My Monkey

I am just starting with my cat and he doesnt like the dry food the vet gave me. They told me to give it to him to nibble during day. I bought instinct high protein with 17% fat. I give a handful and he eats it in between can food. I have a meter coming but not until next week. So can I get some feed back? Thanks

 

Welcome to FDMB, the best place you never wanted to be! This is a place with a wealth of information about feline diabetes and effective treatment, plus a world wide supportive community.
It would be very helpful if you would create a signature so that Monkey's information is available when you post. That way we can see right away when the diagnosis was, what insulin, food and testing equipment you are using.
1. Setting up your signature (light grey text under a post). Here's how:
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) Be sure to SAVE when you are finished.
2. Another thing that will help us help you when you get started BG testing at home is to set up a spreadsheet like the one we use here. You will see how the trends and patterns emerge, and members can review his/her progress before offering suggestions or advice:
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/understanding-the-spreadsheet-grid.156606/
You can review basic information in the Getting Started and Education sections on the Home page. And going forward, it's best to post questions, concerns and issue on the Main Health forum HERE, so that more members can read your messages and respond. It would be great to begin with the food question there, as we have found that most dry food is too high in carbs for our sugar cats, and recommend a low carb wet diet to help the blood sugar levels go down.
We will help with diet suggestions, tips on transitioning, how to provide food through the days or nights, plus testing help.
Best wishes going forward

 

Welcome! Lots of knowledgable cat parents here to help you get your kitty to a healthier place and feeling better.

 

Thanks for info. I am trying just to keep my feeding and shots o schedule.

 

It's a whirlwind at first, no doubt. We recommend a low carb wet diet for our sugar cats, less than 10% carbs. Dry food is just too high in carbs and cats need extra water when eating dry. Dry food is also a common culprit with urinary stone formation. You can freeze wet food in ice cube trays and leave a foodsicle or two out for Monkey to snack on. Many of us use timed feeders that we can set to open at certain times, and many have little packs that you can freeze and put under the food trays.

You can review information about feline nutrition at www.catinfo.org, and the food chart Dr. Pierson has on that website is also linked HERE Not all canned food is low carb.

Many of us at least start out feeding Fancy Feast Classics or Friskies pates, because you can find it locally in supermarkets and it's affordable. However, changing to a wet low carb diet from a dry diet or a higher carb wet food should be done gradually, as low carb food can significantly lower the blood sugar. You should also be testing and recording the BG data, to see how any food changes are affecting Monkey.