Cat won't eat. Insulin?

My cat won't eat. I finally got him to swallow about a teaspoon of plain greek yogurt. It looks like he didn't eat anything all day and he didn't eat much this morning. I didn't give him his insulin this morning because his blood sugar was 139. I tried to do a BG this afternoon but I could NOT get any blood to the surface. I rubbed his ears. I heated them up with a sock full of heated up rice. . . . .nothing . . . .I poked him 4 times. I felt soooo bad. Do I need to give him insulin????

 

Looking at your SS did you give him the whole 1unit dose tonight?

 

If you can you should try to syringe feed him or get him to eat more. Not eating can cause more problems. Honestly, 1 unit on a 600 BG reading last night got him down to a 139 AMPS this morning so I think 1 unit is too much insulin. If you haven't given him the shot I would cut down to .5 or .25 units and continue to push food until he eats a fair amount. Keep trying to get tests in. +2 or +4 at least.
Try poking two or three times at one time and maybe you'll get some blood that way. (I think you were the one having problems with getting a drop)

 

No. I just now was able to get BG which was 541. I went ahead and gave him one unit just a couple of minutes ago. He just now started vomiting. Projectile vomiting.

 

Ok. that's better than 1 unit on a 300. I would try to get some tests in tonight. I'm not positive when vetsulin usually peaks. Glad you got a test! Keep trying to entice him to eat. Have you called the vet to see what you might be able to do at home for him until you can get him seen?

 

You are going to have to monitor Ninja very closely tonight because with that major drop last night albeit at a lower PMPS reading, I think 1u may be more insulin than Ninja needs. The fact that he is not eating is more concerning. Will he eat some of the Young Again or did you just try the canned food he's not overly fond of? Give him anything he will eat right now.

For future reference, you cannot base your dose of insulin strictly on the BG reading at pre-shot. You have to take into consideration how low the insulin dose is taking him and last night you don't know how low he went. It appears however that he likely went below 139 at some point. The big question is by how much and that 541 now is probably in part a bounce from the lower number this morning. With Vetsulin, it's very important to have food on board before the insulin starts working in an hour and a half or so.

I suggest you get him to eat something right away and test again in about 30 minutes to see what he has in store for the night. Please post your next test result and we'll help you keep an eye on him.

 

I agree-- Vetsulin without food is very concerning. At this point, it doesn't matter what he eats, as long as he gets some food on board.

Is he showing signs of being unwell other than the not eating and the projectile vomiting? Lethargy, etc.?

One more question: have you ever tested for ketones?

 

Did you notice that I said he vomited??? He is drinking, drinking, drinking water.

No, I haven't been able to catch him in his box. I saw him a few minutes ago, but by the time I got the urine strip out of the box he was through. I tried pressing it into the litter but it did no good. He's walking around now like he feels fine.....just thirsty.

 

I have some sweetened yogurt he might eat. Would that be OK?

 

What is it sweetened with? There are some artificial sugars that are toxic to cats-- I'd stay away from anything like that.

 

Is your cat lethargic?

 

I syringe fed him about 20ml of Sheba chicken entree pate slurry. Do I need to do more?

 

No, he's not lethargic.

 

I have more success with urine ketone testing by having a shallow long handled spoon sitting near the litter box ready to go. That way I can get it under his backside to catch a little urine without fiddling with the strips container. Once I have a bit of urine I then take out a strip to test it from the spoon. Timing is important as you've found out.

 

Thanks for the tip, Kris. That totally makes sense!!

 

20ml of Sheba should be a good start. We just have to hope he doesn't vomit again. So if I am calculating correctly he got the insulin about 1 and a half hours ago. I'd test him again any time now to see if he's dropping yet and then we'll hopefully be able to see how active this cycle is likely to be.

 

Have you checked Ninja's BG yet? You need to monitor him at least until +3 or+4 post shot to ensure he's not dropping too much and if he is dropping a lot possibly beyond +4.

 

I worry because when my kitty had DKA he wouldn't eat and had projectile vomiting, but he was lethargic. I hope is fine and has no ketones.

I used to keep a tiny plastic cup (like the kind you get ketchup in at fast food restaurants), near every litter box. If I thought he was heading towards a litter box, I would quietly wait around the corner or non-chalantly out of sight until he started peeing, and then once he started he wouldn't stop peeing while I walked to him. I would just put the little plastic container under his tail and collect a tiny bit of pee, and then I would take my sample to where my ketone test strips were.
Sending no ketone vines and eating vines to Ninja.

 

I had read to put a garbage bag over the litter box and the cat would pee on it. I did it this morning and it worked. He had a trace amount of ketones. He won't eat on his own so I syringe fed him before his shot (1/3 unit) and I was going to syringe feed him again before I left for work but he hid and I couldn't find him. Sigh . . . . He's too smart for his own good!!! I could not get a BG because I couldn't get any blood out of his ear. I'm thinking I need a larger lancet. I have no idea of what size I'm using because it isn't listed on the box. Any suggestions???? He gets aggravated at me poking his ear and at that point he's done and not going to cooperate at all!!! Is there any hope???

 

The best lancets would be 26 or 28 gauge. It's printed on the box of lancets. They're intended for people who use other sites to test than finger tips. Have you tried the tips that we give here on warming the ear, massaging it, etc.?

Trace ketones on the test strip are a warning to pay attention. He needs food, insulin and as much fluid as you can get into him. You need to monitor closely because ketones can build quickly. If he starts looking ill, lethargic, etc. the vet needs to see him. The earlier treatment starts the better.

 

I know it is serious when ketones appear. I had planned on syringe feeding him again before I left for work. Obviously, he heard me making preparations and hid. I looked everywhere for him. Now, I'm at work and can only sit here and worry. I will be able to leave at 3 p.m. If he isn't doing well, I'm carrying him to the vet.

 

Trace ketones and him not wanting to eat is concerning. It's very important to make sure he gets enough fluids and food so you don't have to skip insulin shots. Skipping shots when ketones are showing up even when they are only at trace levels is not advisable as that can cause the ketones to increase and lead to DKA which is not treatable at home, very expensive to treat and potentially life threatening. I see you gave him 0.33u this morning which is fine. I think it would be a good idea to call you vet, tell them about the trace ketones and lack of appetite and see whether they want to see him. Test for ketones again later today because they don't show up in the urine until a day or so after they start. Anything above trace and Ninja needs to be seen immediately. Did you leave some food out for Ninja to graze on during the day?

 

Yes, I left out food. I left Sheba Chicken Entree Pate and Evo Cat and Kitten dry food and plenty of fresh water. I ordered some Young Again yesterday. They don't ship on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday. I ordered it late so I'm probably in for a long wait.

 

I was able to get a BG reading this afternoon. Take a look at the spreadsheet, if you will, and let me know how much insulin you think is appropriate for this evening. I'm thinking .5 If I can get any food in him. I have been syringe feeding him today.

Also, does anyone else have problems with the lancet device. I put in the lancet and it almost always drops below the level of the cap so that when I release it, it doesn't come up high enough to draw blood.

Ninja just now threw up again. Could there be any correlation between the BG test and this problem? I thought he appeared better today . . . . .

 

For more control on the poke, try freehanding with the lancet rather than using the device.

If he is developing ketones, he needs insulin-- please shoot at least the 0.5, if you've gotten food into him recently and can monitor tonight I'd go for it with the full 1.0 to try to keep the ketones at bay.

 

Some poker devices have levels or depth of poke options. Move goes from 1-5. We use it on 3. Someone's if you put the lancet in but don't push it all the way down into its slot it will poke better. Only works if it's a snug fit when you put the lancet in. I think free handing it would be easier and quicker. You can cut the hair or shave it down on his ear so you can see exactly where you're poking. If his ears are hairy.

 

I don't think testing has anything to do with the vomiting. Have you been able to recheck the ketones again today? I'd keep a close eye on that right now.

As for the lancet, you are not alone. The lancet is meant for use on fingertips where there is fleshy tissue that will sink into the lancet cap hole making it reachable by the lancet. Every lancing device is a bit different but I found I had to remove the cap on mine. I could still use the device as intended but I could then see what I was doing. Some lancing devices have the depth setting in the cap. Even then I think removing the cap would work better. I use a folded up makeup pad and my finger behind my girl's ear for support but some folks use a little med bottle or a partially used roll of tape for support which might also help you more readily get some blood.

If you can some food into Ninja and he holds it down then I think 1.0 would be fine. If you are not able to get a decent amount of food into him or he vomits again, I'd try to back the dose up to 0.5u or the 0.33u you did this morning. I agree with Nan that 1u would be ideal but do have a concern about being able to bring his numbers up if he should start dropping fast. Do you have karo or honey on hand just in case?

 

One caveat to the above suggestions...... we need to know what the pre-shot BG is before any final decision about dose should be made to keep Ninja safe. If he is over 300, I think the 1u should be fine. If he is between 300 and 250 then I'd go with 0.5u unless you think you can draw up 0.75u or thereabouts. Under 250 I think perhaps the 0.33u might be safer. Please let us know what his pre-shot reading is.

 

Linda, there's a PMPS on the spreadsheet of 384-- that's part of why I was making a recommendation on the high side above.

 

I saw that after I typed my message I assumed we didn't have a reading yet given the previous message about not getting blood so didn't check SS right away. Lesson learned! Should have checked the sheet before typing. 1u should be fine as long as Ninja get some food and keeps it down.

 

I landed up taking Ninja to the vet. He is in the hospital for a few days. He had moderate ketones in his urine. The doctor said he may be there a few days.

 

He'll be better off there where he can be treated and monitored. It's hard to do this properly at home.

 

While I'm sorry to hear you had to take Ninja to the vet but also very glad you were testing for ketones and caught the rise. He's in good hands getting the care he needs now.

 

I'm relieved to hear he's at the vet. I hope he recovers quickly and is feeling better soon.

 

Thank all of you for your support. I am heart broken that he isn't here with me, but relieved on the other hand that when he comes home his quality of life will be so much better. He was so pitiful.

 

I'm sorry that for you that Ninja has to stay at the vet, but that is the best place for him.

 

I know Ninja is where he needs to be. This is his first time away from home at night. I just wish he could know it was for his own good and I will be coming back. . . . that I haven't deserted him!

 

I know it's hard to leave him there but he needs vet care. Those ketones have to be eliminated to avoid DKA and it's hard to do what's needed at home.

 

I'm glad Ninja is at the vet too. He's lucky to have you as his mom. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for both of you.

 

I am suppose to hear from the doctor between 9 and 11 this morning. I'm thinking he won't be coming home right away. He was in a bad place and getting worse. Maybe this will put him right and we can go on to enjoy many more years together. His brother, Baby, has been looking around for him. He doesn't know what to think about Ninja being nowhere to be found.

 

The vet will get Ninja feeling better and you will enjoy many many more wonderful years together. It's hard being separated from them and even harder when their furry sibling is missing them too. for Baby and for you! Do keep us posted. We're sending healing thoughts and prayers to Ninja!

 

Thank you, MrWorfMen's Mom. Love the kitty picture!!! By the way, my Ninja looks almost exactly like your boy! I love black cats! Well, actually I love all cats! Please keep sending the healing thoughts and prayers to Ninja.

Update: The vet called and said Ninja was extremely dehydrated. It will take at least 24 more hours to get him fully hydrated. At that point, they will address any other issues including regulating his insulin. Ninja is still is not eating.

 

Thanks for the update. We worry about all the critters around here as if they are our own.

I'm so sorry to hear Ninja has to stay at the vets longer but the ketones need to be thoroughly flushed from his system and that can take awhile. The problem is that ketones show up in the blood first and in the urine 24 hours or more later. That's why we all sound alarms even with a urine test showing a trace. Ninja is getting the care he needs and that is what's important right now. Maybe Ninja would feel more relaxed if you took a piece of worn clothing or something with your scent on it to put in the cage with Ninja? He might even be persuaded to try eating something if you were offering it to him.

I love all cats too but the black ones are definitely special. Their eyes are just so stunning, their coats look like mink and I can't understand for the life of me why they are usually the last ones adopted! P.S. Menace is a little girl and she lives up to her name......does Ninja live up to his?

We'll be keeping Ninja in our prayers here and sending continual healing thoughts.

 

Cross fingers that Ninja recovers well.

 

Yes, Ninja lives up to his name. He wants to be friends with everybody, but if that doesn't work out, he doesn't mind doing what needs to be done. My neighbors have two cats that are indoors only. He wants so bad to be friends with them, but all he can do is look at them through the window. . . . .so cute!! See the picture below. Is he not the cutest thing ever????? I'm like you MrWorfMen's mom. I love black cats. People that won't adopt black cats are missing out on some wonderful and beautiful companions.

 

Sending healing thoughts to Ninja and support to you
Been reading the post throughout the day. Hoping for a good recovery!

 

OMG! Great pic! Ninja is gorgeous or should I say HANDSOME! I love the pose and the look on his face! My girl is very camera shy. It's hard enough to get a really good shot of black cats but Menace just sees the camera and immediately high tails it elsewhere so I have to be very sneaky to get good shots of her! It looks like Ninja co-operates much better for pictures! He is absolutely adorable!

Menace is a very laid back, co-operative girl except when she is up to no good! She isn't a lap cat. She loves her pets, brushies and having a conversation with me (she has some Siamese blood and is very vocal!) but she hates being picked up. When she does decide to honour me with a little lap time, I relish it and don't move till she decides to get down.

 

Menace is definitely a beauty!!! She would have to be.....she looks like Ninja. I kind of like vocal cats. Ninja isn't vocal. Baby is vocal when he's not getting his way. Like Menace, Baby doesn't appreciate being held.

 

You have two very handsome boys! I hope Ninja is recovering well so he can go home soon.

 

Baby is adorable too. A tuxedo! I adopted Menace sight unseen. All I knew was that she was either a tux or black. Never bothered to ask because it was a friend's parent's cat's kittens and I really didn't care which she was ....I just wanted a little girl with some spunk to keep my young male company since his only companion at the time was a 12 yr.old. While they got along fine, they weren't well matched energy wise. The pic below is the fellow I got her to keep company and it was love after first hiss. He was a little feral found at 5 days old, raised by humans and we named him Worf after the Star Trek character.

Vocal can be cute but it can also get to be too much at times. There are times when Menace drives me crazy because her tone suggests something is wrong when in fact she is just in a particularly playful mood and of course I go running to see what is up. She instigates play fights with her youngest brother and then yells like he's killing her. Admittedly he can get carried away sometimes but she can be a bit of a drama queen too!

 

You are so blessed....two beautiful cats! Honestly, I think all cats are beautiful. I love dogs too, but cats are my favorite. I think female cats are easier to get along with in general. Do you find that to be true in dealing with your babies?

I understand about the drama. I have it here too!! My two fight quite a bit. Baby is so much bigger than Ninja that Ninja doesn't stand a chance. That doesn't stop him. He will see Baby walk by and run after him and bite him on the butt. I can't wait to get him home and to get the drama started again!!!

 

Glad Ninja is getting fixed up at the vet. He's stunning! I just had to share my special love for black cats too! This is my Bubba. We lost him 6/10/2013 from CHF and kidney failure. You can see the crumbs on his chin from his food! He tipped over the planter. His favorite place to sleep.

 

He is definitely a beauty!!! Your other baby is just as cute as he can be!! What a cute face!!!

 

Steph, Bubba was a black beauty too! Such a sweet face! And your other baby is quite the cute cuddler!

I have found male cats are much more cuddly and demonstrative of affection but if they don't like what's going on, they are harder to handle. I had another female who like Menace was not a lap cat but you could maul the daylights out of her as long as you loved on her where she was. She too was fairly co-operative.

I'm even more blessed. Pic below is my handsome senior citizen who's heading for 19yrs old in April! He was my Mom's cat but I wanted him from the day she took him home. He is a Dr. Jeklyll/Mr. Hyde character. A real cuddler with family but scary as they get when riled. Has a caution on his file at the vet!

Anxiously waiting to hear how Ninja is doing today!

 

Same here

 

Yipee!!!!!! Oh happy day!!! Ninja is better and will probably get to come home tomorrow afternoon. Vet said he was eating and moving around. I get to visit with him this afternoon. I was so happy I almost cried.

 

Yay! Bring an unwashed T-shirt or pillowcase for him to cuddle with.

 

I certainly will and I'm taking his brush!!! He loves that!

 

I have bought two lancet devices and neither have worked. I just don't know what I'm doing wrong. It could be the hair on his ears, but it's not a lot of hair. I have it set to the lowest point, but it still doesn't reach over the top. I guess I will have to freehand. I think the skin on his ears is especially tough for some reason. I bought 26 gauge lancets and got blood that way but I really had to jab and he felt it.

 

Cute cat family, Linda.

 

Oh Paula I am so thrilled to hear Ninja is doing so much better. That is wonderful news and makes my day as I know it has yours! Have a wonderful visit with him and give him some scritches from us too!

As for testing, have you tried taking the cap off the top of the lancing device? The cap is fine with a fleshy fingertip but the ear is so thin and flimsy that there just isn't much tissue to sit up in the hole where the lancet pokes. Also try putting a thin skim of Vaseline where you intend to poke his ear to help bead up the blood and keep it from smearing into the fur. Sometimes it's necessary to gently massage the ear from the bottom up to the poke site to encourage bleeding. I have to admit the fact that they are black can be a bit of a disadvantage because the poke site can be difficult to see.

 

Thank you guys for your support!! As for the BG testing, I have massaged, put warm rice on his ear, stroked up to the injection point and most of the time I get nothing. I will try the Vaseline trick. I haven't tried that one. He isn't an easy patient to work with lately. Do you think the extreme dehydration may have been the problem? BTW, the doctor said he is still somewhat dehydrated.

 

Yay Ninja is doing better! Actually, it wouldn't surprise me if it was more difficult because he was so dehydrated.

 

Dehydration will definitely make getting blood harder. Hopefully they'll have his tank filled when you bring him home! Make sure you stay calm and cool when testing. They pick up on our emotions and if we start getting perturbed because we can't get a sample, they will often get less co-operative. Some folks sing to keep themselves calm. I talk to my girl and continually tell her how good she is. You can try giving Ninja a low carb treat like Pure Bites to bribe him to be a good boy or give him brushies after testing successful or not. He will learn to connect something he likes with testing. He will grow more capillaries as time goes on but in the meantime, try to avoid the vein unless absolutely necessary. They definitely will feel a poke in the vein more than along the very edge of the pinnae.

 

Just visited Ninja. He seems better than I've seen him in a long time. I have no doubt he was thrilled to see me. He kept rubbing me, purring, and making air biscuits. He also kept walking to the door. I sure did hate to leave him!!!

 

Yay!!!! So happy to hear he's doing so well!!!!

 

Thanks, Nan. It's a HUGE relief for me!! BTW, your Amber is a gorgeous girl!!

 

I can just imagine how hard it was to leave. I remember when Menace was first diagnosed and she too stopped eating and was hospitalized for a few days. It darn near killed me to leave her! Cried driving home! And then her younger brother got sick and ended up at the vets too. We never figured out why he went off his food but it seems he likely was pining for Menace because he was right as rain when she got home. I will never forget the torment of those few days.

 

Awe You'll be home in your mommy's arms soon, Ninja.

 

Funny you should say that, but his brother, Baby, has been in bed for the last two days. That's not like him. It's been nice weather outside and he's usually out stalking some poor little critter. I guess he must be depressed!

 

I think sometimes they are far more bonded to their "siblings" than we imagine they are. All you can do is give Baby a little more attention tonight and let him know you are feeling better about things. He's probably picked up on your emotions too during the last few days!

 

Yes, Linda, I guess you are right. You don't think about animals picking up on emotions, but I'm sure they do. He's laying on my bed right now looking like he's lost his best friend. I've never seen him like this.

 

Oh, poor little guy!!!! He misses his buddy so much...

 

I thought they didn't even like each other......who knew?????

 

Like humans, there are some who seem to be very aware and demonstrative of their emotions and it's hard to watch them because all you want to do is make them feel better but it's hard because we can't explain to them what's happening. All they know is that their friend has suddenly disappeared whether they are tightly bonded or not. I think sometimes we underestimate the bond they share. Give Baby lots of love and tell him Ninja is coming home soon and he'll be fine.

 

So happy he's feeling better! Love those air biscuits!

 

Air biscuits are the best!!!

 

Any update on Ninja? We are thinking about both of you!

 

Thank you for asking!!! I'm leaving in about 5 minutes to pick him up and bring him home!!!!! The doctor increased his insulin to two units. Scares me a little. But it's a happy day that Baby and I have been looking forward to!

 

Yeah! I'm so happy for all of you. Keep us posted and give Ninja some scritches from us!