newly diagnosed in NC - Teddybear

hello! First, thank you for being here. I joined many years ago but Kyle never was diagnosed thank goodness. He did pass, a devastating loss, from complications from IBD. Teddybear got really depressed when he passed and gained a lot of weight really fast. We adopted two kittens to keep him company, Felix and Honey, from the Wake County Animal Shelter. They are almost 2 now.

This year Teddy started losing weight, drinking like crazy and last week we noticed pulling out his fur from his stomach. We took him in for labs and were told friday he has feline diabetes. I have been reading here ever since. I had been feeding Blue Buffalo Grain Free dry food, which I thought was the best for them. After researching here, I ordered some Weruva Canned cat food, % carb wise looks great. We go to the vet next week to talk insulin. I don't know what Teddy's number was, hubby went, but they want to give him 2x shots per day. I see a lot of you have a chart for this, where is the blank copy please? Appreciate your help so much.

Edited to say - the ingredients in the Blue Buffalo Food are:
Top Named Ingredients in Blue Buffalo Wilderness: Deboned Chicken, Chicken Meal, Turkey Meal, Potato Starch, Fish Meal(source of Omega 3 Fatty Acids), Chicken Fat (preserved with Mixed Tocopherols), Peas, Whole Potatoes, Flaxseed (source of Omega 3 and 6 Fatty Acids), Natural Chicken Flavor, Alfalfa Meal, Whole Carrots, Whole Sweet Potatoes, Cranberries, Blueberries, Barley Grass, Dried Parsley, Dried Kelp, Taurine. Also, for weight control, compare the "prescription food's" 592 K Cals/Cup to Blue Buffalo's 391 K Cals/Cup. I'd call this an all-around no-contest against the vet-prescribed food.

 

Welcome to FDMB, the best place you never wanted to be.

There are 4 things you'll need to manage your kitty's diabetes:
- You - without your commitment, the following won't work.
- Home blood glucose monitoring with an inexpensive human glucometer such as the WalMart Relion Confirm or Target Up and Up (the pet ones will break your budget!). This saves you the cost of going to the vet for curves and done regularly, removes the need for a fructosamine test.
- Low carb over the counter canned or raw diet, such as many Friskies pates. See Cat Info for more info. If already on insulin, you must be home testing before changing the diet. Food changes should be gradual to avoid GI upsets - 20-25% different food each day until switched. There are 2 low carb, dry, over the counter foods in the US - Evo Cat and Kitten dry found at pet specialty stores and Young Again 0 Carb found online.
- A long-lasting insulin such as ProZinc, Lantus, BCP PZI, or Levemir. No insulin lasts 24 hours in the cat, so giving it every 12 hours is optimal for control.

Our spreadsheet instructions are here.

 

Hi, from Wilmington, NC. My boy, Mo, diagnosed in early May. We have been giving him 2 units 2x per day. We have been feeding he and his sister, Marble (non-diabetic), Fancy Feast, 2 cans morning/2 cans night and they act like they are starving constantly. I need to home test Mo. Mo has gained weight and his sister has lost weight. Both kids are 14 yrs old. Why are they always hungry?

 

Hi Ruth
Would you start your own post in the Welcome section please?
Here
Then in the upper right, click on Post new thread.

Unregulated diabetes causes extreme hunger because the cat cannot use the food that has been eaten.
Hyperthyroidism may cause extreme hunger and weight loss.
Renal disease generally reduces appetite, causing weight loss.
and so on.

 

Hi Ruth, and welcome to you and Mo.

As BJ has suggested, it would really help if you could open your very own thread on the welcome board (look in the top right-hand corner for the Post New Thread Button). It helps to have a separate thread for each new kitty so that we can answer your specific questions and hopefully help you to help your kitty faster.
.