Seeking Diabetic cats and Pilling advice in Metro atlanta

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Gweasysmom

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Actually, you could live anywhere, but I'm hoping to speak now and then with someone nearby who has a diabetic cat, so we can help each other out.

My boy, Gweasy, was diagnosed with diabetes on Oct. 7th. He was put on Amoxicillin to treat his UTI first, in hopes that would reverse the Diabetes. Last Friday night, Oct. 28th, I noticed Gweasy looking sleepy. The next day, Saturday, I got home from a class at noon and heard him cry very softly a couple of times. THis cat is NEVER vocal, so I followed him around. Looking down on him, I noticed he looked thinner than usual. Then I saw him look up at cat on the top level of the kitty condo, lose his balance and topple over sideways. I rushed him to the ER and it turned out he was in diabetic ketoacidosis.

I just picked him up yesterday evening and started his injections today. The first one went smoothly.
HOWEVER, he has Clavamox pills for his UTI and I've been unsuccessful at pilling him. He'll never have a chance if I can't get him over this infection.
He was feral when I trapped him in Feb. of 2007. He's tame now, but is really, REALLY hard to pill.
He squirms and growls and has a jaw like a vise grip.
The vet tech said she just dropped the pills into his mouth, instead of putting her fingers in there. I tried that, but didn't drop it back far enough, so he spit it out.
He bit through the pill popper.
I tried hiding the pill in his food, but he ate around it.
It finally disintegrated into a mess.

This forum appears to be very active and chock full of info, but none of the sporadic jobs I have are desk jobs, and we don't have internet at home, so I don't think I'll be able to check this forum out often enough to read through everything to find what we need.
Leaving the house to get online and read through forums is making me nervous right now, too. Actually, everything is making me nervous right now regarding him. However, I'm glad to find this forum and appreciate any advice. I'd also love to connect with someone local. Please understand that I may not respond same day.
 
Re: Seeking Diabetic cats and Pilling advice in Metro atlant

Welcome extra sweet Gweasy and MamaBean! I'm so glad you found this board! I'm not in your area but I know we have some members that are. All of us either have or have had a diabetic cat, some on insulin, some diet controlled. Can't help you with the pilling, pill popper works for me for the one that won't take them, always follow with couple syringes of water to wash it down with. What about liquid form?

Others will be along with more information but I wanted to welcome you.

Hugs,
 
Re: Seeking Diabetic cats and Pilling advice in Metro atlant

Gweasysmom said:
HOWEVER, he has Clavamox pills for his UTI
Click to expand...

Was the "infection" PROPERLY diagnosed with a culture???


but is really, REALLY hard to pill.
He squirms and growls and has a jaw like a vise grip.
Click to expand...

I don't blame him.

I tried hiding the pill in his food, but he ate around it.
Click to expand...

Don't put it in whole. Crush it up and mix it VERY well. I have yet to have a cat refuse clavamox tablets when mixed with a very tasty food.

I also have great luck with Pill Pockets - alone or rolled in FortiFlora or parmesan cheese.

But...NEVER use a whole PP as discussed on my Pilling article that Sue was kind enough to post a link do.

Again, was your cat's "infection" PROPERLY diagnosed?

See the link that Sue posted for my Urinary Tract Health page. The overuse/abuse of antibiotics is a huge hot button of mine.
 
Best pill gun ever IMHO

http://www.amazon.com/Buster-Pet-Piller-Soft-Syringe/dp/B002ZJ8GLE Got it from vet when my one diabetic tested positive for toxoplasmosis and needed 3 pills a day for 3 weeks. This is a cat with lock jaw also and I had him tested for the toxo rather than just pill him if it wasn't necessary. OMG, worked like a charm and there is also a place that will hold some water to flush down. With the meds he was on it needed to be flushed but Vinnie always ate immediately after pilling which helped make it easy also.
 
Re: Best pill gun ever IMHO

Hope + (((Baby)))GA said:
there is also a place that will hold some water to flush down.
Click to expand...

I don't understand these things considering that we need to use at least 4 ml....no more than 1 ml at a time.

What is the definition of "some water" in terms of volume and how is this thing used to administer SMALL amounts of water several times? Waiting for the cat to swallow each small amount of water?
 
Re: Seeking Diabetic cats and Pilling advice in Metro atlant

Lisa, I guess they feel that a little bit of water is better than none. I didn't use the water because I knew and watched Vinnie eat after every capsule given. A regular pill gun is useless with him and with the size of the capsule and no guarantee he would eat a pill pocket this pill gun was a blessing. Vinnie won't hurt me but he is extremely strong and trying to hold him and get his mouth open with one hand was not going to happen. I normally have no trouble pilling cats but I hit the wall with Vinnie ;-)
 
Re: Seeking Diabetic cats and Pilling advice in Metro atlant

Hope + (((Baby)))GA said:
Lisa, I guess they feel that a little bit of water is better than none.
Click to expand...

This is precisely why I do not like these products because it leads people into a false sense of security.

I often get comments from people saying "oh, I do follow with water"...but it turns out that they are only chasing the pill/capsule with a measly 1 cc of water which is too little volume to do any good which, again, leads to a false sense of security.

A similar situation arises when people think that coating pills/capsules with butter increases transit time into the stomach which it doesn't.

I didn't use the water because I knew and watched Vinnie eat after every capsule given.
Click to expand...

This is ideal but often cats will not eat after being pilled. Lucky for you that Vinnie would!

The issue of dry pilling cats is a very sensitive subject for me having dealt with cats that had to be euthanized secondary to esophageal strictures.... or cats that ended up living but suffered from tremendous pain due to humans dry pilling them....something that smart humans would never do to themselves.

This is why I speak out against products that lead people down a false path of security. I had one such product sent to me for my approval and I shot it down immediately. (I don't know if they ever went forward with the manufacturing of the product.)
 
Re: Seeking Diabetic cats and Pilling advice in Metro atlant

I have to give Shakes methyl b pills which disintergrate easily
What I do is boil some chicken(breast) and cook it so it is very moist
dont overcook! then when you take it out I take small pieces and wrap the pill
so the pill kinda "melts", for a lack of a better word, and SHakes LOVES the chicken so
it is gobbled up
 
Re: Seeking Diabetic cats and Pilling advice in Metro atlant

Dr. Lisa, unless I know the cat I am pilling eats immediately after, I have always syringed water. I also tell people I talk to when they mention pilling their cat. I also have marked on vet files in big, red letters....No Convenia and No Metacam.
 
Re: Seeking Diabetic cats and Pilling advice in Metro atlant

I just wish there was an easier way to medicate cats. I LOVE Pill Pockets but some cats won't eat them....even if rolled in FortiFlora or parmesan cheese.

Medicating cats can be so darn stressful. My Andy acts like I am killing him if I try to put any liquid down him and forget about pilling him. And even IF I could pill him....following up with several cc of water would not be a fun thing to try.

So...I really 'get' that this is not an easy issue and can be quite stressful to the human and the patient.

I am just so lucky that Andy LOVES his Pill Pockets.....medication time is turned into a great experience...not a stressful situation.

And...if a person can pill and be lucky enough to have their cat eat right afterward? That is great also but so many times we are medicating sick animals that don't want to eat.

If only we could talk to these furry critters!!

All I know is that without Pill Pockets, Andy would not be getting his medications. And without crushing clavamox tabs in canned food, many ferals would not get treated either....when and IF they need treating.

As already mentioned, antibiotics are so often used when NOT needed which is getting this world into big trouble with resistance. The biggest area of abuse is for PRESUMED urinary tract infections when no infection exists!!
 
Re: Seeking Diabetic cats and Pilling advice in Metro atlant

Hope, I use a similar pill gun when I need to go that route. Mine holds about 3-4ml, but I don't fill it full and I have a syringe a water neaby to finish the job. The benefit to these guns is that it forces the cat to swallow IMMEDIATELY because of the liquid coming too. Without it Smokey would just cheek the pill every time and spit it out at her convenience when we weren't looking.

Gweasysmom - Clavamox comes in a liquid. If you can't get the pill down him, ask the vet for the liquid. It costs more (especially when you've already paid for the pills) but you have a better chance of getting it down them as long as you are able to get it squirted into the back of his mouth.
 
Re: Seeking Diabetic cats and Pilling advice in Metro atlant

My cat was diagnosed two days ago. I am living in Athens, finishing grad school. I have a job in Atlanta I will go back to in September and I would love to have a diabetic kitty buddy. I worry so much. I have to work 11 hour days which is cutting it close with dosing. I am going to look for an apartment that avoids most traffic (I have to travel to Alpharetta for clients sometimes, others are downtown) but not sure how to do that or where to look.

During my busy season it's not uncommon to work 16 hour days. So maybe if we have opposite work hours we can check on eachother's kitties? It's stressing me out just thinking about it.

About the pills here is what I have done:

Option 1: crush pill into a fine powder and blend it with ice cream or rub onto ham and roll up the ham tight in a small piece so he can eat it in one bite.
Option 2: crush pill into fine powder and mix with a tiny bit of water so it's liquid. Shoot it in his mouth.
Option 3: pill pockets
Option 4: crush and blend it into wet food. Maybe the strong smell will hide it.

You can email me at Emk60@uga.edu. I'll send you my phone number or you can send me yours.

Liz
 
Re: Seeking Diabetic cats and Pilling advice in Metro atlant

Some medicines can be compunded into different forms for easier administering. Ask your vet if your cat's Clavamox can be made into a liquid with a tasty flavoring like chicken or bacon added.
 
Re: Seeking Diabetic cats and Pilling advice in Metro atlant

When Romeo had his UTI, the vet gave him a shot of antibiotics that he (the vet, not Romeo :)) said would stay in his system for up to 2 weeks. Within 24 hours of the shot, the last of his symptoms had disappeared.

Same happened with my non-diabetic cat, Samantha. She had a UTI that basically lasted all of December last year. She was on liquid amoxicillon and no matter what, she wasn't getting better. Eventually, the vet (this was a different one than Roe's going to) gave her the shot and she was fine within 24 hours.

I'll dig through and see what exactly the shot was - maybe your vet could do that rather than you having to deal with pills and liquids.

As an aside, Romeo's on pills now that he will.... not.... take..... so I feel your pain. He won't even eat it crushed up, munches the pill pocket and spits out the pill, etc. I'm afraid of hurting him, so he's basically off the pill (though, it's only for some tummy issues that will naturally work themselves out since his diet's been more stabilized).

Good luck!
-Stacy
 
Re: Seeking Diabetic cats and Pilling advice in Metro atlant

I am in near Atlanta and be willing to help or give advice. Just pm me.
 
Re: Seeking Diabetic cats and Pilling advice in Metro atlant

Alpandia said:
When Romeo had his UTI, the vet gave him a shot of antibiotics that he (the vet, not Romeo :)) said would stay in his system for up to 2 weeks. Within 24 hours of the shot, the last of his symptoms had disappeared.
Click to expand...

Was it Convenia? It's a very risky antibiotic to use, mostly because it lasts in the body for so long. Dr. Lisa has a warning about using Convenia on her web site, http://catinfo.org/?link=convenia
 
Re: Seeking Diabetic cats and Pilling advice in Metro atlant

thank you, everyone. I didn't subscribe to the thread, and haven't been back til now, so didn't know anyone had replied. After two varieties of pill pockets held no interest for Gweasy, and the liquid version I drove 66 miles to get had not been refrigerated before I went to get it (making it very bitter), I gave up. Gweasy went in for a convenia injection, and removal of his stone. (DId I mention a stone was found in his bladder? )

Last Saturday, he had his two-week convenia injection.
I"m aware of the danger of Convenia, so I've had more to be nervous about, but he has survived it, and now has NO MORE BLOODY URINE for the FIRST time in many months!!! yay.
 
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