There is so much I need to know....

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Mara1022

Member Since 2016
My grand cat, Ace, was just diagnosed with diabetes less than a week ago. The vet told me it's rather common in cats, especially male, over the age of 6. Ace is 7. She told me he needed insulin shots twice a day, which I'm giving him just fine. 2 units of vetsulin twice a day. She told me to call her in a few days and tell her how it's going. I did. She seemed concerned when I told her he seemed lethargic and wasn't drinking or eating as much. I suggested we go with one shot a day for a few days because maybe twice a day was too much. She agreed and so this was day 2 on twice a day. I don't see much of a change, although he's lost another 1/2 lb. in less than a week. :(

I had no idea about how serious this was or how much there was to do in order to care for Ace now that he is diabetic. For example, I didn't know that we should change his diet to wet food that was low carbs. She didn't tell me that and the handout (3 pages) she gave me didn't say that. I have no idea what "his numbers" are, nor do I know how to check them here at home. I believe she was going to tell me that at our next visit. SHOULD I KNOW THAT NOW? SHOULD I BE DOING SOMETHING ABOUT THAT NOW?

Anyway, it's been quite an awakening, how much I need to learn, and FAST, if I'm going to give Ace the care he needs now. I don't even know what to ask the vet when we take Ace back in for his first followup in a few days. Any help would be appreciated. I don't even know the questions to ask.

Thanks to you all in advance.

Blessings,
Mara :coffee:
 
Vetsulin is not really a good insulin for cats since it lasts less than 12 hours. Vetsulin was developed for dogs who metabolize insulin slower than cats.
Instead of 2 units of vetsulin once a days it would be better to do 1 unit of vetsulin twice daily.

Mara1022 said:
I told her he seemed lethargic
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That could have been due to 2 units twice daily beijg too high and home testing should have shown if that was the cause.

Most of us here test our cat's blood glucose at home using a human meter. We test before each shot and periodically between shots. We record our reading and other info in a spreadsheet. See:
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/
What are you feeding? A low-carb canned is best. No reason for a prescription food. Here is a list of commercial low-carb canned
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/shortcut-shopping-list-all-8-or-less-updated.117688/
Here is a link to home testing blood sugar
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/hometesting-links-and-tips.287/
 
I would get a monitor and start checking at home before each shot (no food for 2 hours before pre-shot test). I use ReliOn Prime from walmart. Strips are $9 for a box of 50. If he's not eating or drinking much and you were giving 2 units twice a day it could have been making him go too low, (Hypoglycemic.) I had a lot of questions for my vet and unfortunately he gave me a lot of wrong answers. You should also pick up some Ketone test strips to test his urine for Ketones. They should be right near the test strips at walmart.
This forum is packed full of useful information and wonderful people that are full of knowledge! You found the best place to be for new diabetic cats.
 
Hi Mara, welcome to you and Ace. The best thing you can do for Ace is learn to home test. Once you do that we can see how well the insulin is working and you can then switch to a low carb wet food. Here is some info to help you get started
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/hometesting-links-and-tips.287/
Please don't switch food until you learn to test because the switch may lower Ace's glucose and your dose of insulin would then be too much. Keep asking questions, as Steph said this place is packed full of knowledge!
 
You've been given good advice and I agree with the need for you to start home testing of blood glucose before you do anything else. I also agree that it's better to give 2 units of Vetsulin as two doses of 1 unit each 12 hours apart. Once a day dosing doesn't really work for cats because they metabolize the insulin very quickly.
 
Hi Mara,

Welcome to you and Ace. I'm glad you've found your way to FDMB.

As Sharon advises above don't change Ace's diet until you learn to home test because his insulin dose is very likely to need to be reduced during the transition. Here is a link to a very helpful article where you can learn about the importance of being able to home test before making the diet change so as to keep Ace safe (written by vet Dr Lisa Pierson DVM):

http://catinfo.org/?link=felinediabetes

We can help you to learn how to home test. See Sharon's link to our testing tutorials and tips to get you started. In addition to the tutorials any time you get stuck you can post to ask for additional help from members. We have members all around the globe so there usually someone online pretty much 24/7. Don't worry about which questions to ask: they'll come hard and fast as you get going. :) The FAQ section on FDMB has a lot of general advice and it's a good place to start learning more. If you're concerned about anything just post and we'll do our best to help you and Ace.

Re meter choice Relion also do the Confirm and Micro glucometers. The strips cost a little more for these meters but the advantage is that they work with a smaller blood sample than the Prime. All these models are popular choices of members here. You need to use the human meter with a cat-specific reference range and we can help you learn about that, too.

Important safety information:

How to treat hypos

For your shopping list:

Hypo Toolkit

Also monitoring for ketones is important so you'll need to pick up some urine ketone test strips for that (Walmart or other pharmacy):

Are you testing your kitty for ketones? If not, do it!


Mogs
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OMGoodness!!! You all have been so responsive and helpful!!! Thank you so very much. I'm going to read all the info you have given me and begin home testing as soon as possible. I'll be back with more questions for sure. Thank you again and God Bless you all!!! ♥

P.S. I do have a bit of a vision problem so if you can use a larger font it will be easier for me to read. I just noticed it could be done or I would have started out on a FIVE.
 
Yes I am, Critter Mom. Windows 10. Oh, silly me. I can just cntrl scroll with my mouse. I didn't even think of that. I must apologize for sounding a little scattered. I have M.S. and between that and the meds I take for it, I have some difficulty organizing and recalling my thoughts.
 
Mara1022 said:
Yes I am, Critter Mom. Windows 10. Oh, silly me. I can just cntrl scroll with my mouse. I didn't even think of that. I must apologize for sounding a little scattered. I have M.S. and between that and the meds I take for it, I have some difficulty organizing and recalling my thoughts.
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Sorry to hear about the MS. I feel for you, Mara. I have PTSD and it affects my cognitive functions somewhat similarly (especially when trying to deal with things that are new and unfamiliar). :bighug:

BTW with a Windows PC you can use the numeric keypad to change the size of text on the screen. 'CTRL +' makes it larger; 'CTRL -' makes it smaller. I find it easier than changing font size using the mouse.

There's a lot of very helpful information available on FDMB. Hopefully being able to zoom up the font size on your PC display will make it more accessible for you. :)


Mogs
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