Serious Help with newly diagnosed cat!!! PLease HELP!

[Billyfulness1822769]

Hi everyone my name is Gabby and I am totally new to this forum. My 10 year old cat, Timmy, was diagnosed with diabetes about 14 days ago. I am in need of some serious help. My vet doesn't seem to know how to help my cat in any way. Here's my story: We noticed something was wrong because usually Timmy would eat like crazy. He could eat 3 entire cans of cat food in like 5 minutes and 14 days ago he didn't want to eat at all. Not to mention, he looked really, really bad. So we thought something was seriously wrong so we took him to emergency. So to make a really long story short, he stayed there for 4 days and they told us he was diabetic. They said he had a level of about 750 and he was in diabetic shock. So they got all his levels under control and thank god, he started to eat and drink again on his own. So, they sent us home with Clavamox and 1 U of Lantus insuin every 12 hours, and a special diabetic food: I think it is low fat, Science Diet w/d wet food, i think. The day after we brought him home we noticed that he was now not drinking excessive amounts of water like he use to but he was eating like he was starving again. He went for his curve about 5 days ago and we found out that he lost 1.2 pounds in like only 10 days so now he only weighs 9 lbs. So the doctor said his level was 513 so she wanted to increase his U to 3. So we listened to the vet and have been giving him 3 U for the past couple days but he still seems like he is starving, still going crazy when any kind of food is out. So we took him back to the vet today for another curve and as it turns out he lost another 0.3 lbs since we were there a few days ago and his level was 508. Why was his level still so high on 3 U, it didn't make sense but my vet couldn't tell me why. So now the doctor said to increase it to 4 U and come back again in a few days. But I think that is a lot of insulin for a cat that only weighs about 9 lbs. Not to mention he kind of acted "spacey" and tired everyday we gave him the 3 U. And I also think it is way too quick to jump to higher doses in such a short period of days. So now I don't know what to do and I called my vet back to tell her my concerns about this higher dose of insulin and all she said was do whatever I want. I was like what?? How could a vet say that. It seems like she doesn't know what to tell me about treating Timmy properly at all. So now Im sooooo confused about what to do. I'm just looking for any help or advice I can get. Should I up his dose to 4 U or keep it at 3? Or maybe I should ask about changing the type of food or maybe the type of insulin? I don't want Timmy to keep acting like he is starving and losing all this weight so quickly. I also don't want to give him too much insulin because I don't want his levels to go too low because I know that is really bad. I also would like to start testing Timmy's levels with a meter but the vet doesn't want to sell us one for some reason. So my question is, can we buy a regular human meter to check his levels or do I have to buy a specific feline one?? I need all the help I can get because it seems like Timmy will never get any better at this rate. And I have sooo many questions and Timmy's doctor is not answering them at all. I figured the best person to ask is someone who maybe went through this same type of situation with their kitty. Thanks so much for reading my story and I thank you all in advance for any bit of advice or help!!!

 

[Jennifer and Katie]

I also just found out my cat has diabetes, although she was at 512. I would say, even though I'm not terribly knowledgeable about this subject, that you should find a new vet. It sounds like the vet has given up on your cat before even giving him a chance. There's got to be another nearby vet that is familiar with cats and diabetes.

 

[Hope + (((Baby)))GA]

If you are near a Walmart, go buy their inexpensive ReliOn meter, lancets, and test strips......also some urine test strips for testing for ketones. Ketostix tests for ketones only, KetoDiastix tests for ketones and glucose. Go back and feed Timmy what you were feeding him before. If it was only dry, feed him that for now until you learn to hometest. Once you are hometesting then slowly transition him over to canned only. I would not increase that dose at all.......get a meter and start again.

If he originally was eating canned only, then I think 1 unit of Lantus would be safe for now.....testing will tell you that.

W/D is high carb so removing that from his food will drop the carbs and that 3 units of Lantus could be too much. W/D is old school and actually is used for weight reduction in cats. No wonder he is losing weight.

Please, until you can test at home keep him at 1 unit of Lantus when you remove that high carb W/D.

 

[MommaOfMuse]

Okay very first step is Breathe....You are no in the absolutely best place in the world to help Billy.

If he is acting really spacey after getting 3u of Lantus he is probably getting too much insulin...while there are some conditions that require large amounts of insulin most cats do very well on 1u twice a day or less. Unfortunately too much insulin ca look exactly like too little, the only real way to tell is to test Timmy at home. We can teach you how, we have taught lots of folks over the internet. We just use a regular human meter like human diabetics do, the only different is we prick the edge of our cat's ear instead of a human pricking their fingers.

You will find lots of videos and tips here on home testing http://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=287 If you have a Walmart nearby they have a really nice little meter for about $9 and the test strips are very cheap compared to some of the name brand meters a package of 50 strips is like $20, you will also need a lancet device (most meters come with one) and a package of lancets...so for right around $40 you can get everything you need to start testing Timmy at home. The other route would be to get one of the newbie kits that we offer through this site. Lori & Tom run that program. Not only does testing at home let you know exactly where Timmy's numbers are at any given moment, it also gives you much truer numbers than at the vet's office, because stress raises BGs and almost every cat, even the most laid back ones are under stress at the vets. All those strange smells, strange people that aren't the momma, dogs barking etc. So if the vet bases dosage on the number they see in the office it is usually higher than what it needs to be when kitty is back home and all relaxed.

Home Testing is just one of the 3 main keys to helping Timmy. The other two keys are diet and insulin. We promote feeding low carb/high protein canned foods or a raw diet.But you don't need the expensive prescription vet foods either, most of us feed our cats Fancy Feast, 9-lives or Friskies pate style canned foods. We try to keep their food under 10% carbs (third column on these charts) and the best thing is someone else has already figured out the carb content of most of the major commerical foods. You'll find them all here http://binkyspage.tripod.com/canfood.html

Lastly insulin: On this board you will find the Lantus Insulin Support Group (ISG) there are a bunch of starred topics there that tell you all about Lantus, everything for how to store it to the protocol for using it.

Others will be chiming in shortly...But just so you know you are now part of a great big family of folks that love their SugarCats, and we will be here to answer any and all questions. And to hold both your hand and paw all the way through this process we call the Sugar Dance.

Mel, Maxwell, Musette & The Fur Gang

 

[Carl & Polly & Bob (GA)]

Hi Gabby, and welcome to FDMB
Others have already told you some good things. I'll emphasize that home-testing of TImmy's BG levels are the first and best thing for you to consider in order to help him right now.

You've noticed that Timmy acts spacey/drunk on 3u? Definitely don't want to increase that. We follow a "start low-go slow" approach which helps, combined with home testing, to find just the right dose to treat a diabetic kitty. Rapidly raising the dose can be dangerous for the cat, especially if you are changing his diet at the same time. The advice you have gotten so far is that you should probably drop his dose down to one unit and start over. I agree with that. If you pick up the home-testing supplies and can start testing within the next day or two, I believe that you will see a rapid improvement in Timmy's condition.

Given what you've said about your vet and his lack of willingness to answer questions and help tells me you'll be shopping for a new vet soon. Unfortunately, there are not too many vets who are "experts" on feline diabetes (at least that seems to be common with people who join up here). To be fair to vets however, it must be very difficult to specialize in just one area yet still make a living. They see hundreds or thousands of different animals in a year, and I don't suppose there are a large number of pets with identical conditions, so they have to know a little about everything, and can't know everything about everything. Your vet however sounds like he isn't interested in helping unless you are willing to do eveything he says without question. I don't understand how a vet like that stays in business. Your decision to seek help from people who have dealt with diabetes specifically, and your food fortune to find FDMB will turn out to be the best decision you could have made to give Timmy the best help you can give him.

Welcome to the Board!
Please feel free to ask questions. We are all here because we want to help, just like we were helped when we found this place.

Carl in SC

 

[Christie & Willie (GA)]

Good morning, Gabby!

So sorry to hear about your situation with your vet. Sadly, it is not uncommon here. The good news is, you're in the right place. My cat Willie and I have been here for almost 8 months now, and I could not be more thankful! We too had a vet giving us advice that wasn't good, but FDMB helped me to learn how to care for Willie's diabetes on my own and gave me the tools to be a great advocate for his care when we did need to involve the vet.

It does sound like your vet may be flying by the seat of their pants in giving you advice, so I would strongly recommend you head over to our lantus forum and print out the stickies at the top the page. There is a wealth of information in them, but it is ALOT to process in a short period of time, and you may have a situation where you need info quickly and can't remember where you saw it. I know my first months, I read the stickies over and over and took lots of notes on the pages. While you're at it, print out the contact information for your vet (for now), the nearest emergency vet, and if you haven't been there, the directions. If you're ever in an emergency situation, you won't have to dig for them.

The others are right... we manage FD using a specific dosing protocol and we base our dosing decisions on data that we've gotten by testing our cat's BG#s at home using a human meter. The Relion is an excellent, economical choice and is the meter I use for Willie. We also control numbers using low carb foods and we test for ketones regularly to ward off DKA. The other thing you can do right now is to create a hypo tool kit. Use a shoe box or small bag and in it put karo syrup and a selection of high carb foods from the list. We often use the karo for emergencies where the cat can't/won't eat. Otherwise, we like to start with high carb food as it will not only raise the numbers, but the food will help to keep them up. Karo works fast, but it clears the system very quickly, so the cat can be in danger of crashing again. Another thing to print is this sticky on how to treat a hypo. The key is to be prepared.

Please continue to ask questions as you have them!!

 

[Just-As-Appy]

I just wanted to add that your vet has started you on a good insulin (Lantus) and started you at a good dose. If you begin home testing, you won't need to take Timmy to the vet except for his regular immunizations or any other cat problems that arise. Diabetes is a condition that really is best managed at home with experinced advice. If your vet cannot give you the advice that you need, then there are many people on this board who live with a diabetic cat (or 2 or maybe even 3!) and we are all willing and able to offer suggestions to help you and Timmy.

Take small steps. There are 3 keys to managing diabetes - diet, insulin, and testing. It is a balance between the first 2, with the assistance of testing. You have been advised to return to your previous wet diet, making sure that it is lo carb. It was also suggested that you remian at 1 unit. Once you start testing (both blood and ketones), you can post your numbers and then the fine tuning can begin.

Hang in there. you'll do fine.

 

[ohbell]

Hello to Mr. Timmy!!!!!

Mommy has found this place just for you!!! And she will get all the help, guidance, and hugs necessary to get you on the right track!

Hi to Mommy and welcome!

FEAR NO MORE, you have found the best place ever for your Timmy! He will be fine in no time and I really cant add much more at this time that has not already been said, but do want you to know the meter I use is the same one from walmart and I think I got everything including the neosporim for under 35-40. WE were all set, instructions on meter very easy to read, mommy nervous as heck (is ok), treats ready, lap ready, and we did it!!!!!!

My sugar Bean was very patient as mommy calmed down, learn what she was doing, got into a rythm and now testing, treat and love....all under 3 min. unless Bean wants more lovin..... ;-)

I changed her diet after dx (4/21), fully canned food on 5/9 p.m., calmed down after learning all of this (5/1- lol), and was able to start reducing insulin on 5/14, to no insulin by 5/25...still testing and praying that she would stay low! I have updated her spreadsheet if you would like to take a look and perhaps set up one for Timmy! It is very easily done, and sometimes mommy gets buzy and the meter I use will record up to so many days (cant remember how many), that I dont update the spreadsheet like I should. But it is wonderful and I was looking over it this am, and felt very lucky to have it!

As you can see from the spreadsheet, my first test (that I succeeded at, as I did try about 4 times and did not get it done) was +2 hours after the shot! And she was only 26! This place right here help me soooo much, stayed with me for over 4 hours, feeding hi carb immediate foods, hi carb long term foods, and explaining it all to me as I went along! MY SUGAR BEAN MADE IT!!!

I felt sooo bad for her and made a promise to never ever shoot insulin before testing again! She thanks me for that promise everyday that I get to see those beautiful eyes of hers smile at me!!!!!

Welcome to you and Timmy! :smile:

 

[oscarthecat]

My cat was diagnosed 2 months ago and had super duper high readings as well. Unfortunately I did not heed the advice of start low and go slow and saw no change in numbers due to rebound as I brought his insulin dose up too high too fast.

I smartened up and fed nothing Fancy Feast, reduced the insulin to 2U every 12 hours and kept on the home testing to make sure he was coming down. Now his numbers are consistently green, he's back to the weight he was before this all started and his insulin has been reduced to just 1U.

Definitely home test, it takes the stress out of shooting and worrying about what's going to happen while you're sleeping or working. I freeze some wet stuff and put it down before bed and before I leave so it will be defrosted and edible by the time Oscar needs a carb boost.

You're going to find yourself watching your cat ALL the time but it will get easier as you become more comfortable with management.

I would definitely look for a new vet. They may not all be experts but it would be nice if you could have someone you could phone with questions and expect to actually get some help.

Try to relax and use this board as much as you can for guidance and support.

 

[doombuggy]

Welcome! Our story was similar, but Cedric's highest number was about 379 (have to check the spreadsheet below). He was eating 1/2 cup of blue Buffalo weight mgmt dry (which never helped him lose weight BTW) and 1 3oz can of Fancy feast (all flavors) per day. once dx'd I immediately changed him to BB's Wilderness line of dry and canned grain free high protein low carb food, along with some Wellness and Evo cans also. I also started testing by buying a Relion micro meter at Wal-mart (about $9) and some test strips ($20 for 50, at the pharmacy counter). I buy the 28 gague lancets at Target because they have caps. I bought a sharps container at Wal-mart for a few bucks to dispose of the needles and lancets. Syringes and Lantus I got from the grocery store pharmacy with his script.

the key to Cedric's remission was a few things: my vet has experience with diabetes in cats & dogs (hence the Lantus); I found this site with all of the info (main site) and suggestions (mb) whihc got me to switch his food type and alos give him 4 small meals per day instead of 2 meals. When the group finally convinced me to take away the day (I had changed it to the grain free, high protien, low carb and also reduced the amount while increasing the canned portion to 5.5-6oz) on 5/19/11, look at the drop in his BGs (about 100 points). Saturday 5/21 in the pm was the last time he received insulin. His number have been normal since Sunday 5/22 am.

Granted, Cedric will be 6 next month, and I think I cought it early, as I noticed the water intake in march and we had a vet appt on April 21. He was 17.6 lbs on 4/21 and weighed in at 15.14 lbs on 7/29.

Hugs to you and welcome - you will be able to handle it!