Doobie the magnificent cat

I'm thankful to have found this forum! Our 9-year-old boy Doobie was diagnosed in early April, with sudden, significant weight-loss as the only indicator that he wasn't thriving (3 lbs in 3 months). Turns out his blood test results showed BG of 395 and a few other abnormalities that could be Pancreatitis, or not, and heart issues, or not. Our vet advised that we get the Diabetes under control first and then look at the other potential health issues.

In the first few weeks I became very frustrated with the process and attitude of our vet. We really liked this clinic...when there were no serious issues with our Doobie or with his best pal Luca (female Chinook dog). Since the diagnosis, the information they offer has been pretty limited, a little condescending, and not very useful. I'm sure they are used to dealing with ignorant pet parents whose primary concerns are convenience and cost. I thought they knew us?

That frustration led me to seek additional info, which eventually led me to the FDMB. I've learned from the FDMB, among many other things, that our vet was not negligent or uncaring (just too busy), DM can be a very complex disease, and that excellent home care is really the only answer. Fortunately we work from our home office and are able to provide a high level of care.

And so the journey no one wants to be on begins...and I hope it lasts a very long time.

With that said, our boy was switched from 9 years on high dollar, vet-recommended dry cat food to high dollar vet-recommended canned food 4 weeks ago. Doobie didn't care for the prescription DM canned food so some early research led us to Fancy-Feast Classics of all things. Doobs loved it and began eating again (as much as he could get). Three weeks ago we started him on Prozinc 1U d 12hr. No home testing of any kind (vet never mentioned it). Following his third cycle, he went into medium Hypo at home. Very scary! Over the phone, the vet tech suggested we rub Karo syrup on his gums, feed him, and lower the dose to 1U d 24hr until his next appointment 12 days later. That was when they would run a BG curve and suggest a new dosage.

This is when I first realized we needed to know a lot more about DM. After a couple days of Dr. Google research (as our vet calls it), I found many DM research articles that were informative (highly technical), but very confusing (often contradictory). Learned a lot. We found some Keto-Diastix test strips and a new litter box so we could test his UG and Ketones. On the 1U d 24hr Doobie would get sleepy and hide himself for a couple hours following but no totally abnormal behavior indicating Hypo. He was ravenously hungry, underweight, and I knew food would minimize Hypo, so we fed him a lot.

On 4/29 Doobie went in for his first vet BG curve. On the day before (sunday) we realized we didn't have any instructions in our vet folder for how to prepare him for the BG curve. Dr Google again. So we fed him but didn't give him his shot and went to the vet. The tech tested his BG, 477(I saw how easy BG testing was), I gave him his 1U Prozinc shot at 8:10 and we left. No word from the vet until 3:30 pm. She said it didn't go well. Doobie had gone Hypo soon after we left! 9:00 am test was 46 and falling. They called a DM expert at the animal hospital. Administered something to his gums, gave him food, and watched him. When we picked him up, his bedding was damp with his own urine. Tech said he was pretty freaked out all day. Never settled in. We asked for his curve results, but the Dr. was gone and would call us the following day to discuss. The DM expert at the hospital had suggested that Doobie should be reduced to .5U d 12hr until he becomes more stable and then do another curve a week later. We were not feeling good about our vet or the prospects for Mr Doobs. Another traumatic day at the clinic? It didn't feel right. More Dr. Google until 1am.

That is when I found FDMB. Learning that others were able to manage DM was very empowering. Thanks to you all for that! Finding actual step-by-step instructions and a spreadsheet made just for DM. I felt like I had struck gold! Frustration with the vet and feeling powerless was replaced with hope and a feeling that we could regain control of our Doobie's health.

Went to Wal-mart at 6am for the Relion-premium and began testing and keeping our own BG spreadsheet in addition to the UG/K and food spreadsheet we had kept for the previous two weeks. I called the vet and confirmed we would go to .5U d 12hr and she agreed. Told her we were home testing BG and would let her know about our results and go from there. She was relieved we were willing to take that on and said it was best possible way to help Doobie. My resentment of her lowered significantly. Now we are in control of treatment with our vet's guidance.

BG results are too early to tell us much. Ketones have remained Negative for 3 weeks (that's good), UG varies wildly, from Neg (rarely) to 1000mg/dL and everything in between.

Today I am doing a full BG curve myself. It seems Doobie's response to Prozinc is pretty erratic. He now gets 2 to 3 oz of wet food at 6:00 am and again at 6:00 pm to try to stabilize one variable, plus a little spaced throughout the day to equal about 6oz per day. He usually eats each serving over about 30 min to 1 hr. He gets his .5U Prozinc dose 30 min after he starts eating and has consumed at least 1.5 oz. Still, his BG levels don't seem to show any real patterns, mostly staying above yellow and in the red. I obviously need more time and data. I will begin to focus on his AMPS and Nadir but will still test an hour or so following his shot to be sure he isn't going Hypo on us again.

I am going to request a DM and pancreas specific blood panel be taken instead of the BG curve on Monday, and minimize the stress for Doobie by doing the curve in the comfort of his home. IDEXX labs has a patented DM panel that also tests specifically for pancreatitis called the fPLI assay along with fructosamine and BG. I am also looking into finding a meat grinder locally so we can switch him over to Homemade, low carb, fresh diet. Or, I'll order one and wait another week. We just started a homemade diet for our dog Luca and her allergies have almost subsided after only 10 days on it.

That is our Doobie intro and journey so far. I am reading what I can on the Prozinc forum now and will move there for any future posts or help.

Thanks again to all who contribute to this most-useful forum ever!

Bill, Chairman, Friends of Doobie Club

 

Hello and welcome to the group you never want to have to be a part of!!!

It looks like you've grasped a lot already, and someone with more time put in will come along and add more, so for now, just saying hello and I am glad you are home testing!

My mom has a chinook too!!! My understanding is that there are not many of them. Or there weren't, there for awhile!

 

Welcome Bill and magnificent Doobie! Glad you found us and started home testing. For a homemade diet, many here use this supplement http://www.foodfurlife.com/ Do come to the Main Health Forum or the Prozinc forum with any questions you have. Hope to see you there!

 

PS What is Doobie's healthy or pre-diabetic weight? How many calories is he getting? My girl is tiny (barely 2kg) but she kills at least two 5.5oz friskies cans a day plus other snacks and treats! Diabetics do sometimes need more food. If he has other issues to be concerned about though, well, ECID (every cat is different).... Just another thought to toss in.

 

Cassandra, Thanks for reading my post. I didn't pay attention to how loooong it was. Yikes!
Yes, Chinooks are a rare and special breed. Your mom is a special person just for having one Just like us! (there are under 1000 in the world at last count)
Skipping to second post.
Our vet said to feed a can and a third of the prescription DM and we have been following that. Never even questioned it until now. But at 33 kcal per ounce, that's under 200 kcals per day. Doobie was 12 lbs before dropping to 9lbs. It appears, upon checking with Dr. Google, that 30 Kcal / Lb / day, with some variation for ECID, would be about right. that means Doobie should be eating about 360 Kcals / day if normal. As is becoming common, I will question our vet on Monday. Doobs would definitely eat more if we offered it.
THANK YOU!

 

You're welcome! There are many little things I didn't think of right away and total caloric needs was one of them! Free-feeding healthy weight cats meant not having to think about it.

And the off-topic chinook thing, 1000 was what I had heard, too. My mom's dog came from a litter in CO maybe, all named after Grateful Dead songs.

 

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/feed-kitty-as-much-as-they-want.205170/

Here is a bit of discussion on feeding amounts that helped me in my process.

 

Hi Bill and Doobie, and welcome to FDMB. I am so glad you found the board and have been able to glean important information about treating Doobie's diabetes and learning all you can. Lots of great information here, and a very supportive community. Please do post your questions in the Main Health forum and the Prozinc forum so that the more experienced members can help you care for that sweet little guy.

 

Welcome, sounds like you are learning a lot. Good for you and your kitty. Lots of support and knowledge here!

 

You may have already seen this info, but uncontrolled diabetic cats need more calories than same size non diabetic cat because their bodies can’t process the food properly, so they need more food than recommended for their weight, just to maintain and not keep losing. As an example before starting insulin, I was feeding my cat 40% more than needed for her weight just to keep her from losing, once starting insulin, she gradually started gaining weight and now is actually eating closer to what is a normal amount for her size. Once the diabetes starts to get better controlled, they start gaining weight and food can be adjusted to more normal amounts.

The regular wet DM is fine at 6% carbs. Just making sure you are not on the wet DM “selects”? Those are 10% carbs and a little higher than we like for diabetic cats. Stay away from DM dry for sure that is a whopping 18% and too high for diabetic kitties. There are also other less expensive even lower carb wet options if you choose to look at other options.