Just Diagnosed Today

Status
Not open for further replies.
A

Ash&Bump

New Member
Hello Everyone,

My 16 year old cat Speedbump (I adopted him after he was hit by a car and I have a sick sense of humor) was just diagnosed with diabetes today. They said his number was 580 when they tested him in the office. The vet told me to feed Royal Canin Glycobalance food exclusively and put him on what I've learned from the internet tonight is a pretty high dose of Prozinc (5 units twice a day). Other than that I was just told to come back in two weeks.

So I've been trying to do all the research I can tonight, since I feel like I got minimal info from the vet, and I'm not going to lie, the amount of information out there (and on this forum in particular) is a little overwhelming! Not to mention I'm suffering from a serious case of sticker shock over here. I had no idea how expensive diabetes supplies were!

But hey, it'll all be worth it if I can help the old guy feel better. Really hoping for some improvement in the neuropathy in his back legs. So I'm off to go figure out what numbers I should be looking for when I test him, probably watch plenty of youtube tutorials, and in general try and learn enough to not screw something up. Fingers crossed for my first attempt at an injection tomorrow morning...

This turned out kind of l0ng-winded but I just wanted to introduce myself and say that you all will probably see me around asking lots of beginner questions. So thanks in advance!

Ashley
 
Ask away! Your best bet is to post on the main health forum so more people see your messages. It's info overload at first for sure but it gets much better with time - I promise.

Two things I want to address right away:
1. If RC Glycobalance food is dry kibble, we'd recommend not feeding that. Canned low carb wet food is best and grocery store brands like Friskies and Fancy Feast pates are fine but no sauce/gravy types because of high carb levels.
2. The dose you were told to start at is staggeringly high for a newly diagnosed kitty. The ProZinc manufacturer recommends a starting dose of 1 unit twice a day.
 
Welcome to the forum.

Right off the bat I have to say that the starting dose of 5 units is FAR FAR too high and IMO could be quite dangerous for your kitty.

Normally I would like to give a bit of basic information and gradually get into more in depth, but that dose is potentially dangerous.
 
Thank you both for the replies. I am concerned about the dosage.
I'll post in the Prozinc section of the forums about it? See what the general feeling/advice is?
 
These are the usual guidelines when starting Prozinc:

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/protocol-for-prozinc-pzi.165103/


"STARTING DOSES
The recommended starting dose for ProZinc/PZI is .5 units or one unit twice daily, every 12 hours. We follow the Start Low, Go Slow model, increasing doses slowly, if needed, based on home testing results."


Also as Kris said the Royal Canin Glycobalance food is far too high in carbs for a kitty especially a diabetic. Many vets think that the prescription food is "special" while it really is no better than a good commercial food. Dry food is not good for many reasons, but especially because it is higher in carbs than a diabetic kitty should have. It is about 30% carbs while a diabetic kitty should be eating foods 10% or less.

If you look at the first number of ingredients :
"Chicken meal, corn gluten meal, barley, wheat gluten, tapioca, powdered cellulose, soy protein isolate, natural flavors, chicken fat, dried chicory root," you will see that it is loaded with high carb ingredients.

https://www.royalcanin.com/products...e-glycobalance-dry-cat-food-4.4-lb-bag/488844
 
Ash&Bump said:
He weighs a little over 18 pounds
Click to expand...


Even with him being a heavier kitty the manufacturer sugggests a starting dose of 0.10 unit per pound, which would be 1.8 units. Glucose levels done at the vets office can be higher due to the stress factor many kitties have with vet visits. This is similar to people with "white coat syndrome" where their blood pressure is higher at their doctors because of stress. Since kitties are very prone to stress it is hard to say if the glucose reading done at the vets is accurate or higher than it would be if your kitty were relaxed. Some kitties will have as much as 100+ points higher readings due to stress during a vet visit.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top