9/7/2023 - After 10 Years, Michelangelo is OTJ!

Hi Everyone! It's been a while since I've posted, so many of you might not know of Michelangelo. He was diagnosed all the way back in 2012 at 6 months old. For the last +10 years, he's been on Levemir ranging from .25u to 2u BID. (His spreadsheet has not been updated for a couple of years, but I still keep track in log books.)

I always suspected he was a diabetic due to some external factor causing hyperglycemia but it was very difficult to figure out what the underlying problem was. I had hints over the years, from his feline hyperesthesia (which was helped significantly when I switched from Lantus to Levemir), to his annual "October Oscillation" where he would become unregulated and increase in dose over the winter. The last few years, the symptoms became more pronounced and I was finally able to get vets to pay attention.

We tried a few different medications and he was finally referred to a pet allergy specialist. They were the first to prescribe Atopica and it seems to be working! Mikey has been on a daily dose (11Lb dose) since early this year and his BGs immediately started falling. At first, it was a skipped shot here and there, then it became entire days where he didn't need insulin, until finally he was only needing a dose about once a week. He received his last dose of insulin in the beginning of July and has been below 100 ever since. (Something rather ironic is that the Atopica costs more per month than the Levemir did.)

I never thought it would happen for him, even if we found the underlying cause, just because he's been diabetic for so long. But now, Michelangelo is officially

 

wow That's soooo joyful. I'm celebrating with you. It's so beautiful to witness how you stayed alert to what you sense that was in play and persevered to find the answer. Well done. Congratulations

 

Two things here which blow my mind. Firstly, 6 months is the absolute youngest I have ever heard of a cat being diagnosed with FD, AND 10 years is the absolute longest I have ever heard of a cat taking to go OTJ.


Two records in my mind, wow. That is awesome

 

This is so awesome!
Congratulations!

 

I remember you and am so happy for you! Congrats.

 

Wow! Love this! Congrats!

 

Congratulations!!!

 

Michelangelo is adorable. I'm so happy for you and kitty. 10 years is a long time. Love your story and the happy ending. Mikey's still young.... sending positive kitty vibes to staying healthy and insulin free

 

I also remember you. Truly amazing!

 

Hey, I remember you. I also recall how unusual his case was, especially with his young age. Such great news!

 

Congrats! I also remember you.

 

Congratulations!!

 

What an amazing story , Congratulations

 

Congratulations! That’s the best news!! Stay healthy, Mikey

 

Thank you, everyone! Here's the good, sweet boy!

 

Congratulations!

 

He's gorgeous

 

That's great news. So happy for you!!

 

Wonderful !!

 

I remember you and your sweet Mikey. Congratulations!

 

Oh gosh, I am so thrilled for you!!! Didn't even know this was possible for Mikey, thought he must be a type 1 diabetic. ...Maybe this will also give some hope to others with diabetic kittens...

I wish you could see the huge smile on my face right now, haha!

CONGRATULATIONS!!!


Eliz xxx

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What an amazing story this is. Congratulations to your very handsome boy, and kudos to you for persevering!!!

 

Thanks once again for all the congratulations and it's nice to see so many familiar faces! Mikey was at 85 for today's test (I only test him a couple of times a month now).

I don't have access to facebook anymore (ever since they started requiring an uploaded image of legal ID - too much invasion of privacy for me) but I used to be heavily involved in some of the FD facebook groups so if anyone would like to re-post this announcement for me there, I would appreciate it as I'm sure there are a few people who might like seeing the update on Mikey.

And here's another picture of my (not-so-)sweet boy where, if you look closely enough, you might be able to see his whiskers finally growing back. (Over the years since he was first diagnosed, his whiskers would break off intermittently. I always thought it was related to the diabetes but it looks like it's related to the atopic dermatitis/pemphigus foliaceus flare-ups.)

 

He's gorgeous!