Post for new member Teddie

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Teddie

Teddie

Member Since 2020
Hi Everyone:
I've had cats all my life but this is my first diabetic cat. He was diagnosed around Nov. 17th, 2020. He is 9 years old. He had cancer removed in March. He is currently on 2 units every 12 hours of Lantus. He is still hungry all the time! He is thinner than when we first adopted him. He only eats wet food, as I stopped feeding him dry two years ago. We tried to do a glucose curve on him but he is a high anxiety cat and the only blood that gets drawn is ours, not his. He always looks depressed. He won't play anymore. All he ever does is sleep, eat, drink and pee. His poops smell so bad and are diarrhea. I'm at a loss. Any advice is greatly appreciated!! My vet doesn't have much experience with diabetic cats.
 
Hello and welcome to you. What is your kitty's name? Can you tell us a bit more about what type of cancer he had? Good to hear that is in the past. Is your kitty on any other medications now?

What brand/type of wet food are you feeding now? The smell and diarrhea may mean something isn't agreeing with him and maybe we have some other suggestions for you.

Maybe some people here have some ideas on anxiety too. I had a semi feral I tested occasionally - he was on prednisolone so I wanted to make sure his sugars were fine. I had Feliways going throughout the house. It's also very important that they associate treats with testing. My semi feral knew all about the treats from me testing Neko, he was just a little surprised when it was his turn to get poked. :p
 
Hi: Max had two basal cell tumors. He then had a reaction to the stitches. Max is not on any other medication. He eats canned wellness, weruva, purina pro plan. The diarrhea didn't start till we started him on insulin. We thought it was the brand so the vet switched the it but he still has it.
I was hoping someone might have dealt with the same issue and have a suggestion. He poops about 3-4 times a day.
 
I would encourage you to keep trying with the home testing as it’s the best way to keep our kitties safe.
As Wendy said, giving a treat each time you test will help them associate the tests with food.
You could also try letting him eat a small amount of low carb food while you test. Also try humming or singing as you test as cats pick up on our stress as well. Here is a link to home testing hints
https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/hometesting-links-and-tips.287/

Here is a list of other low carb food to try
https://catinfo.org/docs/CatFoodProteinFatCarbPhosphorusChart.pdf

Diabetic cats can’t utilise all the nutrients in the food when they are unregulated so are often hungry and thin. Once more regulated he should start to put on weight and be less hungry.

You could try S Boulardii for the diarrhoea. Also some plain mashed pumpkin with nothing else added..give a teaspoon a couple of times a day mixed with food.
 
Well I have tried everything for Max's diarrhea, different probiotics, antibiotics, special foods, etc. The vet is coming on Monday. She wants a fresh stool sample and wants to do an ultrasound.
Max just doesn't act like himself. He was always up for playing, now he just wants to eat and sleep. Plus, he looks depressed. I don't know what to do for him.
 
Hi Teddie,

Teddie said:
His poops smell so bad and are diarrhea
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This is a bit of a punt, based on the diarrhoea smelling so bad, since one thing that can cause that is a problem with pancreatic enzymes. I'd suggest asking your vet about checking Max for exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI)? The test is an fTLI. Serum B12 and folate levels should be checked at the same time.

We have another kitty in Greece who had chronic diarrhoea and who was recently tested for EPI. Her result was in the borderline area but the vet put her on an enzyme supplement and she has done really well on it since.


Mogs
.
 
Max saw the vet today. His diabetes isn't responding to the insulin and we have tried 2 different ones. She didn't see anything out of the ordinary in his stool same but agrees that something is going on because of the sour smell to his stool. She didn't see anything with an xray but she thinks she saw something on her old ultrasound machine. She is sending us to an internal vet specialist. She said it looked like something was pushing against his liver. The appointment is for next week. I will let y'all know what they find. Unfortunately, since he had cancer last year, we have a feeling it might have spread. Thank y'all for listening and the advice y'all are giving. We do appreciate it. I'm going to go cry my eyes out now.
 
Teddie said:
Max saw the vet today. His diabetes isn't responding to the insulin and we have tried 2 different ones. She didn't see anything out of the ordinary in his stool same but agrees that something is going on because of the sour smell to his stool. She didn't see anything with an xray but she thinks she saw something on her old ultrasound machine. She is sending us to an internal vet specialist. She said it looked like something was pushing against his liver. The appointment is for next week. I will let y'all know what they find. Unfortunately, since he had cancer last year, we have a feeling it might have spread. Thank y'all for listening and the advice y'all are giving. We do appreciate it. I'm going to go cry my eyes out now.
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I'm so sorry Teddie that Max still isn't feeling well.
Hopefully you will get some answers when you see the internal vet specialist and it's not cancer again. Please keep us updated , Saying prayers for Max and hugs for you ♥♥:bighug::bighug::bighug:
 
We took Max last week to see the internal specialist. She did an ultrasound and she found his liver, kidneys, pancreas and spleen are all enlarged. So, she wanted to run all these tests:
Urinalysis with UPC
Culture & Sensitivity
Total Health T4 (I-75)
TLI-PLI-B12-Folate K9 GI Lab
Histoplasma Ag, EIA, MiraVista

If these tests do not come back with an answer, she wants to put him under anesthesia and do the following:
Gastroscope
Histopathology, Initial Tissue
Histopathology, Add'l Tissue
Fine Needle Aspiration
Cytology, Lab, Priority.

I can't afford the other tests. Just the anesthesia will cost $385.25! Hopefully I hear back soon.
 
The Metronidazole is working for Max's diarrhea. He is still really hungry all the time. All his test results came back and since the metronidazole is working for his diarrhea and we stopped feeding him anything with seafood, the specialist thinks that we don't need to run anymore tests unless something comes up. His tests results showed early pancreatitis. We are trying to do another 12 hour glucose curve today. Max is currently pestering me for food. He is still on 2 units of Lantus every 12 hours. They wanted us to wait till his was done with the antibiotic for his uti before doing a curve. We have noticed he has a distended belly all the time now. I am assuming it's probably from gaining weight but not actually exercising so it's not being turned into muscle. If someone else knows why he has a distended belly, please feel free to let me know. I hate how his eyes are always dilated.
 
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