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wsmith7275

Member Since 2013
My cat "Mister" is 10yrs. old has always had F.L.U.T.S., and
Mega Colon at the age of 4yrs., but as of oct. 14th has diabetes. Mister was on "Lactulose" since 2007
but now he can't have it so I have to be even more careful.
The only way I've gotten him to eat a good amount of wet food is to give a tsp. of dry pushed into the wet. Blood
draw was 380. I tried Glipizide and all wet food diet including m/d food
and still a 315 glucose. However he was not eating more than 3/4 of one can in day.
He seems to prefer 2tbs. wet/ 1/2 tsp. or 1tsp dry every 4 hrs..? What can i do with this
We're on a fixed income of permanent total disability for my husband.
He has had 3 back surgeries and has permanent nerve damage,
I have to take care and administer around the clock pain
meds so working for me isn't an option. :( I don't want to loose my Baby
but I don't have the funds to get started right for insulin and syringes,
and blood panel.Also we tried to up the dose but Mister looked as if he
was gone already and didn't move all day followed by vomiting. You are our
last hope.
Someone from Felinediabetes@yahoogroups.com directed me here saying something about a supply closet.
They weren't sure if it still existed, but at this point I'm trying everything possible
 
We'll certainly try to help you and your sweet Mister. Here is the link to the Supply Closet. There was some Levemir at a reduced price and there are free meters:

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewforum.php?f=15

Diabetic Cats in Need can sometimes help.

http://fdmb-cin.blogspot.com/

This disease is not very expensive to treat if you test at home and feed an inexpensive food like Friskies pate. The insulin is the most expensive part, but one vial usually lasts 6 months or more.
 
Hello and welcome to the board

What kind of wet food are you feeding? m/d isn't necessary - most of us here feed fancy feast classic pates, friskies pates or wellness grain free. They are low carb so suitable for diabetic cats - and better priced!
Here are some tips to get him transitioned across to wet: http://www.catinfo.org/docs/TipsForTransitioning1-14-11.pdf

Glipizide doesn't work well as you have found so I would look into proper insulins. You can get single pens of Lantus for $25 that can last a few months if you can't find anything in the closet. See here http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=107476

How is he doing today?

Wendy
 
If Mistere needs Laculose than use. You can work around it. Note that this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lactulose
says:
Lactulose is sold over the counter (without prescription) in most countries in the world. In the United States and Austria, it requires a prescription over unfounded fears that it could be dangerous to diabetics. However, it is an indigestible sugar and has been proved to be safe even for them.[4]

This
http://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/ar ... iveid=5974
says:
Lactulose is a synthetic disaccharide in solution form for oral administration. Each 15 mL of lactulose solution contains 10 g lactulose (and less than 1.6 g galactose, less than 1.2 g lactose, and 1.2 g or less of other sugars).
 
I use the occasional Lactulose with Toby too, never had any problems with it.

These tips on transitioning may be helpful with the dry food.

I understand that it's overwhelming right now (it's not very long since it was overwhelming to me), but diabetes isn't all that expensive to treat as long as you don't buy into expensive glucose curves, meters, or prescription foods, as well as shopping around for insulin, and you're in the best place for any questions or concerns you have.

Good luck with Mister :smile:
 
I just wanted to say I'm sorry I haven't been able to be on the pc at all due to injuring my sacroillic joint / lower back shoveling snow... I couldn't sit at all :(

I have been talking with someone who finds homes for cats and works with DCIN on facebook and she advices me to start posting regularly here instead of the yahoo group page. I have a problem with testing my cat Mister's glucose as he runs and hides whenever he sees the meter now.
Any suggestions ? I'd greatly appreciate it . My vet has been trying to help out by only charging $22.50 for glucose test and not charging office fees but when it comes to
filling out papers to get help through the DCIN he won't even look at them. He wants a $104.00 blood panel done before trying insulin because Mister acts good the first day or 2 on Glipizide but after that he gets lethargic and doesn't even look alive and then vomits all day long with cold ears so he suspects Mister is having highs and lows. I have no way to pay for this :( Mister actually has cardboard colored BM's a lot now which worries me. Also this last visit they had to stick Mister like 10 times before finally getting blood from his hind leg? after that his glucose was a 300 which the vet felt it should've been even higher after the stress. So what I have noticed is Mister is still going through 28 lbs of fresh step in a week and he has a bend in the front wrists when walking but the vet felt that after watching him walk he wasn't that bad "He gets around great" ..However I have noticed when were playing now he gets one run in and his hind legs start having spasms?

He is eating science diet "Chicken liver Lite" Its $1.09 a 5.5 oz can and he eats 4 TBS spoons every 5 hrs. which equals out to 2 cans a day.
And he still acts like he is starving and will try to act like he is going to eat every plastic bag in the house to get my attention! "He is to smart" LOL

PLZ Help me I don't want to be forced to eventually put my baby to sleep :(

Also I wanted to put whats on this food label for your opinion, because Mister doesn't do well without the fiber thats in this wet food.

Crude Protein Min. 8.0 %
Crude Fat Min. 3.0 %
Crude Fat Max 4.5 %
Crude Fiber Max 3.0%
Moisture Max 77.0%
Ash Max 1.8%
Calcium Min 0.15%
Phosphorus Min. 0.10%
Magnesium Max 0.02%
Taurine Min 0.08%

Calorie Content: 884 kcal/kg 138 kcal/can (calculated) Metabolizable energy
 
Since you mentioned megacolon, check into Feline Constipation

Feed a low carb canned such Friskies canned pate; add plain psyllium fiber if needed for the megacolon.
 
Are you giving him a low carb treat after every test? That will help him get used to it.

Many people here feed fancy feast classic pâtés, friskies pâtés or wellness grain free. I don't know the carbs in that food you mentioned, it's not something that can be worked out from the can, you will need to call the manufacturer for "%calories from carbs as fed.".

The legs could be neutropathy. Have you tried methylcobalamin form of vitamin b12. It can help although it takes 4-6weeks and it helps if the blood sugar is under control. A popular one here is the cat version called zobaline.

Wendy
 
Hi, I can't help with a lot of the technical stuff but my guy hated the pricking in the beginning to. We couldn't get him to sit still for nothing! I finally started picking him up & putting him in my lap a couple times a day just to pet him. Then at test time I'd do the same but I'd wrap him in a towel/blanket. Like swaddling a lil baby but I had control then & it went much quicker. After awhile he'll get used to it when it's not so traumatic.

Also you mentioned sticking his leg? I think most of us here stick the ear, along the outer edge of the ear. For beginners you just stick a flashlight up to the back of it & see where the vein runs. It's really quick/easy to get there. I alternate ears & move up n down the ear so it's not the same place all the time. I personally use a lancet & I just free hand stick it with no problems.

I also feed Friskies pates & Fancy Feast Classic varietys. Target has the cheapest FF price at $0.53 a can but walmart will price match them. Walmart is the cheapest Friskies at $0.46 a can. Petco will also price match (with pals card every $100 you get $5 off) however their system is weird & it takes them forever to ring up price matches. But it's much better food for diabetics. Also petsmart sophisticat works at $0.37 a can. Pates only though.

Do you have a home meter? Which one? I use the Relion Prime from walmart. 100 strips cost $9 which is pretty reasonable compared to the others. I have an extra Prime meter I could send you for free if you don't have one.
 
My signature link Secondary Monitoring Tools has some additional assessments you can make to assess your cat's health.
 
Hello there

Here are a list of low carb treats but many of us feed freeze dried chicken or liver. You can get it in most pet stores and walmart. The dog sized bag is bigger and cheaper: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=9172

Vitamin B12 - must be the Methylcobalamin version - can be bought in most health food stores or online. Just be sure that it doesn't have sugars or xylitol in it as thats toxic to cats. Many people here buy zobeline since its cat specific. They get it online I think.

Food - there is a calculation for how much food he needs - its

Required calories per day = [13.6 X ideal weight in lbs] + 70.

You can get the calories in Friskies here: http://www.catinfo.org/docs/FoodChartPublic9-22-12.pdf.

However since he isn't yet regulated he can't process food properly, so I would feed him as much as he wants for now but weigh him every week or two and adjust amounts accordingly.

Wendy
 
I sent messages to reply to posts , and for whatever reason every time I logged in the message board said I had no messages?
Good thing I decided to revisit my post :) I'm very aware Mister's sugar is out of control as his litter box is a pond..
Spending 11.99 on 28 lbs of litter and its out every week. I wish there was a fund somewhere for blood tests so the vet would try giving a prescription
for insulin. After reading so many tips on here I'm going to try to get a BP again today.
I do want to go buy baby socks after the tip for putting rice in them for 15 secs in the microwave.
So I'll wait for PMs back and do my part on trying something new .

Thanks A Lot, Tina
 
You might ask your vet about BCP PZI. It is a compounded insulin that works like ProZinc and is usually in the $70 range.

If you chose to be notified re relies to your thread, they should be sent to the email you registered with.

You could start over with the testing. Start with taking him to the place you will use - folded towel on the floor or counter or on the bed, couch. Play with his ears, praise, treat and let him go. Then add the rice sack (it doesn't have to be a baby sock - an old thin sock will work - just cut it down.), praise,mtreat and release. Then add the poke. (are you sure using the 25-27 gauge lancets, turn the sound off, take off the plastic cap so you can see, aim for the capillaries right off the vein that run to the edge of the ear). You can always get the drop on your fingernail if he runs after the poke.

Post regularly, tell us what is hard about the testing. We'll give you lots of ideas.
 
OOPS!
You hit the button below the post to Reply to it, not the PM button on the right under a poster's name.

wsmith7275 said:
Where do I buy the plain psyllium fiber? And I thought that cats with Diabetes needed Fiber in the food to help with there severe Hunger?
Thanks, Tina
Click to expand...
Unflavored Metamucil is plain psyllium powder. Or check at a health food store or online.

As you get the diabetes regulated, the excessive hunger will resolve. Meanwhile, feed about 50% more food, and maybe add a tablespoon of water for volume and hydration. Spreading the food into mini-meals keeps the cat from getting too hungry.
 
I sent messages to reply to posts , and for whatever reason every time I logged in the message board said I had no messages?
Click to expand...
Setting your user control panel to update you if there are replies to your post does not send you the actual reply. It only tells you there have been responses to your post. You have to go to the message board, to your post and read it.

If you chose to be notified re relies to your thread, they should be sent to the email you registered with.
Click to expand...
Sometimes, for unknown reasons, there may be replies to your post and you do not get an email that alerts you. So, it's a good idea to check back on the forum to check your post when you have the chance.

The "New Messages" link at the top of the screen is alerting you to new PM's (private messages), not to replies to your posts in any of the forums.
 
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