Just diagnosed

I have just discovered this site and am a very newbie to diabetes, so I'm still reading and learning, but felt the need to ask a question...my kitty, Rudy, is 8 years old and has been on Wellness Core dry and wellness grainless wet food for 2 years. He is not overweight and is a moderately active inside cat. He began suffering some sort of crisis on Monday...not eating. lethargic...so I took him to my vet Tuesday and after all the necessary bloodwork, they diagnosed him with diabetes. He now is on insulin and I am force feeding him because he still will not eat on his own. He seems a little better today but not much. I recently moved and he did not take to the move very well and has not been a happy boy since, on again/off again with his eating...could this be something other than diabetes? I really wonder because he already had a very healthy diet. I know I need to learn more, but just wanted some thoughts on this. I can't afford to take him to another vet for another opinion. Any helpful ideas would be appreciated. -Claudia

 

do you know if they tested him for ketones? if you don't, call them and ask them if they did or not. if they didn't, that would be something i'd want done sooner than later. you could have the vet do it or you can buy ketostix at a pharmacy/walmart/target and test him yourself. basically you stick this little strip in his pee and watch for it to change colors, then compare it to a chart on the bottle the strip came in.

can you tell us what insulin and how much he's getting? and have you read about hometesting and plan on doing it? it really is helpful in situations like this when you need to know what is going on inside kitty

 

Hi and welcome to FDMB,

There could be an underlying problem causing the diabetes... infection or bad teeth can cause high blood sugar.

You could improve diet some by removing all dry and increasing the grain free Wellness. I feed Turkey and Chicken flavors of Wellness mostly.

Removing all dry food will reduce the blood sugar, thereby helping your kitty feel better.

Yes - please tell us what insulin and how much, and if your vet checked for Ketones.

 

Here are some tips for getting your cat to eat: http://www.felinecrf.org/persuading_cat_to_eat.htm As previously said, it is important to know if there are ketones.

 

Thank you so much for your comments...I replied earlier but I don't think it was saved. It was also a very long post, so I'll be brief this time...Rudy was tested for ketones and he is on novolin. His white cell count was 49000 so he is also on metacam and amoxicillin. Doc said to bring him back in a month which seems awfully long so I am planning on testing him myself, as soon as I know what I'm doing. The main thing is to get him over this immediate crisis...he ate a little on his own at lunch.

 

Claudia,

Welcome to the board from another Claudia. Sorry you have to be here, but if you do this is the BEST board for people with diabetic cats.

Apparently he does/did have an infection. The antibiotic should make him feel better, and his appetite will come back. Glad he is showing some interest in food. Maybe try some of the classic Fancy Feast varieties - the pate ones. Something different might perk up his appetite. Also, did he have a stuffy nose. If they can't smell, they often won't eat.

You might ask your vet about one of the longer acting insulins like Lantus or Levemir. Seems to help in getting some cats regulated.

Any questions, ask away,

Claudia

 

Testing at home will tell you so much about what is going on, especially since he is fighting off an infection. To get you started, here is a site for beginning testers: http://www.sugarcats.net/sites/harry/bgtest.htm and a video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zE12-4fVn8 We all have little tricks that worked for us that we would be glad to share.