? New - My Sugar Kitty is Losing Weight

Larry was diagnosed late Feb, using ProZinc, 1 U every 12 hrs, eating FF pate & some kitten FF, @ 3.5 cans daily. He has lost nearly 2 lbs in 2 months, from 13.8# to 11.8#. In Feb all else on blood work was normal.
Wondered if anyone else has experienced similar weight loss? Or suggestions please!

I'm wondering whether I should take him to the vet for another blood workup? But, vet won't let pet parents in with your pet at this time - don't like that!

 

Hi Marney, I'm going to tag
@Deb & Wink

@JanetNJ
Who are familiar with Prozinc
Is there any reason you can't get some tests in after his PMPS
I'm no expert but he's been on 1 unit for a long time
I love your kitties names Moe, Larry and Curly so cute

Thanks ladies

 

https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/new-how-you-can-help-us-help-you.216696/

This link will tell you how to set up your signature
It's at the end of everyone's post in gray
Information about our kitties , so you won't be asked the same questions over and over again
Good job setting up your spreadsheet already

 

Had his thyroid been tested? Feed him as much as he will eat.

 

It looks like you need to go to 1.25 u... Can you try to get a dailt mid day number and a before bed test?

 

Have done some +6s - 4/3 was 205, 4/6 was204, 4/12 was 252. Haven't done bedtime tests but can and record. Thanks!

 

Yes, did a full sr. blood workup end of Feb and thyroid was fine, as it was last Nov when I just had thyroid checked. He pretty much eats some all day and I try to really keep an eye on his food bowl.

 

@JanetNJ
Thanks Janet

 

Yeah, I'd like to see that number go lower... lets aim for around 100... so we raise it a little at a time... but importaint to get those daily mid cycle tests in. You're doing great... Your cat is lucky to have you.

 

Agree with Janet. Larry needs a dose increase, to get him down into those blues and high green BG numbers.

 

Thank you for responding! It's a little scary. When he was first diagnosed, end of Feb, the vet said give him 2 units - I did for 1.5 days and he was very lethargic and under the bed, not wanting to come out. Called the vet, told them and we agreed to do 1 unit and that's where I've stayed. And I want him to do as well as possible and feel like his little old self! If I do go to 1.25 units, do we assume he will start feeling better and perhaps stop losing weight?

 

Thank you for responding! It's a little scary. When he was first diagnosed, end of Feb, the vet said give him 2 units - I did for 1.5 days and he was very lethargic and under the bed, not wanting to come out. Called the vet, told them and we agreed to do 1 unit and that's where I've stayed. And I want him to do as well as possible and feel like his little old self! If I do go to 1.25 units, do we assume he will start feeling better and perhaps stop losing weight?

 

Insulin is not a set it and forget it kind of thing. Insulin needs fluctuate, and you just have to give him what he needs at the time. THe better controlled the diabetes, the better he will be able to utilize the nutrients in his food.

 

It takes time to get a cat regulated. It takes time for a cat to stop losing weight and start to gain a bit of weight back. Cheer every little step on this diabetic journey with your cat Larry.

I see by the note on your SS that you gave Larry a little bit more than 1U. Would you please change the dose in the dose column to 1F. F stands for "fat" and S stands for "skinny". It's how we indicate a little bit more, or a little bit less, when the dose is not a full 0.25U increment. Make sense?

Read. Read all you can. Read other threads, read the Sticky threads at the top of the forum, read the Sticky threads over in the Prozinc ISG forum. Knowledge is power and can help you feel less scared.

Ask questions. It's how we all learned in the beginning.

 

What was Larry eating prior to his diagnosis? There are a couple of factors to consider regarding diabetes and weight.

If you switched to a low carbohydrate, canned food diet, Larry is eating a species appropriate diet both for diabetes and for a cat! Some cats lose weight as a result of a switch to a better diet.

With diabetes, when food is metabolized it's broken down into glucose. Insulin transports that glucose from the blood into the cells where it's needed for fuel. If your cat's pancreas isn't making insulin, the insulin is floating around in the blood and that gives us the blood glucose numbers that we measure. If the BG is higher than normal, Larry isn't getting nutrients into his cells. That's why many cats lose weight -- it's a symptom of the diabetes. Giving an insulin injection provides what the pancreas isn't producing and helps to get the glucose back into the cells. Once you see more of Larry's numbers below 100, there's a good chance his weight will stabilize.

In the meantime, you may want to take a look at the calorie content of the food you're giving Larry. You can always feed I'm more calories.

 

Thanks @Deb & Wink

 

I noticed in your information that Larry had a UTI. Some cats with diabetes seem to be more prone to UTI's. My cat Ravan has Diabetes for over 3 yrs & also Kidney disease. He'll be 19 in June.
When he had a UTI I tried antibiotic but he vomited from it. I gave him D-Mannose 3 times a day for 3 days. Then, I tapered off to twice a day then once a day. By the end of the week he was just fine. Now I give it to him 2 times a week to prevent any UTI's.

It's a white powder & tastes sweet ,but it doesn't effect blood glucose. I mix 1/2 teaspoon in a tablespoon of water in a shot glass & give it to him with a feeding syringe. It works great.


NOW Supplements, D-Mannose Powder, Non-GMO Project Verified, Healthy Urinary Tract*, 3-Ounce

Price: $14.99 ($5.00 / Ounce) & FREE Returns
Amazon

Best of luck with Larry! Like Deb & Wink said, Read everything & ask lots of questions! The more you know the easier it will be to help your Kitty ( don't forget to take a few deep breaths to calm yourself down when you get frustrated. It will get easier! )

 

Hi and thanks so much for the information!!! That would be a good idea I think! Allow I think the Clavamox pills got the UTI I haven't taken him back in to check with the vet, but the symptoms seem to have disappeared. This sounds like a great preventative! Julianne Johnson suggested a product by Oxbow called Critical Care- Carnivore to help him do better with his weight. Perhaps I could add this with that powder and mix all with his food? He has always been a good eater, and luckily continues to be! So much to read and I am and am trying to retain it all! Breathing deeply is a good thing - I sometimes forget! Hearts to you!

 

Thanks for your response! Before diabetes Larry was a very good eater - too good actually. And I had started him on a diet last fall trying to get a couple lbs off him and then realized he was losing what seemed like a lot, 2 lbs in just 6+ wks. Checked thyroid which was fine. Diabetes diagnosis late Feb 2021, started on the Purina diatetic food which vet recommended, then after joining FDMB and thru guidance by a friend in FDMB, quickly switched to FF which he has been eating since Mid March. And he gets kitten FF every other can. Have just started to increase insulin to 1.25 - 2 times so far.

 

Of course, the other factor may be that Larry needs more calories. This is a way to calculate calories:

Required calories per day = [13.6 X optimal lean body weight in pounds] + 70​

If encourage you to increase Larry's dose based on what his numbers look like. Your spreadsheet indicates that you're using Prozinc. There's information about dosing in the Prozinc forum if you've not already seen it. Once he's seeing more blue and green numbers, I'd be curious is he stops losing weight. Is he hungry much of the time?

 

Thanks for your reply! Just started to increase from 1 U to 1.25 based on other recommendations - will be the third time tonite. I've read Prozinc forum and will re-read it. He eats well and I try having food for him in his bowl all the time except for 2 hrs before insulin. Adding kitten FF every other can for him and Julianne recommended a powder, Oxbow called Critical Care to help him gain weight. It arrives next week. I'm just praying there isn't anything else going on with him!

I'm not sure that I understand the "required calories per day" in your message. He now weighs 11.8 lbs.

 

We had a foster we named Bob and there's a dog down the street named Kevin but Larry and Curly and Moe takes the cake.
Those names will bring you good luck.

 

Does he look thin? Maybe he was "over weight" and now he's at a better weight? FF pate is low carbs & stopping Kibble is probably the reason he's lost weight. A lot of animals are over weight now days. Which isn't good for their health or especially diabetes!

 

I tried to see Larry's SS but it won't open for me?

 

I hope you are having a beautiful day too! Thanks for sending the pics of cat's weight. He is looking pretty thin. This journey we are on started last fall when I knew he was too heavy, 15.6 lbs. I had made a change in food bowls so that each cat has their own that opens with their microchip so that Larry wouldn't eat all of the food as they were free feeding kibble out of the same bowl. I started changing the kibble brand to "diet" food and he was hungry all of the time and started to lose weight. Had his thyroid checked in Nov. He dropped from 15.6 to 13.6 in just two or three months and altho I liked that I wondered why so quickly??? I think that was when the diabetes was first beginning. In late Feb took him to the vet for a full sr. blood panel (he's 11 now) and diagnosed with diabetes. Since then, late Feb, I've changed to all FF pate, no more kibble, and he's dropped to, as of today 11.4 lbs. Altho he doesn't totally look like the thinnest cat in your pictures, he looks thin and you can definitely feel his spine and ribs and starting to look "indented" in the hip area. Concerns me! Thankfully, his appetite is good and he's eating 3-3.5 cans of FF daily, every other can is kitten. I've ordered the Oxbow called Critical Care- Carnivore powder that Julianne suggested and will start using it as soon as it arrives. Thank you for your responses! I reloaded his spreadsheet so hopefully you can open it now.

 

Yes, I saw his SS. Nice that he already got a blue #. Couple more days & we'll see what the dose will do.

Hang in there. The best advice I received when I started, " Patience" Patience is a person's ability to wait something out or endure something tedious, without getting riled up. ... Having patience means you can remain calm, even when you've been waiting forever or dealing with something painstakingly slow

 

The SS opens for me just fine.

 

Lovely - thank you! I'd go to the moon and back for this little guy and will be patient!

 

This is our Lewis who has been losing weight for months. His first two blood workups showed borderline thyroid issues but not bad enough to cause concern. He was tested again last week, same thing but our vet can feel a lump where his thyroid gland is. He gets his ultrasound tomorrow. Lewis is the alpha male so the other cats don't touch his food. He has been devouring can after can and now looks exactly as described, indented and almost gaunt in the hip area.
His last thyroid checkup was November yes? A lot can change in five months.
I was told 99.95% of these masses are benign so you can sleep tonight.

 

Thanks for your response. His thyroid was first checked in early Nov 2020, but also checked in full blood workup the end of Feb and that looked normal. I will be taking him in again in the next few weeks for another blood workup and will also make sure they "feel" for anything abnormal. I'm worried about his rapid weight loss, and hoping it is just "normal" for a newly diagnosed sugar kitty. I will start using the Oxbow called Critical Care- Carnivore powder supplement that Julianne recommended and hope that will help stop the weight loss!

 

I don't like having the crap scared out of me when doctors or vets say lump or mass. To me that translates straight to the C word.
That's why I said 99.95% of these masses are benign. It's not a diagnosis on my part, I just don't want you to hear this and assume the worst.
Years ago I had a consultation with a proctologist / surgeon, no people skills or sense of humor. I said "as long as I don't end up strapped to a bag" and he started quoting the odds. No thanks buddy, it turned out to be something else anyway.

 

Of course we don't like to assume the worst, and still, feline diabetes is terrible and we know it may lead to something more, or could mean something more. You didn't scare me, and all along I've been praying it isn't cancer! His weight loss is troubling tho, and I'm hoping that by using this Oxbow supplement he will stop losing and being putting on some ounces. And I'm slowing increasing his insulin so hoping that will make a difference too. I will probably have another full blood workup done in May.
My previous kitty became diabetic and even tho I never learned to do testing, I was able to keep him for 8+ yrs. Unfortunately they found a huge mass on his pancreas and I lost him. I certainly want my current situation with Larry to have a better outcome! Have a good day!!!

 

UPDATE AND ANOTHER QUESTION RE: MY LARRY

I had previously sent out a message re: Larry's weight loss. Julianne Johnson suggested using Oxbox Critical Care in his food. I have been doing so since 4/19 eve. It seems perhaps that he isn't losing more weight. I spoke with Oxbow and they suggested using it for only 7 days and then speak with my vet. Will do that.

I increased his dosage to 1.25 two x day starting 4/17. His numbers are still in the lower to higher 200's. He seems more alert & out more, but am wondering whether I should bump the dose up again to 1.50? I read the ProZinc sticky re: dosing but still wanted to get some thots on the matter.

Thanks!

 

Until Larry gets enough insulin to help him process his food, he'll keep losing weight. Besides the supplement you are giving Larry, at the recommendation of someone else, you need to get Larry to eat more. Adding another 3 ounce can of Fancy Feast would not hurt. He may even need 2 more cans, since they are pretty small. Or look for a food that is higher in calories.

Here is the food chart we use.
Info Dr. Pierson - new Food Chart

Yes, it's time for another dose increase for Larry. The 1.25U is hardly budging his BG numbers.

 

Thanks again, Deb. Did the 1.5 U tonite. Will review the food chart