Newbie trying to figure out the food thing

Hello Everyone - My 13-year old Tabby, Maisy, was diagnosed yesterday. Because she also has thyroid issues, her vet suggested I feed her twice a day (7 a.m. and again at 7 p.m.) with 1/2 can Hill's y/d food and 1/2 can w/d food. She's never consumed an entire can in her life. She eats about 3/4 of the mixture but then starts begging for food around 2 p.m. I'm not sure whether to let her eat again or make her wait until 7 p.m. At her heaviest, she was 10 lbs., but she's now 6.5 lbs., so she needs to gain weight. The vet also suggested I leave out for her some of the dry y/d food, too, but I've seen conflicting info about the perils of dry food for diabetic cats. Can anyone please advise on how often I should be feeding her? Thank you!

 

Hi and welcome Carolina and Maisy
What insulin are you giving?. And what dose are you giving Maisy?
The best food for diabetic cats is low carb 10% or under. Canned/wet food.
Dry Food is too high in carbs and is not good for cats anyway.
Depending on the insulin given, you will need to feed before the shot and then you can feed during the cycles as well.
Here's is a chart with suitable foods.
Look for 10% carbs or under
https://catinfo.org/docs/CatFoodProteinFatCarbPhosphorusChart.pdf

Areyou going to home test the blood glucose levels? We strongly advise that you do to keep Maisy safe.
We can help you with this.

Here is a link to useful information for new members
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/new-how-you-can-help-us-help-you.216696/

Ask lots of questions. We are very happy to help you

 

Thank you for the warm welcome. Maisy is getting 1 unit of Lantus 2 x day. Our vet advised me to feed her first and then give the injection. She didn't mention anything to me about testing glucose levels at home, but Maisy will go spend the day with them in 2 weeks for them to check her levels. Thank you for the new member link - I'll take a look at it tonight! ***I just took a look at carb levels in the Hill's y/d (the food she needs for her thyroid issue), and they are quite high. This is concerning, but she's not going to be able to go off this particular food without consequences.*** So frustrating!

 

Hello and welcome to FDMB!

Most vets don't mention home testing - they either discourage it entirely or assume caregivers don't want to put up with the extra work. You can take Maisy in for the glucose curves like you've been doing but they get expensive very quickly and provide inaccurate results, as kitties get stressed by being at the vet and in turn, raises their blood sugar. Let us know if you need any help picking out a glucometer - they're much cheaper than vet visits and keeps her safe on a daily basis.

Are you located in the US? I'm assuming by your username that you live in the Carolinas like me. If so, we usually feed Fancy Feast Classics pate or Friskies Pate. There's plenty of other options, these are just the most common ones around here! I would avoid fish based food since she has thyroid issues. Feed her as often as she needs; she won't gain weight again until her blood sugar is regulated so don't stress about getting her to gain weight first, it needs to happen the other way around. Feeding multiple times a day is going to help her pancreas more than anything!

 

Does your cat have hypo or hyper thyroidism?

There are pills you can give for hyperthyrodism, to lower the thyroid hormone levels. Or you can get that medication in an easy to use pen that pushes out a prescribed dose. It's a gel you rub into the cats ear that gets absorbed through the skin. Methimazole.

Options for you instead of using the Hills' Y/d food if Hyper T.

 

Hi there - I think I'll want to look into testing her blood sugar myself once I feel like I have a handle on giving injections, etc. I am in the Carolinas (Raleigh). She is on prescription food for her hyperthyroidism, so I can't feed her the yummy stuff. I need to have a lengthier discussion about this with the vet, I think, especially if I can try the Methimazole that Deb mentioned above.

 

How does the food help hyperthyroidism?

 

This is a link to a blog post by Mark Peterson, DVM who is a well respected veterinary endocrinologist. It specifically deals with how Hill's has been marketing Y/D food for quite some time. The company has done an excellent job of hoodwinking vets into regarding the food as equivalent to prescription medication. The FDA has actually weighed in about this practice. (FYI - if the blog doesn't open, look on the menu bar on the right side and under Diet & Nutrition, there's a link to y/diet. )

This article is the 2016 AAFP Guidelines for the Management of Feline Hyperthyroidism. The Y/D food can have a positive effect on thyroid levels. However, from the guidelines, there appears that there is still a fair number of questions about the long term use of an iodine restricted diet. I suspect this is the case since the food company does not need to do any sort of clinical trial to substantiate their claims or investigate long term use.

I would consider talking to your vet about these issues versus the use of methimazole.

@Jennifer R. - the food restricts iodine uptake by the thyroid which limits thyroid production. (See the Guidelines I linked for more information.)

 

@Sienne and Gabby (GA) tha is an interesting article by Mark Peterson.

 

Hmm. I just read the Peterson article and will mention this to my vet. Maisy's been on the y/d for 2 years, and it's worked really well, but it sounds like I need more information about all this. Thank you!