Newbie with some questions

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liz.s

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Hello! I've already gotten soooo much information from this site, so, thanks everyone.

I'm pretty overwhelmed, but definitely want to make changes and have Princess in the best state of regulation possible.

Some background
Princess is 8 y.o. and has weighed between 12 and 14 pounds for the 5 years I've known her. About 2-3 years ago, I switched her from holistic blend dry to a dry generic adult weight control.

Before christmas she was scooting. I took her to the vet who expressed her anal glands. After christmas, more scooting. The vet recommended the addition of pumpkin. This Really helped her achieve looser stools. The vet also gave an injection combination of antibiotic/anti inflammatory, so her butt could calm down. He also took a blood sample that came back totally normal.

About a month ago I began to notice increased appetite. This was not completely unusual. She has always wanted/had constant accesss to food. But then- PU/PD. I had a hard time getting great instructions from the vet techs on getting a urine sample. That probably wasted about 3 days. Urinalysis showed glucose, I believe slightly elevated, so she came back for a full blood workup. That showed glucose at 8 mm/dL. At this point the vet recommended royal canin GI (low carb high fibre).

She was brought in last friday for a full day. I didn't feed her in the morning and I think she was at about 18mm/dl, then ranged about 10-11 after an insulin injection. The vet recommended 2 units of caninsulin in the am and 1 unit 12 hrs later.

I've been reading voraciously. After reading Elizabeth Hodgkins' book I am pretty sad about what I feel has amounted to poision my cat and resolved to swtich her to canned. More research shows that this is really dangerous to do right now. At the same time, I know its possible to go on a honeymoon if she's treated quickly. The vet seemed quite encouraged that she might revert, or whatever that is called. I also want to get her off the high fiber stuff.

Her poops have been WEIRD. Very rubbery, flat, stinky and orange. She's still drinking more than in the past.

I do rather like my vet. Their advice may not have been perfect, but they have treated both Princess and I with kindness, respect and patience. I really appreciate that.

So now some questions!
Food. I want to get away from the dry asap. I've added 2 tbs of wet and reduced the dry for the past 2 meals. She has a significantly decreased appetite. She eats maybe 1/3 of the food as I set it out and then noms between feedings. I'm giving her injections after she eats, but sometimes it's not very much. I'm pretty worried that I'm endangering her. Any advice?

I am having a very hard time not drawing air bubbles into the syringe. Once in there, it's seemingly impossible to knock them out; they cling to the plunger. My method is drawing back to desired unit #, inserting the needle to bottle/container, pushing air out in air pocket, and drawing insulin in. I have a 1cc 40 unit syringe. Thoughts?

I want to the best I can for Princess. If it would improve her chances of being non diabetic I'm totally interested in buying different insulin. I live in Toronto, so I don't know what our regional differences are. However I know the pharmacy carries Lantus in different formats. It's about $70. Caninsulin sounds like it's not as good, and the vet charged me $9. It also sounds like I can't switch from one kind to another at the drop of a hat. I have a follow up with princess in one week (march 14) so I can get more info on how to switch if need be.

The vet said to wait abit before getting a glucometer, which I thought was another positive sign that she might revert from diabetes. However I'm beginning to realize that this may not happen, and even if, I should still probably get one for the long term. I guess that also this really critical scary stage would be less so if I knew exactly where she stood at any one time. My mom had one, and if waiting weren't precarious, I could wait for her to send it, or buy a used one online. Should I just get one, now?


Uhhhhhhhhhng. Wow! Sorry that was so long, I didn't realize all of that had to come out! Thanks for reading/advising!
 
I wonder if the anti-inflammatory in that shot might have been a steroid? If so, that definitely could have provoked the diabetes and also means the diabetes might be transient.

YES, get a glucometer. As you have realized, now is a critical time, and you really want to know what is going on.

I'll let others comment on the types of insulin, as I don't use any right now and could definitely misstate.
 
Welcome! It is great that you have done some research and are looking for the best ways to help your kitty.

As you have probably read, very few people use Canninsulin. Even without the possible quality control issues: viewtopic.php?f=19&t=311, it is still a harsh insulin for most cats. It tends to hit hard and fast and doesn't last as long as other insulins. In Canada, I think you can get insulin without a doctor's prescription, but you would want to have a vet who is interested in working with it with you.

Having said that, you could wait on the insulin, learn to hometest, change the food and see if your cat improves. (This is a very short term proposition - maybe a week tops.) Sometimes - but not always or even fairly often - a food change can bring the blood glucose levels down to a normal range. But to do that, you do need to start hometesting now. If you find that the levels are too high, it is not an option.

Here is a video to show you how: Video for hometesting and a good beginning site: Newbie hometesting site

Here is a list for hometesting needs:
A human glucometer. Any one that sips and takes a tiny sample is fine. The meters are often free at drug stores; it’s the strips that are expensive. You can, however, buy them on ebay at less than half the price of stores. Lots of people here also like the ReliOn from Walmart. It is an inexpensive meter and its strips are the cheapest around. Try the meter out on yourself or someone else before you try it on your cat. You want to be familiar with it before you poke the cat.

Lancets and a lancet device. Usually, until the ears “learn” to bleed, a 25-26 gauge is good. Any brand will work.

Ketone strips. (Ketostix) Just like human diabetics use. You will sometimes need to test urine if the numbers are high.

Rice sack. Make this out of thinnish sock, filled with raw rice or oatmeal and then knotted. You heat this in the microwave until very warm but not hot. Then heat the ears before poking.

Also nice to have. Flashlight: so you can look at the ears and find the little capillaries that come off the vein running down the ear. Vaseline: Put a tiny smear where you want to poke. It will help the blood bead up.

And some lo carb treats to give your kitty, successful test or not Lo carb treats

Have you seen Dr. Lisa Pierson's site: http://www.catinfo.org She has great ideas for transitioning cats from dry to wet.

Keep reading and asking questions. We would love to help you help your cat.
 
Hi there

any chance you are from Canada? I'm from Alberta..

While I'm glad you are learning lots, I do caution you about some of Dr E H's work...particularly her approach to regulation. Her diet info is pretty accurate but her tone isn't always the best. I really like Dr Lisa Pierson DVM from www.catinfo.org...and she even posts here sometimes :)

Come on back with more info, ok?

Jen
 
Thanks so much for the responses! I'm going to get a glucometer this afternoon. As scary as injections were, I've gotten over that, so here goes.

And, Yup! I'm in Toronto. It's a bit challenging with most info coming from the US to know what I can and can't get. I only recently found out that you don't need a Rx for (human) insulin! Wows.

I do get the sense that Hodgkin is OTT and for someone that seems to have a lot to say about science doesn't have any citations or references, just saying the same thing over and over. However that thing is very important. Catinfo.org is strident at the least in conveying the same.

Anyone experience the same problems with air bubbles in the syringe?

thanks again!

liz
 
Lucky for you, there are quite a few of us in the GTA :)

Yeah, Dr H is pretty vehement about her beliefs....and some of her followers even more so.

I was terrified of giving shots and testing...shots turned out to be a breeze, and we soon got the hang of testing. I thought my Squeak would hate me but he ended up purring most of the time :)
 
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