Coping with a diabetic cat?

Our 10 year old Burmese and best friend is tonight at the vet 200kms away after being tested with high glucose. They are going to keep him for the weekend and some of next week to decide if he has diabetes. He has high glucose levels but also appears to have and infection. We live a long way from the vet and I worry if we decide to go with insulin injections whether we will cope. If something goes wrong like 2 weeks ago when my husband fell through a roof we and had to feed our pets enough for 2 days and travel 300 kms to follow my husband to hospital, would our cat survivie if he missed an insulin dose in such a situation? I don't want to lose him but not sure what to do?

 

Your cat should not be kept at this place for the weekend. Is this even a 24 hour facility? The vet can do a test called a fructosamine which will confirm or deny diabetes. Did your cat have the symptoms of excess drinking and peeing ? weight loss?
These are the most common.
Missing a shot or 2 won't kill a cat it will just make things a bit harder to regulate
If your cat does have diabetes just know that this is a very treatable disease with a high quality of life. Come back and let people here know Best of luck

 

Welcome Joan,

It is scary to learn your cat has diabetes, but you are in good company. We all were scared and overwhelmed, but we survived and so did our kitties! This disease is really so much better than many of the things your cat could have. Diabetes is treatable, at home, which is a huge benefit for you, being so far away from your vet.

Your first job is to educate yourself so you can be your cat's best advocate. Read the FAQ's: http://www.felinediabetes.com/fdmb-faq.htm and this info for newbies: http://www.felinediabetes.com/newdiag.htm Print out what you read so you can reread. It is a lot to absorb, but invaluable information.

We advocate wet, lo carb food (http://www.catinfo.org), insulin as needed and hometesting (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zE12-4fVn) This approach has been successful for hundreds of cats. Everyone who answers you has had or has a diabetic cat and treated them successfully - either well regulated or off insulin and in remission.

I hope your vet is doing a fructosamine test - the definite test for diabetes. If there is an infection, often that will raise the bg levels, and then sometimes just diet can make a huge difference. As you test your kitty blood glucose levels at home, you will be able to see exactly what is happening.

 

Welcome Joan,

My name is Taline, and I'm the mother of a newly diagnosed cat Bibo (1 month ago). I've been on this site ever since bibo was diagnosed. I never left him at the vet's office, I did my own curve and tested him many times the first few days. I understand your cat might have an infection, that's a different case, but if it's only the diabetes, you can monitor it at home, as long as the vet gives you the insulin.
everyone is very helpful here, and will support you, as long as you post your questions everyday, and establish a spreadsheet to better monitor his blood glucose levels and post them on the spreadsheet so we can see them to.
Also, diabetes is treatable in some extent for cats. Some cats will become insulin free in few weeks. Please keep us posted and be optimistic, we will help ou through this as much as we can.

Taline

 

Hi Joan. Welcome Mac.

It sounds like you are outside the US, and given the distances involved, sounds like a remote part of Canada, Australia, or New Zealand. Folks will need general information about your location to give you advice because there are difference in the way we measure blood glucose (BG) levels, the availability of certain insulins and diabetic supplies, and food choices. You can go into your user control panel and indicate you location, just as mine (over there ----> by my cat's picture) says I'm in Wilmington, Delaware, US.

In your situation, I would have left Mac with the vet as well. Distance, not knowing what it takes to treat diabetes, the possibility of complications with a newly diagnosed diabetic, the maybe infection. This will give you plenty of time to hang out with us, learn the process and lingo of treating a diabetic cat.

Would Mac survive if he missed his insulin injections for two days? Probably, but there is no guarantee. It depends on how well he is doing at the time such an emergency came up. If he is not regulated at such a time, he might have a major setback. I believe if I were faced with such a situation, I would take Mac along. I would find a pet-friendly hotel or friend to stay with.

You may not know yet, but diabetic cats can become diet controlled, and no longer have a need for insulin shots. Sometimes that happens quickly, sometimes it takes awhile, and sometimes it never happens. But your three most powerful tools for getting Mac back to health are insulin, low-carbohydrate wet food, and a glucometer to measure his BG levels at home. You can start learning about all this while he is with the vet, and be well prepared to treat him when he returns home.

We are here to help you through this.

Venita

PS--Hope your DH (dear husband) is doing OK after his tumble through the roof.

 

Just want to say thanks for all your support. I wrote to you guys last night as I felt pretty desperate, really grateful to hear there is support out there. Sorry my post was a bit confusing, we live in outback Australia on a sheep station. Oscar is the name of my cat, I had to let him stay at the vet yesterday as he hates travelling and they wanted to test him again after they get the infection under control. They are good staff at the vet clinic they recently had one of our dogs there and took wonderful personal care of her.
Oscar had seemed to be drinking more water over the past couple of weeks and when I emptied his litter it was very wet, he has always been a water baby (drinks out of the handbowl when we clean our teeth etc.) so we didn't realize at first until his water bowl level dropped fast this week. He hasn't lost weight but he has been eating more lately. He is an inside cat and a huge part of the family. My 21 year old son said this afternoon that he will help so that sounds great - and thanks for asking hubby is much better now. I am really relieved to hear that Oscar would survive if his dosage was missed in an emergency so after reading your messages I am feeling more hope. Also I will check about cat friendly places to stay in the city.
I will know more on Monday after he is tested again. I will ask about the test you mentioned to ensure it is definite.
ONce again a big thanks to you all.
Cheers Joan

 

Joan,
So happy to hear that your husband is doing better. And believe me Oscar will too!!!! We're all sending him our good wishes and we're here to support you. Please post a new topic each day with Oscar's name included on the subject, so we can closely follow you. Like I said earlier, this disease is treatable. Cats respond better than humans do, especially when their diet is switched to wet food only.
My experience with a newly diagnosed diabetic cat is so recent, so you can ask me questions any time. However, more experienced members here will advise you on the dosage, once you start home testing and giving Oscar a shot. Hopefully he won't need it.
Best of luck to you and Oscar, and welcome to FDMB. Hugs...
Taline