Question for Acro cats.

So my cat Max was diagnosed a few years ago. In the last year has really gained the weight and I suspect that there may be other hormone issues in play. He's always been a larger cat, but compared to the newer male cat we are taking care of I've noticed that his face and head appear to be so much larger than the other cat. He also has dry coughing episodes occasionally, which seem like this is new in the past year, no wheezing or breathing problems otherwise, no signs of infections. Might be hairball-related, he overgrooms, does cough hairballs sometimes.

His diabetes takes a waxing-waning sort of course. Out of no where, his blood sugars will increase, and we work up his levemir dose pretty quickly (former DKA cat). He's been up to 7 units twice a day, usually this continues for a month or two, then the sugars start decreasing again, and we work back down. He's been in remission twice between these "episodes" and when not in remission, is usually on a very low dose between episodes (.5-1U BID). No reasons these episodes are occurring (no food changes, no abnormal behavior, no infections, etc.)

Also, Max sleeps a lot, more than my 19 year old kitty. Max is about 10 years. Has other chronic issues - Manx syndrome issues (frequent partial seizures, bunny hop and leg weakness from manx, hyperestesia). Currently weights 16lbs.

I was wondering if other Acro kitties here have had a waxing waning course of the disease?

 

The tumor can stop being active for a bit causing BG levels to unexpectedly drop lower than you normally see for a certain period of time. @Wendy&Neko will hopefully see this message and offer some input.

Here is a link that I found helpful in dealing with acro symptoms that might arise: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZkMmEyux5PxLb6I-FUUOCuZPs2MCYQcpHjG747KRK6c/edit

 

There have been acro cats that have gone into remission, and cats that went into remission, came back on the juice, and were subsequently tested positive for acromegly. One in four diabetic cats has acromegly. There have even been cases of acrocats that were not diabetic. As Paul said, the tumour can wax and wane. Since Max got up to 7 units, I think it's well worth getting the IGF-1 test to confirm whether he has acromegaly. We recommend that for cats that get up to 6 units. Note that there have also been cats that tested positive for acromegaly on as low as dose as 1 unit.

Lethargy is a common symptom of acromegaly, so are heart issues. The dry cough sounds a bit worrying and possibly heart related - might want to get that checked out. The acro tumour can cause organ growth - enlarged heart being a common symptom.

 

We have a tiny cat with a very stubby tail and enormous ears, and I mean really big. That's not really relative to this thread but I've often wondered how he got that way. He also has some Alpha Male issues. I've always loved Manx cats, do they really have so many health issues?

We had a family of six with cardiomyopathy, in their case lethargy and a dry cough were not symptoms although there are variations of cardiomyopathy. It's rare enough already and multiple ultrasounds are expensive and inconclusive.

 

Usually the stubby tail manx have a lot less issues than the tail-less manx. Completely tail-less manx can have shortened spines, or spinabifida which can result in weakness or paralysis of the lower body. This is why they bunny-hop, and when severe even lose control of bowel and bladder. The Manx gene can be a spontaneous mutation or finding in a litter of cats. Breeding a manx cat, however, can result in severely disabled cats which are put to sleep, so it's somewhat sad that breeders do breed these cats.

We got Max from a woman who got him from a shelter, probably not a cat from a breeder, just a spontaneous mutation. He is a happy cat with some chronic health issues due to his spinal deformity.

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Yeah, I think I'll mention to the vet next time we are there regarding the Acro. Concerned about the heart a little with all the lying around he does. Could be just regular old obesity too, as he has more difficulty moving due to being overweight + manx issues.

 

Too bad about breeders. You should see what they do in the U.K. The Tufts Dog Show makes Frankenstein's monster look like a Muppet. Pathetic!

 

The name of the documentary is Pedigree Dogs Exposed. Absolutely revolting and painful to watch. This is why Border Collie breeders took 100 years to join the Westminster Dog Show. At least I think they're in. None of that foo-foo, blow dry, walk like a crippled German Shepard stuff.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/windsor/dog-in-breeding-causing-genetic-problems-says-expert-1.1389739