Struggling newbie here!

Hi!
My 10 year old cat was just diagnosed about a month ago and I feel like I'm drowning...
For the last 3 weeks we have changed her food over to a completely canned diet. She was on 1 unit of insulin every 12 hours but after doing the 'curve' tests last weekend and really not seeing and change in numbers, the vet recommended increasing the insulin amounts to 2 units every twelve hours. She is still ravenous with her food, like she's starving ALL the time. The vet recommended their prescription diet (as did a friend of mine that has a diabetic cat) but everything I've read says to stay away from it? How much food should I be feeding her? Is there a specific brand I should be buying? The vet also suggested a high quality kitten food. She's very thin and doesn't seem to be gaining weight no matter how much I feed her...
I'm trying to read as much as I can, but my head hurts.

Thanks in advance!!

 

Hi!

Long story short - she is. She is eating but all that energy is being blocked so her body can't use it. The pancreas secrets insulin which is the "key" that is used by the body to release the "energy" in the blood glucose so the cell can do what it needs to do....cell repair, build muscle, provide energy for movement.

The best way to help is to get her diabetes regulated but for now, let her eat!

Several members use the Fancy Feast pates. There is a list by Dr. Lisa that provides information on the as fed carb values of lots of commercial food. You are aiming for something between the 4-8% range. Click Here. Every cat is different but you will be able to find something she eats and is the right carb content for her. The one caveat to this advice is that if you are changing food you need to home test your kitty. With that recent increase to the insulin and lowering carb intake can lead to a very scary hypo situation. Here is some information on hypos, I have this printed and on my fridge.


We can help you with regulating your cat. The first thing though is home testing, it is the best way to keep your kitty safe and for the members here to help guide you through the process. Do you home test? And can I ask what insulin you are on?

Just so people don't ask you the same thing over and over you can set up your signature so the information is available. Here is how.
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/editing-your-signature-profile-and-preferences.130340/.

And if you are looking for advice, we do have a spreadsheet that we use here that tracks your kitty's tests and will help you regulate your kitty.
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/understanding-the-spreadsheet-grid.156606/.


Breathe - this is doable and it will take time to take it all in. So, not to overwhelm you with more information, I will leave it here.
If you have any further questions, please come over to our main forum and ask away! There are some very knowledgeable people there.

 

We can help. This is just an intro board so you may want to write on the main health forum with specific questions so more will see it.


To answer your question about how much to feed her.... If she's hungry and under weight, as much as she wants. Just no food 2 hours prior to the preshot test. Perscription food is not necessary. Most of us feed fancy feast classic or Friskies pate foods.

The best way to get regulated is by knowing if a dose is ideal.... And the only way to do that is by home testing. If you are interested in learning how we can help.

 

Welcome you and your kitty!
Come on over to Main Health (<- click) and post your questions so more eyes can see

 

Well said. The vet's own food isn't bad, it's just overpriced. We'll help you get her doses and numbers right first before moving on to weight issues.

 

Thank you all for all the great information & the welcome! I will head over to the main forum and post there.