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MatJay N Haley

MatJay N Haley

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Hello peoples, I'm new to the forum and my cat Haley was diagnosed with feline diabetes a few days ago. The vet we have recommends insulin but has given us some time to consider that option. In the mean time we have changed her to a low carb, wet food only diet.

Since we have changed to this new diet, Haleys' symptoms have disappeared. She seems to be back to 100%. The symptoms she was showing when we took her to the vet were:
- Lethargy
- Frequent eating
- Drinking tons of water
- Very frequent urination

All of the above symptoms are now gone. I have noticed her stool is quite soft but I guess this is due to the diet change.
So my question is; do we go ahead with the insulin regime or should we just keep her with the diet change and monitor her for the next little while? We head back to the vet for insulin schooling on Friday (Feb. 11).

Thanks in advance,
Mathew
 
hi there and welcome to fdmb.

whether you move to the next step, using insulin, would depend on how much of an effect the diet change has had on her glucose levels.

you could go get a glucose meter and test her yourself at home where she is nice and relaxed and see what her levels are or you could have the vet retest her on friday. keep in mind though that levels obtained in a clinic setting are often elevated some due to stress so even if you get a number let's say of 189 at the vet on friday, it doesn't necessarily mean insulin would be called for, or much of it. understand?
 
Mathew that's great that the symptoms stopped. Food change can hugely affect BG's. however, it doesn't mean that your cat is back to being 100% yet.

What I suggest if you are not already doing this, is to home test. By home testing it will tell you whether or not insulin is needed. It's possible you caught this early enough and with food change alone, can reverse the diabetes. However, once diagnosed, a cat is always a diabetic, just maybe in remission.

It is impossible to convey the value of testing your cat's BG (blood glucose) level at home. Some vets will "suggest" this, but most won't even mention it. They will send you home with insulin and an amount to shoot and maybe some instructions about hypoglycemia (blood sugar dropping to a dangerously low level).

Well, the thing is, human diabetics don't EVER give themselves insulin without checking there BG to make sure it is safe to do so, so why shouldn't it be the same for our kitties. Here on FDMB it is. You will notice that the vast majority of people here test their cat's BG at least 2x/day (before giving each shot to make sure the level is safe enough) and periodically at other times to see how the cat is responding to the current dose. We use a human glucometer, test strips and lancets - which are all very readily available and easy to use.

Our kitties get lots of love and treats for "putting up" with this and most of them actually come out to be tested on their own 'cause they want those treats . Here is a collection of great links that "Carolyn and Spot" pulled together about hometesting. See what you think ... it truly is the best way to not only keep Your cat safe but also really get a handle on this disease and help him to live a healthy life with FD (feline diabetes).
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Home testing Links

If you share with us where you are located, we may have people in your area who can provide in person support and teach you how to test.
 
Thanks for your quick replies. I guess we will go ahead and get the insulin to have on hand and start doing BG testing right away. Thanks for you help again. I feel much more comfortable having this message board to help us through this.
 
godwept said:
Thanks for your quick replies. I guess we will go ahead and get the insulin to have on hand and start doing BG testing right away. Thanks for you help again. I feel much more comfortable having this message board to help us through this.
Click to expand...

I would not buy insulin just yet; I would try the home-testing first.

You could be buying insulin for nothing. There are 'good' insulins, which are somewhat
expensive, and not-so-good insulins, like Humulin N (available without prescription from
any human pharmacy).

If you do end up needing insulin, you would want one of the 'good' ones. With symptom
improvement, I would wait until you have some home-test numbers....we can help you
learn to home-test.

Come back here
with what your vet recommends before you buy anything. Or phone now and ask what
insulin they normally use for diabetic cats.
 
Hey there,
Keri from North of you! lol

What kind of insulin did your vet mention?? And do you know what your kitties BG levels were?
I would get a home glucose meter and go without for a bit too..

Good Luck!
 
Hi there,

We went to the vet today and Haley was prescribed lantus. She is on one unit every 12 hours. We aren't going to start the process until tomorrow, and are reading up on the blood Glucose meter. Thanks for all your support!
 
Since you are not sure "how" diabetic she is, I would get the testing supplies asap and find out what her levels are when giving insulin. Here is the supply list:


A human glucometer. Any one that sips and takes a tiny sample is fine. The meters are often free at drug stores; it’s the strips that are expensive. You can, however, buy them on ebay at less than half the price of stores. Lots of people here also like the ReliOn from Walmart. It is an inexpensive meter and its strips are the cheapest around. Try the meter out on yourself or someone else before you try it on your cat. You want to be familiar with it before you poke the cat.

Lancets and a lancet device. Usually, until the ears “learn” to bleed, a 25-26 gauge is good. Any brand will work.

Ketone strips. (Ketostix) Just like human diabetics use. You will sometimes need to test urine if the numbers are high.

Rice sack. Make this out of thinnish sock, filled with raw rice or oatmeal and then knotted. You heat this in the microwave until very warm but not hot. Then heat the ears before poking.

Also nice to have. Flashlight: so you can look at the ears and find the little capillaries that come off the vein running down the ear. Vaseline: Put a tiny smear where you want to poke. It will help the blood bead up.

And some lo carb treats to give your kitty, successful test or not Lo carb treats
 
So we finally managed to get her first BG level and it seems very high. 14.9mmol/L (268.2mg/dl). I don't think we should be giving her the insulin shots with it being this high. Would this not increase her BG level? It did take me a couple minutes to get blood so stress may have been a bit of a factor here as well. I may not get an accurate reading until I'm faster at getting the blood sample. Any thoughts?
 
no, insulin lowers blood glucose levels. the only time it doesn't is if you are overdosing, in which case the body might protect itself by raising levels.

268 is totally diabetic and you need to be giving insulin.
 
First of all, it's not really all that high if I'm reading correctly.. mid 200's
and secondly the concept of using insulin is to reduce high numbers. that's why you use it. So yes a high number is the reason and time to use insulin. I think you may start using..however others may chime in and want a few more tests firts.

Congragulations on getting a test....welcome to the VAMPIRE CLUB
 
Great job getting blood! :RAHCAT

Agree that 268 is a normal diabetic number. One unit should be fine. It would be great if you can get a mid cycle test in (about 6 hours after the shot) to see how the insulin is working.

Can we talk you into setting up a spreadsheet? It is color coded and a great tool for you. It also is invaluable when you come on for dosing advice. We can see what your dosing history and blood glucose numbers have been, at a glance . Here are the directions: Setting up a spreadsheet If you need help, just ask.
 
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