Dry food question

My husband and I are scheduled to go out of town for a week, leaving on June 16th. My son said that he could come by before and after work to give Max his insulin shots and to feed him and the other kitties. Because I'm home most of the time now the kitties are used to having breakfast lunch and dinner. When we are gone for that week however this will not be the case.

I was considering getting some high protein low carb dry food that can be left out during the day. I don't like the idea of the kitties going 12 hours without eating, and I can't imagine that it would be good for Max's blood glucose levels. It seems to me that allowing Max to graze all day on the right dry cat food would keep his sugar levels more stable. My son said that he could deal with giving Max his shots, but testing his glucose is a no-go (don't blame him either... I hate doing it). I'm curious about what other people's opinions might be on the subject. And just FYI, I had Max's spreadsheet up and going, until I messed it up. I'm still trying to fix it as soon as I do I will put it back up LOL.

 

If you could get an auto feeder and have your son set it each morning to feed them a wet food lunch, that would be ideal. Then, they could stay on their regular schedule and have the food that is better for them.

If that is not an option, and you decide to go with dry food, I would recommend Dr Elsey's Clean Protein Chicken. Just make sure to have him leave out a measured serving rather than dumping a bunch in a bowl. I used to use it as a testing treat for Mia and as a wet food topper to get her started eating it. I was finally able to get her completely off of dry several months ago. (PureBites freeze dried chicken is her food topper now, and home cooked chicken breast is her testing treat.) I would not want to offer her dry now for fear of making her crave it again. I don't know if you had to transition your babies from dry to wet, but if so, you might want to be cautious about bringing dry back into their world.

 

The dry food idea was also considering my 2 other kitties . . . . Max LOVES canned food, never missed it; Chloe will eat dry food but prefers wet; Bailey is a dry food cat. I would have my son come by in the morning, do the wet food and shot thing. When he gets ready to leave, pull up the wet food, and put down the dry stuff for the rest of the day. He will come by later that evening (usually works 10 hr shifts), do the wet food and shot, then put a SMALL amt of dry food for the night. It seems to me that grazing through out the day would be a better option for glucose levels . . . keep them more stable?

The auto dispenser sounded promising . . . but to get one for 3 cats, dry and wet food . . . it's over $125. That is the one thing I can't swing right now $$.

 

Hi Julia. I've never done it, but I know other members freeze canned food and leave that down for their cats. I imagine you could either freeze it in chunks or add a little water to it and fill up ice cube trays. That way, maybe you could avoid using the dry food altogether and your son could put down chunks of frozen food when he leaves the house. As it thaws, it would be available for your cats to graze on. Also, I think there are feeders with five different compartments, and you could set all five of them to open when you want them to have a snack. I have no idea what that costs, and I certainly understand money being an issue.

If you do leave down dry food, I agree with @FurBabiesMama with her suggestion to buy Dr. Elsey's Clean Protein Chicken, as it's low in carbs and high in protein. It's expensive, but a small bag will go far if you're only using it sparingly for the week that you're on vacation. And it's more than likely less expensive than buying a feeder.

 

I've just been reading your remarks column of the SS and see that Max dropped to LO on the night of the 5/30. There are no recordings of that in the actual SS. Do you think you could record the numbers you took in the SS please as it is really important information for anyone reading your SS thanks. If Max drops like that again, give him some honey or Karo in some high carb food. If he won't eat, rub some honey or Karo on his gums and check the blood sugar 20 minutes later and keep checking until he comes up to a safe level. LO is dangerously low and you were lucky he was OK. Make sure you have some honey or Karo and some high carb food available at home at all times.
Increasing in 1 unit increments is not a safe way to do it ( most vets do it this way), but the risk is you will go past the best dose and also kitty may get too much insulin. It is far safer to increase in 1/4 unit (0.25) increments.
Would you mind putting Prozinc insulin in your signature so we know what type of insulin you are using please. Also what type of meter you are usomg. Thanks..
I am going to tag @Rachel, as she uses Prozinc, to help you with dosing and also what would be a safe dose for you to get your son to give while you are away.
Can you get a before bed test each day to see Max is safe. Cats often drop lower at night.
I would definitely organise for your son to leave out some food each day and night while you are away as it is really important Max has access to food during the cycles, especially if there is going to be no one there. Will the other cats eat the left out food all at once or are they grazers?

 

Good morning! I need to take some time to look over your SS and get a better idea of what's going on before I can give you any good advice on a vacation dose. I've tagged this post to come back and take a look tonight to help with dosing...and we'll figure out a good vacation dose for sure before you leave. If you could get the before bed tests that Bron suggested and let us know more about the feeding situation..whether leaving food out will work or if they will just graze...that will help. I have to head to work in a few, but I'll check in later tonight when I'm a little more awake and not rushed and see if I can't help out more.

 

Am I right in thinking you dropped from 4 units to 1 recently? Can I ask why? It looks like he is still in pretty high numbers and that sudden drop in insulin is a little scary. Are you checking for ketones?