Lethargy and hyperglycemia

Discussion in 'Feline Health - (Welcome & Main Forum)' started by mistymisty, Jan 20, 2019.

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  1. mistymisty

    mistymisty New Member

    Joined:
    Jan 19, 2019
    Hello everyone,

    Misty came home from her hospital stay today. They kept her for two days while she trialed her new insulin to monitor her BG. According to the vet she had pretty consistently high values (over 500) the whole time. The values I've taken at home have also been high, but ever since she came home she's been extremely lethargic. She had been lethargic before (which I feel is completely reasonable for an 18 year old cat with arthritis) but now it's completely different.

    She's gone from being very social and (relatively) perky to almost nonresponsive. She doesn't seem particularly interested in affection which is very unusual. In addition to this her hind legs which have been affected by neuropathy seem to be even less coordinated and more weak than normal. She can still get where she needs to go but it takes her a lot longer and she's much clumsier.

    One experience I could compare this to is when she had a dose of gabapentin and she just acted like she was drugged out (for lack of a better explanation). She's still eating, drinking, using her box, and lying down in her favorite places.

    I want to believe this is somewhat normal because the vet cleared her to return home but I'm still very worried about this unusual behavior. Is this type of spaced out lethargy, weakness, and lack of coordination normal in the beginning while she is still getting stabalized?

    I can only assume she behaved like this at the vet as well. When I picked her up, I commented that she was very spacy and looked drunk, and the tech commented that this was part of the disease. I left them a voicemail and they'll get back to me either tomorrow or Monday but I was hoping I could get a response here before then so I might have a better chance of not staying up all night with worry :oops:

    Thank you all!

    ETA: after finishing this up I followed Misty to her food dishes and litter box to find she could barely make it. Her left leg kept giving out on her, and her backside kept falling to the ground. She was stumbling so bad; her hind legs seemed verry weak and uncoordinated.
     
    Last edited: Jan 20, 2019
    Reason for edit: to add info and be more specific
  2. JanetNJ

    JanetNJ Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 8, 2016
    Sounds like she's getting some neuropathy and pretty much all cats her age also have some arthritis.

    Id start giving some b12 methylcobalamin supplements for the neuropathy. I give zobaline from Amazon. If also add dasuquin to help her joints. Both you just mix into food.

    Is she currently in ProZinc? If so I'd bump that up to 2 units.

    Are you testing ketones? With numbers this high it is a concern.
     
  3. mistymisty

    mistymisty New Member

    Joined:
    Jan 19, 2019
    Thank you! I was up late last night reading about zobaline. I'm definitely about to order some, and adding dasuquin for her joints sounds like a great idea.

    She is on ProZinc, and not cuurently testing for ketones, but I'm planning on picking up some strips this afternoon when I can get to the store.

    Thank you so much for your reply!
     
  4. JanetNJ

    JanetNJ Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 8, 2016
    The absolute best treatment I've found for arthritis (my poor girl has a bad case of it) is adequan injections. I give those and add dasuquin to her food. I had her on Gabapentin for pain but I think she was one of the few who it spiked her bg. I took her off it a few weeks ago and her numbers have been coming down. Most don't have that issue though.... Not sure why she does.

    I test ketones with a blood meter... Same way you test bg. It's easier for me because I almost never see her use the box and not sure she would appreciate me getting so close while she does her business. Lol
     
  5. Chris & China (GA)

    Chris & China (GA) Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    May 10, 2013
    Did your vet do a complete blood panel?

    I'd ask about her potassium level too....low potassium can cause a lot of that weak and shaky stuff and if it's too low, it can be fatal.
     
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