New Member - 15yo diagnosed today (6/21)

[Jeena]

Hi there, I'm Jeena (pronounced like Gina) and I'm in love with a 15yo dilute tortie named Annouk. Here is our story.

Annouk came into my life in 2009, after I'd been catless for a few years, and has always gotten herself into sticky situations. Early on, she ate a toy that got stuck in her intestines and required surgery, numerous bouts of gastroenteritis, and then IVDD.

Through it all, she maintained her tortietude, and we've always been inseparable. I was a remote worker the first 2 years of our lives together and then again for the past 4. She's been pretty stable for a long while now, except for not being able to jump up and needing stairs all over the house

Annouk was put on steroids when she first was diagnosed with IVDD, gained a ton of weight, and no matter what I try, I can't get her to lose weight. She's clocking at 18-19lbs depending on the scale.

I spent most of last year obsessing over calories, different meal times, ordering an automatic wet feeder when it became clear she really really HAD to eat at 4am. But the weight doesn't come off (or a few oz comes off and are quickly regained). And when she wants to eat, she will bring the house down until she gets food.

A week ago, she inexplicably threw up, and that was unusual for her. Then the next day it seemed like her hind quarters were paralyzed. I rushed her to the ER where they told me she has arthritis in her left knee and was throwing up from pain.

They gave her buprenorphine and gabapentin and sent us home to follow up with her vet.

We saw the vet yesterday to start her on Solensia, and did a quick urinalysis because the ER labs showed elevated glucose.

And now she has diabetes.

She only eats high quality grain free wet food. (Wellness Core Turkey and Duck Pate; Weruva Classic Pate; Wellness Core Tiny Tasters) There's a daily churu and a few nightly treats (catnip and chill). She gets Felix's Flora (1/2 tsp daily) and I've just ordered Nordic Naturals Omega 3 and some glucosamine supplements to try.

Her appetite had been slightly less (not enough for weight loss), but with her arthritis treatment she's suddenly ravenous. She feels better and is frisky, then tired and listless. It's been an emotional rollercoaster thinking she's dying, no she's great, no not great.

Our vet is heading out of town, and our appointment isn't until July 5, when we're supposed to start insulin shots.

Vet prescribed Royal Canin wet and dry food, but I'm spooked by everything I've read about them, believe the quality of her food is excellent (though maybe the Wellness Core is too fatty?) And Annouk has always refused any Rx foods and is a picky eater.

I've only recently tried the variety of Wellness Core Tiny Tasters, also fattier than the Weruva, and she's suddenly rather gassy. New foods haven't always gone well.

I've spent the day trying to read absolutely everything on the entire Internet and there's so much conflicting info, all passionate, so confusing.

I'm gaslighting myself, I don't know who to trust, I love our vet, but know from my own medical experience that doctors aren't always right, however well intentioned.

I will definitely be giving her insulin, but the thought of lancing her paw or ear for glucose monitoring is making me sick.

I'm terrified my elderly dad in CA will need something because I don't see how I can travel again.

I'm so sad for her and scared of all the things that can go wrong with this "treatable" disease. I know we all love our pets but Annouk is like a furry vital organ that lives outside of my body. I can't stand to see her moderately uncomfortable let alone hurting.

I have many questions but they're incoherent and I need to read more first.

Grateful to have found this community

 

[Bron and Sheba (GA)]

Hi and welcome to the forum. It does seem overwhelm the beginning.but it should soon become routine.
First of all please do not wait until 5 July before you start insulin. The only way I would be happy to do that is if Annouk did not have ketones at diagnosis and you see testing each day for ketones in the urine. Diabetic cats who do not get insulin are at risk of developing ketones whic can lead to DKA if not monitored. To test for ketones you will need to get a bottle of Ketostix from Walmart of a pharmacy and test each day. It is a urine test. And I would use this time to swap her to a low carb wet diet.

Please do not be scared at picking her ears to hometest. They rarely feel it, especially if they are getting a treat with each test which you should do. Here is a link to HOMETESTING HINTS AND LINKS
And another link to HELP US HELP YOU where you will find out how to set up the spreadsheet, the signature and set up a hypo box which is very important.

I will also give you a link to FOOD CHART. Checkout out the foods you are feeding to see if they are suitable . The foods need to be 10% or under carbs. Thee is no need to buy any pre foods. The ones on the lists are fine and mostly lower carbs.
You are right,it is a very treatable disease, especially if you are willing to himetesting and feed low carb foods. Many of our cats live with other illnesses or diseases especially as they get older.
This forum has been going for over 25 years and the members are all diabetic cat owners. It is a wonderful supportive and knowledgeable community which you can trust.

 

[Sienne and Gabby (GA)]

It's unusual to diagnose diabetes based on a urine glucose level. Generally, diabetes is diagnosed based on a fructosamine test -- it gives an average of blood glucose over a period of a few weeks. Blood glucose is more reliable than urine glucose but it can also be misleading if your cat is stressed by a vet visit. Stress increases blood glucose and things like pain can raise those levels.

I also doubt that it's the arthritis meds that are causing Annouk to be ravenous. It's more likely the diabetes. With FD, the end product of what your cat is eating (i.e., glucose) isn't getting into the cells to provide nutrition. It's floating around in her blood. As a result of her not getting glucose into her cells, she's hungry all the time.

You can travel. One possibility is to bring Annouk. Another is to find a cat sitter who is able to give shots and test (if Annouk will let the sitter test). Often, there are vet techs from your vet's office who pet sit on the side or may know of someone who does.

If you're wanting to do more reading, take a look at the Health Links page. It's a bit rabbit hole to dive into but there's lots of information there.

 

[Jeena]

And I would use this time to swap her to a low carb wet diet.
..
This forum has been going for over 25 years and the members are all diabetic cat owners. It is a wonderful supportive and knowledgeable community which you can trust.

Thank you so much for your reply! I'm just getting started and trying to gather all the info and appts, but as far as I can tell Annouk is eating very low carb already. I'm trying to get an appt with a feline nutritionist.
Thank you

 

[Jeena]

It's unusual to diagnose diabetes based on a urine glucose level. Generally, diabetes is diagnosed based on a fructosamine test -- it gives an average of blood glucose over a period of a few weeks. Blood glucose is more reliable than urine glucose but it can also be misleading if your cat is stressed by a vet visit. Stress increases blood glucose and things like pain can raise those levels.

I also doubt that it's the arthritis meds that are causing Annouk to be ravenous. It's more likely the diabetes. With FD, the end product of what your cat is eating (i.e., glucose) isn't getting into the cells to provide nutrition. It's floating around in her blood. As a result of her not getting glucose into her cells, she's hungry all the time.

You can travel. One possibility is to bring Annouk. Another is to find a cat sitter who is able to give shots and test (if Annouk will let the sitter test). Often, there are vet techs from your vet's office who pet sit on the side or may know of someone who does.

If you're wanting to do more reading, take a look at the Health Links page. It's a bit rabbit hole to dive into but there's lots of information there.

Thank you for replying! I do have a wonderful vet tech who is willing to come give her insulin after we get everything figured out. I'm mostly worried about something happening before we have things set. Annouk is my first priority.

As I'm reading, it does seem like her appetite issues are related to the diabetes. I think they strongly suspect diabetes based on her urine and obesity, but will do more testing when the doctor gets back.

But her appetite is all over the map. Just two days before, her appetite was declining. And now she's hungry and crabby.

It does make sense that she would be demanding food all the time if the nutrients aren't getting to her system, but everything I read says cats lose weight, too. She is as heavy as ever.

Because her diet is low carb and high quality, I'm really hoping the insulin is the missing (literally) key for her.

 

[Sienne and Gabby (GA)]

I would take a look to make sure the foods you're giving Annouk are on the list Bron linked. Not all high quality foods are low in carbs nor does "grain free" mean the food is low carb. If there are veggies or fruit (e.g,. cranberries) it can bump up the carbs. Cats are obligate carnivores. They thrive on muscle meat. Their systems can't process carbs. If you want to read more about feline nutrition, I've linked a site authored by a vet that provides a wealth of information on what to feed a cat. Think in terms of a paleo or Atkins diet. It also means that by feeding Annouk a diet that is largely protein, it may help her to lose weight.

 

[Jeena]

I would take a look to make sure the foods you're giving Annouk are on the list Bron linked. Not all high quality foods are low in carbs nor does "grain free" mean the food is low carb. If there are veggies or fruit (e.g,. cranberries) it can bump up the carbs. Cats are obligate carnivores. They thrive on muscle meat. Their systems can't process carbs. If you want to read more about feline nutrition, I've linked a site authored by a vet that provides a wealth of information on what to feed a cat. Think in terms of a paleo or Atkins diet. It also means that by feeding Annouk a diet that is largely protein, it may help her to lose weight.

Thank you so much for the follow-up and you're absolutely right that grain free doesn't equal carb free! I will be double checking that list, but I found a carb calculator and checked the % of carbs of each of her foods and it's under 2%.

Her foods are generally 85-90% moisture, 1% fiber, 9-10% protein, and under 2% carbs.

She's more satisfied with the higher fat Wellness Core foods, but she likes the lower fat Weruva too.

My favorite vet tech is coming over today to double check my math.

Thank you for the support, I'm still working my way through all the links, but I'm definitely reading them.

 

[Sienne and Gabby (GA)]

You're going a great job integrating all of the information. The beginning of this adventure is more than a bit overwhelming. Please ask questions. We're here to help.

 

[Jeena]

You're going a great job integrating all of the information. The beginning of this adventure is more than a bit overwhelming. Please ask questions. We're here to help.

I'm so extremely grateful