New Members - Shelly203 and Fenway

[Shelly203]

Hello everyone,

Fenway is my 11 year old male tabby. I have had him for nearly 10 years and he was diagnosed 3 years ago with diabetes. He had the classic symptoms: drinking an abnormal amount of water, urinating frequently, losing weight but eating normally. He was a bit chunky at 14 pounds and he is fixed so it all made sense. I suppose it was only a matter of time but I had never had a cat long enough to develop a disease like this. I was very scared and unsure of what to do but his blood glucose was regulated at the vet's office and we began insulin injections immediately and he was switched to Purina DM, both canned and dry food. We've had a lot of ups and downs in these 3 years and I'll do what I can to help support anyone else who needs some encouragement. I know I can always learn a thing or two about how to deal with this.

Thanks!
Shelly203

 

[BJM]

Welcome to FDMB.

What insulin are you using and what dose? The best 4 for cats (at least in the US) are Lantus, Levemir, ProZinc, and PZI.

Do you home test? We recommend using an inexpensive human glucometer such as the WalMart ReliOn Confirm or Prime. Testing before you give insulin helps keep your cat safe, as does testing around the nadir (lowest glucose level between shots) to make sure it never goes too low.

What food are you feeding? We strongly encourage feeding a canned or raw, low carb, over the counter diet. See Cat Info for more about why.

 

[Shelly203]

He has been on Lantus at varying doses, the last time we had a check up he was on .5 units twice per day.

I do not home test because #1 I was extremely hesitant and #2 we lived so close to the vet's office that I felt better that they were hurting him and not me. We have since moved a bit further away and don't go in for a reading until there is an issue. I keep a very close on eye on him.

Recently I took some pretty drastic measures regarding his health. He had been vomiting at least a couple of times per week and had almost constant diarrhea (for several months). I was off from work last week and began researching the Purina DM and reading message boards (including this one) about people who were experiencing the same thing. The #1 thing I saw repeated was getting him off of dry food and off of the DM indefinitely. I went to a local store and decided to try the Wellness brand cat food and slowly integrated it in with his DM. He LOVED it and the transition took less than a week. His attitude has completely changed - he is happier, purring more often and most importantly no more diarrhea or vomiting (except once, due to a hairball). I am a firm believer in choosing the right food from the start and now that I know, I will be transitioning my kitten, Sully, to the Wellness cat food once I'm sure Fenway is settled.

I realize that I am going against what my vet reccomends but I think the proof is in his behavior, and his happiness and comfort are what I'm more concerned with.

 

[BJM]

Cats don't have many nerve endings in the outer edge of the ear, so it isn't more than an annoyance to them, mostly from being restrained a bit, not because of being pricked. Gracie snuggles right under my arm and thinks she's being cuddled, purrs all the way through it. Other cats will remind the human it is time to test.

Testing is about keeping your cat safe. Cats can and do recover pancreatic function. If you give unneeded insulin, you could send a cat into a potentially fatal hypoglycemic event.