8/9 Tiggy AMPS 83 +3 118 update

Previous post

Hello guys, sorry it have been MIA.. Busy at work and with pets and I took a second job to try and pay for Tiggys test bills.. Sigh.

Anyway he is doing ok. His BG is great.His legs are worse again but for now he is still on his feet. Today he spent lots of time in the garden hobbling around and looking for chipmunks. We started him on coenzyme q10 that the vet said we could try but was unlikely to work. And we do a little physical therapy on him, make him run around etc.. See if that will help.

But honestly he hasn't been high on my list recently because my rabbit Pikachu has been really ill. She is very old at age 12 but for months now has been fighting what we think is an ear infection. We have tried so many antibiotics but her immune system is so bad at her age she just isn't picking up the slack and it's slowly getting worse. She falls over a lot and can't her up and we are constantly picking her up. She is eating and behaving normally otherwise but we have started to question her quality of life on a regular basis.
A year yesterday we lost Bonnie :cry: and I can't believe we are approaching that time again.. But for now we are just trying to keep her comfortable, but it's tough getting up every two hours to help her.. For some reason it's harder than getting up to test BG! Or maybe I am getting old. At the same time 3/4 of my pets are sick as you know and it's very trying on me to manage them all. And I spend my day worrying about them all..

(((Wendy))) Tiggy's numbers do look great but I can sure empathize the stress you must feel having to watch his legs get weaker, on top of your other pets health in decline. It is hard enough to manage FD, and I do realize you have two sugar kitties and so with other complications, and to face it alone(me too!) All I can say is, you are doing a great job under very difficult circumstances, breathe deeply and hugs to you! :YMHUG: :YMHUG:

Sending many prayers and healing vines for little Pikachu. Poor, sweet girl. What a great mom you are to all of them.

I'm glad Tiggy is still moving ...great numbers!

oh I forgot to tell you I heard back from Dr Lunn at CSU - below. FYI Tiggy only had an MRI of the spine and the spinal cord is the localization so long story short - this isn't due to acromegaly....:

Thank you for your email. I am sorry to hear about the problems with Tiggy.

Did he also have an MRI of the brain, or just the spinal cord?

Acromegaly can cause pretty bad joint problems - but that is not the same as ataxia. Also diabetic neuropathy can cause signs of weakness, but not necessarily ataxia. It would be good to know where the neurologist localized the disease. From your description it sounds like spinal cord was the localization (rather than brain or peripheral nerves or muscles)? In which case I don't think I can tie it to diabetes or acromegaly.

I have seen acromegaly cats display neurological signs - but it has been associated with a large pituitary tumor causing compression in the brain. If he had an MRI that should have been detected.

I am sorry I can't be more help with Tiggy. From what you described I am most suspicious of a separate problem, but hard to know for sure when I have not examined him myself.

And I agree - the IGF of 104 is not diagnostic for the disease, but worth following this number over time.

Best of luck to you both