Newly diagnosed. Seeking easiest and best equipment suggestions.ng

hi there, fluffy has been diagnosed yesterday.
I am still waiting for the vet to get the special ordered insulin and set up a day to teach me all I need to do with her.
I have been reading lost of posts in here and in the cat site so I feel much less anxious.
She is currently eating fancy feast pate and a tiny amount of instinct ultimate protein dry food, about a spoon of it at night, which is left out while I sleep, so if she is hungry she can eat something.
She is 10 years old, a Linz point Siamese and overweight, she is 12.2 pounds and the vet would like her to be at 10, so I’m also monitoring her weight.
I have another 11 year old cat that is healthy but I will be transitioning to the same food. And I have a kitten that is being fed in a high place, separate room, so my fat diabetic kitty can’t get to it, but is the healthy 11 year old wants to much on the kitten food then he can.

Questions:
First, I wanted some suggestions or re assurance on my feeding plan.
Second, how much should a 12 pound diabetic kitty eat in total calories to safely drop to 10 pounds?
What equipment do you recommend that will make the process easy for me and her, and be somewhat budget friendly.? What monitor, strips, lancing device, etc.
She is a very stressed kitty that has to wear a calming collar and is on feliway diffuser. Sometimes she gets some hemp oils for pets to get her to relax.
Thank youuu

 

Good morning and welcome to FDMB Athena and Fluffy. Sorry to hear about the diabetes diagnosis for Fluffy, but congratulations on finding this message board and asking questions.
It's great that Fluffy is eating the Fancy Feast pate diet (hopefully no gravies or sauces) and we suggest no dry food at all as it is high carbohydrate and not at all good for a sugar cat. It would be like a human diabetic having a candy bar or piece of pie. Many of us use a timed feeder to dispense a meal or snack at night or when we can't be at home to serve our pets.
What insulin is Fluffy going to be on, do you know? There are pet specific insulins and human insulins that can be used for pets. These insulins require different syringes, and depending where you are, may or may not require a vet's prescription.
We recommend blood sugar testing, just like human diabetics do, to ensure it's safe to inject the insulin, as well as track the ongoing effects. We can offer suggestions for a glucose meter and strips.
So, to begin, create your signature with as much of Fluffy's info you have right now. It can be updated if/when changes are made.
1. Set up your signature (light grey text under a post). Here's how:
click on your name in the upper right corner of this page
click on "signature" in the menu that drops down
type the following in the box that opens: kitty's name/age/date of diabetes diagnosis/insulin you're using /glucose meter you're using/what (s)he eats/any other meds or health issues (s)he has.
**If you wish, you can also fill in as much profile information you would like us to know too:
On the left, under Settings, Personal Details:
If there is a small image you would like to use as an Avatar, (Fluffy's picture) click on the Avatar box.
The picture should be at least 200*200 pixels.
Add other information that you feel comfortable sharing.
Be sure to click the Save Changes button at the bottom.

When you begin home testing we use a spreadsheet to record the insulin and blood sugar data.
We can all see it and look at it before offering advice:
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/
It would be a good idea to ask your questions in the Main Health forum HERE.
If you like, you can just copy your Intro message here, start a new thread in the Main forum and paste the message there. Then more members can see and start getting you answers to your questions, and ease your mind about feline diabetes treatment for Fluffy.
Best wishes going forward!