Kelly & Oscar
Very Active Member
My big boy is freshly diagnosed with diabetes as of yesterday. The vet is running some 'extra' tests, which I will find out about tomorrow. Hopefully that means they are running a fructosamine test. This site has already proven to be a wealth of information, and I am so thankful that I stumbled upon it!
Some history on Oscar:
I found him as a stray in 2004 at our local landfill as an almost fully grown kitten. He is about 7 years old, is an Abyssinian/Tabby mix, and someone probably ditched him once his stripes started to show up. He has always eaten a lot, and I always chocked it up to him living on his own for so long. He always pee-d a lot, and I asked the vet about it, and they thought nothing of it. As of 3-4 years ago, he bloomed to 16 pounds. When I moved to Indiana 2 years ago, he was down to 15 pounds. I took him in to the local vet in November because he was having a bad bout with his asthma, so they gave him a cortisone shot. He also weighed in at 14.7 pounds. He went in for a teeth cleaning in mid December, and I believe they gave him another small dose of cortisone to counteract the inflammation. It was after this that I started to notice him losing weight. I was hoping it was due to his teeth finally being clean (they had horrible tartar build up), but he kept losing weight despite a normal appetite. I did not notice any more drinking or pee-ing than what was normal for him. I felt he was getting too skinny and took him to the vet yesterday. He weighed in at 10.3 pounds! Looking back at pictures from years ago, his fur is less fluffy and less healthy looking now. The preliminary tests show that he is diabetic. For the past 4 years he has been on Friskies Special Diet Salmon wet food (5% carbs) with only a sprinkling of dry food for hairball control (which will be done away with now!).
From what I am reading, it is likely that he has been border-line diabetic for years and the cortisone shots probably pushed him over the edge. I have already purchased a ReliOn Confirm meter, lancets, and test strips for home testing. I did some base line testing this evening to learn how to use the meter, and to provide the vet with some at-home numbers for our meeting tomorrow. At 4:30 bg was 269; at 6:30 it was 321 (and was given food); at 8:30 it was 337.
Here is the list I have compiled to discuss tomorrow with the vet: (suggestions are welcome!)
* Which insulin? Humulin/caninsulin/vetsulin are less desired; levimir/lantus seem to have a good track record
* Best injection site? side of the belly/tummy area?
* Our goal BG should be between 100-200 at any given time
* we should start out insulin doses at 1 unit twice a day preferably
* ask if T4 or kidney function was checked
* getting syringes to match the type of insulin (U-40 vs U-100)
* If Lantus is prescribed - pens/cartridges vs. vials (10mil or 3mil)
I know I over plan things, and want to control everything, but I can't help it! He's my baby!
Some history on Oscar:
I found him as a stray in 2004 at our local landfill as an almost fully grown kitten. He is about 7 years old, is an Abyssinian/Tabby mix, and someone probably ditched him once his stripes started to show up. He has always eaten a lot, and I always chocked it up to him living on his own for so long. He always pee-d a lot, and I asked the vet about it, and they thought nothing of it. As of 3-4 years ago, he bloomed to 16 pounds. When I moved to Indiana 2 years ago, he was down to 15 pounds. I took him in to the local vet in November because he was having a bad bout with his asthma, so they gave him a cortisone shot. He also weighed in at 14.7 pounds. He went in for a teeth cleaning in mid December, and I believe they gave him another small dose of cortisone to counteract the inflammation. It was after this that I started to notice him losing weight. I was hoping it was due to his teeth finally being clean (they had horrible tartar build up), but he kept losing weight despite a normal appetite. I did not notice any more drinking or pee-ing than what was normal for him. I felt he was getting too skinny and took him to the vet yesterday. He weighed in at 10.3 pounds! Looking back at pictures from years ago, his fur is less fluffy and less healthy looking now. The preliminary tests show that he is diabetic. For the past 4 years he has been on Friskies Special Diet Salmon wet food (5% carbs) with only a sprinkling of dry food for hairball control (which will be done away with now!).
From what I am reading, it is likely that he has been border-line diabetic for years and the cortisone shots probably pushed him over the edge. I have already purchased a ReliOn Confirm meter, lancets, and test strips for home testing. I did some base line testing this evening to learn how to use the meter, and to provide the vet with some at-home numbers for our meeting tomorrow. At 4:30 bg was 269; at 6:30 it was 321 (and was given food); at 8:30 it was 337.
Here is the list I have compiled to discuss tomorrow with the vet: (suggestions are welcome!)
* Which insulin? Humulin/caninsulin/vetsulin are less desired; levimir/lantus seem to have a good track record
* Best injection site? side of the belly/tummy area?
* Our goal BG should be between 100-200 at any given time
* we should start out insulin doses at 1 unit twice a day preferably
* ask if T4 or kidney function was checked
* getting syringes to match the type of insulin (U-40 vs U-100)
* If Lantus is prescribed - pens/cartridges vs. vials (10mil or 3mil)
I know I over plan things, and want to control everything, but I can't help it! He's my baby!