Hello

We recently found out my 12 year old cat has diabetes. My husband is severely ill and unable to work but we are fortunate to get a monthly benefit for the severely handicapped. Our income is very limited each month and I can't afford the treatment for my cat. I've applied for insulin funding but we may need to let the cat go untreated because I can't afford repetitive vet visits, special food and insulin. I can probably squeeze one if those things into our budget but sadly not all of it. At what point do we decide to euthanize the cat? He is already limping and having elimination problems as he has peed and pooped outside the litter box several times this week.

 

So sorry for all your problems. You don't need to feed a special food to your kitty. There are many grocery store brands that will do, such as Friskies Pates or 9 Lives Pates. There is also no need for most of your vet visits if you can get a cheap human glucose meter you can do curves yourself. What insulin did your vet recommend?

 

We just got the diagnosis and haven't gotten an insulin prescription. The vet said we had to drop him off in the morning and they would give him the insulin while monitoring him overnight. I've already blown the budget with the exam and testing so I was going to delay treatment and the costly overnight stay until I had a plan in place.

 

I understand how you feel. At one time I was unemployed for almost a year and supporting 2 diabetic cats along with several other pets. Many of us feed our cats Fancy Feast, Friskies and 9 Lives. The pate flavors are lower in carbs. Even though dry food is cheaper, it is also higher in carbs and will make it very difficult to manage his diabetes. Most cats do not like the prescription foods. If you already bought it, you can return it to your vet for a refund. Even if you have used part of it.

Hometesting will greatly reduce the number of vet visits. If you live in the US, the Walmart Relion brand meters are very inexpensive to use. If your vet prescribes either Lantus or Levemir insulin, ask for a prescription for the pens instead of a vial. Most pharmacies will sell individual pens at a time. Depending on your dose, one pen could last about 2 months or more.

One change you can make immediately is to switch your cat's food to canned instead of dry. If your cat will not give up the kibble, there are a few dry foods low in carbs, but they are more expensive. By feeding him food with lower carbs, that will also lower his glucose levels. It may not be enough to avoid insulin, but it will be a good start.

 

Can you switch him to the low carb grocery store food? If you're in the US, Friskies Pate or 9 Lives Pate are fairly cheap. What have you been feeding?

 

Lantus can be bought from Canada and is much, much cheaper. Here's the link: http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/...canadian-pharmacies.49608/page-2#post-1344374

 

And if taken care of properly it will last quite awhile.

The litter box issues might resolve when treatment has started. Going outside the box is their way of telling us something is wrong.