New diagnosis. Full Time Vollunteer Aid Worker. No money to treat my precious cat buddy. Please Read

My Wife and I are full time missionaries that have spent the last 20 plus years leading groups of volunteers in charitable projects around the world. We are completely unpaid, but do receive housing, food, and most basic needs from the agency we serve with.

We are educated professional people who chose this lifestyle freely based on our personal convictions, and out of a passion to help people in need. We have no regrets and, although the lifestyle necessitates some sacrifices, we've never felt like we were lacking anything we needed. Actually, we've always felt quite blessed.

We were unable to have children (our greatest sorrow), but we have found great comfort from the companionship of our two rescue kitties, Mocha and 'Spresso. Mocha, a tortoise shell, has always been "puffy", overweight even, until about 6 or 7 months ago.

We changed the food, trying to find something that might be healthier and, at first, it seemed to be good for them both. Mocha appeared to have lost some weight, but when we took her in for her annual hair cut and grooming, we realized she had actually lost quite a bit.

At first, we thought that was a good thing. But as time went on, it was clear she was continuing to lose and we started to wonder. Finally, about a couple weeks ago, we took her to the vet. "Just to be safe".

The frustration started before the actual diagnosis. The vet had expressed a small amount of concern when he really paid attention to the weight lost. But he was vague and offered no specific idea of what the concern could be. He took some basic tests and told us he'd call in about a week. A week came and went, though, with no call.

In the meantime, Mocha started acting strangely. Being very withdrawn, hiding in her box, drinking a CRAZY amount of water and eventually, not interacting hardly at all. I became concerned and tried to call the vet for the results of the test and to ask if we should be concerned. Unfortunately, the staff kept putting us off, saying the doctor was busy. The test results were in, but they wouldn't tell us what they were, saying the doctor would have to call. It was several days before he did, though. That's when we found out Mocha had Diabetes, with the tests revealing her blood sugar over 600.

We were devastated, of course. We had friends who had had a cat with Diabetes and they had told us that the costs were about 300 dollars a month plus vet visits. In light of the lifestyle we lead, there is no way we could do anything even close to half that. Probably not even a quarter.

I tried to call back and get more clarity, hoping I would hear of some way to save money or get help. The staff were all I got through to again, and they were not very helpful, other than confirming that the costs were likely starting at 300 dollars a vial. (Although they could not tell me how many vials I'd need in a month). We set an appointment for the next day, the earliest they would see us, even though they said Mocha might be entering Ketoacidosis. (A terrifying thought once we discovered what it was.)

In desperation, I searched for answers online and found this site. I was so encouraged to hear about possible home treatment options, and it seemed like we might have at least a prayer of being able to do that on the 50 dollars a month we might be able to squeak out.

At the appointment the next day, we were glad to find out that Mocha was NOT in Ketoacidosis, but rather, just dehydrated. They gave her some sort of hydration therapy and had us buy some expensive dry diabetic food from them. We fed her that for a week, as they instructed and, with some help from friends, took her back for another appointment. 130 dollars bought us two tests of her blood sugar and a 2 dose shot of insulin. By the end of the day, her blood sugar was down to 118 and seemed stable.

When the doctor insisted we buy a vial of insulin from him at 170 dollars, we asked him how long it would last. He said it wasn't certain. Could be 2 weeks, could be 2 months. When we asked about buying insulin elsewhere, he said we couldn't without a prescription and that he would not write a prescription for it as it is often fatal to use human insulin on cats, and not usually effective anyway. We asked about testing at home and he told us that was ill advised as well, stating that the testing was not reliable and that she could die since the tests could be wrong.

We explained our financial situation to him and he informed us that there was no way we could treat her on our budget. He stopped just short of telling us to give up and seemed to suggest we spend until we couldn't, and then look for agencies that might help with the bill. That seemed like strange advice, and counter what I've read on here.

So, here I am.

Confused. Discouraged. Overwhelmed.
Perhaps a bit desperate.

Mocha seems to be doing much better. Acting like herself, if a bit ravenous. Friendly. Purring. I can't imagine giving up on her.

But I don't know what to do.

I'm hoping y'all can help.

Here are the questions I hope will lead to an answer that will save the day.

I can try to raise support to buy the 5pak of pens you recommend from Canada. How long might that last the average cat? (Keep in mind, my cat was a 2 dose 1 shot a day to start. The vet thought she might end up a 3 or 4 dose a day cat.)

Is it true that the human insulin and test devices you recommend can work?

Do you need prescriptions for them?

What do I do as my vet will not prescribe them?

How can I learn how to test or properly dose if my vet won't help?

Are most vets like this, or do I just have a bad vet?

Why did my vet prescribe this dry cat food, 1/3 a cup, twice a day, if wet food is better?

Should I ignore and go to the wet food you recommend? How much per day? Still twice a day, 12 hours apart?

The vet said we could just do the food, but her life expectancy would be shorter. What are we talking? Months, Years?

Sorry for all the questions. We hardly know where to begin. I appreciate you taking the time to read this.

I gratefully await thoughts and advice.

I attached a picture of our dear friend, Mocha.

 

Hi Ted (and wife) and Mocha, welcome to the forum!! What a beautiful girl Mocha is.

First of all I want to tell you that feline diabetes (FD) is a very treatable disease. Your vet obviously does not know a lot about FD. It may be worth your while finding another vet who will work WITH you to get Mocha regulated and back to her old self. It's a team effort.
It is very overwhelming in the beginning.....we have all been there and understand how you feel.
With FD, knowledge is power, so over time read as much as you can. Ask loads of questions .....we don't mind how many you ask.
There are many very experienced people here who are devoted to helping FD kitties around the world.

I'll just answer a few of your questions now and then if you would, I'd ask you to copy and paste your post over to the main forum where there are many more people to help you. This is just the welcome page.....like the front door mat
Here is the link to the main forum ......The living room where we can sit down and chat!
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/forums/feline-health-the-main-forum.28/

When you post over on the main forum page, could you tell us what type of insulin you have been prescribed please? Also which country you live in.
Insulin if kept in the frig will last up to 6 months after you open it. If you got a 5 pack from Canada the unopened ones would last you up until the expiry date. If you live in the US you need a prescription for insulin. I believe you don't need one if you live in Canada. But it also depends what type of insulin you are prescribed.
Lantus, Levemir and Prozinc are all very good insulins for cats. Insulin is given twice a day 12 hours apart.
We can help you to home test the blood sugars and it will be MUCH cheaper than going to the vet all the time for blood sugar tests. Sounds scary at first but it is not and we all home test which means we are in control and we know what the insulin is doing to help our kitty and when we should increase or decrease the dose safely.

Dry food is the worst food for any cats. Canned/wet food with carbohydrates 10% or less is what diabetic cats need, there is no need for any prescription foods. They are expensive and are no better than the food from the super market. Changing over to low carb foods can make a big difference to the BSLs.We can help you there with choices.
But a word of warning.....DO NOT swap over to low carb food until you are home testing the blood sugars (BSLs) because the lower carb food will lower the blood sugars and you need to be monitoring the BSL to ensure they don't go too low.

I would not recommend just changing the food and not giving insulin (although this can be done in the beginning to see if the low carb food will lower the BSLs without insulin, but this is only for a week or two) . It would be an awful existence for Mocha to do it long term, as her body would not able to utilise the food properly when the blood sugars are high and she would eventually starve to death. FD needs treating with insulin.
There are people here who will be able to point you in the direction of doing it economically. I live in Australia so don't know a lot about the price of things in the US.
There is no reason why Mocha does not go back to leading the life she did before except she will have to be on a low carb diet for life and insulin.
I won't load you with any more information as I am sure you feel overwhelmed. But here is a link to FAQ you might like to read.
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/forums/health-links-faqs-about-feline-diabetes.14/

See you over on the main forum page!
Bron

 

Welcome aboard! Below is a bit of info on ordering insulin from Canada.

I will just throw in my 2 cents: Run, do not walk, do not pass go! Find another Vet asap. It sounds like your vet has no respect for you or your cat. To make you wait "several days" for lab results and then tell you she "might be in ketoacidosis" is appalling. Do not buy insulin from your vet. The least expensive is Novolin N; I purchased it at Walmart for around $25. I did switch to Lantus which is relatively inexpensive from Canada and lasts many, many months if refrigerated.

Do not buy food from your vet. Look around on this site for food info. Dr Elsey's dry seems to be popular. It is expensive but lasts a long time; for me at least.
In my research Friskies Classic Pate is least expensive canned food.

Please start testing at home. Imperative. Walmart Relion seems to have the least expensive products.

Perhaps you can get your vet to write a script for insulin. If he won't, find another vet and ask them to obtain all of your records. You should not need to pay for new blood work. Also, if you test at home, as you should, you can do your own curves to monitor insulin response; another cost saving tip.

My blood boils and steam pours out of my ears every time I read how people are price gouged and treated poorly by their vets. This forum will be immensely helpful; it has been for me.

Now head on over to the Main Health Forum as noted by Bron above.


http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/...s-from-canadian-pharmacy.200718/#post-2232349

 

P. S. It is EXTREMELY unusual to give more than 2 shots of insulin per day. Do not get HUMULIN insulin; it is not appropriate for cats. Check the forums for the insulins which are used. Learn the signs of and how to treat hypoglycemia. Test at home please. Test, test, test.

IMHO..... if your vet will not write a script for insulin and will not assist you with education he is a putz and should have his license revoked.

Did I mention my Blood Boils when I read stuff like this.

 

Please see the responses in your cross posted thread in the Feline Health forum - http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/...dations-he-wont-support-homecare-help.200763/

DCIN can help you.

 

Welcome!!

Take a look at the answers in the main forum and let us know where you live any chance is close to the mexican border insulin in Mexico is about 55 dolars for 5 lantus pens (enough for a year)

 

Get a new vet immediately!!!!!!!! This guy had no idea what he's doing.