Newly diagnosed cat and owner that has no experience

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EastCoastCats86

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Hello,
I would like to take a few minutes to introduce myself and my cat. Simba and his cat roommate Malikai have lived with my boyfriend and I for the past two years. The beginning of February, we moved two hours away. Simba had a terrible time of it during the move. He messed in his crate halfway through the trip and had to sit with it until we got to the new place and could bathe him. Since we've lived here, he hasn't been the same. We let them outside at the old house but were keeping them in at the new place until the cats could have supervised outdoor time. One morning, I caught Simba peeing on our guest bed. The next morning, he peed on some of my clothes.
I took him into the vet because I figured he must have a UTI and therefore the improper urination. His urine test came back negative, concentrated, and normal. The vet thought he was stressed out from the move and gave him a pheromone collar and some composure treats. Simba still didn't seem right. He also was still peeing out of the litter box. And what was most frightening to me, was that he was loosing a lot of weight. Two weeks since the first vet visit, Simba lost almost a whole pound.
The vet ran more tests, no parasites, no leukemia, no AIDS, but he did have very high blood glucose. They also re-tested his urine and found high glucose and some stolites (I don't know if that's the right term). The vet suggested we either get his liver checked out (a $500 procedure) or start him on insulin. We've decided to try the insulin. We just got the script today, but did not fill it. There are no pharmacies around here that sell a smaller than 10mL bottle. With giving Simba only two units twice a day, and the insulin only lasting 28 days, we are trying to figure out how to not waste so much product and money (any advice here would be great).
We haven't changed his food yet, and the vet said it is very good that he is still eating. I've been adding a small amount of apple cider vinegar to his wet food. I have read it can help with high blood sugar. I know some diabetic people that take it every day. (Any ideas on this for cats? Has anyone heard of this or tried it?)
Anyway, so Hello and thank you for providing such a wonderful website. I guess I'm still a little shocked and kind of in doubt that Simba is in fact diabetic. But, we are going to start this insulin tomorrow. I just want him to be his normal kitty self again. Thank you,

Sincerely,
Simba and Owner
 
You've found the right place to be.

Do you know what Simba's Blood Glucose (BG) number was?

What is he eating?

What insulin did the vet prescribe? And what dose?

My boy Grayson was diagnosed in early January. We did the food change first, which in some cats will drop the BG by as much as 100 points. Plus, if you change AFTER you start the insulin, there may be dramatic effects due to the carb content variation from dry to wet.

Some good choices are the Fancy Feast Classics (Chicken, Turkey, Beef, limited seafood varieties) - no gravy types. You want the ones that say "Classics" on the can. These have the lowest carb count. LIkewise, Friskies and 9 Lives have canned "pate" varieties that are more economical and most cats like them.

I STRONGLY encourage you to pick up a BG meter (Walmart has one for about $9, and it has the most economical test strips (about $.36 each, compared to others as much as $1). I credit the testing for saving Grayson's life. If I had shot him one night on schedule, he was only 138 - not the 450 or so he had been with the previous shot. He ran long cycles - as long as 24 hrs sometimes, so the testing was the key to not shooting blindly and putting him in harms way.

Depending on the insulin, there are different protocols, so you'll want to post in the respective Insulin Support Group, a little lower on the main board. We look forward to helping you get acclimated to this "sugar dance" we've all been doing.

Welcome.

Lu-Ann
 
Thank you for the speedy reply! I should be asleep right now but there is so much to think about.
Simba's BG was 360 something. It was off the charts pretty much. The vet said that 350 might be expected from a cat that is a nervous wreck, hanging from the ceiling, and Simba was so calm for his visit.
He has been eating Hannaford brand Natural Dry food. Although, since the diagnosis I've been giving him Whiskas wet food since I've read on this site how awful dry food is. The Whiskas is what I had in the house and the fiber content is higher than some other canned food I have.
He was prescribed glargine lantis.
I really appreciate the information on checking the BG at home. Simba hates the crate. He's peed or pooped in it every time we've put him in it. Today for the vet visit actually, I just put him on my lap in the car. Poor guy. The less stressful vet visits we can make, the better it will be for him.
 
This is from the Lantus (glargine) forum here on the board:
You can read about handling, storing, etc on this thread, but the quote below is from there.
http://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=151

HOW DO YOU KNOW WHEN YOUR INSULIN IS NO LONGER GOOD?

When you lose regulation for no reason.
If you see any hint of "floaties"/"tiny particles"... discard the insulin.
If insulin is cloudy or discolored, or if rubber stopper is cracked... replace insulin immediately.
The manufacturer of Lantus recommends discarding the insulin after 28 days of use (in-use, unrefrigerated, for humans).
However, many Lantus users have been able to use a vial/cartridge/pen for as long as six months.
Click to expand...

In other words, if stored and cared for correctly, it will be good way beyond 28 days.

Carl
 
There are 3 things that are critical to regulating a diabetic cat - testing, diet, and insulin. Testing is the first and most important, and must be done b4 every shot to be sure that it is safe to give a shot. If you pick up a glucometer (are you in the US? Walmart has the best price as per previous message) and begin testing you will get a good picture of your cat's response to his current food. If he will eat wet food, choose a low carb one from the chart that is in your budget and switch completely BEFORE beginning insulin shots. Continue monitoring his blood glucose. After he has had only wet food for a day, test every 2 hours and post your test results here. If his numbers are still high, others can advise you about starting dose (probably 1 unit) and when to increase.
 
Welcome Simba and owner :-D
The Lantus Insulin can be kept in the refrigerator up til the expiration date printed on the bottle (or box).
As long as you carefully swab the stopper with alcohol before every use and do not contaminate it, there is no reason why it has to be thrown away after 28 days. It will degrade in sunlight and at room temperature but not in the frig. If you carefully open and remove an acohol swab from the package, the inside of the foil wrapper it came in is considered sterile and makes a perfect cover for the top of the insulin bottle for storage in the frig once you have opened it. It keeps all the foriegn matter from the air and inside of frig from collecting on the stopper.
You are off to a great start!
Hugz,
Carol
 
Welcome to FDMB!
You are in the perfect place to get Simba on the right track to feeling better very soon.

You are of to a good start by educating yourself on diet for FD. Low carb, high protein diet. I want to suggest you take some time to visit this website it's very informative...www.catinfo.org. In the site it talks a lot about diet for felines. It's extremely helpful.
Once you change the diet to all canned food. You will see a drop in BG numbers. Being DX @ 360 is not bad compared to some who are DX. Just think if you removed the high carb food where Simbas numbers could be. Some say removing dry food from the diet they have seen a 100 point drop. That's a lot! Simba in the future could need very little insulin or maybe none at all. Many members cats that go into remission are diet controlled. Meaning if they should start high carb food the cat would be back on insulin.
Once you start insulin you must transation slowly the dry to canned food. In the website it talks about that as well.

You are exactly right about the stress of the vet visits. It will cause high BG numbers. So the BG readings in a vets office most of time will not be accurate. This is why hometesting is so important.
The meters are inexpensive & can be purchased at Walmart. I own the Relion Confirm. The test strips are inexpensive as well. Watch some YouTube videos...it will help you learn how to home test.

The more you read & educate yourself on FD the more you will be ahead of this game. It also gives you the power of giving Simba the very best.

Keep us updated.
Jenn & Baxter cat_pet_icon
 
Welcome, Simba and Owner - (What shall we call you?)

Congratulations on finding this place! There is lots to read and learn here and many caring, patient people who are willing to answer lots and lots and...lots of questions! ;-) Hershey was diagnosed in Nov, 2011, with FD - something we didn't even know cats could get! :o We immediately began researching. The next day we changed him from dry food to Wellness canned (less than 6% varieties). We have found it's cheaper to buy online than in the stores (and it's nice having it delivered and saving the almost $4/gal for gas!), so whatever brand you choose, shop around for the best value. Our non-diabetic kitty started snubbing Wellness and now eats Friskies Pate' (but I haven't found them cheaper than Walmart, which is okay since we're there regularly!).

We use ProZinc (started Jan, 2012), but some things are the same no matter what insulin you use. Since you haven't started insulin, you are free to go ahead and make the switch to a low carb canned food without worrying what it will do to his BG.

Make getting a meter a priority, so you can keep a check on his BG, especially once you start insulin. We started with an iPet meter but quickly found the strips were too expensive to keep using. We now use a ReliOn Confirm from Walmart. They also sell the strips, but we found them cheaper online, so order them instead.

Relax and take lots of time to read and maybe even look at other people's SS (spread sheets). I've learn a lot by doing that.

Again, WELCOME!!

Libby (and Hershey, too!)
 
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