New member - diabetes and cat acne, oh my!

[Socks & Bean]

Hi all,

My name is Kelsey and my little chonk is Socks. My intro is a little long but necessary to provide context - please hang in there!!

Socks is 12 (turning 13 in February) and about 14 pounds. We have had her since she was a kitten and she has always lived at my moms house. About a year and a half ago, she was diagnosed with diabetes and my family worked closely with the vet and got her sugars to a normal range with insulin twice a day (she was using Novolin N, currently at 3units in the morning and evening). I am told that the vet did not encourage home BG monitoring, so my mom never started. I was still in college when this happened and was not living at home but I thought I knew the basics like how to administer insulin, etc. Fast forward to now..

A couple weeks ago, my mom (who now lives alone) suffered a back injury and has been in the hospital. I was worried sick about the cat so I drove home and she is living with me now. I have her all set up to see a vet out here, and her vet at home transferred her files. She has been drinking a lot of water and urinating (in her box) a lot as well. I have stuck to her latest dose of insulin per her last vet visit, 3units, 12 hours apart. Since my mom never monitored her levels at home, this is something I never learned how to do but clearly her sugars are high and I think for my own peace of mind, this will be something I learn to do. She eats wet food 3x a day.

I’m a nervous wreck because the new vet didn’t have an opening until next Tuesday on 12/8. Because this is a week away, I do not feel comfortable changing her feeding routine or insulin levels on my own. I feel extremely overwhelmed and under-confident and I just want my baby to feel better. It has also been a stressful week so that might have thrown her BG levels off?

I also noticed when I first brought her here from my moms that she has what appears to be cat acne on her chin and bottom lip. Some black spots, and bigger red, irritated bumps. She also has some hair loss where this is occurring. Just tonight I noticed some bleeding. I am now doubly nervous because I know diabetes can cause worse infections. I am definitely going to call the new vet tomorrow and ask if I can bring her in in case she requires antibiotics. And maybe they can just sneak a BG test in there as well.

I apologize if this was a bit unorganized. It’s late where I am and I’m just snuggled up with Socks trying to calm my anxiety. I really just hope I can get her to the vet sooner and regulate her, and also solve this cat acne issue!!

thank you all in advance for your help, and this website has seriously been a saving grace for me the past couple of days.

 

[Chris & China (GA)]

I also noticed when I first brought her here from my moms that she has what appears to be cat acne on her chin and bottom lip. Some black spots, and bigger red, irritated bumps. She also has some hair loss where this is occurring.

As quickly as possible, change the dishes she eats out of to glass or stainless steel. Plastic bowls are the leading cause of acne in cats.

You can use a little hydrogen peroxide or even acne pads to gently clean the area (or even plain old soap and water). It usually heals on it's own without any problem.

It is a good idea to get it checked out though, especially if it's no better by your appointment next week.

As for the diabetes, the best thing you can do is learn to home test. If you're in the US, you can get a Relion Prime blood glucose meter from WalMart for $9 and 100 strips are $17.88. Add a box of lancets (25-28 gauge are best) for another $5 or so. We can help teach you how to do it. By home testing, you'll really know what's going on inside Socks' body. The fact that she's still drinking and peeing a lot is usually a good sign that her blood sugars aren't very well controlled right now. Moving can cause stress which can raise the blood glucose too but until you're testing, we're all guessing at what's going on.

We really don't recommend Novolin N. It's a much better insulin for dogs and tends to hit cats hard and fast and then wear off long before the next shot is due but since you've been thrown into the deep end, your plan to continue as you are is OK. You might want to call the vet's office you're planning on going to and see what insulin they usually recommend for their diabetic cat patients. You want to hear "Lantus" (also called Glargine) or ProZinc. They are the only 2 insulin's that are currently recommended for cats by the 2018 AAHA Guidelines for Diabetes Management. They are pricier, but we can help you find the best prices that make them very affordable to use.

What does Socks eat now? Once you're home testing, you'll want to get her onto a low carb canned diet like Fancy Feast Classics, Friskies pates or 9-Lives ground. (there are lots of others but those are the easiest to find and the most affordable). She needs to be eating a low carb diet that's less than 10% carbs. (don't be pressured into buying any "prescription" foods. They're not necessary, they're expensive and they don't do anything to actually treat diabetes.

Keep reading and keep asking questions! The people here will do all they can to help you take the best care of Socks so you can hopefully have many more years with her!

 

[JanetNJ]

Welcome! Chris pretty much covered it, but I'll just add that in so glad you are taking over care. Home monitoring is so important. Just as you would never give a child or yourself insulin without checking levels first, we need to do the same for our pets. It's not as hard as it seems. I have a video in my signature showing how I test my cat CC at home. I also agree to all to switch to ProZinc or lantus. My cat is on ProZinc. I pay $102 from chewy.com and for most people it will last several months when stored in the fridge.

 

[Socks & Bean]

As quickly as possible, change the dishes she eats out of to glass or stainless steel. Plastic bowls are the leading cause of acne in cats.

You can use a little hydrogen peroxide or even acne pads to gently clean the area (or even plain old soap and water). It usually heals on it's own without any problem.

It is a good idea to get it checked out though, especially if it's no better by your appointment next week.

As for the diabetes, the best thing you can do is learn to home test. If you're in the US, you can get a Relion Prime blood glucose meter from WalMart for $9 and 100 strips are $17.88. Add a box of lancets (25-28 gauge are best) for another $5 or so. We can help teach you how to do it. By home testing, you'll really know what's going on inside Socks' body. The fact that she's still drinking and peeing a lot is usually a good sign that her blood sugars aren't very well controlled right now. Moving can cause stress which can raise the blood glucose too but until you're testing, we're all guessing at what's going on.

We really don't recommend Novolin N. It's a much better insulin for dogs and tends to hit cats hard and fast and then wear off long before the next shot is due but since you've been thrown into the deep end, your plan to continue as you are is OK. You might want to call the vet's office you're planning on going to and see what insulin they usually recommend for their diabetic cat patients. You want to hear "Lantus" (also called Glargine) or ProZinc. They are the only 2 insulin's that are currently recommended for cats by the 2018 AAHA Guidelines for Diabetes Management. They are pricier, but we can help you find the best prices that make them very affordable to use.

What does Socks eat now? Once you're home testing, you'll want to get her onto a low carb canned diet like Fancy Feast Classics, Friskies pates or 9-Lives ground. (there are lots of others but those are the easiest to find and the most affordable). She needs to be eating a low carb diet that's less than 10% carbs. (don't be pressured into buying any "prescription" foods. They're not necessary, they're expensive and they don't do anything to actually treat diabetes.

Keep reading and keep asking questions! The people here will do all they can to help you take the best care of Socks so you can hopefully have many more years with her!

Thank you so much! I did change her bowls over, water has been going in a glass bowl and I’ve been giving her food on a glass plate so that she doesn’t irritate her chin as much on the sides. I also noticed that she has been rubbing her chin on the floor and other things around the house, so that’s most likely what is causing the irritation. I will try some Benzoyl peroxide diluted with water today.

As for food, she has been eating Blue Buffalo Healthy Gourmet (the smaller cans). I didn’t want to change up her food so quickly after moving her as to not disrupt her stomach or sugars any further but I will ask the vet! I also haven’t been sure how much to feed her so I’ve basically just carried on the feeding routine my mom has her on, but it doesn’t seem like it’s enough - about a can and a half throughout the day - do you think I should increase the amount we are giving her?

I agree about this brand of insulin - I was never crazy about starting her on it but as my mom was in charge of her care at the time I didn’t want to overstep. I definitely would want her on something approved specifically for cats and maybe this would decrease her sugars as well. I also worry about her kidneys since she has been urinating so much. But one step at a time. Thank you SO much for your help. I’m spending my day doing research and hopefully getting her into the vet sooner and I will keep you posted after her appointment!

 

[Socks & Bean]

Welcome! Chris pretty much covered it, but I'll just add that in so glad you are taking over care. Home monitoring is so important. Just as you would never give a child or yourself insulin without checking levels first, we need to do the same for our pets. It's not as hard as it seems. I have a video in my signature showing how I test my cat CC at home. I also agree to all to switch to ProZinc or lantus. My cat is on ProZinc. I pay $102 from chewy.com and for most people it will last several months when stored in the fridge.

I will check out your video! Thank you so much! I definitely want to change over her insulin too, but definitely want her to see the new vet before we make any changes. She just came to live with my on Friday, so we are still in a transitional phase but she has mostly been her same old self!

 

[Chris & China (GA)]

do you think I should increase the amount we are giving her?

Which flavor(s)? There are only 2 listed that are under 10% carbs

A 14lb cat should eat about 280 calories per day to maintain that weight (less if she needs to lose, more if she needs to gain) so it doesn't look like she's getting enough food if you're only feeding 1 1/2 cans. (Calories per can is listed on the far right column)

 

[Buffy-&-Cindee]

H


I also noticed when I first brought her here from my moms that she has what appears to be cat acne on her chin and bottom lip. Some black spots, and bigger red, irritated bumps. She also has some hair loss where this is occurring.

My cat had feline acne in the same place. She was prescribed Douxo (Seborrhea Spot-On). It's a clear liquid that comes in a tube. I applied three drops on my finger and then rubbed it into her chin three times a day. It cleared up within a couple of weeks. I hope this helps.

 

[Panic]

My mom's cat (also named Socks!) had a really nasty flare up of chin acne a few months ago, first time for us. He was bleeding and oozing everywhere. I've never used plastic dishes for them so couldn't tell you what caused it but I bought some Stridex acne wipes from the store and used them every other day (he really hated me using them, ideally I'd have done it every day but he'd get so upset about it lol). Took a couple weeks but he's all cleared up now.

 

[Socks & Bean]

Hello Socks! I love that! Once I switched her bowls, it did seem to improve a bit. I’ve been keeping it clean with warm compresses a couple times a day and haven’t noticed anymore bleeding/ oozing. Just keeping an eye on it but I will keep Stridex pads in mind in case she has another flare up!