Newly Diagnosed Kitty-Help!

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Michele1980

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My sweet Mister was diagnosed 2 weeks ago today. I am feeling very overwhelmed with all of the info out there and am looking for a little advice.
Mister is 17 years old and 1/2 Siamese. He is the sweetest, smartest most affectionate kitty I have ever known and I will do anything to keep him healthy. I had taken him to the vet a month before his diagnosis because he was having some digestive issues...blood work was done and there was no sign of diabetes.
Anyway...I have a few questions.
I am having some issues giving the shots. I have watched many videos on youtube and the cats don't seem to even notice a needle is going in them. Mister has been wincing/jumping a little when I give him the injections and I'm just not sure why! I don't want to hurt him. Any advice on how to do the injection more smoothly?
Next...what type of canned food do you recommend? I was given the Hills special vet diabetes food. Mister absolutely loves it so that isn't a problem, but do you guys recommend this food?
Lastly (for now)...home testing. My vet did not even mention this to me but I've seen it everywhere when researching online. Do you have to take blood from he ear??? Do you recommend home testing?
Any and all advice would be much appreciated for this newbie!! Thank you in advance.
 
Hi and welcome to FDMB!

I am having some issues giving the shots. I have watched many videos on youtube and the cats don't seem to even notice a needle is going in them. Mister has been wincing/jumping a little when I give him the injections and I'm just not sure why! I don't want to hurt him. Any advice on how to do the injection more smoothly?
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Are you sure you are getting it just under the skin and not into the muscle below it? Also, do you hold the syringe and insulin in your hand for a minute or two to warm it up? Sometimes they will react to the "cold". What kind of insulin did your vet prescribe? And what dose?

Do you know what sort of blood glucose numbers the vet has seen? It does seem strange that Mister went from "no signs of diabetes" to "diabetic" in just one month. Did you see any of the classic symptoms like really big appetite but losing weight rapidly? Excessive drinking or peeing?

Next...what type of canned food do you recommend? I was given the Hills special vet diabetes food. Mister absolutely loves it so that isn't a problem, but do you guys recommend this food?
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Not surprised that the vet gave you that brand...many do.... but it is too high in carbohydrates to be good for a diabetic cat (which is strange if you think about it since Hill's "sells it" to vets because it's supposed to be good stuff). Many of us use low carb store brands like Fiskees pates and Fancy Feast classics, which are lower in carbs and better for our kitties. Here is a link to a lot of information and some charts that show the various nutritional values of canned foods. We recommend you feed a food that is lower than 10% calories from carbs, and you will see that many flavors and brands are that low or lower (while the Hill's isn't that low).
http://binkyspage.tripod.com/canfood.html
Lastly (for now)...home testing. My vet did not even mention this to me but I've seen it everywhere when researching online. Do you have to take blood from he ear??? Do you recommend home testing?
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We strongly advocate home testing using a human glucometer. A lot of vets don't mention it, although I don't understand why. Some think that it isn't accurate, some believe that people won't keep up with doing it or won't be able to do it. I don't know, but we believe it is the only safe way to manage feline diabetes. You need to know what the BG reading is before thinking about shooting insulin to be sure that the dose is a safe dose. Humans don't just randomly shoot insulin without checking their BG, so there is no reason to believe that it is safe to do that with a cat or a dog. We all do it, it isn't hard to do once you've done it a few times. Yes, the ears are where we get the blood from, although a small percentage of people use the paw to get the sample.

Carl
 
Michele1980 said:
My sweet Mister was diagnosed 2 weeks ago today. I am feeling very overwhelmed with all of the info out there and am looking for a little advice.
Mister is 17 years old and 1/2 Siamese. He is the sweetest, smartest most affectionate kitty I have ever known and I will do anything to keep him healthy. I had taken him to the vet a month before his diagnosis because he was having some digestive issues...blood work was done and there was no sign of diabetes.
Click to expand...

We understand how you feel, it is not unusually for you to feel overwhelmed at first. But I assure you that it does get easier. You are already on the right track by researching about feline diabetes and asking your questions.


I am having some issues giving the shots. I have watched many videos on youtube and the cats don't seem to even notice a needle is going in them. Mister has been wincing/jumping a little when I give him the injections and I'm just not sure why! I don't want to hurt him. Any advice on how to do the injection more smoothly?
Click to expand...

Are you tenting the skin when you shoot. This means pulling up the skin a little bit and inserting the needle into the tent. Also what size needle are you using? If you are using U100 syringes, try using either 30 or 31 gauge needles. The larger the gauge number, the smaller the needle.


Next...what type of canned food do you recommend? I was given the Hills special vet diabetes food. Mister absolutely loves it so that isn't a problem, but do you guys recommend this food?
Click to expand...

Many of us feed our cats Fancy Feast, Friskies or Special Kitty. You do not need to feed prescription food, most of it is not good for diabetics anyway. Try to avoid canned foods that have "gravy" in the name. Most of them are higher in carbs and will raise the BG levels significantly.


Lastly (for now)...home testing. My vet did not even mention this to me but I've seen it everywhere when researching online. Do you have to take blood from he ear??? Do you recommend home testing?
Any and all advice would be much appreciated for this newbie!! Thank you in advance.
Click to expand...

Yes!!!!!! We strongly encourage everyone to home test. That is the only way to really know what is happening with your cat's glucose readings. Tests done in the vet's office are not very accurate since stress can raise the glucose levels. You can use any human glucose meter including store brands. Many of us use Walmart Relion brand meters. If you do decide to buy a Relion meter, I recommend either the Relion Confirm or Micro. These two meters use a smaller amount of blood.
 
First Welcome... you have come to the right place!

Have you tried giving him the injection while he's eating by using the scruff? i found this the easiest for me, and my kitty doesn't even notice because she's too busy with her nose in the bowl. Make sure you aren't pushing the needle in too hard, and make sure you are tenting the skin and shooting parallel to the spine

i would take your kitty off of the hills, it has a high carb content, despite what the vet tells you. Many of us use Wellness(chicken, Turkey, Beef), or Fancy Feast Classics, and there are some others that work well, just make sure it's canned wet food with 10% or less carbs. Ditch dry food altogether.

Here is a list for Janet and Binkys food chart http://binkyspage.tripod.com/canfood.html

and YES, please make sure you hometest, this is the most important thing while treating diabetes. There are a few human meters you can pick up at the pharmacy that are pretty close to the animal ones. I use the Bayer Contour, also the Relion Confirm is a good one. make sure you test at least before every insulin shot so you know her number and don't shoot her at low numbers.

What insulin are you using and what dose?
 
Wow thank you so much for the fast reply and very helpful info.
I also foud it very strange that he had bloodwork done a month before diagnosis and was fine. He completely stopped eating which is what made me bring him in again and that's when he was hospitalized. He is not overweight at all either, his normal weight was about 12.5 pounds but now he is down to 9.6.
He is getting 2 units of Prozinc twice a day. We started off only giving him one dose in the morning per day for about a week but I noticed he was extremely thirsty so I took him back to the vet and they upped the dose. At that time his BG was 433 (I gave him the shot at 7 am and that reading was done at the vet's office around 4 pm). That was the only BG reading I was given.
As for giving the shots, I guess I'm not sure :( It is so hard to see/know what you are doing under all that fur! What angle are you putting the needle in? And do you do it in the scruff of the neck?
I could not agree more about the testing...humans do it so why would we think we wouldn't have to do it for our pets! I am going to do a lot more research on this as I have no idea how to go about associating a certain BG level with an insulin dosage.
Thanks a lot for the food info too, that is great to know
 
You guys are truly amazing!!!
I just learned about the tent method on youtube last night...i did it today and it worked great except he kinda winced at the very end, I don't know why :(
That is just crazy about the Hills food. Why are vets gIving this out!? That is very upsetting to me.
Also, yes I have been warming up the insulin and then I leave the shot out for 5-10 minutes before injecting him.
 
Besides the very good advice the others gave, I would add that the nerves are mostly right at the surface of the skin. I find if I hesitate at all when first sticking the needle in is when Shady has flinched. If I give it quickly- not so fast you are just jabbing it in- but smoothly and confidently, he doesn't seem to feel it. Good luck! The way you describe Mister reminds me of Shady :) I guess we all think our own are the smartest and most affectionate though! :)
 
Aw Shady :) That is a cute name.
Thanks for your advice! I definitely have been hesitating a bit I'm sure. I guess mostly I am just not sure at what angle I should be injecting the needle? So as not to hit a muscle or whatever else I shouldn't be hitting!!! That is what is tripping me up because I had two incidents where I went right through his skin and the insulin ended up on his fur :(
 
Thanks! :) I tent the skin and inject close to the bottom of the tent, nearly horizontal to the body. If you go in at much of an angle I think is when you would be more likely to shoot into muscle. Shoot from the front to the back of the tent, not in the side, and I guess I make a pretty long "tent" because it never comes close to coming out the other side. I am pretty new, so others may have more detailed advice, but that is how I have been injecting.
 
I know what you mean about not being able to see around the fur!! So we shaved a little spot on our cat's back. Doesn't look good, but at least I can see what I'm doing.

She still squeaks in protest sometimes tho--and I'm tenting the skin, etc. I will try holding the syringe in my hand to warm up the insulin.
 
Hi.... welcome to FDMB!

You have already gotten some expert advice! Take a deep breath and know that the anxiety and feeling this is all too overwhelming shall pass. Much of it just takes practice. When teaching people to give their insulin, we would use an orange. That can at least give you practice on the jabbing and might lessen the jiggling of the syringe. A friend of mine learned how to pull the skin up and angle by using bubble wrap. That way she could see where the needle was going, how much she moved the needle, and if it would come out on the fur. Didn't take her long to be an expert at giving a sub cutaneous injection.

Stick with it and you'll be just fine!
 
Did the tent method again this morning...I MUST be shooting into the muscle because he wriggled all over the place where usually he just sits still. I feel soooo horrible :( I know I must have hurt him. I will keep practicing and hopefully get it down pat soon!
A BIG issue I am having is that he is so skinny now, there really isn't much skin to even pick up to give the shot!!!
Another thing...he does go outside a little bit (not nearly as much as he used to) but I've found that he's been eating grass. Has anyone else had this issue? He threw up everywhere this morning before I fed him and it was full of grass. Is this related to the diabetes somehow? He never used to do this
 
Do you want to tell us where you live - city and state? There may be someone who lives nearby who could help you with the shot and hometesting.
 
Michele1980 said:
It is so hard to see/know what you are doing under all that fur!
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The best thing that I did was shave Pumbaa's fur off in a small section on his right flank and on his left shoulder area. This has made it so much easier for me to see what I am doing when I am tenting the skin. I have a Wahl electric hair trimmer that did an excellent job of this, and Pumbaa didn't even mind.

Suze
 
That is a good idea...I'm going to think about doing that. The poor guy just had his whole belly shaved for an ultrasound so what's a few more inches
 
Took Mister in today for his scheduled blood glucose test (2 weeks after his dosage was upped to twice a day). To my shock and surprise...his BG level was 49!!!!!!!! I was told to stop giving him insulin altogether and bring him back in 2 weeks for another blood test. I am beyond thrilled and praying he had a transient case of diabetes. Has anyone experienced this???
 
I am not experienced with Prozinc but I would think lowering the dose would be a better plan than stopping insulin completely--is he still on 2u? I know with Lantus, cat's are more successful getting eased into remission with smaller and smaller doses, For example, going down from 1u to .75u, to .5u, to .25u, to .1u and then off insulin. Are you home testing so that you know how the insulin is working? Also, are you feeding a low carb, canned diet?

Hopefully someone familiar with Prozinc will be able to stop by and give you some advice.
 
I would highly recommend you test twice a day for that 2 week period. "We" don't consider a cat to be off the juice unless they maintain a "normal" range of BGs for two weeks with no insulin given. If he isn't in remission, and that 49 was just a one-time occurrence that happened to be caught at just the right time, then two weeks without insulin if the diabetes is still present could be disastrous. An unregulated cat with no insulin for 2 weeks could become a DKA kitty. It only took 3 days for my cat to go from "diagnosed and waiting on the insulin to get here in the mail" to three nights in the ER diagnosed with DKA and about a day or less away from dying if I hadn't brought him in.
Not trying to rain on anyone's parade, and I sure hope he's in remission. But one "normal" reading on a meter doesn't mean it's "gone".
Carl
 
Michele1980 said:
Took Mister in today for his scheduled blood glucose test (2 weeks after his dosage was upped to twice a day). To my shock and surprise...his BG level was 49!!!!!!!! I was told to stop giving him insulin altogether and bring him back in 2 weeks for another blood test. I am beyond thrilled and praying he had a transient case of diabetes. Has anyone experienced this???
Click to expand...


My Shady looks like he is going into remission. Good numbers and no insulin needed for 5 days now. I am almost afraid of saying it, afraid I will jinx myself! My vet thought his diabetes was caused by glucose toxicity brought on by having stress hyperglycemia for a prolonged period (3 weeks of radiation therapy for a tumor), and after being treated with insulin and diet change, has been able to recover. So is is possible. But I am going to keep testing him and keep him low carb just to be on the safe side. I did step down to once a day testing instead of twice. I am planning to test 1x/day for two weeks and then step down to maybe once a week testing. But I would keep home testing for a while, once a day or every other day at least to make sure he stays in the normal range.
 
To add to what Julia said above. My cat was on PZI, not Prozinc, but close enough. He started on 1u BID, went as high as 4u BID and then back to zero, over the course of 10 weeks. That was pretty fast. But when he came down the dosing ladder, it was gradual, and he had to go all the way down to .25u bid before he went off the juice. Like Julia, I've never seen a kitty go from 2u to zero units overnight and go into remission.

Carl
 
I am just following my vet's instructions. I bring Mister back in a week from Weds for another reading. He hasn't had any insulin since Weds morning (4.5 days) and his behavior has been completely normal. I am hopeful that the high BG readigs were due to his pancreatitis. Now that that has been resolved I am hoping everything will be ok. I am very new to this so I am just trusting my vet and following his directions. I don't know the first thing about home testing :(
 
This is great to hear! Please keep in mind that cats who suffer from pancreatitis can be prone to flare ups later on, so always keep an eye out for the symptoms. Early treatment may help prevent a return to diabetic numbers. And keep us posted!
Carl
 
Does anyone know where to do the injections? I am having a horrible time trying to do this - Lucy is newly diagnosed and is on to me....she squirms if I put her on a table or runs away if she is laying on the floor. I tried practicing the tenting while she is laying around or eating - she is wise to me and runs. I love her so much I wish this was easier....
 
Hi Iggy
You can search for "Feline diabetes insulin" on youtube for videos that show different locations. Welcome to FDMB, by the way! You can start a new thread and put something like "new here, need help with shots" as the subject, and people will see your question more quickly.
Carl
 
Iggy, I was worried you would get lost down here so started you a new thread with your question. It has a Green smile next to it and says "Iggy561 Here's your post"
 
Carl & Bob in SC said:
This is great to hear! Please keep in mind that cats who suffer from pancreatitis can be prone to flare ups later on, so always keep an eye out for the symptoms. Early treatment may help prevent a return to diabetic numbers. And keep us posted!
Carl
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Second that. Freckles never was diagnosed as diabetic but we kept him on plain unflavored aloe Vera juice daily which kept him good to go.
 
Carl & Bob in SC said:
Hi Iggy
You can search for "Feline diabetes insulin" on youtube for videos that show different locations. Welcome to FDMB, by the way! You can start a new thread and put something like "new here, need help with shots" as the subject, and people will see your question more quickly.
Carl
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thank you so much...
 
Sue and Oliver (GA) said:
Iggy, I was worried you would get lost down here so started you a new thread with your question. It has a Green smile next to it and says "Iggy561 Here's your post"
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Thanks for doing that, much appreciated....
 
Almost a full week with no insulin and so far not one sign that anything is wrog, he is right back to his old self. Please keep sending positive vibes!
 
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