New Member: 4 Year Old Cat Having Seizures Again

[cat_cat_lady]

Hi all,

So relieved to have found a community and I'm hoping to regain some hope/receive some help regarding our difficult situation.

My family's poor little 4 year old baby, Miso, went into diabetic remission maybe 2-3 years ago. For a long while she was healthy and normal, but she recently started to rapidly lose weight, her fur became matted, she had a runny/sneezy nose, and she was acting odd/reclusive. My parents brought her to the vet (as I no longer live at home), and they let us know that she was out of remission, and needed to receive insulin shots again. Since the first visit earlier in the year she has had several seizures.

As I said, I no longer live with my parents (and couldn't take Miso when I left, as I unfortunately do not have the means to care for her as she needs), so I'm not 100% what is going on, what she is being fed, etc, but I am worried about her health, and feeling stressed because I know that these multiple emergency vet visits are not affordable (2 in the past 2 weeks). My father was laid off awhile ago, and is too ill himself to work, and my mom makes very little working in the public school system. I'm a few years out of college, but am definitely not doing well enough to help financially with treatments for our baby.

I just am at a loss and am not sure where to go from here or how to help my family and Miso. Any support/words of wisdom/general advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you all so much.

 

[Bron and Sheba (GA)]

Hi and welcome to you and Miso to the forum.
It does sound as if Miso might be having hypo events with those seizures.
Could you tell us a little bit about her please.?
What type and dose of insulin is she on?
What food are you feeding her?
How often a day do you feed her?
How much does she weigh?

It doesn't sound as if your parents are home testing the blood glucose levels.
The best and the cheapest thing you could get them to do is to home test the blood glucose levels.
It sounds scary but it's not. And your parents are not too old to do it. There are many of us here who are in the older generation who test every day to keep our kitties safe.
If they tested they would be able to see if Miso was on the correct dose or not. Just getting the blood glucose tested every so often at the vets will not keep Miso safe.
When a cats blood glucose level drops too low and nothing is done to bring the number back up to safe levels, the cat will start exhibiting signs of a hypo such as shaking, being lethargic, starving, poor coordination and then seizures. This can lead to death.
Here is a link to hypos and what to do about them. Make sure your parents have some honey or Karo at home always in case of a hypo and they need to rub some on her gums if she has a seizure. But if you are testing this should not happen.
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/how-to-treat-hypos-they-can-kill-print-this-out.15887/

If your parents are home testing the blood glucose levels they will see if the number is dropping low and they can feed Miso to bring the number to a safe level and then if necessary adjust the dose of insulin.
We can help your parents with all of this. Miso will not hate them if they test her, in fact they will form a close bond with her.
Here is a link to home testing. We all do it here.
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/hometesting-links-and-tips.287/

Then we set up a spreadsheet and put in all the numbers we get and we have very experienced people here who can advise you all along the way. If you have any trouble setting the SS up, just ask for help and someone will do it for you.
Here is the link
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/

Once you get set up with a human test meter and strips. (we can tell you where to get a good deal) and you are feeding the correct food for a diabetic cat, there should not be any more than usual to pay.

Keep asking questions. If I haven't answered something, ask again. Looking forward to hearing back from you.
Bron

 

[Chris & China (GA)]

If the only reason you can't keep Miso is financial, there's help available (also for your parents if they qualify)

Diabetic Cats In Need has two Compassionate Assistance Programs....One is for "one time help" and the other is for ongoing help. Here's more information on the CAP

 

[jt and trouble (GA)]

Oh goodness you are in a pickle. Maybe you can direct your parents to this forum??? That way they can give first hand answers to our questions. It difficult enough (at first) with first hand info.
I'm glad you found the best site on the planet, to help you help Miso. WELCOME TO FDMB

 

[Lisa and Witn (GA)]

I hope everything is ok.

 

[jt and trouble (GA)]

I echo Lisa's hopes.