NEW MEMBER - Merlin's Mama

[Merlin's Mama]

Hi I am a new member, my cat Merlin is Diabetic. I hope I am posting correctly? by choosing "new thread" - I have no idea.
I brought him into the hospital right away on 3/30/25 when he seemed lethargic and they found he had traces of ketones. I have him home now and am monitoring his BGs with freestyle libre 3. The insulin injections have been easier than they were the first couple of days and my cat cooperates nicely.
Its very frustrating because I feel like I get conflicting advice depending on which vet at the hospital I get regarding grazing/meals.
He is grazing with Purina DM dry, and his meals are Fancy Feast Pate, which I was told was "ok" since he does not like the DM cans. A different vet at the hospital told me he shouldn't be grazing though when I had called for BG advice on the phone, so I am like WTF? I cannot possibly see how he can only have the two meals with no grazing. When I give him the grazing food, I am not giving a whole handful of food, just very small amounts when he asks.
I am so incredibly overwhelmed and stressed out and confused.

 

[Kobe (Dean and Lesley) MO]

Hi I am a new member, my cat Merlin is Diabetic. I hope I am posting correctly? by choosing "new thread" - I have no idea.
I brought him into the hospital right away on 3/30/25 when he seemed lethargic and they found he had traces of ketones. I have him home now and am monitoring his BGs with freestyle libre 3. The insulin injections have been easier than they were the first couple of days and my cat cooperates nicely.
Its very frustrating because I feel like I get conflicting advice depending on which vet at the hospital I get regarding grazing/meals.
He is grazing with Purina DM dry, and his meals are Fancy Feast Pate, which I was told was "ok" since he does not like the DM cans.

Welcome! The Fancy Feast Classic Pates are low carb and great. Many of us use them. The pates with gravy are medium or high carb. When selecting a diet for your cat, we pick 10% calories from carbohydrates or less. Here is Dr. Pierson's Food Chart.

 

[Kobe (Dean and Lesley) MO]

was "ok" since he does not like the DM cans. A different vet at the hospital told me he shouldn't be grazing though when I had called for BG advice on the phone, so I am like WTF? I cannot possibly see how he can only have the two meals with no grazing. When I give him the grazing food, I am not giving a whole handful of food, just very small amounts when he asks.

Many of us feed our cats small meals between the AM and PM meals that are timed with insulin shots. This can be an effective tool for managing BG. Others have cats that graze between meals. My Kobe is a grazer.

 

[Merlin's Mama]

Thank you so much for getting back to me! So happy about the Fancy Feast - I was told the pate was acceptable, so that makes me happy because that is what he likes
Do you have any advice for grazing between meals? amounts and how often perhaps?

 

[Kobe (Dean and Lesley) MO]

Its very frustrating because I feel like I get conflicting advice depending on which vet at the hospital I get regarding grazing/meals.

How the meals are used depends on which insulin your cat is on. My cat was on Lantus most recently, but he has also been on PZI and Vetsulin. The requirements for meal timing are different.

What insulin is your cat on?

 

[Kobe (Dean and Lesley) MO]

He is grazing with Purina DM dry

This kibble is not low carb. You don't want to change it all at once, but you will want to GRADUALLY have Merlin eat less of this and more of the Fancy Feast Classic Pates. There are other options too. Huge changes in diet can be upsetting to Merlin's tummy. Also, when food is changed to low carb, Merlin will likely need less insulin, so this should be done slowly and with the help of experienced members to help keep your cat safe.

 

[Kobe (Dean and Lesley) MO]

This has information on how to get started so that we can help you and your cat.

New? How You Can Help Us Help You:
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/new-how-you-can-help-us-help-you.216696/

 

[Merlin's Mama]

Thanks so much - He is on glargine insulin. Right now, (it's been about 12 days since he started) depending on his BG level after eating, I am giving him 1 unit if his BG is 300+, 1/2 unit - if it is between 250-300, and if the BG is under 249, I am supposed to skip that insulin dose.
Im so mad the vet told me to get the Purina Dm dry for grazing because I bought an $85 bag of it from the Chewy pharmacy. So in addition to giving him FF pate for his meals, you are saying I can give small amounts of the FF pate for grazing as well?

 

[Kobe (Dean and Lesley) MO]

He is on glargine insulin.

Thank you for this information. Are you able to put this in your signature so that members can see it at a glance when they are trying to help you?

Im so mad the vet told me to get the Purina Dm dry for grazing because I bought an $85 bag of it from the Chewy pharmacy.

Well, vets know a lot, but only a few specialize in Feline Diabetes. Chewy is pretty good about returns. Don't send it back yet! Keep it for the slow transition to wet food. If your cat likes the Purina DM, you can keep some as part of your hypo kit. We keep some medium and high carb foods on hand in case our cats' BG goes too low.

The DM in Purina DM doesn't even stand for Diabetes Management. It's Dietetic Management.

I'm glad you found us. This forum saved my cat's life.

 

[Kobe (Dean and Lesley) MO]

So in addition to giving him FF pate for his meals, you are saying I can give small amounts of the FF pate for grazing as well?

Emphatic yes. You want the BG reading before your cat's shot to be unaffected by food so that you know that you can shoot safely. So we stop small meals/ snacks 2 hours before shot time.

 

[squeem3]

Thanks so much - He is on glargine insulin. Right now, (it's been about 12 days since he started) depending on his BG level after eating, I am giving him 1 unit if his BG is 300+, 1/2 unit - if it is between 250-300, and if the BG is under 249, I am supposed to skip that insulin dose.

Lantus doesn't work if you give different doses based on the blood glucose level. You stick with one dose for at least 7 days before doing a curve to see how your cat is responding. FDMB users of Lantus follow one of two protocols: https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB...-low-go-slow-slgs-tight-regulation-tr.210110/

It's fine to give the full 1 unit of insulin as long as the cat is above 150. Newbies are advised to not give insulin under 150 mg/dl and definitely no insulin under 100. If the cat is borderline, say 145, you can feed as usual and test again within an hour. If level has gone above 150, give the full amount of insulin. If unsure, just skip to be safe.

Im so mad the vet told me to get the Purina Dm dry for grazing because I bought an $85 bag of it from the Chewy pharmacy. So in addition to giving him FF pate for his meals, you are saying I can give small amounts of the FF pate for grazing as well?

Many vets have no clue about nutrition and diabetes. It's ok to ignore the vet about food. You can keep the dry food on hand to use in case your cat has a hypo.

Small amounts of canned food left out day is fine. Many people use a mutli compartment programmable timed feeder. Any low carb canned food can be put into the feeder. Some cats like to have a variety of different foods.

Instead of dry food for snacks / treats, try freeze dried raw or air dried raw instead. Both are low carb and healthier alternatives.

Are you testing blood glucose levels?

 

[Sienne and Gabby (GA)]

Let me do a bit of clarifying since Dean and Lesley are newer members. What and when you feed is not entirely dependent on the insulin you're using. With faster acting insulin, the only difference from glargine is that you want to have fed your cat in advance of giving a shot. With glargine, insulin onset (when it starts to work) is about 2 hours after you give a shot. With any insulin, we encourage "snacks" at least until the nadir (the lowest point in the 12-hour insulin cycle) which with glargine is somewhere around the middle of the cycle. So, ignore what the vets are telling you. If they gave it any logical thought, most human diabetics do not fast in between meals. Cats are no different especially if they are used to grazing.

Please ditch the DM dry. Despite it being labeled as appropriate for a diabetic cat, it's way high in carbs. - approximately 41% based on the guaranteed analysis. This is pretty much like feeding a diabetic cookies, cake and ice cream. The prescription food is also expensive. For what you're paying, you can feed your cat a far better quality of food (read the labels -- it's not a high quality food) that's much lower in carbs. Your cat appears to be quite smart since Merlin rejected the DM canned food. The ingredients are not worth what you're paying for.

I'd also encourage you to set up your signature and a spreadsheet if you are planning on joining us on your cat's diabetes journey. The information on how to do this is in this post on helping us to help you. Your signature will provide us with basic information about your cat, insulin, etc. so we don't pester you by asking the same questions repeatedly. The spreadsheet is a way for you to track Merlin's progress. It also allows us to follow along and offer suggestions.

I'm also linking the insulin forum that pertains to glargine. There are sticky notes at the top of the forum that will provide you with a huge (alright, overwhelming) amount of information about the insulin you're using, dosing methods, etc. Take your time reading the information. There's a lot there! Also, like Squeem3 noted, glargine does not do well with sliding scale dosing. You want to give the same dose at each shot time unless a dose increase or decrease is indicated. When you change a dose, the dose is then held for several days to allow the insulin depot to stabilize.

And please, let us know if you have questions. Getting started managing your cat's diabetes can be overwhelming. All of us have been in your shoes. Some of us have been here for a long time because we believe in paying the help we received forward.