Newbie!!!!

Status
Not open for further replies.
O

oscarsmum

Member Since 2013
Hello all feline lovers...my name is Brenda...my lover kitty is Oscar. Oscar was diagnosed in November 2011 with diabetes...along with pancreatitis at the time....We have since managed the pancreatitiis. So my story is as follows.... As all of us here love our kitty's...hence..why we are here...to tell our stories.
Oscar came to me life at about 3 yrs old...as of today, May 11, 2013, we have been together for 14 years. He is a very large long haired....probably some maine coon, neutered brindle & white...absolutely lovely guy. He started really gaining weight about 2.5 years ago...long story short...after much $$...and even more love...got his diabetes under control by the lovely vet..Dr. Kate Kelly in Bobcaygeon, On...CANADA...3 Islands Veterinary Clinic...great service and caring too....No holistic messages here...get you kitty under control...and love them as always. Last weekend...my lovely Oscar could not poop....a rush to emergency clinic (he is 17...gawd bless him)...removed poos from 'there'...picked up some beef baby food and mixed in some (1/8th tsp) of polyethylene glycol in order to facilitate regularity...so...will keep you posted (if interested) on success of 'those "b" movements...and continuted daily 1/8 tsp of above....We love our kitties...b... confused_cat
 
We talk about poo, poop, bowel movements all the time on this board. Don't be afraid to use the words. ;-) We even have our own poo patrol member, Detective Poo (Anne & Zener).

Constipation seems to be a common problem with our diabetic kitties, especially if they are not regulated and are peeing lakes and oceans in the litter box (LB). I give 2 of my cats the Miralax 2x a day in their food. One gets a scant 1/8 teaspoon, the other gets a heaping 1/8 teaspoon. I add extra water to their canned food, 1/2 can to help keep them hydrated. The Miralax pulls water by osmotic action from other parts of the body so plenty of water is important to prevent dehydration. Miralax is tasteless and easily mixed with the regular serving of wet food.

You may need to experiment on the quantity of Miralax, increasing the dose until poo is runny and then backing it down. This is what my vet advised me to do.
 
thanks SO much Deb & Wink for your message...as we speak...Oscar is laying beside me on the floor...knowing full well he has my undivided attention. btw...after the emerg vet clinic visit...I was hydrating him orally with warm water ...mixing some pumpkin & milk too...ensuring poos would continue to move outwards :shock:
He is very compliant kitty thankfully... 'not fond of the pumpkin' ...hence the beef baby food mix with the Clearlax...I will see how it all goes. Should mention he is is totally anti wet food....it's dry Medical Calorie Control kibble all the way :(...will post a pic of him so you can see why I am in love soon :-D
 
Should mention he is is totally anti wet food...
Click to expand...
Aha! Another dry food addict.

When I picked up Wink from the shelter, to be his foster mom and try to get him a better diet and regulated on insulin, they sent me home with a giant sized (20 pound) bag of Hill's w/d dry food and a case of the W/d canned. He hated the canned. Loved the dry. But that dry food is like 37% carbs. No wonder in four months at the shelter, they had never been able to regulate his BG numbers. ohmygod_smile

Used every trick in Dr Lisa Pierson's article on Transitioning Dry Food Addicts. http://www.catinfo.org/docs/TipsForTransitioning1-14-11.pdf

I kept cutting down on the amount of dry food and offering more wet food with enticements like tuna sprinkled on top, or crumbled freeze dried chicken treats. Once I got down to only a couple of tablespoons of the dry food, I stopped giving any dry and only offered the wet food. This process took 3 weeks which was really fast to transition him. :-D

A month later, I'm clearing the last of the dry food out of the house, set one small bag down in the hallway. Went to grab another bag out of the other room. I was only gone for about 60 seconds. In that time, he had chewed multiple holes thru the bag to get to the dry food. ohmygod_smile He is still a dry food addict but is now happily eating wet food only. ;-)
 
Another thing that might help with constipation if it's being caused by mild, undetected neuropathy is methyl B12 (zobaline is the cat version). It's fine for any cat and any excess their bodies don't need, they pee out, so perfectly safe to give.
 
Hello and welcome from another Canadian!

here are some Canadian tips

1. Switching to a wet food can help control his blood sugar better but you want to start home testing first because this could mean a drop in insulin needs.
Food - I feed fancy feast pates ( low carb) but Wellness grain free is good - and friskies pates are nice and cheap and low carb. No more dry!I I hunt for sales at petsmart petvalu and Walmart.. They seem to appear every few weeks I just watch the door flyers and their websites.

2. Are you home testing?
Meter- You can get a free bayer contour USB meter and 25 strips if you go to http://www.bayerdiabetes.ca/BDoffer and use code "BDS 11-14" And then if you register the meter when it arrives, you get a free USB wall charger. Its a reliable meter.
This offer was in the flyer comes inside the BD ultra fine 3/10cc syringes you get in Walmart Canada. I used a similar one six months ago and it worked great so bayer seem to run it a lot. The strips are expensive in stores $75 for 100 in Shoppers for example but you can get them for half that price on eBay. But of course if you get them in shoppers you can get points! I havent found a good meter that has strips cheaper than that - they all seem to be about the same price. It arrives in a few days.

3. What insulin are you using?
Lantus - You can get the pens for $99 for a pack at Costco. I heard $93 at the real Canadian superstore. Pens are 15ml (3*5ml) and are more durable and last longer than the vial because you only open one at a time. But since you have a vial now it should last you up to six months.. Just keep it in the fridge (not the door)

Wendy
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top