Newly diagnosed

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donna6788

Member Since 2014
Hi....my 6 year old cat Bogey was diagnosed today.....gave him his first shot....I know nothing.....looking forward to getting the information I need here....
 
Welcome Donna and Bogey,

We'd love to help you help Bogie. Diabetes is very treatable; many, many cats here become regulated or go into remission. Be sure to read the Nutrition and Health threads on the Index page.

You'll see we have a very successful protocol using mild, long lasting insulin like Lantus, Levemir or ProZinc. We test our 4 legged kids just like we would our 2 legged ones, before each shot and midcycle, to be sure the dose we are planning to give is safe and to see how the insulin is working. And we feed wet low carb food; a vet explains why it tis best here (www.catinfo.org). One caution: Don't change the diet until you are home testing. Wet low carb can lower the blood glucose levels 100 points or more. You'd want to know Bogey's new lower level before giving a shot.

Tell us more about your sweet kitty. How was he diagnosed? is he healthy other than the diabetes? What insulin? What dose? Let us know how we can help.
 
He had been losing weight, which for a while we attributed to us going on a couple of long vacations....thought he was stressed, even though we had someone caring for him daily....His appetite never wavered but we got concerned and took him to the vet. She took blood and urine and we got our diagnosis. He is on Lantus, one unit every twelve hours.
I was relieved yesterday that it wasn't cancer.....but this morning....I'm just feeling a bit torn up and overwhelmed.....
 
It is very overwhelming. Will it help to know we all felt that way at first? The more you learn about the disease and how best to manage it for your sweet Bogey, the more confident and in control you will feel.

You have the first thing done. Lantus is an excellent insulin and lots of people here use it.

Keep asking questions. Everyone who replies to you is paying it forward for help they received when they first got the diagnosis and felt just like you.
 
Hi Donna (and Bogey),

A diagnosis of feline diabetes can certainly feel overwhelming at first. Everyone here has been where you are now and understands exactly how you feel.

The good news is that feline diabetes is treatable, and with good care a kitty can live as long and healthy life as a non-diabetic. :smile:

You will soon get the hang of things. And we will help you all we can.

Welcome to FDMB!

Eliz
 
Thank you so much.....I knew when I found this board last night that I was not alone.......
So I only found out yesterday and have done limited reading.....am I correct that the injection should be given about 20 minutes after he eats?
 
With Lantus, if you can get the test, feed, shoot cycle all down to about a 15 minute window, you are doing good.

Are you home testing? It's one of the best ways we can monitor our kitties and keep them safe.
 
I spoke to my vet a little bit ago....we are going to home test, but she wants to wait 2 weeks, have him come in for his first "curve"...see how this dose suits him....
Nervous about home testing, but I'm determined to do it...I really want to stay on top of this....
 
It is hard to get advice on the internet that contradicts your vet. But so often we see beginning diabetics who need less insulin than originally prescribed, and if you aren't tesing, you won't know that.

Check out Nathan's thread. His vet prescribed 4 units, based on the numbers from the vet's office (usually high because stress raises blood glucose levels and most cats are very stressed at the vet.). Last night he tested for the first time and got 109, a very low number. If he had given 4 units, his cat would be in the ER today. Instead, he skipped the shot.
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=116597

Your vet can't keep you from testing at home; you can choose to do it to keep your cat safe. If you want to know how, we can teach you.
 
If you can learn to test, you won't need to take Bogey in for curves, which cost money and can be stressful for the cat. Stress can raise sugar levels, too, so tests at the vet may not be as accurate as what you can do at home. If I had to do this all over again, I would start with analyzing the food. What are you currently feeding and how often? Many people here feed Fancy Feast Classic and Friskies Pate varieties for lower cost. Don't let the vet talk you into prescription foods. If possible, feed smaller meals throughout the day vs 1 or 2 larger meals at shot times. This can help the pancreas and manage food spikes more effectively.

Hang in there! There's a lot to learn!
 
Please don't wait 2 weeks to start home testing. Everyone on this board taught me that, and the best thing they said that made me realize that was "Would you only test your child every so often?" My vet said to test every so often maybe once a week or so. If I did that Hidey would of been in the ER within a week. Everyone here has been so helpful with a diagnosis I knew NOTHING about, and I'm so lucky to have found this site. Think of Bogey as a human in the aspect of diabetes.
 
Here are a couple of articles for you to look through about home testing.

1. This first one talks about the how to's of home testing How to ear test
2. This second one talks about making your cat more accepting of the process. Ear testing psychology

You basically need a glucometer, matching test strips, some lancets (try to get the larger gauge ones to start which are often labeled For Alternate Site Testing), some treats for your kitty like freeze dried chicken or any pure protein, some treats for you.

It takes time to become proficient at the ear testing. Break the process up into smaller steps and introduce your cat to the process a bit at a time.
 
Giving insulin going pretty well.....this evening was the first time he flinched. Are there any symptoms in particular that one should be looking out for? I mean beyond vomiting, etc......He seems bright eyed and bushy tailed!
 
Well, the post on how to treat hypos is a good one to review to know some of the symptoms of hypoglycemia. The message board was having problems today so people could not always access it. So, you might want to print out that post on hypos to have a hard copy on hand just in case the message board is glitchy again.
 
The injections are the easier of the two for sure. After a few days my kitty barely notices the injection. He's resting peacefully, give the shot, he doesn't react at all. Testing is a bit tougher in our case. It was rough sledding for the first few days and he does not like it still, but getting to the point where we always get the blood for test and the # of sticks needed is going down. As we get better and it's less stressful and traumatic for us I imagine it will be for him too.
 
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