New & need advice, feel rehoming maybbe only option

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If the dry food is Hill M/D, I believe it's about 18% carbs....far too high for a diabetic. It's commonly peddled by ill informed vets because they get their nutritional training from the big gun pet food companies and they've been brain washed. There are a couple of dry food options available in the US that are low enough in carbs to be suitable if not optimal (wet is optimal). Either Young Again or Dr. Elsey's Clean Protein would be viable replacements for the M/D.
 
MrWorfMen's Mom said:
You may be on to something with those observations. Cushings will cause difficulties with BG regulation and quite often the cats will have a pot belly and hair loss. That said it's equally possible that kitty has acromegaly, IAA or is getting too much insulin as in the examples above.
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Curious, when you say pot-belly do you mean like...poochy, hanging kind of belly or wide belly? His is pretty distended, out to the sides. He used to have the sway-belly, years ago, but lost it and is now really thin everywhere but his belly. Initially, I thought it was worms!

My husband mentioned that they did say his spleen and/or liver was slightly enlarged. I'm thinking it was probably the liver. So a lot of his symptoms DO align with Cushings!!
 
Tracey&Jones said:
The dry maybe a way to control the behaviour but maybe Young Again would be a better option.
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Wooaaah the young again is pricey. I'm not sure how much the vet is charging for the food they're getting there but I remember when we were getting different Rx food for another cat it was like $50/8 lbs? I will see if they're open to trying Dr. Elsey's, that seems like it would likely be comparable in price to their vet's.
 
If you scroll down to page 334 & 335 in this medical article there are pictures of the pot belly of a cat with Cushings. I suppose the sides would bulge too but it wouldn't just be a pouch of swingy tissue which is a primordial pouch and quite common and normal in cats whether overweight or not. This documentation describes both acromegaly and Cushings in cats quite well. Hope it helps. :)
 
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landv said:
Wooaaah the young again is pricey.
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Don't panic over the price. This food is so calorie dense that the amount a cat eats is less and the bag will last longer than you think. They will send samples out to you for both foods I think, so you can try them before putting out major funds for a big bag.
 
MrWorfMen's Mom said:
It's commonly peddled by ill informed vets because they get their nutritional training from the big gun pet food companies and they've been brain washed. There are a couple of dry food options available in the US that are low enough in carbs to be suitable if not optimal (wet is optimal). Either Young Again or Dr. Elsey's Clean Protein would be viable replacements for the M/D.
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Most of the science diet foods have always seemed like a racket (like "diet" foods that keep you overweight!). We had another cat on one that seemed to be the exact opposite of what he really needed. And he hated it!
 
One thing to consider is having an ultra sound done. That will determine whether there is an adrenal gland tumour which is one type of Cushing's (adrenal dependent hyperadrenocorticism). It will also tell whether the pancreas, liver and BOTH adrenals are enlarged which is a good visual indication of PDH Cushing's (pituitary dependent hyperadrenocorticism)which is what my kitty had. More tests would be needed if the ultrasound shows signs of either. The pot belly, hair loss, muscle loss and hard to control diabetes are good indicators. Cushing's is really not as rare as it is believed. In the 2 1/2 years I have been on this forum there have been about 6 other kitties, besides mine that were diagnosed with Cushing's. My personal feeling is that it is under diagnosed because the vet profession believes it is rare.
 
MrWorfMen's Mom said:
If you scroll down to page 334 & 335 in this medical article there are pictures of the pot belly of a cat with Cushings. I suppose the sides would bulge too but it wouldn't just be a pouch of swingy tissue which is a primordial pouch and quite common and normal in cats whether overweight or not. This documentation describes both acromegaly and Cushings in cats quite well. Hope it helps. :)
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Yup! He doesn't have the plantigrade stance but otherwise the side view looks like him, with the kind of rough looking coat as well.
 
Cushings is harder to diagnose than acromegaly or IAA and depending on the type, there may not be much you can do other than supportive care so while knowing may explain a lot and ease your mind and your parents' about the high doses of insulin required, it may not change the treatment plan. The symptoms displayed can differ from one cat to another so any one or two symptoms alone don't necessarily mean Cushings but may suggest it as a possibility.
 
landv said:
Most of the science diet foods have always seemed like a racket (like "diet" foods that keep you overweight!). We had another cat on one that seemed to be the exact opposite of what he really needed. And he hated it!
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Most of the food is cellulose filler - in other words, cardboard. The Young Again Zero Carb is very dense and highly palatable, they only eat about 1/4 cup a day if they are on YA alone. If your kitty is getting wet, too, he won't need much YA per day, so it really isn't as expensive as it seems like.
 
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