New Member- What to Expect: Recent Diagnosis

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Meloche

Meloche

Member Since 2020
Hello Everyone,

First off, I just want to say that I am very happy to have found this page. It seems like an amazing support group filled with people who are experienced, knowledgable and compassionate.

To orient everyone, I have a 5-year-old domestic male cat who was diagnosed (via a blood test) with diabetes this past Friday (July 24th). When I first heard about his medical condition, I thought 'there is no way I can handle this drastic lifestyle change or manage it financially'. My veternarian told me that my cat would need to be on a special food that helps to manage his glucose levels and insulin 2 x per day 12 hours apart. More so, he would need to be brought in every 2 weeks until his insulin levels were deemed appropriate. I was told that the average cost per month (food & insulin), once his was diabetes was regualted, would be 150$. This doesn't include the costs associated with the initial stabalization phase...

Because his diabetes is progressing slowly (the vet says), I took him home with the special food and planned to attempt to find him a new home. However, after doing my rsearch, I discovered that there are lots of ways to help regulate your cats diabetes without the drastic financial burden (great news!). It made me realize 'I can do this, I just need some help!'.

As my cat is not currently taking insulin, he is not himself. I am calling the vet tomorrow morning so I can start his treatment ASAP. Before I get sucked into a bunch of highly priced treatment options, recommendations on food, insulin, and glucose-monitoring (stabilization & regulation phase) would be very helpful!

Note: The special food the vet gave me to try in the meantime is Hills m/d Feline Glucospport dry and canned food. My cat seems to be ok with the dry food but refuses to eat the wet food.

THANK YOU IN ADVANCE!
 
WELCOME TO FDMB You have landed in a safe place and we can help with every one of these "issues" .
YOU CAN DO THIS.
I'm glad you called the vet. Its not good to withhold insulin from ANY diabetic. And...unless your cat has some underlying issues you can forget that prescription food. Theres nothing fancy about it, other than the price. Vets get kick backs from these "specialized" food companies. Most cats do fine with any food that comes in at 10% under in carbohydrates. Trouble went into remission on Fancy Feast pates. In fact dry food of any kind is packed with carbs. Carbs FEED diabetes. ( there are a couple of brands that have lower carbs but still higher than what I would feed.)

Also that every two week visit can be mitigated if you learn to home test your cats blood glucose. We can help with that.

Now I know its hard to go against your Vets advice. None of us like doing that but honestly, Vets get only a few hours of training in this subject during their schooling. Its not their fault. I was lucky and had a vet that admitted she was not up to snuff when it came to this disease. We both decided to learn together. Most vets will cop an attitude when you tell them, "no I want to do it this way" so its a tricky balance. But a balance worth working on.

Others will chime in on this so I will end by saying HELLO and We are glad you found us!
This is the best site on the planet, to help you help your kitty cat. We strive to help every single one that enters this site.:bighug:
jeanne
 
Hello and welcome - we can help you help your kitty. As others have said, you don't need special food from the vet. You should, however, get him eating low carb wet food if you can. They are plenty of options out there. Some easily available at the supermarket, others at pet food stores. Since your cat has to eat anyway, this shouldn't be an extra expense.

If you are up for learning to home test, you won't need to take him into the vet every couple of weeks. It's also safer for him as well as less expensive for you. Many cats get stressed and their blood sugar tests higher at the vet, and you don't want insulin doses to be based on stressed numbers. Plus it's just a whole lot more convenient for you not having to go to the vet. And cats have the unique ability for their pancreas to heal. A certain percentage of them go into diabetic remission - meaning no longer need insulin. It's safer for him if you are home testing and detecting that his insulin needs are coming down. Depending on where you live, we can suggest which blood glucose meter to buy. Again, you can buy them at any human pharmacy. You want one that takes a small blood drop and has cheap test strips. Ongoing costs are the test strips and lancets.

Your second cost will be insulin. Let us know which one the vet suggests. Again, we have suggestions for which ones are best for cats and the cheapest places to buy. You will also need syringes for that and often on line is the cheapest place. You won't need to buy that every month.
 
Welcome and I’m glad you came here first before spending tons of money!

you already got great advice. For food as Diane said, most of us feed fancy feast pate which is less than 10% carbs and perfectly fine. The “prescribed” foods by the vets are not special at all other than the special price you pay and clever marketing to make you think you need it. They’re actually usually higher in carbs and not human grade. I also want to add that you want to make sure and feed your cat - what’s his name? - enough calories daily as diabetic cats cannot process all the nutrients in food well and tend to lose weight at first. They also burn calories just by peeing since there’s sugar in their urine. If you know your cat’s ideal weight you can multiply that by 20 and that gives the approximate number of daily calories he should be eating.

I hear here that the insulins with best remission rates are Lantus and prozync. They’re also gentler long acting insulins. I’d try to stay away from caninsulin or Vetsulin as it’s made for dogs or canines and tends not to work as well in cats.

I also really second home testing. It’s much more affordable and less stressful for your cat. You can do all the curves at home too. No need to get an expensive pet meter. If you’re in the US Walmart’s ReliOn is great and the test strips are the most affordable.

welcome again!! :bighug::bighug::bighug:
 
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