I have an 11 year old cat that has been diagnosed with diabetes (never overweight in his life). The cat has always been "mentally" very odd, I cannot even brush him let alone be able to touch him to get a "pinch" of skin necessary to give him a needle. I am trying to determine if there are any diabetic pens or delivery mechanims available where I would be able to just give him a shot quickly while he is eating or sleeping for e.g. which is the only time he would let me near enough to give a quick jab. The only other choice I have is euthanasia as the low-carb diet alone does not seem to work. Money is not the issue, it is the strange behaviour of the cat. I see short needles available in Europe and patches in Australia (trials) but I am in Canada and fear this cat will die. The vet has no suggestions, I'm sure he thinks I am exaggerating about the behaviour and that I just don't want to be bothered.
Newly diagnosed cat with needle issues - will die
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kay&junior
Active Member
I am Definitely not an expert, but I use Lantus pens for my guy, you can shoot while he eats, but more expert people will be here soon.
good luck.
don't give up ...
good luck.
don't give up ...
Sue and Oliver (GA)
Very Active Member
Wow. Never heard of that problem. Sometimes people use the kitty burrito. Wonder if that would help. Put a towel down and put him on top. Wrap him up so only his head and a little section of his neck is showing. He could be between your knees or on a chair - someplace where you can keep him contained.
What does he do? Freak out? If he is wrapped up, he is less likely to hurt you or himself.
I don't know of any other system. There are pills but they do not work. In fact, they tend to tax the pancreas and make the diabetes worse.
What does he do? Freak out? If he is wrapped up, he is less likely to hurt you or himself.
I don't know of any other system. There are pills but they do not work. In fact, they tend to tax the pancreas and make the diabetes worse.
ohbell
Very Active Member
Welcome to the fb board! There are many that can offer advice to you.... My first thought is the burrito wrap in a towel?? Do you think that would work? My Slappy girl has a thyroid problem and before I got it under control, she had to be put out just to get the vet to look at her. She is better now but it still takes them wrapping her in a towel and 2 of them to do anything to her. I just thought maybe this would work. Are you able to test for the bg?
Good luck, stick around as you will find many with all kinds of suggestions and help!
dont give up yet
Good luck, stick around as you will find many with all kinds of suggestions and help!
dont give up yet
Where are you located in Canada? I am in Toronto.
I do believe that your cat may have mental issues as I have one as well, and she scares me and the other cats when she does her screeching. She cannot be touched when I want, only when she wants, so I thank my lucky stars that she is not one of my diabetic cats!
I believe many on this board have some tricks you can try, at least in the beginning, and you may find that the cat settles a bit once the insulin is given a chance to work.
Try changing the subject of your initial post to something catchy like How to treat cat who can't be touched..... or something like Need ways to hold untouchable cat to treat.
Your kitty is not the first and won't be the last, so the others will have suggestions for you.
You can remove the 911 as very soon you will have tons of suggestions and be well on your way to treat your kitty.
I do believe that your cat may have mental issues as I have one as well, and she scares me and the other cats when she does her screeching. She cannot be touched when I want, only when she wants, so I thank my lucky stars that she is not one of my diabetic cats!
I believe many on this board have some tricks you can try, at least in the beginning, and you may find that the cat settles a bit once the insulin is given a chance to work.
Try changing the subject of your initial post to something catchy like How to treat cat who can't be touched..... or something like Need ways to hold untouchable cat to treat.
Your kitty is not the first and won't be the last, so the others will have suggestions for you.
You can remove the 911 as very soon you will have tons of suggestions and be well on your way to treat your kitty.
tuckers mom
Very Active Member
What size needles are you using now? I checked with a friend in Canada and she told me the 31 gauge 5/16" short needles are available there.
Could your kitty be distracted by food? I have a kitty named Kiki who lived most of her life in a junkyard, a gentleman took care of her. She is no housecat, but she has diabetes so she doesn't have a choice. For her I put down a small handful of grain free dry, once she starts eating, I very quickly play with her side for a moment, pull up the skin and shoot. It's been going on like this since December of last year when I adopted her. I think today I could shoot her without the food in front of her, but I'm not in the mood to try
Could your kitty be distracted by food? I have a kitty named Kiki who lived most of her life in a junkyard, a gentleman took care of her. She is no housecat, but she has diabetes so she doesn't have a choice. For her I put down a small handful of grain free dry, once she starts eating, I very quickly play with her side for a moment, pull up the skin and shoot. It's been going on like this since December of last year when I adopted her. I think today I could shoot her without the food in front of her, but I'm not in the mood to try
A
Anonymous
Guest
Is there a ummmm, medication for this type of cat. something to help him be a more relaxed cat? something that could be pill pocketed?
i have heard of very fractious cats here before that get accustomed to their pokes and shots.
I have heard of folks initially needing to wear all kinds of protective gear to prepare.
i have heard of very fractious cats here before that get accustomed to their pokes and shots.
I have heard of folks initially needing to wear all kinds of protective gear to prepare.
tuckers mom
Very Active Member
lori and tom said:
Prozac? I have Ebony on that now, she was eating her belly raw from nerves. She's definitely calmer now, but we've only been using for about a week. She takes it in a pill pocket, she thinks it's a treat. She was another difficult kitty to shoot, I couldn't even test her in the beginning, she was terrified. Prozac back then probably would have helped, but thankfully she went off insulin quickly.
Gina & Yittle (GA)
Active Member
Could also try the Feliway diffusers to see if that helps calm the cat down. It seems to work at least a little with my 8. All I know is that whenever all hell breaks loose and we go check, yep - the diffuser has run out and we need to put in a refill.
squeem3
Very Active Member
kay&junior said:
The Lantus pens only doses in whole units. That's why people use the insulin syringes, so they can easily dose half and even small units of insulin.
There are some insulin pens designed for pet use. Some of the just hold the insulin syringe for you and you just push a button to inject. BD makes one called the INJECT-EASE Automatic Injector. There is also the Zoe insulin jet. The Zoe delivers insulin by pressuring the insulin through a spring and basically forcing a micro stream of the insulin directly through the skin. However, it is very very expensive, nearly $700 for the basic kit :shock: I'm not sure how well the Zoe really works at getting insulin into the body, though.
Rescue Remedy may help in relaxing your cat. An animal communicator may also help to "talk" to your cat and see why he acts the way he is and maybe help your cat trust you and be less agressive.
Thanks for all your suggestions. I am amazed at how supportive people are here, at least I have some hope now. The vet hasn't even put him on insulin, he just told me to try the diet as there is no other treatment and then check back in a month. I assume he thinks the cat will die so why bother. I have tried wrapping him in a blanket as practise, even though he is very skinny he is still very strong and will do anything to escape including biting. I am just west of Toronto. This cat was originally from a breeder who had kept him too long due to some skin issues so he was too old to be adopted. I assume he just wasn't socialized properly. I was thinking if an insulin pen could just be pressed into his skin with having to grab his skin for pinching it up i might be able to give him a shot. I tried a practise pinch of the skin and he bolted as well as tried to bite. I might be able to do the blanket with another person holding him tightly but without a change in his mental state, it might be worse than death to him. I am thinking of the Prozac idea, I never even thought of trying to deal with his behavour problem as he is an okay cat otherwise. He will sit beside you and he will play interactively, he just doesn't like human touch, never has in the 9 years I have him but I am not one to just discard an animal. I have tried Feliway but not rescue remedy. squeem3 thanks for your ideas re the models of insulin injectors. I just spent $1,000 treating a bladder infection for one of my other cats ( I have 3) and would pay the $700 for something that I could use on this guy.
Sue and Oliver (GA)
Very Active Member
We usually suggest that a diet change should only be tried for a week, along with hometesting, before going to insulin. If his numbers are too high even with the diet change, you don't want to wait too long.
What are you feeding? We like wet lo carb under 10% carbs. Here is the food chart: Janet and Binky’s chart We think prescription food is not better than store bought. And we think dry really contributes to high blood glucose levels. See this site by a vet: www.catinfo.org
What are you feeding? We like wet lo carb under 10% carbs. Here is the food chart: Janet and Binky’s chart We think prescription food is not better than store bought. And we think dry really contributes to high blood glucose levels. See this site by a vet: www.catinfo.org
squeem3
Very Active Member
It looks like the Zoe can be used with any insulin, U40 or U100. The owner's instruction manual supposedly has more info about how to calibrate the Zoe for the insulin strength. I'm assuming that there is some way to fill the Zoe with insulin, either a single dose or several doses.
I hope you can find a way to give your cat insulin injections :smile: There are pills a diabetic cat can take (Glipizide namely) but they don't work as well as insulin and you may have even more difficulty trying to pill your cat than to give a quick injection.
I hope you can find a way to give your cat insulin injections :smile: There are pills a diabetic cat can take (Glipizide namely) but they don't work as well as insulin and you may have even more difficulty trying to pill your cat than to give a quick injection.
Karen & Smokey(GA)
Very Active Member
I have heard some say they don't have to tent the skin when they use
'short' needles.
5/16" needles (8mm). 31 gauge. 3/10cc syringes for U-100 insulin.
Can be used with U-40 insulin...you MUST use a conversion chart to draw the
correct dose.
I'm not sure where you have to shoot to 'not tent'. Someplace on the body
where the muscle is not very close to the skin.
Just jab, push the plunger. Hold in for 1 sec if you can.
'short' needles.
5/16" needles (8mm). 31 gauge. 3/10cc syringes for U-100 insulin.
Can be used with U-40 insulin...you MUST use a conversion chart to draw the
correct dose.
I'm not sure where you have to shoot to 'not tent'. Someplace on the body
where the muscle is not very close to the skin.
Just jab, push the plunger. Hold in for 1 sec if you can.
terri1962
Very Active Member
Can you give the cat pills? I was reading somewhere that you can give a cat Glipizide for diabetes. I am not sure about this. Maybe someone else could chime in on this. At least it could be put in a pill pocket or treat if its possible at all. Glipizide is another human diabetic medication in pill form. I would sure do some research on this as a last resort to euthanasia.
Terri
Terri
dian and wheezer
Very Active Member
glipizide does not work and can causeliver damage if I remember correctly
I also have a cat that I am very thankful is not the one with diabetes. Feral kitten caught at 10 weeks who, 11 years later, still thinks the people who love and feed her are monsters. She wouldn't bite or scratch and we could give her shots if we had to (once we caught her) but forget Tight Regulation.
When the vet told you to check back in a month what was his BG level? Did the vet say you have to give him insulin some way, some how despite being a difficult cat? He really should be working with you to figure out a solution.
I am new at all this but When my cat was first diagnosed , the vet taught me how to give shots (with Humulin N) and he said don't tent the skin. He said too many people make mistakes and shoot it back out, etc. I didn't know anything about giving shots anyway so this seemed reasonable to me. He shaved 2 areas on either side of her body (a little passed mid way down) and said to push the needle straight in. Shaving the hair was to be done in the beginning to make it easier to learn. It was 1/2 inch needle and I assume it was going into muscle??? but not sure.
After researching diabetes and viewing u-tube videos on how to shoot EVRYONE was tenting. I really started questioning what I was told to do . At this time I also decided to swtich to Lantus.
Once I started with lantus I learned it needs to be under skin to form a pocket.
Now unless my vet is dead wrong (which is always possible) and you shouldn't shoot this way I am wondering if you could use a pen with some type of insulin (I don't know what type) and dose him that way. You would have to work with the increments on the pen but my vet was saying start with 2 units then jumped it up to 3, etc so it can be done but obvously this isn't the best way. But the scenario you describe seems to call for less than ideal treatment.
You would then have to go the route of blind shooting with just the vet checking the BG and advising you which is done all the time. They just keep the BG at a higher target rate.
I much prefer to tent than the japping straight in way (so does my kitty) but you may have not choice if you can't tent the skin.
Maybe you could tie in treats with getting a shot so that he associates it with something good.
Best of luck. Elaine
When the vet told you to check back in a month what was his BG level? Did the vet say you have to give him insulin some way, some how despite being a difficult cat? He really should be working with you to figure out a solution.
I am new at all this but When my cat was first diagnosed , the vet taught me how to give shots (with Humulin N) and he said don't tent the skin. He said too many people make mistakes and shoot it back out, etc. I didn't know anything about giving shots anyway so this seemed reasonable to me. He shaved 2 areas on either side of her body (a little passed mid way down) and said to push the needle straight in. Shaving the hair was to be done in the beginning to make it easier to learn. It was 1/2 inch needle and I assume it was going into muscle??? but not sure.
After researching diabetes and viewing u-tube videos on how to shoot EVRYONE was tenting. I really started questioning what I was told to do . At this time I also decided to swtich to Lantus.
Once I started with lantus I learned it needs to be under skin to form a pocket.
Now unless my vet is dead wrong (which is always possible) and you shouldn't shoot this way I am wondering if you could use a pen with some type of insulin (I don't know what type) and dose him that way. You would have to work with the increments on the pen but my vet was saying start with 2 units then jumped it up to 3, etc so it can be done but obvously this isn't the best way. But the scenario you describe seems to call for less than ideal treatment.
You would then have to go the route of blind shooting with just the vet checking the BG and advising you which is done all the time. They just keep the BG at a higher target rate.
I much prefer to tent than the japping straight in way (so does my kitty) but you may have not choice if you can't tent the skin.
Maybe you could tie in treats with getting a shot so that he associates it with something good.
Best of luck. Elaine
Dyana
Very Active Member
I don't really touch J.D.'s skin when I give a shot. I just grab a bit of his fur and pull up a little to form a small tent.
I shoot in the sides or flank area. It only takes a second or 2 for me to pull up the skin using his hair and shoot the dose.
He gets his meal immediately after getting his shot.
Maybe the promise of a meal or some treats right after the shot would form an impression in his mind that the shots aren't so bad, after all.
I also use Rescue Remedy for stressful times, like traveling.
I shoot in the sides or flank area. It only takes a second or 2 for me to pull up the skin using his hair and shoot the dose.
He gets his meal immediately after getting his shot.
Maybe the promise of a meal or some treats right after the shot would form an impression in his mind that the shots aren't so bad, after all.
I also use Rescue Remedy for stressful times, like traveling.
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