing of the shots.

I have tried to isolate him in his own room. That lasted one night. He hissed and was tense everytime I went in the room, he did not like being locked away from the other cats, even though I let him have a guest, he was crying and stressing out, some of the other cats were stressed and it did not work out. I let him out of solitary and back into the general population and decided to try a different approach.

I have been getting up early and feeding him. But since going up to him is not an option I have to wait for him to come over. This morning I fed and tried to coax him to me after he ate, I used lunch meat-no go. I put the syringe in the fridge and sit down to type this and here he comes to sit on my lap! Of course I have no dose for him and if I get up he will take off and we start again :( Plus I am past my time window.

Here are my main issues: Timing-since he needs shots 2x a day I have to do the morning one early enough that I can watch him for hypo. I don't get home at night until between 6-7pm, I have to leave the house by 6:45, so my shots won't be twelve hours apart. Can that make a big difference? I asked vet about doing one shot a day but they said it has to be 2. Also, I worry about him going into hypo, he has never had insulin before and in order for me to watch him for an hour or so after the dose, I am looking at getting up at 5 am , getting his shot done by 5:30 so I can watch him and be out the door by 6:45. sigh. I don't mind the early hours, but if I miss my window...or what if I can't poke him at all in the mornings? Or he misses a dose?

Doses-can I keep the dose in the syringe and in the fridge until I need to use it? I have already wasted one dose and I don't want to have to keep prepping doses and not be able to use them and I didn't want to put it back in the bottle.

I am getting very frustrated and discouraged. I took today off of work to try to work more on my routine and it was a failure. I am feeling stressed and wondering if I should try to find him a better home with someone who can be there all day and make sure he gets his shots. I worry about not getting a routine down. I worry about the insulin, how long will it last?

I have been feeding more canned food, I am looking for a better dry food. Since I have multiple cats I need something everyone can eat and I have some picky eaters. Any food suggestions would help. I have been alternating between Friskies and Fancy Feast cans and trying not to keep dry bowls full all the time like I used to. But I do have to think of the others cats' needs as well and make sure they stay fed.

He has not displayed any signs of hypo, he plays, eats and besides his weight loss, he seems fine.
Any suggestions or encouragement would be greatly appreciated. I just feel very overwhelmed and stressed and that I am a complete failure at this! :cry:

Dawn
 
Re: New and feeling overwhelmed :(

Is he very hungry when it's time for him to eat? Cuz I was thinking maybe you could give him the injection while he is eating. If you look on youtube you'll see many cat owners have to do it this way!

I completely understand your fear of hypoglycemia, but have you, or your vet, done any blood glucose curve yet? Cuz that would be very reassuring: atleast you would know how much one or 2 units of insulin makes his BG level go down, and how many hours later it starts to go up again. Once that is done, and if he eats well, you can test him before he eats and just feel comfortable giving him an injection: which also means you could leave the house right after his shot and not worry about him! If he does not want to eat though, then it's true, you do have to spend a little more time with him to make sure you dont give too much insulin.

When you have a day off, you can use that extra time to do a preshot and a +1 and/or +2 hour BG test, but you dont necessarily have to do that after EACH injection. Just to make sure you do it as often AS YOU CAN, to make sure the curve is not changing.

Whatever you choose to do, dont give him dry food! Low carb canned food is the best thing you can do for him, and if you miss a shot, or cant give him a shot at the right time, atleast you know you're not feeding him with something that will make his BG level get very high!

I'm sure you'll find your own little routine. Even my super nervous/paranoid cat would let me do the injection after 3 weeks of treatment. She would still try to bite me sometimes, but in the end, my hands were confident enough to successfully inject the insulin before my cat even knew I was coming with a syringe!

Feel confident about what you are doing, be patient and give your cat some low carb treats once the injection is done. He'll start to associate mornings with food + attention + treats, and he will eventually calm down that's for sure.

And dont worry the first few days we all give fur shots or have hands shaking so much that the cat cant do anything else but run away! Both the cat and the cat owner have to learn and soon it all becomes a simple routine.
 
Re: New and feeling overwhelmed :(

You have your hands full, Dawn. I hope we will have some answers for you.

The best idea I have is to find a treat that is irrestible to him and only give it when he comes to your lap for the shot. There are a number of low carb ones like Bonito flakes and PureBites available at PetSmart or PetCo. You can also try just baked chicken breast Cut into tiny chunks (easy to freeze)- no spices.

No, it is not a good idea to pre fill the syringe. The timing depends on the kind of insulin you are using. What type?

Wet low carb is best for all your gang (so you prevent any more diabetics). There are cheaper options like Sophisticat and Friskies and Special Kitty.

Keep reading and asking questions. We'd love to help.
 
Re: New and feeling overwhelmed :(

Dawn,
My very first suggestion to you is to change the subject of your first post to something like....
New diabetic feral cat - need help.

You will get plenty of the perfect replies with help for you.

I am pretty lucky that my cats have been no problem, but I know that others have problems and have ways to deal with difficulties.
 
Thanks guys. I am using Lantus for him. I have not tested yet, I need to get a kit. I was going to try the urine strips too. Maybe it is good that I have not dosed him yet since I cannot test his BG yet and check for ranges.

He eats like he is starving so I know treats and bribes will work. I keep telling myself that I wish it was one of my other cats, but with my luck it would be his mama Minnow, who I cannot touch at all-LOL! At least he comes to me so that is a start. I just need to keep working on it and find a routine that works for everyone.

I plan on going to all canned food once the bag of dry I have is gone, I just have to find a kind that my picky eater will like. Of course picky likes Fancy Feast appeteasers but not the canned kind-go figure! :)

Thanks Gayle for suggesting I change my subject :)
 
Dawn,
I think testing would be the best place for you to start; it will get him used to being 'handled' frequently.

If you could keep the meter and test strips and the lancet device handy, right by where you sit and that he comes to sit, you can test him at those times.

Set up a spreadsheet and put in the numbers you get.
Create your Spreadsheet

you already have your shot times, for when you start giving shots, so just put 0u for the dose amount and then populate the test numbers accordingly.

Put your shot times as 6am/6pm - don't worry about the times a bit off as they can be handled - and if you get a test at 8pm, just put that number for the +2 field.

It may help to get him accustomed to being poked and getting treats for each poke, successful or not, and then you can think about introducing the shots.

If he has really high BG, I don't think you will have a problem if you have a .5u dose prepared in the syringe for the 6pm time; you can have it ready and beside your meter for him along with treats. Call him over and test, then give treat, and then shoot in scruff right away.

hopefully some others with diabetic ferals can share their experiences.
 
I am just hear sending hugs and god thoughts. You are a great momma to him and are trying your best - he knows that. It is tough juggling everything at first - I work 7 days a week, so I know how you feel. You'll get into the groove. Glad to hear you are using Lantus. That's what we used before going off the juice (no more insulin). Ditching the dry is what really pushed cedric back to normal. He is diet controlled now and so is the new guy I rescued from outside last September. He's not a feral, was dumped by his family, but is similar in the fact that he comes to me when he wants and is not overtly "huggy."

Good luck and welcome!
 
In case blood testing doesn't quite happen for a while, the following alternative monitoring tools may help.

Alternative monitoring tools include:

Glucotest crystals to add to the litterbox; they turn color in the presence of glucose. Assuming all other cats are healthy, the only one turning a color would be the diabetic. If you use clumping litter, you may need to break up the clumps to find the glucotest crystals.

Urine ketone test strips - if you can keep in a room by himself and use acquarium gravel in a litterbox (nonabsorbent) in that room, then within 30 minutes after he uses the litterbox, you can push the gravel aside, tilt the box, dip the strip, and compare to the color codes on the side of the container. Seeing moderate to high ketones means time to contact the vet, as urine ketones may be the beginning of diabetic ketoacidosis.

Water consumption: measure how much you put down each day and subtract the remainder. you should see a decrease as the diabetes becomes controlled. Even with several cats, you're likely to see a change.

Th 5 Ps: purring, preening (grooming), playing, peeing and poohing.
A happy healthy cat is usually in a good mood, takes care of grooming, has the energy to be playful (or whatever is normal activity), doesn't pee lakes, and has a normal fecal output.

Make yourself a chart - your vet will find the charting helpful too.
 
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