Introducing Crackerton

I am about to adopt a diabetic cat named Crackerton. He was relinquished instead of being euthanized. I have known about him for 2 days. His fructosamine was 494 and BG 546. He was brought to the vet for the first time since he was neutered (he is now 10) because he was walking on his hocks. His neuropathy extends to his front paws also and he is quite flat footed. He has no kidney issues...his urinalysis is negative but a culture is still out just to double check. Only other lab value was slightly low chloride. Virus negative also. We do know he has bad teeth and will need multiple extractions...by the smell of his breath it is bad. He may be having a dental today. I am not sure. He is still in the care of the vets. He was started on 2 units of lantus Wednesday night. Vet on duty (not my vet) decided that dose. I do not know what he has been getting since. My vet is overwhelmed with the regular stuff and trying to fit him in. I will be testing curves as soon as he comes here...and not dosing til I see what he is doing. I am aware dental can impact things Immensely.
About me...I go way back with an acromegaly cat named Spunky..we tight regulated in the stone ages on a PZI type of insulin. He was off the juice for long stretches...I did mini curves and curves daily. My second diabetic Peake was adopted, had a dental and never was diabetic again...so fingers crossed it happens again.
I don’t know what to feed. I used to do fancy feast but don’t trust them anymore...especially when the beef went weird awhile back. I can’t remeber what level of carb to choose. He is not kidney ...so I will not concentrate on phosphorous yet...but will keep it in mind. Hoping I don’t need it..but I chose lantus cause it seems off the juice is possible.❤️

 

Hi and welcome.

B12 tablets (Zobaline) in the US will clear up the neuropathy and have him walking very quickly. 2 units twice a day is a standard starting dose by most vets but it is too high a starting dose. When you get him it might be prudent to reduce.

There are a bunch of helpful stickies at the top of this forum that will make for great reading. including the stickies in two dosing methods used here.

Is he on dry food or wet? I feed Fancy Feast. That and Friskies are two low carb foods that work well for our diabetic kitties.

Vets have limited knowledge of feline diabetes. You can learn far more by reading threads here.

Keep us updated and welcome to the forum.

 

Foods under 10% carbs are what's important.....and a lot of us are feeding FF's without any problem.

Dr. Lisa's site has been updated since your last diabetic. Here's the food chart

Thank you for taking in another sugarcat in need!! Sounds like you're ready to do the sugardance to the best of your ability!!

 

He is getting injectable b12...that is as good right?

 

Hey there and good luck with your new Sugar Cat. Bless you!

I see Chris linked the Dr. Lisa food chart for you and under 10% carbs is what you want to aim for. How much does Crackerton weigh? The starting dose goes by weight. Most kitties are starting around 1 to 1.5 units every 12 hours.

ETA:

STARTING DOSE: The weight based formula for determining a starting dose of Lantus or Levemir when following the Tight Regulation Protocol:

• the formula is 0.25 unit per kg of the cat's ideal weight
• if kitty is underweight, the formula frequently used is 0.25 unit per kg of kitty's actual weight
• if the cat was previously on another insulin, the starting dose should be increased or decreased by taking prior data into consideration

Online Calculator for Converting Pounds to Kilograms

 

Hello and welcome! Crackerton sounds like he will be in good hands!

 

Welcome [back?]

God bless you for taking him. He will love you forever.

Here are the current instructions for the spreadsheet

FDMB SPREADSHEET INSTRUCTIONS

 

Well that is likely to be cyanocobalamin that does not work I found. Methylcobalamin is what you want. You can buy at any pharmacy so long as you make sure there are no added ingredients or sugar. That's what I did as zobaline not available in Canada.

 

What a lucky kitty Crackerton is to be adopted by you! You are sure to find some good foods that he will like. Rusty is allergic to beef, but he likes the FF Turkey & Giblets, and--recently, since he has major health issues--FF Tender Turkey Feast for Kittens. The food I feed him the most is RAWZ Chicken and Chicken Liver, and RAWZ Turkey and Turkey Liver. Both are low in carbs and high in calories. If Crackerton needs calories, they are a good choice. The downside is that they are expensive and only sold in independent petfood stores (none of the chains and not online).

Dental work on those horrible teeth will make a huge difference!

Welcome back!

 

Thank you soooo much

 

Well he is home. Bg was 377 am waiting to dose until morning to get him on schedule. 2.5 hours later it was 412. Just figured out he is leaking urine...he has very hard time in litter box...he did go...but literally laying in it. He stood there a long time and you could hear spurts of pee. He had negative urinalysis..culture still pending. Could the neuropathy cause leaking pee? Never had this before. Has anyone had a leaking cat when diagnosed that got better when under control? He isn’t spraying...passively leaking. Hoping it was because he had to go...and is super high on pain meds...omg please let this get better....

 

Not leaking no, but Silver didn't make it to the litter box on a couple of occasions when he was first diagnosed.

 

Poor baby. The neuropathy could be causing some issues for him to crouch in the LB. I'm not sure about the leaking. I do know that when Bubba was first DX with FD he did have a few inappropriate pees out of the box probably due to such an urgency to urinate which is common with a lot of the sugar cats at first.

Maybe add a question mark to your title thread to get more eyes on your post.

A lot of the peeps here give the Zobaline 3 mg for neuropathy. I believe a higher dose can be given for severe neuropathy which sounds like Crackerton. I saw where you asked about the injections being good for it. I am not sure if you'd still need a daily dose as well. Hope more eyes with neuropathy will weigh in for you.

 

I gave the injectable cyanocobalamin B12. It did not work and I switched to the methylcobalamin.

 

Welcome back to FDMB!

If you're not familiar with Lantus, the sticky notes at the top of the board contain an overwhelming amount of information. Please let us know how we can help you make sense out of all that's there. The new to the group sticky along with the two stickies that discuss the methods for dosing we use, Tight Regulation Protocol or Start Low Go Slow, are good places to start.

Methylcobalamin (methyl-B12) is better absorbed than cyanocobalamin. It is also retained in the body longer than cyanocobalamin. This is probably why it is more effective for treating neuropathy. I'd encourage you to order a bottle of Zobaline. You can get it on Amazon.

Did the vet do the dental before you brought Crackerton home? If his teeth are that bad, if the dental wasn't done, you might want to ask about when they plan on doing the dental and whether he needs to be on antibiotics ahead of time.

Like Bobby, I wonder if Crackerton is avoiding the litter box until his bladder is really full due to his discomfort in crouching or climbing into the box. Some other thoughts.... Did the vet happen to do an ultrasound to make sure there aren't any crystals? I'd also ask the vet about whether leaking can be the result of a partial blockage -- and that can be an emergent issue. Also, even if the results from the urine culture come back negative, there is always the possibility of a kidney infection vs a UTI. That might be another possibility for why he's leaking urine.

 

Welcome back Jen. I understand your feeling all to well. In February I adopted Olive. Only thing we knew was she was female and dx end of January. There is even a big difference in what her age might be. Anyway, she finally arrives home. I notice the wobbly legs so Zobaline started immediately, I will finish the bottle this week and then stop it. Fast forward. I kept asking "remind me why I'm doing this again?" Olive doesn't have a leaking issue but have since found out she is becoming high dose, has grade 2 murmur, mild hcm, and a tumor probably adrenal based. Definitely more than I planned on.

But where would she be if not here now. Still in a dumpster in -30 degree weather? With the women who found her but couldn't care for her long term (not dx at that time). She only had her a few weeks and ready to deliver her baby any day.

I can't imagine Olive not being here with us. Even with all her issues. She has since gained weight. On second insulin and now just starting to break through to better glucose readings. Loves to be with people and get petted although don't touch anywhere below the shoulders. Occasionally has a burst of play time in her. Still not liking the other kitties but now tolerates them as long as they leave her food alone. She now gives me occasional chin lick or lick my hand. Sits against us when watching tv. Just the other night climbed on my chest for a hug. I don't ask "why am I doing this again" anymore.

Crackerton will improve over time when he settles in and treatment in whatever way starts to work. All of a sudden the pieces come together (like jigsaw puzzle) and start to form and you will have a beautiful loving companion. What was his alternative if you had not stepped in and adopted him.

Welcome, you and Crackerton will do fine.

 

Hi and welcome back!!

What a wonderful thing you're doing for Crackerton I'm sure all issues will work themselves out, including the neuropathy once regulated and Zobaline added to the mix. Not sure about the leaking but I agree with Sienne you just want to make sure there is no blockage as that would need to be addressed immediately. Years ago my civvvie had a blockage but he didn't just leak, he strained to urinate and little "squirts" would come out so this sounds different but worth ruling out.

 

Nice to meet you and Crackerton! Wishing you both the best as you begin your diabetes journey!

 

It's wonderful that you're giving this kitty a new lease on life!

 

Welcome to you both!

I’m so glad Crackerton was surrendered instead of being euthanized and I’m so glad you took him in!

 

Crackerron update. Zobalamine has been ordered. He stopped leaking last night thank you Jesus. He has been in 2’s and 3’s today. Trying to do his spreadsheet now...on 4 hours sleep...
3 teeth were pulled. He is a huge lover... neuropathy is very bad...he
Needs a bath after every litter box trip. Because he is so plantar. We just changed to a pad and litter that doesn’t make mud pie and stick to him..he hasn’t tried it yet. Peeing and drinking less.
I did .5 this morn and .75 tonight...I shouldn’t have raised I think....trying to semi follow vets advice...she forgets she let me handle Spunky entirely...

 

Sounds like progress is being made. We are all rooting for Crackerton and sending lots of all-purpose vines.
Some hugs for you, Jen.

 

That is really good news!

I forget who it was, but @Bobbie And Bubba is having pee-pee issues with a civvie and pee'ing, and who ever it was, was using the cardboard cases (1/2 box) the cat food ships in as LB's. They have low sides and are easy in/out for kitties with neuropathy and arthritis.

How is his eating after the dental?

 

He is eating..bit you can tell it hurts...just got all his meds in...