new here, Pam, and Larry the cat :)

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IloveLarry

IloveLarry

Member Since 2014
hi everyone. i am new to the board. my name is pam. my boy is about 10 yrs old, named larry. hes always been the sweetest to me! now hes literally sweet. :( he was dx with diabetes almost 2 weeks ago. i am still trying to learn how to use this board so bare with me. i think there were some supplies offered for test strips and a meter, that would be very helpful, but i cannot find the post now. hope u r all having a great day. i am terrible with technology. confused_cat
 
Hi Pam and Larry,

You can get a testing kit from us, if supplies are available. The picture is on the top part of the page, on the right, Click on the picture.

Welcome! We'd love to help you help your sweet Larry. We have a very successful protocol for feline diabetes:

1. A slow, long lasting insulin. Lantus, Levemir and ProZinc are popular as they have a slow onset; they are not harsh and they are easiest to use for regulation. Humulin and Canninsulin are less popular because, in most cats, they have a rapid onset and don’t last as long. We like new diabetics to start low and go slow. That is, start at a low dose of .5 or one unit twice daily every 12 hours. And increase slowly, by .25 or .5 units as the numbers indicate. What insulin is Larry on and what dose?

2. A low carb, wet diet. We like to feed under 8-10% carbs. There are several food charts you can use: Dr. Lisa’s food chart
Hobo’s Food Chart Rhiannon’s 8% and under list

Whatever food you can afford that your cat will eat in that lower range. BUT do not change over to wet until you are hometesting. With our Oliver, the switch meant an overnight change of 100 points downward. If we hadn’t been testing and had given our usual amount., he could have hypoed. What food is Larry on?

2. And most importantly, hometesting. We think cats tend to be stressed at the vet
and we know stress raises blood glucose levels. So we test our cats at home. You want to know what the number is before you give the shot to be sure the amount you are planning to give is safe. And testing midcycle will show you how the insulin is working. We use human glucometers and test on their ears or paws. Here is a video that shows you how it is done: Video for hometesting

Let us know how we can help. Ask lots of questions.
 
hello there :)
thank u for ur kindness and generosity. i wish the board was more in facebook format. im trying to figure it out. i found a wonderful organization called DCIN who is goin to help with larrys supplies. until then, i didnt know what i would do!
larry is now on humulin N, we r trying to get switched to lantus. we start testing next week when his kit arrives :)
he is transitioning to nine lives wet food. he has always eaten mainly dry food. can u recommend a certain flavor which is healthiest? that or a generic that is just as good? sometimes when friskies is on sale, might even be able to get it, if u can reccomend the best flavors for their health? in a perfect world, they would all eat expensive great food, but i am disabled and this is even a strain. doing my best :) larry has 5 kitty siblings, and 1 doggie sibling. were he an only furchild, this wouldnt probably be a financial strain.
typing hurts very badly. i have fibromyalgia, carpal tunnel, arthrisis, and other health issues, but i am doing my best. plz bare with me. :)
do u happen to remember the name of the post? i was going to ask for those strips to help out since DCIN is helping us. thanks!
 
The trick for now is to go back to the Feline Health:The Main FDMB Forum each time you come on board. Then find your thread (new here, Pam and Larry the cat) and choose First Unread Post. That will take you to the first new post on your thread. You can also be notified by email whenever anyone replies to your post. If you want that, let us know and we'll explain how.

What else are you finding difficult?

It's great that DCIN is going to help. You might check with them - sometimes they have meters too. Our kit is the picture all the way to the right in the line that has the button for Subscribe, Shop etc.

My post had links to several food charts. (So go back up to it and pick one of the blue highlighted urls that say Food chart ) You want to pick one Larry will eat, that you can afford that has carbs in the 8-10% range. Look at the columns at the top of the food chart, find Carb % and go down the list. Most people think Friskies pates are the least expensive and have good ingredients. That's what I feed; sometimes Fancy Feast pates also. My theory is that cats in the wild eat mice so there is nothing wrong with animal byproducts in cat food. The more expensive foods sometimes have sweet potatoes and cranberries and things that humans may like but cats do not need.
 
i dont see 9 lives on there, am i missing it?
the 2nd link says the page moved. whats the name of the page.
just all of it right now is difficult. the technological part is so overwhelming with tmi.
thanks!
 
It is absolutely overwhelming at first - the site, all the information, the disease itself. All I can say is that everyone who replies to your post is paying it forward because they were new and overwhelmed at first and someone helped them. And they and their kitty survived! You are doing the important stuff - you have a good insulin, you are feeding wet low carb and you are going to hometest. It is hard to believe but in a few weeks, you'll be posting on a new person's thread and telling them this is doable!
 
thanks sue :)
i am very sorry to hear of ur cat passing :(
i found it now on another page but it only lists 3 possible 9 lives dinners. 2 have fish which i heard was bad for the kidneys, i believe? i am exploding with info, but i think i heard that. let me chk this page u sent.
can u msg. ppl privately on here? if so, how?
 
The message board is set up somewhat like a tree on its side.

At its root is the Board Index. A link to that may be found at the top left of the page or at th bottom left of the page. A drop down arrow at the bottom right of the page can also get you there, or to any of the other sections.

Then, there are the main branches
- Announcements. - How to Use the FDMB - FELINE HEALTH: the Main FDMB Forum
- Health Links - Navigation Links
- Tech Support - Community (No Cat Health Topics)
- The Supply Closet - Insulin Support Groups (has sub- branches of
-- Lantus (Glargine) Tight Regulation -- Relaxed Lantus
-- Levemir (Detmir)
-- PZI
-- Vetsulin / Caninsulin / Humulin N
- Archive
- Grief
- Think Tank
 
Yes, you can send private messages. At the bottom left hand side of each post is a button that says pm. It takes you to a blank form to send a message to that person. Write in the box and then choose Submit. When you get a private message, you will have "1 new message" at the top of this page. Click on that and your message will come up.

Dosing advice can't be given via private messages as it needs to on the open forum and be peer reviewed. But if you have other questions, you can definitely ask them in private messages.

The charts only have as much information as the manufacturer would supply, so sometimes they are limited. What kind of Nine Lives do you feed and I'll look around.
 
ok, thanks. my reading/processing aibility is very low. i can be told/shown almost anything and learn but to read and learn is SO hard. between ADD and fibro fog its a challenge. the store im usually able to go to has tuna and chicken 9 lives. does it have to be a 4 or 5? or is under 9 ok? i forget.
 
ohhhh yea. ok, good! where is a good place on the body besides neck to shoot? i have watched abt 10 videos. larrys skin is not so loose and flexi like the cats they show. plus my hands hurt so bad. i scruff him but not able to pull up a lot of skin. im afriad i hurt him. he jumps sometimes. its all i can do to hold the scruff, needle, see what im doin and get it in there. very challenging.
he is not still or calm like the cats they show, ever. i give him some food to eat to keep him busy each time or it wouldnt be possible. i pray the testin is not as hard. hes very squirmy.
at any rate, where all on the body can i shoot? i really need a new spot.
 
This page has a hairless kitty picture with very little skin, but he is lying on his side, not eating (we always shot while he was eating, but Oliver was a big boy and had lots of extra skin at the scruff of his neck so that's where we gave the shot) Some people do shoot on the side while the cat is eating, but I am not sure it would be any easier for you.

http://www.felinediabetes.com/injections.htm

Does he have any loose skin anywhere?
 
thers a tiny pouch behind his front leg that looks decent? i think? but i dont know cat anatomy. im terrified of hitting a vein/artery or something? also theres supposed to be a place near the bak leg, i think where this hairless is gtn the shot? that is good, but again, how much leeway is there?
also, how far down the back can u go, if u scruff? do u know?
i also need clippers to shave so i can see, but hvnt bn ableto find sum1 to borrow frm yet. mine r dull. hands r killing me. hope u can read this.
 
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