Advice Needed for Grey Boy

Hello Friends,

Grey Boy was diagnosed with feline diabetes in Spring of 2009. Thanks to the advice of the FDMB members, we were able to get Grey OTJ in just a couple of months. We switched to only canned low-carb cat food and treated him with Lantus insulin. Throughout the last year, we have spot checked his blood glucose and watched for signs of trouble.

Grey has been doing really well, but today he seems to have suffered a relapse. His blood glucose has been running between 83 and 118 (he's usually in the 70s). He has been vomiting, urinating in odd places (our laundry basket and bathroom), and having problems with diarrhea. Naturally, we contacted the vet and are expecting a call soon.

On top of all this, at the beginning of June, we rescued two abandoned cats. We kept both of these cats in our garage and eventually found a home for one. At the start of July, we began introducing our two cats (Macy and Grey Boy) to the one cat we were trying to keep (Mrs. Whiskers). Grey has not been happy about the new addition. There was a lot of hissing at first, but after we got some Feliway, that slowed quite a bit. Last night, we shut Mrs. Whiskers in the garage (where Macy and Grey Boy's litter box is located) in order to give Grey a break. Unfortunately, that may have made the issue worse since Grey Boy and Macy only had access to Mrs. Whiskers' litter box. For today, we gave Macy and Grey Boy the run of the house and put Mrs. Whiskers in our daughter's bedroom. I guess the bottom line is that we are wondering if the stress of introducing a new cat may have caused this recent relapse.

We really could use your help. It seems like you guys had some important advice about starting cats out on Lantus. If anyone has any insight to share, we would be most appreciative.

Thank you,
Debbie

 

Hi Debbie

I'm not sure if you're considering re-starting Lantus, but I certainly wouldn't if the highest you've gotten is 118 in a stressed, potentially sick cat. You should bring him and bring a fecal sample to the vet and get everything checked out. I assume you tested both cats for FeLV/FIV, dewormed them, deflea'd them, etc. before allowing your cats access to the new cat or the 'residence' of the foundling cats?

 

Yes, good clarification. The new cat was fully tested and dewormed prior to bringing her inside our home. Thanks for responding.

 

I'm with Jess, a vet check is in order. And yes, the stress of a new introduction CAN lead to inappropriate urination and other types of stress related issues. Hopefully that will be all it turns out to be, and once everybody settles in, all will be fine, but a vet visit will tell the tale.

 

That's good. I'd still submit a stool sample as parasites can shed intermittently and may not have been caught by a single deworming, and depending on the dewormer it may not have caught all the different types of worms.