Hello from Garth and Stef

Discussion in 'Feline Health - (Welcome & Main Forum)' started by StefO, May 31, 2017.

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  1. StefO

    StefO Member

    Joined:
    May 30, 2017
    Hello all! I'm Stef and I'm so glad to have found this community in such a stressful time.

    My 12yo cat Garth had been experiencing symptoms (weight loss, tracking litter, increased thirst) for a few months that I didn't recognize as a real problem until recently. We thought his weight loss was because of the dog eating his food! He was diagnosed with diabetes and he has been on insulin for a few days.

    I'm not so happy with my vet as he painted insulin treatment as a dark, daunting task and followed up with thinking about 'saying goodbye'. I understand he has to give those options but it felt insensitive as I've been a client since this cat was 6 weeks old. When I reached out to friends, they made me feel hopeful!

    The vet tech recommended Royal Canin Glycobalance dry food only and encouraged us to stop the wet food asap. I haven't listened to her for a few reasons but mostly because I saw such a difference in his personality once I introduced the wet food. However, we are having a hard time giving up the dry food. He eats Merrick Senior Dry Food. I have been putting handfuls in a measuring cup for him because of the meowing just won't stop plus I found clear vomit yesterday AM and thought it might be from not eating. I do feel guilty for giving it to him and hope it's not countering the insulin. He goes back for his first glucose curve in 2 weeks but might try to change vets afterwards.

    So thankful for this board!
     

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  2. MrWorfMen's Mom

    MrWorfMen's Mom Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Feb 18, 2015
    Welcome Stef andGarth! We all understand how stressful this can be in the early days. Rest assured, it does get easier.

    While I agree the vet should provide you with options, I cannot understand why those options would include "saying goodbye". Feline diabetes is a totally treatable condition. There are many folks here who have successfully treated their kitties for years. If you are willing and able to make a commitment to treating them, they can live a full, happy and healthy life just like human diabetics.

    As for diet, I have to totally disagree with the vet tech and cannot imagine why on earth she would have told you to ditch the wet food. Her advise should have been the opposite....ditch the dry and feed a wet diet. Our cats are carnivores and they don't need all the corn, gluten etc. that is in the RC Glycobalance. Doing a rough calculation, the carb load of the RC Glycobalance dry food is nearly 20% which is far too high for a diabetic cat when ideally they should be on a diet containing no more than 10% carbs.

    This community is an amazing powerhouse of info and support so please come join us on the Health board HERE with any and all questions you may have. When you post, including what insulin you are using, the dose, diet, any other pertinent health history and a general location will help folks answer your questions more specifically. See you over in Health!
     
  3. Kris & Teasel

    Kris & Teasel Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Aug 17, 2016
    Welcome to you and Garth! Loads of help and support here. :)
     
  4. Yong & Maury GA

    Yong & Maury GA Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jan 11, 2017
    Welcome Garth and Stef!

    The experienced members who live and breathe feline diabetes can help clarify your conflicting information from the Vet. I'm pretty sure if we all grouped up, many of us would out number members: vets like 5:1 :p. Cat Info website by Dr. Lisa Pierson, has a lot of helpful information about feline nutrition as well as tips to transition a dry food addict. If Garth absolutely refuses to stop the dry there are about three acceptable dry food options for diabetics.

    I know you are overwhelmed but I am going to give you a few instructional links so you can find them in the same place again :bighug:
    We strongly recommend home testing, many of us use Human Glucometer's due to affordability and track our kitty's BG with Google sheets. If you need help setting one up, just ask: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/

    Setting up your Signature with some info about Garth is super helpful and helps those of us with bad memories ;): http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/editing-your-signature-profile-and-preferences.130340/

    Lastly, it's better to be prepared and read this ahead of time but I hope you never need it: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/how-to-treat-hypos-they-can-kill-print-this-out.15887/

    Feel free to ask any questions! We are a support group for Garth and YOU :bighug:
     
  5. JanetNJ

    JanetNJ Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 8, 2016
    Welcome!
     
  6. StefO

    StefO Member

    Joined:
    May 30, 2017
    Thank you all so much for the warm welcome and all of the information you shared!
     
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