Hi and thank you!

Hey all,

I’m Marina, Trixie is my 10(ish) year old kitty. I am so thankful for this message board! I was googling new litter because I thought mine was not working well, and somehow I came across this board. We took Trixie right in and she got her diagnosis today. She is doing great, other than the extra urine, I wouldn’t think anything was wrong.

I’m overwhelmed... while money isn’t the top of my worries, it’s there. I love Trixie so much, but she is extremely opinionated and grouchy. I know that she isn’t going to help this process go smoothly. She had a hard life in the shelter before we got her and only loves me and my oldest son. We also have a 2.5 week vacation out of the country coming up in May and I have no idea how I’m going to handle that. One day at a time!

Anyway, our vet is going to start her on ProZinc, 1 unit twice a day. I’m going in tomorrow to have them train me on how to do it and I’m bringing my son (he’s planning on going to school in the fall for the medical field, so he is going to be a great help while he’s home). We already changed Trixie’s food when I came across the info on this board and found out how much healthier it was either way. No problems there, she loves wet food!

Looking forward to getting support and info here!

 

Hi Marina, welcome to FDMB!

It sounds like you're already on the right track! Prozinc is a great insulin for kitties, they react very well to it. There's a lot to take in here so if you have any questions just let us know.

One thing that's big here is signatures and spreadsheets. Signatures like mine below just list your cat's information, so when you need assistance for Trixie later on you don't have to repeat yourself for the standard questions. Spreadsheets (also in my signature below) are how we keep track of our kitties' blood sugar and help us help them to heal. If you ever need dosing advice in the future (inevitable haha) the members will need Trixie's data in order to assist, so whenever you have time feel free to set them up and knock them out of the way.

Signature walk-through can be found here.
Spreadsheet walk-through can be found here.

As for your upcoming vacation, when you go in tomorrow see if any of the vet techs are up to caring for Trixie in your absence, or if the vet itself boards kitties. It's a little ways away but can definitely put your mind at ease ahead of time!

 

Welcome to FDMB!

On the food front, I'm hoping that you found the chart from Lisa Pierson, DVM and selected canned foods that are under 10% carb. If not, this is a link to the chart. Fancy Feast pate style foods are very popular here.

If you need a resource for Hometesting, this link contains information, videos, etc on testing.

As far as being overwhelmed, that's absolutely normal. It also gets a lot easier. Everything is new right now. It will all become a part of your routine. It gets easier -- a lot easier.

 

Hi Marina and Trixie and welcome!
It can be overwhelming in the beginning but you have come to the best possible place for help and support.
Ask lots of questions....we are very happy to answer them.

 

Hi Marina. How is Trixie doing?

 

Thank you all for your welcomes! It’s been quite a weekend for sure... having 4 kids (3 teens) means our schedules are crazy, so I’m trying to figure out a system that works rather than worrying that I’m going to forget all day. Mornings are pretty easy, thankfully! My vet tech was not very open to me testing trixie at home, so we will be taking her in for a blood curve (I think that’s what it’s called) next Friday. Im hoping to talk with the vet about it soon.

I’ve still got to get a signature set up here, so that’s for the quick instructions!

She is really doing much better already with the food change, less urinating and not starving all the time, so I’m really encouraged by that.

 

Good luck figuring out your new system!

You are free to do a glucose curve at the vet's, just remember the stress of being there will make her numbers higher and it gets very expensive...my vet was having me bring my girl in every other week, and at $70 a trip it drained my savings fast. It's much cheaper/safer/more accurate to home test and you don't need permission from the vet to do so. Honestly, you'd think they'd encourage it, it would make their lives easier LOL. Please let us know how your vet visit goes!

 

yeah, that cost is probably my biggest hurdle right now. I didn’t feel equipped enough to challenge the norm at my vet when I was there. We love him, he’s super helpful in keeping costs down and not over treating things, so I’m thinking I’ll give him a call and see what he thinks instead of talking to the vet techs.

I’m going through all the home monitor info on this site so far, and I think I’m going to pick up the Walmart one that’s been mentioned.

 

I think we were all in that same boat at one point! I'm not usually a confrontational person but when the vet tech told me they wouldn't feed my cat Fancy Feast at her glucose curve because she "wouldn't get regulated on it" I did put my foot down and provided proof. Luckily my vet was receptive and after I sent her the catinfo nutrition chart she did her own research and made some phone calls and by the time I picked my girl up that afternoon she admitted she had "learned a lot", so hopefully your vet will be the same way!

The Walmart brand is a great choice - cheap and easily accessible!