hi--my cat, Ruben has been on Lantus since October. At the time of his diagnosis, he had lost about 3 pounds from what was his normal weight. Now, he is not only regained all the weight but has added to it by at least 2 pounds. My question is who to regulate the weight gain so he doesn't get obese or unhealthy? Is the weight gain a byproduct of the insulin? I have been leaving food overnight, should i remove it? he used to cry for food during the night and early morning hours,which is why i initially started to use a feeder..thoughts?
Diabetes is a starving disease. Nutrients (i.e., glucose) doesn't get into the cells and instead, stays in the bloodstream. So no matter how much a diabetic cat is eating, the food isn't being metabolized in a way that it can be used -- hence the weight loss. Once you start supplying insulin, the glucose is getting back into the cells and the weight can be regained. The gain isn't really a byproduct of the insulin. Because most cats are ravenous all the time until their BG is under better control, we all feed our cats as much as they want so they gain the weight back.
I wouldn't pick up the food at night. It's generally better to feed frequent small meals. This strategy helps to not overload a healing pancreas as well as keep the metabolism stoked. It would probably be better to cut down on quantity. You might want to take a look at Dr. Lisa's section on feline obesity. She suggests cutting the calories of what you're feeding incrementally so the weight loss is gradual.
