researchnerd
New Member
Hi all. I was really delighted to find this site with real info from real people. I've been reading for a while but finally decided to jump in and say hello. 
Our diabetic cat is Chelby. He's a rescue, so we know very little about his past, but the vet thinks he's 12-15 years old. He's missing a few teeth, he has the classic plantigrade stance, and he's had a couple of falling-down episodes that may have been seizures, but I never really connected these things until he suddenly became obsessed with water -- he started glaring at me in the shower, and lurking below the ice dispenser on the refrigerator. I also noticed that his pupils were so dilated that I couldn't see his beautiful blue eyes any more. Off we went to the vet, who tested his BG and did a fructosamine test, both of which showed very elevated sugar (in the 300s). We went back a few weeks later for a recheck, and it was in the 400s.
My husband and I have been eating lowcarb for several years, and it reversed his Type II diabetes (he is OTJ!), so I asked the vet if we could try controlling Chelby's diabetes with diet. I am OK with home testing and injections if that's what it takes to make him healthy again, but if I don't have to poke my kitty with sharp things twice a day, we will all be less stressed. The vet thought it was worth a try before getting on the insulin rollercoaster.
We began with the DM dry food, which did nothing. We switched over to the DM canned food, and that helped some. He's no longer water-obsessed and is back to drinking normal amounts, and his eyes look better. However, he now has awful diarrhea and he's constantly hungry. I feed him 3-5 times a day but he's losing weight, so I suspect the food is moving through him so fast that he's not getting nutrition. I took him back to the vet last week and they tested him for giardia and other parasites, but everything came back negative. They retested his BG and did another fructosamine test -- and this time, they were both LOW (in the 70s). So the DM food may be working in terms of controlling the diabetes, but I suspect our Chelby can't tolerate it.
I have read through the food lists here, and this weekend I'll get some LC Fancy Feast and Friskies to see if we can find something better quality (and less expen$ive) than the DM. Chelby's not a picky eater, so we just need to find something that keeps his sugar levels low and doesn't give him diarrhea. If anyone has recommendations I would welcome them.
Our diabetic cat is Chelby. He's a rescue, so we know very little about his past, but the vet thinks he's 12-15 years old. He's missing a few teeth, he has the classic plantigrade stance, and he's had a couple of falling-down episodes that may have been seizures, but I never really connected these things until he suddenly became obsessed with water -- he started glaring at me in the shower, and lurking below the ice dispenser on the refrigerator. I also noticed that his pupils were so dilated that I couldn't see his beautiful blue eyes any more. Off we went to the vet, who tested his BG and did a fructosamine test, both of which showed very elevated sugar (in the 300s). We went back a few weeks later for a recheck, and it was in the 400s.
My husband and I have been eating lowcarb for several years, and it reversed his Type II diabetes (he is OTJ!), so I asked the vet if we could try controlling Chelby's diabetes with diet. I am OK with home testing and injections if that's what it takes to make him healthy again, but if I don't have to poke my kitty with sharp things twice a day, we will all be less stressed. The vet thought it was worth a try before getting on the insulin rollercoaster.
We began with the DM dry food, which did nothing. We switched over to the DM canned food, and that helped some. He's no longer water-obsessed and is back to drinking normal amounts, and his eyes look better. However, he now has awful diarrhea and he's constantly hungry. I feed him 3-5 times a day but he's losing weight, so I suspect the food is moving through him so fast that he's not getting nutrition. I took him back to the vet last week and they tested him for giardia and other parasites, but everything came back negative. They retested his BG and did another fructosamine test -- and this time, they were both LOW (in the 70s). So the DM food may be working in terms of controlling the diabetes, but I suspect our Chelby can't tolerate it.
I have read through the food lists here, and this weekend I'll get some LC Fancy Feast and Friskies to see if we can find something better quality (and less expen$ive) than the DM. Chelby's not a picky eater, so we just need to find something that keeps his sugar levels low and doesn't give him diarrhea. If anyone has recommendations I would welcome them.
