Why is my cat is rly hungry after meal and insulin?

confused_cat

What does it mean when my cat, Oreo, is telling me she's really hungry after I feed her the normal amount (2.5 oz wet food and 1/4 C of dry food twice a day) and give her the normal amount of insulin?

Did I give her too little insulin?
v
Should I give her more?

Did I give her too much insulin?
v
Should I feed her a little more?

 

If she's not regulated, she will be hungry and probably need more food.

Can you give anymore info on your cat?
Age, how long dx, type of insulin, dose, any blood glucose numbers?

Welcome to the boards!
ps. we usually use a candle to show a kitty has passed or as a rememberance - change your first post to use the question mark and that will get attention.

 

Oh my...Oops! Thanks for the tip.

Shes 10 and has had diabetes for a little over a year. I use Humilin N and give her 2 units of insulin twice a day after each meal.

I do not test her or have anything TO test her with, so.

 

You might find it helpful to read up on feline nutrition at Cat Info We encourage low carb canned or raw food. Keep everything the same until you can do blood testing, since you are giving insulin! Food changes may drop the glucose level 100 points or more, changing the required insulin dose.

You might not be feeding your cat enough.
You might not be giving enough insulin.
Or a combination of both.
Diabetic cats can't use what they eat unless the insulin dose is optimized. Insulin allows the glucose to be used by the body.

We can't really figure it out without more information from you - blood glucose levels, urine ketone levels, size of cat, type and dose of insulin.

Are you testing for urine ketones? These ocurr when fat is breaking down for energy. Too many ketones result in diabetic ketoacidosis, a potentially fatal complication of diabetes which is very expensive to treat. See my signature link Secondary Monitoring Tools for info on how to do this, as well as other ways of assessing your cat.

Here's a little light reading from AAHA on managing feline diabetes. I encourage you to read it over and share it with your vet.

You can test your kitty at home with an inexpensive human glucometer, such as the WalMart ReliOn Prime, Vital, or Confirm. These 3 are inexpensive, have inexpensive test strips, and the generic version of these is available from our shopping partner ADW (link at top of page). You'll need lancets which are about 26-27 gauge to test the blood.

We strongly encourage blood glucose testing to make sure it is safe to give insulin and to monitor control of the diabetes.

 

Humalin is a harsh insulin on cats so she could be dropping low. How long after the shot does she act hungry?

Defiantly pick up a meter, it's the only way to keep your cat safe.. Shopping list is below or there are resources on this site for a free meter if money is a concern. We can help advise on how to test once you get the meter. And you should ask your vet about a better insulin like lantus, levemir or prozinc.

Getting started shopping list
1. Meter ie Walmart Relion
2. Matching strips
3. Lancets - little sticks to poke the ear to get blood . new members usually start with a larger gauge lancet such as 28g or 29g until the ear learns to bleed. Optional - lancing tool.
4. Cotton balls to stem the blood
5. Neosporin ointment to heal the wound
6. Ketone urine test strips ie Ketostix or ketodiastix - Important to check ketones when blood is high
7. Treats for the cat - like freeze dried chicken
8. karo syrup/corn syrup or honey if you dont have it at home - for hypo emergencies to bring blood sugar up fast
9. A couple of cans of fancy feast gravy lovers - for hypo emergencies to bring blood sugar up fast


Wendy