Newly diagnosed diabetic kitty

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I'm really happy to see that things are getting better! This is an incredible thread; you've gotten so much help. I'd love to see a pic of Pumpkin!
 
Traci and Boomer said:
I'm really happy to see that things are getting better! This is an incredible thread; you've gotten so much help. I'd love to see a pic of Pumpkin!
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I'm working on the pic.
They are better, now I just wish she would eat something. She's getting too skinny! I want to try that FortiFlora, but it doesn't appear I can buy it at a pet store. Dunno if she can wait for it to be shipped.
 
a cat who isn't eating is at risk for developing hepatic lipidosis (aka fatty liver) and ketones. I'd be syringe feeding either plain meat baby food or watered down canned food tonight.....
 
make sure it is the one without garlic or onions in it. jen is right. you have to get food in p anyway you can and as much as you can/ HL is not fun to deal with
 
3OrangiesMom said:
Can I buy this FortiFlora in a pet store?
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I found it online, but that'll take a while.

I'm in Columbus, and I have some if your vet doesn't. PM me it you'd like to get 1 free packet from me.
 
I went to my nearest pharmacy and asked for a syringe that was bigger than my tiny insulin ones. Later I learned that you can get feeding syringes with a nice litle curve on the end. Either way, syringe fed Squeak for several days, used it again when my civie got sick, and even once on my dog when she was in shock and needed water.
 
I believe you can find the feeding syringes at Petsmart now. Hopefully she'll eat the baby food though.. most cats think that's VERY yummy!

Just to throw this out there too.. is you can also hometest on their paw pads. Most cats don't like their paws being messed with, but sometimes they don't care. My Cuddles hated her ears touched.. but could care less about me touching her paws. I regularly trimmed her nails her whole life, so she really didn't care. You use the big pad in the middle.. not the toe pads. Let me know if you need more details on that if it's easier. Sounds like she'll get used to the ear pokes though, if you already got one good test out of her! They DO get used to a routine though.. including testing. Especially if there's a treat involved afterward. You just have to get her into the routine. ;-)
 
you will be a pro at this in no time. It does seem like a lot to know but before you know it, you will be telling newbs about the relion, ways to save money, how to test and all the little tips and secrets we are tossing on you now. AND you will be just as adamant about some things too. It just happens cause of what you learned about, read about or experienced yourself and your love for animals and caring that they get the best treatment and safest treatment possible. It's a good thing,really it is
 
Pumpkin seems a little more chipper tonight. She ate about 2 tablespoons of turkey baby food and nibbled at her fancy feast. I tested her around 7 pm and it was 200. Still keeping her in the room tonight to monitor food & water consumption. I'm going to try and get her to eat a little more before bed. I am so tired from the stress of worry. I swear I found 3 new gray hairs today, lol!
 
Hey guys,
Pumpkin just threw up and made a very runny stool in her box. What is happening? Could it be from the meds she was given at the vet this morning?
 
She gave her an appetite stimulant and half of a previcid. She has only eaten about 2 tbs of baby food tonight. Only a little wet food. Now she is sleeping.
 
Im really sorry to hear about the possible IBD. I posted earlier on this thread about my cat who had steroid induced FD, used for IBD/lymphoma. Im wondering how the IBD was considered a possibility? Was there an ultrasound done?

One thing to discuss with your vet if she does not start eating VERY soon, and IBD is suspected would be to start budesonide. It is a steroid, but has less systemic effects (ie/on BG's). When I weaned Latte off the pred in hopes the FD would disappear, the same thing happened. She went back to not eating and vomiting. I had to put her back on the steroid.

Im glad you are testing, and the walmart meter seems to be working just fine for you!

Keep working to get that food in. I spent almost a year syringe feeding Latte and using other assist feed methods. I will try to stop in tomorrow and see how you guys are doing, offer more suggestions if needed.

Glad you are here.
 
I just tested. It was 246. She was never "officially" diagnosed with IBD. She was given prednisolone to help her with asthma/allergies. Before she was placed on the steroid she threw up her food almost after every meal. After the pred was given, she stopped throwing up. Vet concluded that she could have possibly had IBD. Pumpkin had 1 unit this morning around 10:30am. I may have upset her before she had her accident...couldn't help but think about vets possible cancer diagnosis and I got upset and was crying. This seemed to bother her and she got up and puked. Right now she is still sleeping.
 
cancer diagnosis? Did I miss something?

Im sorry you are both upset. This is very difficult, I know. (((((((((((((((((((((hugs))))))))))))))))))
 
carolynandlatte said:
cancer diagnosis? Did I miss something?

Im sorry you are both upset. This is very difficult, I know. (((((((((((((((((((((hugs))))))))))))))))))
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Vet said that if she won't eat, then we'd have to ultrasound for cancer tumor. I heard that c word and freaked a little. Was trying to sleep and my mind got to thinking and I got upset.
 
That isn't a terribly high number. It would be really nice if you could get her to eat. Have you seen these ideas: Getting your cat to eat One idea that sounds silly but does work sometimes, is to put food on your finger and feed it to her.

Vomiting and runny stools are not a good combination for a diabetic cat. However, it would be much worse if you were looking at either a high or low blood glucose level. Of course, I am not a vet, but if she were mine, I would keep an eye on her and try to get her to eat something. If things get worse, like a lot of diarrhea, not just a runny stool, and any more vomiting, I would call the emergency vet and get some advice.

I think you should also start a new thread and mention the vomiting and runny stool. The board is very quiet tonight, but a new thread will catch people's attention. This one is getting way too long.

It sounds like you have a lot on your plate, with several possible diagnoses for your kitty. It is overwhelming and scary. I am a awful worrier. Someone once told me that 90% of the things we worry about, never happen. When I find myself stressing out, remembering that helps me.
 
i'm with carolyn here. it sure seems like the end of the pred has brought about some not so great side effects and i fear that if they subsist for much longer, kitty is going to get much sicker :-( personally, i'd be willing to put my cat back on the steroid if it meant she ate, didn't vomit and had diarhea. she may have higher bg levels but at least she'd have one.

fwiw, i had a kitty with mild IBD and all she had to do to keep her diarhea and stuff at bay was eat a little raw rabbit every day so perhaps see if you could work something like that into her regimen someday?
 
I was thinking the same thing as I scrolled thru 3 pages of responses. I worry about the worst possible outcome every time and it never happens, so you are right, I need to relax and try to sleep. Thank you!!
 
an ultrasound might not be a bad idea, *if* your vet suspected IBD, or something else. It could explain the vomiting and not eating. However, not eating/vomiting does not always mean cancer. There can be MANY reasons for it, some more serious but manageable...others simple solutions. Have you had any recent blood work done?

What kind of wet food do you feed? Grains are often something cats with IBD are sensitive to. Could you try some grain free wet foods (evo, instinct, most wellness varieties, some fancy feast)? You could also try some 'novel' proteins...proteins she has not had before. Those are typically duck, venison, and rabbit. It really could be as simple as an allergy to certain foods.

Maybe a new post related to food issues would be a good place to start exploring this issue, so it gets the attention it needs AND your BG tests/questions dont get lost in the shuffle????

Hang in there! Its not always doom or gloom. There are medications to help with vomiting (pepcid, ondansetron, cerenia), and inappetance (mirtazipine, cyproheptidine) no matter what the reason.
 
I'm going to start a new thread tomorrow, so be one the look-out for, "It's coming out of both ends."

Not really funny, I know, but if I don't laugh, I'll just cry. Signing off...unless anything else bad happens...then I may be back. Thanks everyone and good night!
 
Wow - she is a senitive girl. A couple of other ideas about getting her to eat. Is there somewhere else in the house that she might think is more like a place to eat? Sometimes sitting on the couch with mom and being hand fed works. I know that others have suggested tuna juice and parmesan, and you are giving baby food - all good. What about yogurt - licked off the finger sometimes is interesting. I've also seen people suggest deli meats - chicken, turkey (not smoked!)- mmmm. Maybe a bit of cheddar - warmed by rolling a bit in your fingers into a little ball. She doesn't have to eat a lot at one time - if she has a bit every 20 mins or half hour for a few times it might be enough to settle her tummy. You're doing a geat job - Pumpkin is a lucky girl.
 
PLEASE don't get yourself so upset about cancer just yet! I HATE when vets throw things out there like that just in passing, and what are we supposed to think?? My vet threw out an unknown dx of possibly FIP a long time ago. I freaked! You don't just throw out things like FIP & cancer w/o ruling out everything else! ohmygod_smile

I agree with what everyone else is saying about possibly staying with the pred, at least for now? You can always manage the BG levels on the pred. If she does have IBD though, that's something your vet will have to figure out, and treat that as well. One disease at a time please! ;-) But if she needs pred for IBD, then so be it.. you can always work the diabetes around the steroids. But it can & has been done before!
 
3OrangiesMom said:
Vet checked her BG with the AlphaTrak and then my meter, and they were pretty close. Dr. was happy that I had found something cheaper that worked just as well as the Alpha. She even took down the meters' info to tell others about it (so THANKS guys!!).
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Oh Wow !!! Isn't that great. You have a great vet.

3OrangiesMom said:
She really hates the vet now. She was there Monday, Wednesday, and now today. I am hoping that is it for awhile. If she doesn't start eating, then the Dr. suggested we do an ultrasound to look for cancer. Let's hope she eats!
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Oh, poor little baby. The awful vet.

Now, Pumpkin, we love you and the vet will do her best to help you feel better.
Eat, baby, eat !!!
 
Hi Sarah-

I know you're starting a new thread but I just want to add....my Boomer (GA) had diabetes and moderate IBD; he was a puker. I was able to get him OTJ while he was on budesonide for his IBD. If it turns out you have an IBD dx, this is another option for you and it didn't affect Boomer's BG readings. Budesonide is a steroid too but it's different in that it's absorbed differently - I don't know enough to expalin in but it's different than pred. Boomer was a steroid-induced diabetic like Pumpkin probably is. He was taking the prd for the puking too.

Another thought, my civvie Merlin dad liquipoo for 2 months when I first got him. I got lucky when I switched him to Wellness grain free food. His poop became normal literally overnight. Grain free food may help Pumpkin too. Eat Pumpkin, EAT!!!!
 
Sarah,

I scanned through this thread and wanted to mention that when getting BG readings at the vet office, the readings may be artificially inflated 100-200 points. This is to due to vet stress (or white coat syndrome to us humans). this can lead to increasing the insulin in a way that may not be necessary.

So by having a record log of your home testing, when you go to the vet, you can show your log and together decide what insulin changes are needed based on your log and not an office visit.

There is a lot of information here and many people who really do care about the well being of your cat. If it wasn't for this board, my Maui may not be here today. It was the people here who helped me (and yes I did have a bad vet, but I'm not here to discuss that) and someone who lives nearby to help me in person.

It's almost two years since Maui was diagnosed and went into remission, thanks to the guidance, advice and insight from this board.

Oh one more thing, as you get into this process, you may find that with the change in food, the need for insulin will decrease.

I also have a cat (Sydney) who is on flovent and being treated for asthma. No we never used pred, rather I ordered the aerokat and flovent and started her with that. It's definitely something to look into for your cat.

Welcome to the group!
 
The Alpha Trak is EXPENSIVE - test strips are even worse. I have a meter that you can pick up on sale at Walgreens and such for around $12, I buy my strips off ebay - 100 strips for around $45-50 including shipping. I believe the Alpha Trak is double that if not more. You can really burn through strips on a curve day or a day when your kitty drops low, so the cheaper strips will save you quite a bit of money in the long run. Glad to see you here - I know its a lot to take in and sort through!
 
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