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Hello all! My little baby Dainty was just diagnosed with kitty diabetes.Being very upset and not thinking very clearly I forgot to ask my vet several questions which are heavy on my mind atm.
A little background on her, she's always been heavy. I've had her since she was a kitten and for the last 10 years its been a struggle to keep her weight down. At her heaviest this last June, she weighed 16 pounds. So it was the sudden dramatic weight loss combined with her increased thirst (it seemed like she went to the litter box only to come out and find her water bowl again) that got us to take her into the vet. Her sugar levels were around 516, just how bad is this? Like on a scale of 1-10?
She is currently getting 2 units of insulin twice a day. The vet taught me to "tent" the skin and poke the needle through the middle. I'm okay with giving her the shots, I just don't want to hurt her. She has long, thick fur and it is hard to find the skin through it. I read that administering the shot into the scruff of the neck is like the worst place. Is this true and if so, where would be a better place? We are going to be going back to the vet in about 5 days or so, to check how well she has adjusted to the shots and if she needs more or less. Should I give her the shot before or after she eats? She's a grazer, eating little at a time but all throughout the day. I'm VERY afraid about giving her to much insulin and harming her. She's not a very active kitty, jumps off the couch, walks a few feet and then lays down again. I'm worried that I will mistake her showing signs of hypoglycemia as her normal behavior. Is there anything in particular that I should look for? And if she does go hypo, how much honey should I give her? I will probably try to learn how to test her blood levels myself, does the ear method of drawing blood hurt the kitty?
These are all the questions I can think of. I just hope that Dainty doesn't start to associate me with pain, I know that to keep her healthy that she needs this, the more I know the better I can take care of her!
 
We were all scared and confused when we first got our kitty diagnosis - and we have all learned to manage the shots and testing. Its not nearly as bad as it first seems - soon you'll be an old pro!

The very first and most important thing to do is get a glucometer and begin testing her blood at home. This is probably the most important thing that you can do for Dainty. We all test before each shot so that we are sure it is safe to give insulin. This way you will also know when a hypoglycemic event is about to happen and how to manage it. (Read the notes at the top of the bulletin board about hypos and the things that you should have on hand to deal with it.)

Next, members of this board have had great success managing their diabetic kitties with low carb wet food. What is she eating now? You mention that her weight has been a problem - has she been getting dry food? Did the vet recommend prescription foods? They are not necessary (cost prohibitive) and not always the best choice. However, do not change her diet until you are testing her at home. Some cats have required a lot less insulin with a diet change, but you won't know until you are testing at home.

Giving shots between the shoulders has been debated on here a few times. Basically, give the shot where it is easiest for you for now and as you get more comfortable and if you want to try other places, you can. The important thing is that she is getting insulin on a regular schedule.

Test, feed, shoot is the normal order to do things. She does need to have eaten some food before giving her the insulin. If she has her nose in her food dish, she probably doesn't notice the shot. When you tent up the skin, if you blow on the fur it will part and you can see the skin. The needles are very fine and don't normally hurt unless it gets into muscle or bone by accident (unlikely to happen when tenting up the skin like you are).

I see that you are taking her back in 5 days - this is likely so that the vet can take several tests during the day - called a curve. You can do this at home and get better results, and save a bundle of $$. There are many resources on this site to help you begin home testing by getting a little drop of blood from the edge of her ear. It is another one of those things that sounds traumatic, but really isn't. You'll be amazed at how quickly this will all become routine.

I'm guessing that you live in the US. Many people on this site like the Relion meter from WalMart, and the testing strips are reasonably priced. You will also need lancets to prick the ear.

The collective experience here with diabetic cats is remarkable, and people are kind and generous with their help. I'm not an expert, but wanted to answer a couple of your questions and assure you that diabetes is quite a manageable disease. If I've missed something, ask again and hopefully the experts will be along shortly.
 
Thank you so much for your detailed reply! Dainty was eating dry food but the vet switched us to a wet food, Hills prescription diet. Reading your reply has made up my mind. I will definitely learn how to test her levels and start doing that asap. I just don't like the idea of having to take her into the vet to do something that I should be doing more regularly. This site is really a great resource. Without it I'm sure my head would be spinning even more than it already is right now!
 
At the top of the 'Health' part of this message board are several permanent messages called stickies. There is one on FAQ, another on jargon, another on hypos, etc. The FAQ is a really good place to start and has a link to Janet and Binky's canned food chart. You can compare the carb level in various foods and see how the prescription diet fits the picture. It may be that you can use a non-presc and less expensive food for Dainty that will be as good or better for her. If you click on the 'Profile' at the end of mmessages, you can see what people are feeding their cats.

On the Insulin Support Groups page, there is detailed information about how each insulin works and handling tips. Check the information for your insulin there as well.

More questions? Bring them on! There are lots of people to help you.
 
You don't need to take Dainty into the vet to be retested or be told what dose adjustment to make. Testing at the vet is likely much higher than what you will get at home... stress will affect the numbers.
What insulin are you giving? I must have missed your mention. The starting dose of 2u is kind of high; most safe starting doses are more like 1u BID, so the sooner you are testing the better and you will see how Dainty is doing.

The pokes on the ear don't hurt; my two cats sleep through the pokes, and once in awhile they may flick the ear as you would see an animal do to maybe shoo a fly or something.
The scruff is good, nice and slow absorption, but there are diagrams that can show you other sites for shots. Many people give little healthy treats when they test because it will help to link test with treat!

Binky's list has a great variety of foods that are low carb and much better and way cheaper than what you vet is having you feed Dainty.

In the beginning, we all have tons of questions, so you can keep a notebook where you jot down each question that comes to your mind, then on the next vet visit, take your book with you. Also take a pen and write down the answers you get from the vet. I even ask my vet to spell the meds so I can look them up later on my own.

There are lots of people around here who can provide you with links and videos for how-to's.
 
Here are a couple of links that I found helpful when I was first learning to inject insulin, and test my cat's BG. I did my own BG curves and learned to do my own insulin adjustments based on the readings I was getting. READ READ READ everything you can get your hands on. Between that, working with my vet, and all the support on this site, my cat is heading into, what looks like, remission. Normal BG for 6 straight days, no insulin. This happens in approximately 30% of newly diagnosed FD cats within the first 4 months of treatment - there appears to be this window where some cats' pancreases heal themselves - you can increase this likelihood by following the wet food guideline that people are talking about here, and doing your best to find the right dose for your cat. If you look at my spreadsheet, you'll notice that Schroeder started getting some very low numbers all of a sudden, and I had to start adjusting the dose downward - to the point where he needed none at all! This is the importance of BG testing. If I hadn't have known his numbers, I would have overdosed him on at least 2 occasions on a higher dose than he needed. I successfully avoided any scary hypo incidents. The last link was an excellent guide that helped me decide when to adjust the insulin dose. I used this information because my vet had NO IDEA at what numbers to increase or decrease! When armed with information you can make informed decisions and advocate for your cat. All the best and I hope to see you around on the board. :-D

http://www.5min.com/Video/Diabetic-Cats ... ting-11704

http://www.sugarcats.net/sites/harry/earprick.html

http://www.bd.com/us/diabetes/page.aspx ... 01&id=7374 (INJECTION SITES)

http://www.felinediabetes.com/fdmb-faq.htm (FAQs)

http://books.google.ca/books?id=DtIIjFf ... ts&f=false (INFO ON WHEN CATS ARE REGULATED AND WHEN TO LOOK AT ADJUSTING DOSE)
 
Wow, thanks everyone for the helpful links and info. To be honest, I was kinda worried that this treatment program was going to break the bank. Her new prescription food is pretty expensive, plus the frequent visits to the vet and the cost of the meds. Cheaper food would definitely be a plus. She's taking Prozinc insulin. Did anyone else notice an increase of activity in their cats after they started insulin? Dainty has been on the insulin for about 2 1/2 days now and she's moving about more, climbing about and acting generally more alert.
 
Renegaderem said:
Wow, thanks everyone for the helpful links and info. To be honest, I was kinda worried that this treatment program was going to break the bank. Her new prescription food is pretty expensive, plus the frequent visits to the vet and the cost of the meds. Cheaper food would definitely be a plus. She's taking Prozinc insulin. Did anyone else notice an increase of activity in their cats after they started insulin? Dainty has been on the insulin for about 2 1/2 days now and she's moving about more, climbing about and acting generally more alert.

Her increased activity level is a sure sign that she is feeling better.
That's good news.
 
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