Just diagnosed & SO confused

Hey everyone! First of all, I'm so glad I found this site. I've been scrolling through the forum already and finding all sorts of information, as well as new questions. Thank you all in advance for your help.

Stripes just got diagnosed about a week ago with diabetes. He and his brother are 10 years old and have always been massive cats (24 lbs, had a few vets say they would bet they're part Bengal), but the poor tubby's down to 17 lbs. I know it still sounds big, but it's super small for his frame and we can feel his spine for the first time in his life. He lost weight super quickly, we took him into the vet, and they kept him for 3 days to run tests and get him on the right dose of insulin. Tests came back negative for keto, so yay there, and they sent us home with instructions to change his diet, give him insulin twice a day, and come back every Friday for glucose monitoring. Here's where things get tricky.

After the initial bs of them giving us the wrong needles and no one there knowing what they're doing, here's the progress:
Initially he was testing at like 470-something. They thought they had him balanced at 2 units of vetsulin twice a day, but apparently when we took him in Friday he was high again, so when we got him back Friday night they said to start him Saturday on 3 units twice a day. Since then he's had loose stools, not diarrhea, but definitely loose. They want us to regulate his food so they can replicate it when they have him for the day, but these freaking people, who knows when they're dosing him (they didn't take him back till 10, and he gets it between 9 and 10, so who knows when they gave it to him and if the delay had anything to do with his levels) and if they even know what they're doing (oh yeah, give him insulin in the back of his neck, here's u100 needles for u40 medicine, we're not sending you home with insulin, oh wait no one else sells this so here). Also, we have three cats, and prior to all this they were getting friskies dry food (always down, and so they eat when they want and demand more if the bottom of the bowl is visible) and a sixth of a can of wet food (also friskies) each a day. Vet said to put them on iVet weight control, but said nothing about the wet food.

Anywho, that should be enough background I think, now for my questions:
1. What dry food is both an acceptable replacement for iVet (or just in general for the little diabetic tubster and his bubbas) AND doesn't cost $12 for a teeny bag? The three of them go through about 3 cups of dry food a day (including the wasted bits they leave in the bowl), so affordable is key.
2. We've stopped all treats and the wet food. The natives are restless. Should we continue with the wet food? Is there a specific kind they should have? The vet wants to be able to recreate home while he's at the vets, but never said anything about wet food, and tried telling us to make a feeding schedule with the dry food. And monitor how much he eats drinks and pees. Which I feel is ridiculous with multiple cats that have been fed this way for forever with no problems. Ace, stripes' brother, has had the exact same diet as stripes minus treats and the occasional table scraps, and he has no issues.
3. I've read a few things on here about home testing. I'm for it, it makes complete sense, but I'd like some recommendations, tips, tricks, anything really, about it. I know nothing about this stuff so it worries me.
4. Should stripes react every time he's poked? I check every time for wetness to make sure he got his dose, but he wasn't reacting every time. Is there a possibility that I wasn't sticking the needle in far enough? Or is he just being mellow?
5. Should I be worried about the loose stools that have developed since he's started getting 3 units? He was acting normal again on 2, but obviously that wasn't working or his levels wouldn't have been high again.
6. Any tips as far as giving him his shots? He's a domestic short hair, so fur's not a huge issue, but now that he's so small I worry about pushing the needle in too far or not far enough or hurting him or etc. Right now I usually have help giving him his shot, but I have to get comfortable enough to do it myself (and get Mom to get comfortable doing it too. Between the diabetic cat, arthritic dog, and 15 month old non-sleeping nightmare, I NEED some extra help so that I can breathe again).

I THINK that's it? I've attached a picture of the brothers getting some love in when stripes got home. Total apologies for the length of this, but this is just all so new to me, and I'm not the type to deal well with the unknown. If there's something I missed, or a question you have, or a related comment, PLEASE feel free to post. Any and all information is super appreciated. Thanks again, everyone!!!

 

1. There is no cheap dry food that is ok for diabetic cats, and only a handful of dry foods that are diabetic friendly. Even the perscription dry food is too high in carbs.

My favorite is Young Again Zero carb which can be found on Youngagainpetfood.com. Your best bet is getting both cats on fancy feast classic or Friskies pate foods. You need to keep the carb count under 10 percent carb. Some feed dr elseys clean protein chicken flavor but I find it raises my cats bg too much.

2. Wet food should be the primary diet. Fancy feast classic or Friskies pate foods. Treats should be low carb such as freeze dried meats or fresh meat, catnip, cat grass.

Here's a carb chart. Pick foods under 10 percent carb. Under 6 is even better.
http://catinfo.org/docs/CatFoodProteinFatCarbPhosphorusChart.pdf

3.
Testing is the best way to keep your cat safe and find the ideal dose.

Go to Walmart and get

1. Relion micro or confirm meter or some other brand that requires a 0.3 size sample
2. Box of 100 extra test strips
3. Box of 100 26 or 28 gauge lancets
4. Cotton cosmetic rounds
5. Neosporin ointment with pain relief
6. A treat for you

I have a video in my signature showing how I test my cat CC at home

4. The syringes are thin and shouldn't bother him. If you don't feel wetness you did good. Most of the time my cat doesn't feel it.

5. I would go back to 2 units until you start testing. 3 units is a high starting dose. It is recommend that cats start at 1 unit.

6. Sounds like you're doing good.

Feed him as much as he wants esp since he needs to gain. You can feed several meals a day, just no food 2 hours prior to the preshot test so the number is not food influenced.

 

Your kitty looks a lot like mine .

 

Hello and welcome to you and your big boy(s)!

I was just starting to compose a message that would be reapeating basically everything Janet just said, so I'll just add a few more points about the food:

1) another dry option is Dr. Elsey's Clean Protein. They'll also send samples. Even though these options are expensive, they're worth checking out if you have kibble addicts. Supposedly, cats have to eat a smaller amount of them than of "regular" non-high-protein kibble, so they may work out as less expensive than otherwise.

2) another thing to keep an eye on with wet food is the phosphorous content-- high phosphorous is not good for cats with kidney issues. I mention that because Fancy Feast (which is what I feed mine) is quite high in phosphorous.

3) What you're looking for in the food list Janet linked to is something below 10% carbs for everyday feeding, but then it's also good to keep a few cans of something with a higher carb content (a fave around here are the "gravy lovers" Fancy Feast varieties) to use to give a temporary boost to BG when they go low.

Very cute kitties you have!

 

Like the others, the main thing I wanted to say is that low-carb wet food is best way to go. No dry at all is the best option, but if you want some dry, you want very low carb. None of those are cheap. Young Again is the one I have as a treat/food topper. (You may want to read this: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/...r-more-than-just-carbohydrate-content.175004/) More often, I give my girls cooked chicken breast.

The cat food list is a great resource for finding low-carb wet foods. Janet gave you a link to one version of it. My signature has a link to the version where you can filter the results based on your selections. I find it much easier to use. My signature also has a link to the AAHA Guidelines for Diabetes Management. I recommend reading over them. You may find points you want/need to share with your vet if they recommend things that are contrary. The guidelines recommend feeding four times a day. They also say home glucose monitoring is the best way to go. When cats are tested at the vet, the results are usually not accurate due to the impact stress has. As a result, vets sometimes raise the insulin dose too high.

It is best if you test before every shot, making sure that no food has been given for two hours before. That way, you know for sure that the glucose level is high enough to warrant the insulin dose. Taking tests mid-cycle (between shots) allows you to see the impact the insulin dose is having.

Giving shots and doing glucose testing seems overwhelming at first, but it becomes routine pretty quickly.

 

OH MY GOSH you all are so completely awesome. Just wanted to put that out there before I take forever to reply to you all individually thank you all SO MUCH <3

 

Can anyone tell me what the number ranges should be for the at home Relion Micro? My guy has been in remission for almost 4 years but I am seeing signs of diabetes again. He was testing around the 80's all along even as low as 50's but now he is usually 90-120. I am trying to recall what the max number can run before I rush him back to vet and start this whole process all over again with him.

 

90-120 is fine, no insulin required.I would consider doing something if you consistently get BG >150 at home no stress)

 

I have not seen his numbers go that high yet. I just tested him and he is at 134. After eating. So I will just monitor for now. Thanks for your help