Mr Bo - newly diagnosed - refusing food tonight

I've copied this from the introduction post I put up in introductions earlier today.

Our lovely ginger and white (neutered) tom who is around 12 yrs old was diagnosed with diabetes about three weeks ago. He is on insulin twice a day (1.5 units) but his count was still high when checked at our vets on Monday (29 and that was 7 hours after his last insulin injection), I am very anxious about him and would appreciate some tips / help. I would like to buy a good quality food that will help him and also would appreciate advice on blood monitors etc. for home testing We are in the UK. Thank you all in advance!

Mr Bo has been reluctant to eat today but we have managed to coax him to eat a little bit of cat food and some cooked chicken. He is due his insulin now but doesn't want to eat.

 

Here is your post from the welcome page
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/hello-from-mr-bo.223386/

How much has he eaten in the last hour?
Is he lethargic or seem nauseated ( sniffing the food and walking away?)
What type of insulin are you using?

 

Here is a link to U.K. Information written by @Elizabeth and Bertie who lives in the U.K. She may be able to help you with local questions. Not sure she is around at the moment with the Christmas festivities.
@Diana&Tom is also from the UK

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/...-vit-b12-and-other-need-to-know-stuff.137376/

 

Hi Bron, thank you for your reply.
Mr Bo is on Caninsulin twice daily 1.5 units
He did eat about five chunks of cooked chicken about 20 minutes ago
He has been very quiet today but will sit up when called and has been to the litter and mixing with the other cats a little.
This morning he was licking the gravy or jelly off his food. He seems keen to eat then when he gets there he can't seem to manage it. I saw similar reactions in our cats who had pancreatitis.
Our regular vet practice isn't back in until the 27th Dec and I don't have a great deal of faith in the out of hours vets. I am in a quandary as to what to do.
He has kept the food down so I was thinking of giving him his insulin.

 

Without testing I would be reluctant to give Caninsulin if MrBo is not eating. It can hit hard and fast..I would skip the dose.

It does sound as if he may be nauseated.
Yes it is possible could be pancreatitis.
Do you have access to a pharmacy today? Because I think you need to skip this dose on insulin, I would feel happpier if you could test the urine for ketones.
Did the vet mention ketones at all at diagnosis?
If you could get to a pharmacy and pick up a bottle of Ketostix and test his urine, and we could eliminate ketones as a cause of the problems, that would be very helpful. Ketones can form when a diabetic cat is not eating enough and he starts to use fat as energy instead of carbs and if he doesn't get enough insulin and has an infection or inflammation it can escalate into DKA which is a serious illness in cats. By checking and eliminating ketones in the urine as a cause of the current problem would be great.

 

Here is a link about stimulating cats appetites.
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/suggestions-on-how-to-stimulate-kittys-appetite.130770/

At the moment, because it is important he eats, I would offer him what ever he want to eat, even if it is dry food, because the most important thing is he eats.

 

I have given him his insulin before I read your reply. It is just gone midnight here and nothing is open, with it being a holiday tomorrow too I am limited but I am looking to see which pharmacies are open. The problem is too, I cannot tell local pharmacies that I am buying for a cat as then they won't sell it to me without a vet script even though they are over the counter products.

The vet had not told us anything about ketones but I will try to collect a sample of urine (have a container ready to follow him to the litter tray) and will get a sample to take to the vets in the morning - hopefully they will see us.
We have offered him all sorts of food, wet (three different varieties), dry and cooked chicken. He has picked at everything.

 

You should not need a script for Ketostix.......just tell them,if they ask, that you want to test yourself for ketones because you are on a ketodiet. I have not heard of any of the UKers mention having trouble getting Ketostix before.
I'm glad he has eaten some food. Can you try giving him some more food in about 2 to 3 hours after the insulin was given to make sure he doesn't drop too low?
If the vet did not mention ketones at diagnosis, that should mean he didn't have them.....quite a few diabetic cats do have them at Diagnosis......that is good. But definitely worth testing for them seeing he is off his food.

Please let us know how you get on at the vet. Sending best wishes to MrBo

 

Thank you again Bron.
Mr Bo has been admitted by the emergency vet. He is dehydrated as I thought, is showing signs of infection (temperature and raised markers in the blood) his BG was 16, last time it was taken it was 29 (that was two days ago). He does have ketones in the blood. He is being kept in (left him at 3am). Bloods show liver and kidneys are fine. Vet was questioning / suspecting UTi.

I'm home now and can call in a few hours.

Thank you again for your help x

 

I hope your kitty will be ok, wishing you all the best for Me To, please keep us updated

 

I am SO glad you took him to the vet when you did. With ketones it is so important to catch them early and with an infection as well it can change to DKA rapidly if not treated.
He is in the best place at the moment and getting the care he needs. That is good his liver and kidneys are good.

In hindsight it was very good you gave the insulin earlier tonight and that he was at least eating some food. Both those things are so important in combatting ketones.

When you have time, do try and get a bottle of Ketostix as you will need to test daily for ketones when he gets home. Or alternatively there is a blood glucose meter which tests for ketones. It is more expensive then Ketostix but is much easier to do.
He may still be nauseated when he gets home so do ask for some oral antinausea meds such as cerenia or ondansetron to bring home with him.

You must be feeling very worried having him in hospital especially at Christmas but I’m so glad he is there.
Sending very best wishes to Mr Bo for a full recovery. Please let us know how he is getting on. I will watch for updates. I am in Australia so if I don’t answer quickly it will be because I am probably asleep.

 

Thank you Bron. Mr Bo is still at the vets. I have rung a few times today to see how he is doing. It has been confirmed that he does have a UTi. He has been given a long acting antibiotic and is on fluids. He didn't eat much this morning but by tonight he was asking for food and ate a full packet. His BG was 14 when checked earlier on today, that's the best it has been since we started treatment. As he wasn't eating very well this morning he only had half his normal dose of insulin but has had a unti and a half *his normal does) tonight. His glucose is being checked every 4 hours. His tempertaure is now normal and the nurse said he was purring and being very friendly.

I am hoping he will be well enough to come home tomorrow. We have worked out that we have had him ten and a half years. (We had lost count). He was an adult cat when my husband and children first saw him, they were told he had been a stray for about 8 months to a year prior to that. He must be 12 plus probably 13 or so. We are so grateful to still have him.

I will update once I know more xx

 

I am so glad to see this update and hear MrBo is doing well. While he is still in hospital it is a good time to get organised for when he comes home.
Have you thought about home testing the blood sugars? It is the very best way to keep him safe and with ketones in the picture it is really important he gets his insulin if you are testing, you will know then if it is safe to give it.
Most of us use a human meter. They are much cheaper to run ( the strips are what costs the ongoing money) and our dosing methods are based on the human meter.
Also if you are able to set up your signature, which appears at the bottom of all your posts and gives us information about Mr Bo that would be very helpful
Here is the link.
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/editing-your-signature-profile-and-preferences.130340/
also have you managed to get some ketostix for when he comes home. It is really important you test daily for a while until he is fully better.
Looking forward to the next update.

 

Happy to hear Mr Bo is doing so much bettet