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Buffy C

Buffy C

Member Since 2021
Hey y'all! My Punkin just got diagnosed as a Sugar Baby this morning. We've noticed him drinking and peeing a lot more since we got our 3 babies a new metal water fountain about a month ago. We thought he just loved it. But he started losing weight, and hubby commented that the litter box smelled sweet. Vet confirmed my fears this morning. Prescribed 2 units 2X a day of Vetsulin. I was told nothing about testing his BG levels, but after reading things here and on the FB page, I'm holding off on starting treatment, calling the vet in the morning and changing his (their, we also have his litter mate and another kitty) diet to wet food as opposed to the Purina Cat Chow Indoor Formula Dry that they've been free fed on all their lives, and limiting to 2 feedings a day. I'll be buying a monitor and strips. I'll be scouring the group's for info and appreciate all the invaluable info I've already found. I'm so glad I found yall!!!
 
Hi and welcome to you and Punkin. I’m glad you have found us and are going to home test and swap to a low carb diet.
I would recommend buying a human glucose meter such as the ReliOn meter that you can buy at Walmart for $9 and a box of 100 test strips for $17.88.
You will also need some lancets….get the 26 or 28 gauge lancets. Also get some cotton rounds to hold behind the ear when testing then hold them over the prick after wards to stop any bleeding.

If you are not going to start giving the insulin straight away I would recommend you also buy a bottle of Ketostix from Walmart or a pharmacy and test the urine for ketonesdaily until you start the insulin. Ketones can appear in a diabetic cat if he is not getting insulin or not eating enough. If any ketones appear let the vet know and you will need to start the insulin straight away.

2 units of vetsulin twice a day is too high a starting dose. If you are going to swap to low carb canned food, I would reduce the dose to 1/2 unit twice a day. You can always increase if needed. Also vetsulin is not the best choice of insulin for a cat, so keep that in mind and if it is not working well, tell the vet you want to swap to Lantus or Prozinc which are approved for cats by the American Vet assoc. If you haven’t already bought the insulin, ask the vet to swap now.

Here is a FOOD CHART LINK for you. Look for foods that are 10%or under carbs. There is no need to buy the expensive prescription foods which the vet sells. They are not anything special.

HELP US HELP YOU is a link you useful information about the spreadsheet, signature and hypo box as other useful information. Make sure you have the hypo box set up before you start the insulin.
Keep asking questions
Bron
 
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Buffy C said:
and limiting to 2 feedings a day. I
Click to expand...
Also wanted to add that only feeding twice a day is old thinking.
if you are going to use the vetsulin, you need to feed a good meal 30 minutes before you give the insulin, because vetsulin hits hard and fast and it’s important that Punkin has food aboard for when the insulin hits.
So you test the BG/ feed the meal / wait 30minutes/ then give the insulin in that order.
It is also a good idea to give Punkin a couple of snacks during the first half of each cycle. You can use ordinary low carb food for the snacks.
 
Since you're planning on speaking to your vet, I don't think it would be too presumptuous to ask about a different insulin. Vetsulin is no longer recommended by the American Animal Hospital Assn for the treatment of feline diabetes. Either Prozinc or Lantus (or one of the generic/biosimilars -- Semglee or Basaglar with the former being less expensive) are the recommended insulins. As Bron noted, Vetsulin hits hard and fast and does not last for a full 12-hour cycle. Both Prozinc and Lantus have much better duration.
 
Buffy C said:
Hey y'all! My Punkin just got diagnosed as a Sugar Baby this morning. We've noticed him drinking and peeing a lot more since we got our 3 babies a new metal water fountain about a month ago. We thought he just loved it. But he started losing weight, and hubby commented that the litter box smelled sweet. Vet confirmed my fears this morning. Prescribed 2 units 2X a day of Vetsulin. I was told nothing about testing his BG levels, but after reading things here and on the FB page, I'm holding off on starting treatment, calling the vet in the morning and changing his (their, we also have his litter mate and another kitty) diet to wet food as opposed to the Purina Cat Chow Indoor Formula Dry that they've been free fed on all their lives, and limiting to 2 feedings a day. I'll be buying a monitor and strips. I'll be scouring the group's for info and appreciate all the invaluable info I've already found. I'm so glad I found yall!!!
Click to expand...

You can definitely feed more than twice a day!
 
Bron and Sheba (GA) said:
Also wanted to add that only feeding twice a day is old thinking.
if you are going to use the vetsulin, you need to feed a good meal 30 minutes before you give the insulin, because vetsulin hits hard and fast and it’s important that Punkin has food aboard for when the insulin hits.
So you test the BG/ feed the meal / wait 30minutes/ then give the insulin in that order.
It is also a good idea to give Punkin a couple of snacks during the first half of each cycle. You can use ordinary low carb food for the snacks.
Click to expand...

Up until now, we've free fed them Purina Cat Chow Indoor Formula and they would graze throughout the day. Twice a day DOES feel like we're depriving them a bit. What is a good low carb dry that we can mix with what we already have to transition them?
 
Dr Elsey's Clean Protein


Wysong Epigen 90

Young Again Zero Mature

I pretty sure if you call them they will send you a sample to see which one they like

They are a little expensive
Where you have your information it says diagnosed 11-20-21
but below your post above it says DX 12-20-21
You might want to correct it :cat:
 
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You can also leave canned food out -- just add water so it doesn't get crusty. A timed feeder may also be another option to consider. There are feeders that have room for an ice pack although I never used an ice pack.
 
Diane Tyler's Mom said:
Dr Elsey's Clean Protein


Wysong Epigen 90

Young Again Zero Mature

I pretty sure if you call them they will send you a sample to see which one they like

They are a little expensive
Where you have your information it says diagnosed 11-20-21
but below your post above it says DX 12-20-21
You might want to correct it :cat:
Click to expand...
Thank you!
 
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