Leilanikon
Member Since 2017
Hi everyone. I just adopted my kitty TK (The Kitty) from a family member who no longer wanted to deal with him. 
They thought he had chronic renal failure (based on their close relationship with google) and thought he was doomed to die. My husband and I stepped in, took him home, and 3 months later can't imagine life without him!
Of course, his kidneys are fine. What my family member was seeing was the first signs of diabetes. We just got him diagnosed but he has not started on insulin yet. I'm currently waiting for my vet to return my call. I've worked with animals (wildlife mostly) my whole life, but of course when it's your own animal all knowledge and instinct seem to fly out the window! Hopefully that's temporary.
We already got a home tester which I used for the first time today. He was a champ and, thankfully, an easy bleeder. I gotta admit though that I'm confused by his numbers. His initial wellness visit 2 weeks ago he measured 410. Of course, he was stressed out. So on to our next vet visit, keeping it quiet and easy, and he's 360. Now at home (granted this is based on only 1 time with a brand new meter) he's 205. This seems like a huge range to base an initial dosing suggestion on. And based on a lot of my reading, my vets initial suggestion of 2 units twice a day sounds really high. I'm going to push for a lower/slower start, but almost wonder if I should wait a week and get more data first. I'm a scientist and data nut and this can be a problem sometimes - always thinking I need more information before acting on something, sometimes to the point of never acting. :/
My other hesitation is that I want to change his diet first. He had a hard switch to wet food when we took him in. He was fine with the switch but only reliably ate one food, which happens to be a gravy food higher in carbs than I'd like. He was also getting a kibble snack mid-day to help regulate his weight loss. So now the kibble is gone and I'm re-trying other can foods and some freeze-dried raw. Wouldn't it be better to get his diet re-regulated and his numbers more consistent (what even is consistent in a sugar kitty?!) prior to starting insulin?
And of course there's the other end. Diet changes and home testing is great, but I also know that the earlier treatment is started the better overall for chances of remission and general organ health. So should I just give myself a week, no more? Or is there some flexibility?
Anyway, most of this is to get my thoughts out and organized and not go crazy waiting for the vet to call me back, but I would love any feedback anyone has. This site has been a great source of information and I'm thankful for everyone's input and support of each other.
They thought he had chronic renal failure (based on their close relationship with google) and thought he was doomed to die. My husband and I stepped in, took him home, and 3 months later can't imagine life without him!Of course, his kidneys are fine. What my family member was seeing was the first signs of diabetes. We just got him diagnosed but he has not started on insulin yet. I'm currently waiting for my vet to return my call. I've worked with animals (wildlife mostly) my whole life, but of course when it's your own animal all knowledge and instinct seem to fly out the window! Hopefully that's temporary.
We already got a home tester which I used for the first time today. He was a champ and, thankfully, an easy bleeder. I gotta admit though that I'm confused by his numbers. His initial wellness visit 2 weeks ago he measured 410. Of course, he was stressed out. So on to our next vet visit, keeping it quiet and easy, and he's 360. Now at home (granted this is based on only 1 time with a brand new meter) he's 205. This seems like a huge range to base an initial dosing suggestion on. And based on a lot of my reading, my vets initial suggestion of 2 units twice a day sounds really high. I'm going to push for a lower/slower start, but almost wonder if I should wait a week and get more data first. I'm a scientist and data nut and this can be a problem sometimes - always thinking I need more information before acting on something, sometimes to the point of never acting. :/
My other hesitation is that I want to change his diet first. He had a hard switch to wet food when we took him in. He was fine with the switch but only reliably ate one food, which happens to be a gravy food higher in carbs than I'd like. He was also getting a kibble snack mid-day to help regulate his weight loss. So now the kibble is gone and I'm re-trying other can foods and some freeze-dried raw. Wouldn't it be better to get his diet re-regulated and his numbers more consistent (what even is consistent in a sugar kitty?!) prior to starting insulin?
And of course there's the other end. Diet changes and home testing is great, but I also know that the earlier treatment is started the better overall for chances of remission and general organ health. So should I just give myself a week, no more? Or is there some flexibility?
Anyway, most of this is to get my thoughts out and organized and not go crazy waiting for the vet to call me back, but I would love any feedback anyone has. This site has been a great source of information and I'm thankful for everyone's input and support of each other.
, so after you've had a look around feel free to mosey on over to Feline Health for specific questions!
