some advice needed!

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scissorchik

scissorchik

Member Since 2011
Hi there. My 10 year old orange tabby Basil has been regulated with diet and off insulin since last year. Up til now he has been fine, and random curves have all been in the normal range.

Yesterday he seemed to be acting not himself, jumping in the bathtub to drink when I poured a bath. I tested him last night after he had eaten and he was at 194. I tested him this morning before eating and he was at 230. I just got in from work and tested him and he is at 160. In the past, he has never been above 115, and was able to come off insulin after 9 days.

I'm a bit concerned, and am wondering if his numbers are an indication that the diet isn't doing the job? He eats friskies pate and he splits a can with his brother for breakfast and dinner and has a frozen meal throughout the day while I'm at work.

I will continue to test him and do a curve this weekend when I am home all day. I guess I am scared that the numbers I'm getting are so much higher than what I've dealt with in the past, and just need some advice.

Thanks,

Leanne
 
Has Basil been to see the vet lately? Something like an infection or needing a dental can throw a cat out of good numbers. Has he had a dental lately? It might be worth a blood test to check him out and have the vet look in his mouth to see if there is anything out of sorts. I presume he is eating fine? Dr. Lisa recently published a new protein/fat/carbs chart on http://www.catinfo.org so you might want to double check the foods you are feeding.
 
Hi Wendy.

No-he hasn't had any dental work done or gone to the vet in a while.

He is eating fine and isn't showing any other symptoms. I am going to be monitoring his food closely for a while, as he is the type to eat his and then his brother's meal while the brother is off playing.

I think I'll start to feed his brother Monkey up on the counter, where Basil can't get at it. That way I'll know he's not over eating.

Thanks for your advice. I'll be switching vets since we moved to the other side of town, so I'll get in touch with them to get his records.

:)
 
If he'll let you do it, lift up his lips and look in his mouth. Redness at the gum line is a big clue for dental infection.

Also, remember to watch for ketones - see my signature like for Secondary Monitoring Tools if you need to refresh yourself on that.
 
I continued to test Basil last night and this morning. He went from 160 before eating to 235 after eating, then 217 a few hours later and then 253 this morning.

I'm starting to freak out. There doesn't seem to be a pattern to his bg. Seems fine otherwise, although eager to eat. He walks away with food left in the bowl, so he's not gorging himself.

ARGH!
 
The numbers dont look good ..sorry. Might want to take him to the vet for a checkup and then consider putting him back on insulin. Dont freak out though, even if he does go back on insulin its not he end of the world.. a little bit of $ and inconvenient for sure but cats can be happy and healthy on it.

This is what happened to my Tiggy - he went into remission really quick and he managed to hold it for a few months but then suddenly that was it.. I am trying hard to get him back to where he was but no luck so far.

See what the vet says - could be a dental infection, bladder infection or anything. What kind of Friskies are you giving him? Some of the pates are over 10% carbs so you might want to choose a lower carb one http://www.catinfo.org/docs/Food Chart Public 9-22-12.pdf
 
I agree, you should probably take him to the vet to have him checked out. It could be that he needs a dental or has some other infection going on. If so, within a few days, you should see some improvement with the BG levels.
 
Just came home from the vets $268 lighter. This is a new vet since I moved and the other one was across town.

They were shocked that he had been diagnosed with diabetes without a urinalysis or any other tests than the regular bloodwork. He explained that alot of cats are type 1 and stay on insulin indefinitely. He also looked at his mouth and his back teeth have alot of tarter buildup. I explained that I had tried multiple times to brush his teeth but ended up with wounds and scratches, so I gave up.

I have to separate him from his brother and get a urine sample to give to the vet. They gave me this 'nosorb' stuff and told me not to be surprised if he doesn't go pee for 3-4 days-that he won't want to use the litterbox with it in it. I am NOT looking forward to that!

I am pretty stressed about this, but if there is a chance that this is something other than diabetes and we caught it early its a good thing.

Thanks for your words and ideas. It helps to be able to reach out to you guys who understand.

Leanne
 
Since his blood is outside the normal range (50-130 or 2.7-7.5 since you are Canadian) then its likely its the diabetes again. Although there may be other issues exacerbating the diabetes.

However there is a quick cheapish way to be sure its diabetes.. go into shoppers or walmart and buy diastix - they are like $20. Get a tablespoon of clean cat litter and add a tablespoon of water. Mix well. Dip in the diastix. If its clear - then now get a tablespoon of peed-on litter, mix with a tablespoon of water and dip in the diastix. If it changes colour then he is peeing out sugar.. which means he is over the renal threshold and the diabetes is affecting his system. You will have stix left over but they are useful to track the cats progress with insulin too - asides testing his blood.

Did you say what flavour Friskies you are feeding?
 
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