My George was just diagnosed with Diabetes :( need some good help and Advice.

My Family and I live in central Wisconsin. We are almost empty nesters. ( the Boys have started their careers but have not moved out yet. My husband is a Liquor and Wine Salesman and I am a Hair stylist one day a week. I rent a chair My business " Tuesdays with Cindy" the rest of the week I work in a warehouse that distributes snacks and coffee.
We have a rescued Cat .. George, who is the coolest. everyone says he is dog in a cats body. He was a big boy at 14 lbs and can reach the counter by standing on his hind legs. He has no claws. the owners that had him befor us took them. you can't tell George he can't hunt. he has brought us mice. chipmunks, rabbits, squirrels, and a small possum. He snuggles with you, has a complete conversation and guides you to his every wish. He just turned 7 and unfortunately has been diagnosed with Diabetes.
We don't have a large income to manage George and hi illness. so I would gladly take any advice you have on saving $$$. So I can keep George going .

Cindy Lou

 

Hi Cindy Lou, welcome again! First, what are you feeding George? Most of us here feed 9 Lives, Fancy Feast Classics, or Friskies Pates. They are much cheaper than the vet food. Also testing George's glucose at home is much cheaper than letting the vet do it, and it's the best way to keep George safe. If you are feeding a high carb food, don't change it until you are testing his glucose because his numbers could drop significantly. As I said on your other post, 3u 2x/day seems high to start. What did your vet base that dose on?

 

Hi Cindy Lou, I just posted this on your other thread in Supply Closet as well:

Hey Cindy, welcome to the forum and sorry you and your kitty have to be here but there is a whole lot of knowledge and support here. Home testing is going to be very important so that you can keep your kitty safe from going too low and getting into trouble and also for you to be able to understand how the insulin dose is effecting your kitty. Here are a couple of links for you to look at to learn how :
http://s106.photobucket.com/user/chupie_2006/media/testingear/sweetspot.jpg.html

Here is another good link on Home Testing:http://www.felinediabetes.com/bg-home-test.htm

Find a place in your home where you will always perform the test and give lots of hugs before and after testing. A good way to prepare your kity would to be take kitty to the spot that you will designate to homestesting. Rub the ears and pet him then give him a low carb treat like bonita flakes. I will talk about low car food in a minutes. This will have your cat associate the ear rubbing with a treat and when you start to test kitty will be more receptive.

There are many meters. There is a pet meter called the Alpha Trak2 and human meters. Some use the pet meter because it is what the vets use so the numbers will match up. The meter and strips are expensive though. Most use human meters that can be purchased at any pharmacy. It typically reads a little lower than the pet meter but we have ways of compensating it. Many use Walmart's brand, Relion Micro or Relion Prime, because it only needs a tiny drop of blood. The Prime testing strips are ½ the price of the Micro.

Food, very important as to what you are feeding your sugar cat. There are many reasons why we are here but one is due to feeding dry cat food which is high in carbs. You will want to consider changing your food to wet, low carb food. It is recommended to feed food that is under 10% carbs. Here is a list of cat food to choose from foodchart you will note that the food with fish are lower in carbs however it is recommended that you only give fish once a week due to its mercury content. Many use Fancy Feast, 9 Lives, Friskies, etc. This list can also be found inwww.catinfo.org If you are already giving insulin and you have not transitioned to wet, low carb cat food, be sure to test while you are transitioning. This is because by changing to low carb food, it could decrease your kitty’s number by 100 points or more.

Hope this helps and ask away with questions that is how we all learned.

 

I see on your other thread your feeding dry from the vet. It is very high in carbs., but don't switch to a low carb food until you are testing George's glucose! Once you are testing, you can get the cheaper foods Bobbie and I have mentioned and return the unused portion of the expensive dry food. Hills, at least is supposed to be guaranteed. Just tell them he won't eat it. Read the home testing info Bobbie provided and watch some you tube videos on testing, then post any questions and we'll be glad to answer your questions.

 

The money you will save in the expensive RX food can go into the insulin treatment of George. And once you learn to test, you can do your own curves at home saving you more money than having the vet do them. AND the numbers you get will be more accurate because at the vets our cats are so stressed that their numbers can be +100 points higher. We can help you save all kinds of money to be able to afford the insulin, needles, and lancets. WE are so glad you here!