Hello everyone,
My sweet 9 year old boy had been losing weight and drinking a lot of water for the past few months. I assumed it was the extreme heat we dealt with this summer. I deeply regret not picking up on the severity sooner and I will carry that guilt for the rest of my life. This cat has had a really tough life, his previous owner neglected him which included things like leaving him alone for days at a time, not providing sufficient food and water and having a filthy litter box. When his owner was moving to a new city, I was able to adopt him and my life goal quickly became to give this cat the best life possible.. but now here we are.
Let me apologize in advance - this is going to be a long post.
So this past weekend, I brought him in for a check up to look into the weight loss, dry skin and hair loss on his back legs. I have noticed he would do things like rip his hair out when the vacuum was on, etc. I'm quite sure he suffers from anxiety as he used to chew wires but has since almost completely stopped and uses chew toys occasionally instead.
A few hours after the check up, I got the horrifying call that he either has kidney disease, cancer or hyperthyroidism. As you can imagine, I lost it. They wanted to do some extra testing to which I of course agreed. Several hours later, I got the call that his liver enzymes are high, blood protein is high (which could be inflammation or dehydration), high cholesterol and that his urine is very concentrated which was apparently a great thing since it means kidneys are working. What they did discover was he is leaking glucose and protein in his urine which is apparently a sign of diabetes? (there was no mention of ketones... only that it was leaking glucose)..They were also very surprised to see there were no abnormalities in the electrolytes. He lost so much weight and is a very tiny 3.3KG
They sent me home advising they highly suspect he is diabetic and provided Hills MD wet and dry food (which he will NOT eat!) They advised that I will pick up a prescription for Glargine the next day, with 1 unit to be given every 12 hours. However the next day, I was asked to do another test (can't remember the name..) to determine if his levels had been abnormal for the last few weeks or not - which I guess confirms the diabetes? So I did that test. Bad news followed and the vet was shocked to see his results showing that he has Ketoacidosis They said his body is basically in starvation mode and I either must start insulin immediately that night - OR he stays in the hospital to be given a feeding tube and liquids... which seemed strange since he LOVES eating and drinks a ton.. so I took him home and began the shots. The vet said this might be a rare case of "Healthy Ketoacidosis.." because he is still eating lots and also not vomiting.
He is about to have his 5th shot in a few hours, so far so good. He does seem a bit sleepy after the big meals and the shot - but the vet said she is comfortable with that and just to keep a close eye. It's so hard... I mean he is a cat.. they sleep all the time.
I will be picking up a glucometer ASAP - I am just SO exhausted, I have barely slept since Sunday and I knew driving would be a bad idea in this condition. Covid19 is making everything so much more complicated too. I don't mean to whine or complain at all, I am so grateful that it seems we have a fighting chance. I was very fortunate to have an understanding boss who allowed me to use vacation time and take the week off - but I am terrified to sleep or not have him in my sight.
The other biggest worry I have right now is that he used to be a grazer.. he would always have dry food (Purina Naturals) available and then wet food (Tiki Cat, Core Wellness, Royal Canin, etc). 2x to 3x daily.. along with lots of treats (which is I why I cannot help but think I am the one who made him sick.) So now the vet has instructed to give him food 2x daily before the insulin - that's it. For now, any food is fine since he won't eat the vet food - she said it's just more important that he eats so he can get the insulin. He's been begging for food in between meals and I have been giving him really small amounts of Pure Bites chicken every couple hours as he is clearly very hungry and it's tearing me apart know that on top of him being so small.
I just don't know what to do I don't want to make him worse by giving snacks but I know he is hungry... I did call the vet with this question and they said they can get back to me tomorrow. I'm just really overwhelmed and feel like I'm falling apart.
Thank you for reading through that.. it means a lot.
My sweet 9 year old boy had been losing weight and drinking a lot of water for the past few months. I assumed it was the extreme heat we dealt with this summer. I deeply regret not picking up on the severity sooner and I will carry that guilt for the rest of my life. This cat has had a really tough life, his previous owner neglected him which included things like leaving him alone for days at a time, not providing sufficient food and water and having a filthy litter box. When his owner was moving to a new city, I was able to adopt him and my life goal quickly became to give this cat the best life possible.. but now here we are.
Let me apologize in advance - this is going to be a long post.
So this past weekend, I brought him in for a check up to look into the weight loss, dry skin and hair loss on his back legs. I have noticed he would do things like rip his hair out when the vacuum was on, etc. I'm quite sure he suffers from anxiety as he used to chew wires but has since almost completely stopped and uses chew toys occasionally instead.
A few hours after the check up, I got the horrifying call that he either has kidney disease, cancer or hyperthyroidism. As you can imagine, I lost it. They wanted to do some extra testing to which I of course agreed. Several hours later, I got the call that his liver enzymes are high, blood protein is high (which could be inflammation or dehydration), high cholesterol and that his urine is very concentrated which was apparently a great thing since it means kidneys are working. What they did discover was he is leaking glucose and protein in his urine which is apparently a sign of diabetes? (there was no mention of ketones... only that it was leaking glucose)..They were also very surprised to see there were no abnormalities in the electrolytes. He lost so much weight and is a very tiny 3.3KG
They sent me home advising they highly suspect he is diabetic and provided Hills MD wet and dry food (which he will NOT eat!) They advised that I will pick up a prescription for Glargine the next day, with 1 unit to be given every 12 hours. However the next day, I was asked to do another test (can't remember the name..) to determine if his levels had been abnormal for the last few weeks or not - which I guess confirms the diabetes? So I did that test. Bad news followed and the vet was shocked to see his results showing that he has Ketoacidosis
They said his body is basically in starvation mode and I either must start insulin immediately that night - OR he stays in the hospital to be given a feeding tube and liquids... which seemed strange since he LOVES eating and drinks a ton.. so I took him home and began the shots. The vet said this might be a rare case of "Healthy Ketoacidosis.." because he is still eating lots and also not vomiting.He is about to have his 5th shot in a few hours, so far so good. He does seem a bit sleepy after the big meals and the shot - but the vet said she is comfortable with that and just to keep a close eye. It's so hard... I mean he is a cat.. they sleep all the time.
I will be picking up a glucometer ASAP - I am just SO exhausted, I have barely slept since Sunday and I knew driving would be a bad idea in this condition. Covid19 is making everything so much more complicated too. I don't mean to whine or complain at all, I am so grateful that it seems we have a fighting chance. I was very fortunate to have an understanding boss who allowed me to use vacation time and take the week off - but I am terrified to sleep or not have him in my sight.
The other biggest worry I have right now is that he used to be a grazer.. he would always have dry food (Purina Naturals) available and then wet food (Tiki Cat, Core Wellness, Royal Canin, etc). 2x to 3x daily.. along with lots of treats (which is I why I cannot help but think I am the one who made him sick.) So now the vet has instructed to give him food 2x daily before the insulin - that's it. For now, any food is fine since he won't eat the vet food - she said it's just more important that he eats so he can get the insulin. He's been begging for food in between meals and I have been giving him really small amounts of Pure Bites chicken every couple hours as he is clearly very hungry and it's tearing me apart know that on top of him being so small.
I just don't know what to do
I don't want to make him worse by giving snacks but I know he is hungry... I did call the vet with this question and they said they can get back to me tomorrow. I'm just really overwhelmed and feel like I'm falling apart.Thank you for reading through that.. it means a lot.
Last edited:
First off, what is your sweet boy's name? Second, I (and others here) will disagree with what your vet said about food. Tiki Cat, Core Wellness, if wet food are both low carb and good options for diabetic cats. You absolutely do not need the m/d and your cat is smart in rejecting the dry food. The vast majority of dry foods - even the ones the vets push - are too high in carbs for diabetics. An all low carb wet or raw food diet is best. The second thing I don't agree with is the feeding schedule. We have plenty of grazers here, and small meals are much easier on their pancreas. So let him go ahead and snack. It's not bad for him. Many of us here get autofeeders, so we can portion out meals when we are out of the house, or asleep.
