Human travel + feline diabetes

Please please please don't judge me, as this is the first time I have ever dealt with anything like this.

Thinking ahead here…
River was diagnosed last weekend; the week before, my husband and I planned a trip to Paris/Amsterdam in January (10–15) that can't be canceled.

We will also be gone for about 2 days in early November (NYC for work), plus time away at Thanksgiving. We cannot travel with River; my mom doesn't "get it" and won't allow her in the house. I'll be gone again over a weekend in December, but my husband will be home. And we will be taking her with us to my husband's hometown for Christmas.

We have friends who are willing to look in, plus @Carol & Murphy has graciously offered to visit. Assuming we get this DKA recovery managed (which is looking good) and learn the dose that works for her, is…travel without too much fretting possible?

Obviously I do what I need to do for my baby but I really would like my whole life not to come to a screeching halt I'm really on the struggle bus emotionally.

 

Oh Paige! You are not the first and won't be the last person to struggle with this situation. No one is going to judge you. We all have lives aside from our diabetic kitties and sometimes it can be a bit of a puzzle to deal with the needs and schedules for our kitties and ourselves. I for one, firmly believe, we have to look after ourselves in order to be able to look after our furry kids and life shouldn't come to a screeching halt because of our feline's diabetes.

I was on my own dealing with my sweetheart and while I had a pet sitter I had used for years and trusted immensely, she would not give medication unless it could be mixed in food. So I found myself having to hunt down new pet sitting assistance who could deal with the diabetes as well as regular kitty care. Thankfully, I had recently reconnected with a cat loving friend from my childhood and she offered to learn to test BG and give shots in my absence. Needless to say, she was a godsend and I can never repay her for the help she was to me. I managed to get away for a few long weekends and a couple of week long trips including a cruise thanks to her. Admittedly I left a novelette of instructions and then stayed in contact daily at shot times just in case (my OCD tendencies!) but all the worry I put into the situation ahead of time ended up being a waste of my energy and nerves!

Sounds like you have a great support network started already. Planning ahead is really key. I cannot say there won't be some worry involved....heck I always worried about leaving my furkids even before the diabetes.... but with proper planning, clear instructions and a little communication during your trip, I see no reason why you can't enjoy your planned trips.

PS Can you please change the GA prefix to a "?". GA stands for Guardian Angel or Gone Ahead here and that is definitely not the case here!

 

LOL I thought it stood for general admission like it was just…me talking. Thank you Linda!!! <3 <3 <3

 

So. Many. Acronyms.

 

You'll be OK. Lots of experience here in handling vacations and so on.

 

I travel to Paris annually. Once Scout was diagnosed I was worried it would affect my travel plans. Instead I found an awesome pet sitter. LOL, I can’t book a ticket until I know she’s available.

She checks his glucose, gives his shots and keeps me updated every day. Surprisingly Scout is kind of a shy cat but he adores her. He sleeps on her head and gets along with all of her cats. She’s made it very easy for me to travel. Next trip: December 10th!

 

I think having a friend or pet sitter you can really trust who is willing to do some training and learning with you is everything. I fortunately have a cousin who does my pet sitting for me (if I happen to not bring her along on vacation ) and when Harley got DX'ed I asked her if she would be willing to learn how to give him a shot and test him incase I needed her to if I got stuck out of town or went on vacation. I figured the answer would be no because I know how bad needles freak her out but she knows what these boogers mean to me and I was pleasantly surprised when she said "Yes! I think that is a smart plan!" so I am just starting that now with her.

Hopefully you have a close friend, or your husband does? If not I would try looking for some pet sitters now that are familiar with administering shots maybe, and then you could show them what this diabetes is all about.

Good Luck!

 

Paige -there is no doubt this is one of the very worst aspects of FD. As we discussed the other night, it sounds like you have enough support right in your building- I think you should teach your sister (and neighbor) how to test, draw up, and give insulin. There's support on the board here about dosing both for you pre-trip and during the trip. On the rare occasions where I go out of town without Murphy, a vet tech from my vet comes over twice a day to test and give insulin. The downside of this is to work around her work schedule. My neighbor checks on him frequently to make sure he's eating. I haven't really found a pet sitter in Chicago who I trust to test and give insulin, but if anyone knows anyone, I am always on the lookout.
I know what a stressful situation this is.

 

For the longest time I thought it stood for Georgia - as in the State. LOL

 

Chicagoans might in particular contact the Medical District Vet Center to see if they post for pet sitters. They’re associated with the vet school at U of I-Urbana, which, I believe, places a lot of their students at the MDVC for training. If vet students are anything like grad students, they might be happy for the extra pocket money! (And often used to nutty hours and so may very well take the 12/12 schedule in stride.)

Assuming you live relatively near the MDVC. I just remembered Chicago is kind of a big place, lol.

 

IT SURE IS. Thanks, Jenna!

 

I'm feeling like I don't exactly have a grip on all this stuff myself yet — I think I'll be ready by the 16th to train my friend who's coming to help out for Thanksgiving, though — so I hired a company to come in while we're out of town on Monday and Tuesday of next week. They're coming for a meet and greet tomorrow to go over everything.
I'm nervous that they won't be around to test her after giving her insulin, but happy I'm getting some pros in to help out. For those who live in Chicago, they are called Pawlosophy. I will report back if they are good! (And if they're bad, lolsob)

 

Having a firm and complete grip is more likely to happen than riding a Unicorn down Happy Time Lane. Relax Paige.
We had no other option other than boarding Noah at a vet in May, definitely not a vacation. I had to walk a fine line between reading the riot act and holding the tech's shaking hand. They did not know what bouncing/Somogyi effect was until I, a mere mortal, educated them. I'll go into detail later if needed and keep an eye on this thread, the dog is calling me. It can be done.

 

I'm so relaxed you wouldn't believe…

 

Me thousand's of miles away.

 

Are you all set up Paige? You need to plan ahead and we can help.

 

Oh yes, Noah, I had already made all my plans for the first trip and have care set up for Thanksgiving too. We feel very good about the pet sitting service we hired for while we were away earlier in the week and will be using them again. Thanks for your concern! (Also, I am SO SORRY for what you went through with your emergency vet.)

 

I checked out the website of Pawlosophy - it sounds like they are mainly dog oriented- were they really able to test and draw up insulin and administer it for a kitty?