The vet?

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Lizzy'sGuy

Lizzy'sGuy

Member Since 2018
I'm not sure how to get started here but I guess I'll just jump right in. My cat Lizzy was diagnosed by her vet with diabetes 5 days ago. He called me with the diagnosis that night after my girlfriend had taken her to him that day so I was pleased with his quick response. The problem I had was that he told me not to change her diet and that he would have insulin for her today, but after reading alot of posts on here I immediately went to the local pet food store (they are very small and have NO purina or large brand foods) and got her some BFF wet food and she immediately, over the course of those 5 days stopped peeing as frequently and started grooming again but when I asked him about this change today on her second visit he said that she has to eat the extremely expensive and full of fillers and by product purina db food and that testing her on the ear would cause excessive and uncontrollable bleeding I have watched alot of the videos of you guys home testing your cats and I feel this is a better and more accessible option than the weekly 60$ tests he wants me to do along with the 130$ monthly insulin and db catfood he insists she needs I love my cat but I've already spent almost 600$ in the last week and he says he will have to give her monthly tests that equate to the 300$ from her appointment last week I am willing to give up camping trips I've already cancelled to make sure she will have a long and happy life but I feel like I'm being given the run around from a vet who cares more about my money than my cat. oh and he also told me he was running aids and leukemia tests and he said he would send them but I have yet to receive any test results other than the ones from the day we brought her concerning the full blood work. My cats name is Elizabeth aka lizzy and she is only 6yrs old I love her with all my heart and she is a feisty cat that loves to cuddle and then run around like a crazy woman
-Josh
 
Welcome Lizzy's guy. You may wish to read the info and stickies (yellow tags) at the top of the forums. Idjit was diagnosed in the 3rd of April, we learned to test his blood, he learned to tolerate it, we learned to give him his insulin, and changed his diet. The information I found on this board, and advice I received saved Idjit's life. His ears are fine, it was doable. Why don't you create your signature and tell us about your fur baby. Post questions in the Main forum, Help is here.
 
Welcome to the forums! I'm new here as well and I can also attest to the fact that you CAN test the ears just fine, and you don't have to spend all of that money to keep your kitty healthy. By learning to test my cat's blood at home with a cheap $15 blood meter from walmart, I've saved myself $100 every week for expensive vet blood testing. I promise you can do it, I know it's very scary at the start. I'm still new to it but getting more confident with every ear prick. We're here to help you!

Like Love-Paula-Aka-Woodyswife said, check out the food charts and find the cat foods with the lowest amount of carbs. I feed my cat Tiki Cat, it has zero carbs but sadly is kind of pricey. I really cant afford it, but I'm so determined to see if I can get my cat diet-controlled. Find the food with the lowest carbs you can afford and get it, and do some massive research here on the forums. The people and information here have helped me out tremendously so far! Don't let that vet suck you dry.
 
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Lizzy'sGuy said:
I'm not sure how to get started here but I guess I'll just jump right in. My cat Lizzy was diagnosed by her vet with diabetes 5 days ago. He called me with the diagnosis that night after my girlfriend had taken her to him that day so I was pleased with his quick response. The problem I had was that he told me not to change her diet and that he would have insulin for her today, but after reading alot of posts on here I immediately went to the local pet food store (they are very small and have NO purina or large brand foods) and got her some BFF wet food and she immediately, over the course of those 5 days stopped peeing as frequently and started grooming again but when I asked him about this change today on her second visit he said that she has to eat the extremely expensive and full of fillers and by product purina db food and that testing her on the ear would cause excessive and uncontrollable bleeding I have watched alot of the videos of you guys home testing your cats and I feel this is a better and more accessible option than the weekly 60$ tests he wants me to do along with the 130$ monthly insulin and db catfood he insists she needs I love my cat but I've already spent almost 600$ in the last week and he says he will have to give her monthly tests that equate to the 300$ from her appointment last week I am willing to give up camping trips I've already cancelled to make sure she will have a long and happy life but I feel like I'm being given the run around from a vet who cares more about my money than my cat. oh and he also told me he was running aids and leukemia tests and he said he would send them but I have yet to receive any test results other than the ones from the day we brought her concerning the full blood work. My cats name is Elizabeth aka lizzy and she is only 6yrs old I love her with all my heart and she is a feisty cat that loves to cuddle and then run around like a crazy woman
-Josh
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Your vet doesn't know how to do a proper at home ear test. He must be aiming for a vein and that's why he said it bleeds a lot. No you aim outside the vein and all you get is a tiny drop.

You don't need the expensive perscription food Most of us feed fancy feast classic or Friskies pate foods. Bff in cans is good. The pouch food is usually high carb because of the gravy. Look at the food chart above and check.

I have a video in my signature showing how I test my cat CC at home.
 
Hi Josh,
Your instincts are spot on.
Canned food 10% or less is what diabetic cats need, not the expensive so called prescription dry /canned food most vets recommend.
I don't think your vet knows a lot about feline diabetes. It might be worth shopping around for a more supportive vet who is happy for you to test the blood sugar. You need a vet who will work with you as part of the team to help Lizzy. Saying that you would cause uncontrollable bleeding is absolute rubbish. I tested my cats BSL in the ears for years and never had a problem....the only thing that can happen is as Janet says, if you hit the vein it bleeds more than usual. All you need to do is firmly hold the two sides of the ear with a cotton wool swab or a tissue for a minute and it will stop.
What insulin is the vet going to use.? The best insulin for cats are Lantus, levemir or Prozinc/ PZI.
Because you have swapped over to the lower carb canned food, you will need to make sure the blood sugar is retested before you start any insulin as it could well have dropped from what it was when Lizzy was having the higher carb food.

Ask for copies of all the blood work she has had....you have paid for them.

We recommend you start to home test the blood sugar. It will not only keep Lizzy safe, it will save you expensive vet bills.
Ask lots of questions. We are very happy to help. We have all been where you are now. It is a steep learning curve in the beginning but gets much easier.
Good luck and trust your instincts!
Bron
 
Thanks everyone. I had already changed her to bff canned but he said that carb levels don't matter because protein gets turned into glucose in cats so I was unsure if changing was the right thing to do but you have done alot yo ease my mind. Currently he has me giving her 1 unit of Vetsulin morning and night 12 hours apart after feeding and I am also looking into a couple of other vets to find one who has experience with diabetic animals and will be more supportive Again thanks for helping me this is a little overwhelming and I'm just trying to be a good caregiver to my cat I will post future questions in the main forum so see you all soon
 
Welcome! I will just say that I have found that most vets are pretty clueless about feline diabetes. It is frustrating and infuriating. You really have to educate yourself and do what you learn is the right thing to do. I hope you find a vet that will work with you.
 
Lizzy'sGuy said:
Thanks everyone. I had already changed her to bff canned but he said that carb levels don't matter because protein gets turned into glucose in cats so I was unsure if changing was the right thing to do but you have done alot yo ease my mind. Currently he has me giving her 1 unit of Vetsulin morning and night 12 hours apart after feeding and I am also looking into a couple of other vets to find one who has experience with diabetic animals and will be more supportive Again thanks for helping me this is a little overwhelming and I'm just trying to be a good caregiver to my cat I will post future questions in the main forum so see you all soon
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By that logic diabetic people could eat cake all day long. Of course the carb content matters.
 
Testing her on the ear will NOT cause "excessive and uncontrollable bleeding". Sorry for being so blunt but what I see is your wallet suffering excessive and uncontrollable bleeding. You've come to the right place, more than 16,000 members. I'm only on my second diabetic cat, someone here once had five in the house. Promise you'll stick with us and we'll get this all sorted out.
 
Hi Josh,
your vet obviously knows little about feline diabetes........giving cats protein does not turn the protein into glucose. That is completely wrong. A high protein, low carb diet is perfect for diabetic cats.
As you look for a new vet, ask them if they use Lantus, levemir or prozinc insulin. They are long acting insulins and very suitable for cats.
Come on over to the main forum where there are more eyes. While we are not vets, we have lived with feline diabetes 24/7, often for many years and that is the best way to gain knowledge about anything.
We are all cat lovers and the health and safety of our cats is our priority.
 
Your vet obviously knows little about feline diabetes.
We hear this over and over again. I'll add a few more things before you go to the main forum.
>I said before there were 16,000+ members here so we're not some nut-job site. Many members have been here for years, some have posted upwards of 40,000 messages so just give us a chance.
>There is no such thing as a stupid question here. We're talking about the life of a cat, a living thing with a soul.
>DO NOT be intimidated by doctors. Ask why, is that always the case, is there another treatment regimen you just don't believe in.
 
Thank you, I am already feeling more positive about keeping her healthy and that this isn't going to be such a huge thing to deal with I am hoping to go pick up a home tester today as I am concerned with her improvement before putting her on insulin with the lower carb food and she has seemed a little lethargic since giving her insulin so last night I gave her a snack a couple hours after her insulin as some people have suggested because I was worried about her behavior suggesting low blood sugar i will post my first result in the main board tonight if i am able to get a tester of not tonight tomorrow for sure
 
Lizzy'sGuy said:
Thank you, I am already feeling more positive about keeping her healthy and that this isn't going to be such a huge thing to deal with I am hoping to go pick up a home tester today as I am concerned with her improvement before putting her on insulin with the lower carb food and she has seemed a little lethargic since giving her insulin so last night I gave her a snack a couple hours after her insulin as some people have suggested because I was worried about her behavior suggesting low blood sugar i will post my first result in the main board tonight if i am able to get a tester of not tonight tomorrow for sure
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Don't forget to get lancets. The ones that come with the meter are too thin. Look for 26 or 28 gauge.
 
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