Hello from Angel & Debbie uk

Hello all. Angel was diagnosed about 3 weeks ago and a lady called Shellie in a fb group has been out angel helping us. I'm in research mode and tead your food information but my Angel is very underweight so any tips on giving him the best diet but with calories to get done weight on him would be very much appreciated. Thank you

 

Welcome Debbie and Angel! I’ll tag a couple of UK members that can help you with food choices. @Elizabeth and Bertie @Diana&Tom Come to the Main health Forum and start a post. There are more folks there that can help you to get Angel on the road to recovery.

 

Hi Debs, welcome!

I replied to your Facebook post about food, but will copy that here, along with some info about what I think your situation is at the moment.

My understanding is that you are currently feeding some Encore wet food, some dry food; and that you are just learning to hometest. Is that right?

From Facebook reply:
"A couple of higher calorie low-carb foods you could consider trying (instead of or in addition to the Encore) are Nature's Menu 'kitten' pouches, and Gourmet Gold pates. These can both be good for getting extra calories into kitties. The Gourmet Gold pates are very smooth pate type foods. The Nature's Menu 'kitten' has much more texture to it.

Also, if you're willing to buy online, you could try a tin of a liquid cat food called 'Liquivite' to see if your kitty likes that. Many (but not all) cats find it very palatable, especially if warmed slightly. It can be a useful product for getting extra calories into kitties, and for encouraging them to drink (because even cats who are disinclined to drink water will often lap this up). "

Giving little snacks of plain meat can also help.

When a cat gets into better blood glucose ranges they can more easily put on weight.

It's also important to check for kidney and thyroid issues as these can cause weight loss.

Debs, if you need more help DO please post on the main health forum. This 'welcome' forum is really a place to just wave 'Hi' to people.

Eliz

 

Hi Debbie, welcome to FDMB! Well done for researching as much as you can, knowledge is power and the key to getting Angel feeling better.

Has Angel become underweight recently or was he always on the slim side? Unregulated diabetics often lose weight because they can't metabolise their food as well as they did, but usually once they are on the correct insulin dose and a good diet, they put the weight back on.

For foods, you're looking for good quality, protein rich brands that offer optimal nutrition without empty calories. What are you feeding at the moment? Do you buy in supermarkets or online? Either way, there should be plenty of choice available. You can also top up a good wet food diet with plain cooked chicken ir turkey to add extra calories without carbs. You may have seen Elizabeth's food list which is very useful. Elizabeth may have some other thoughts to offer you as she has spent a long time researching foods and compiling data.

As Sharon says, pop over to the Main Health forum too. There's loads of help here for every aspect of treating FD. Good luck!

 

Eliz and I cross-posted again, as we often do!
Just to add to what she says - Encore is a lovely food but I think it's what's called "complementary", ie not complete in terms of vitamins etc required for overall health. You want to find foods that are labelled "complete" as these do contain everything necessary. Nature's Menu is a good choice that I can personally recommend. There are of course others. It can be a bit of a minefield finding a good food that kitty likes so I'd suggest starting with one or two flavours and trying to get your kitty to eat those, and if after a few days he won't, try another brand.