Wanted to introduce myself

[Michelle Anderson]

Hello everyone. My name is Michelle and me and my kitty wanted to introduce ourselves. Mugen is a 16 year old Blue point Siamese cat and was just diagnosed with diabetes. He is my second cat who has had this disease and it was heartbreaking to have to go through this all over again. It was even worse to think I might lose him because of my financial situation, I couldn't even afford to pay for his diagnosis, 330.00!! I don't understand how the vet can charge so much money just to tell me what I already knew, he had diabetes. Thankfully my mother helped with that bill and then they told me I'd have to pay another 400.00 and that was just the start. We talked about having him put down and I thought it was going to be my only option, but I just couldn't do it. Not for this, not for something I know can be controlled. My other cat lived with diabetes for 5 years and passed at the age of 21! So I looked for help and found this forum and it really lifted my spirits. I told the vet to just write me the script and I would take care of him myself at home. I spent all the money I had left to get his insulin and syringes and it's been a week and he's already doing so much better. I am also going to receive help from The diabetic cats in need organization which is literally a lifesaver. We will be forever grateful that there is help and we do not have to say goodbye to our family members just because we can't afford the outrageous costs of vet bills. Thank you everyone for your support and all the wonderful information on this forum. We look forward to getting to know everyone!

 

[Idjit's mom]

Hello and welcome Michelle and Mugen. Mugen is a very handsome lad, he obviously holds a place in your heart, and I applaud your resolve to do your best to take care of him. I'm also glad he seems to be feeling better. I don't know how much information you have already read here on the board. I am just going to tell you (perhaps repeat, sorry) that there are three basic components of diabetic care: diet, home testing and insulin therapy.
You can get lots of great information in the Getting Started and Education sections located on the right side of the Home Page, as well as the FAQs forum HERE
FDMB recommends a low carb wet diet, and home testing to ensure it's safe to inject insulin and to track the blood sugar levels. This does not have to break the bank! There are very affordable diet options as well as glucose monitoring systems.
To begin with, please create your signature, this is information that will display with each of your posts (see mine in the gray text beneath my response to you).
1. click on your name in the upper right corner of this page
click on "signature" in the menu that drops down
type the following in the box that opens: kitty's name/age/date of diabetes diagnosis/insulin you're using and dosage amount /glucose meter you're using/what (s)he eats/any other meds or health issues (s)he has. You can add your name, and a geographic location (sometimes the time zone matters) You can edit the signature at any time if information changes.
2. Another thing that will help us help you when you begin (or have already begun) BG testing at home is to set up a spreadsheet like the one we use here. We can all see it and look at it before offering advice: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/understanding-the-spreadsheet-grid.156606/
We want to help you give the best care possible to Mugen. Please post your further questions/concerns/issues in the Main Health forum HERE so that more members can give suggestions and feedback.
Best wishes going forward.

 

[Michelle Anderson]

Thank you so much for the reply! This is actually the first and only forum I've ever used in my life lol. I will add my signature for sure and have begun home testing and feeding Mugen the fancy feast classic wet food because of this message board! I swear that helped him hang in there until I was able to get his insulin, plus he loves it! He's already gained some weight back too.
Thank you again for your support and I'm sure I'll get the hang of posting on here and finding my way around.
-Michelle

 

[Idjit's mom]

Michelle, I am so glad to hear about the diet change (yes, that can significantly reduce the blood sugar) and that you are testing. You can also use Friskies pates that can be a bit less expensive and there are lots of the pate varieties that Mugen might like. Don't be shy about exploring the board, posting in the Health forum and please also check the Prozinc forum HERE for information about that insulin. The experienced Prozinc users will help you with any questions or issues. Please do set up that spreadsheet and plug in the testing data you have as soon as you can, so that information is available. So glad you are here!