FLA FUR BIS FLE Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 Has anyone ever cared for a cat with diabetes? I noticed my cat over the last few months was less energetic, his grooming went down hill, and he started losing strength in his back legs. At first I assumed it was because he was getting up there in age, and he has always been a lazy cat. After taking him to the vet, though, we discovered that he is indeed diabetic. The vet prescribed Humulin N, and a change in his diet. We have to take him back to the vet every 3 weeks for the first few months for glucose tests, to make sure he is regulated. The cost is quite steep, though I am willing to pay for it as I hear that cats can get to the point where they no longer require regular insulin shots, plus I hate seeing him all wobbly on his back legs and I am not the type to just say fuck it and put him to sleep because money is tight. I am just wondering if any one has experienced this, and what they have learned in the process. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keltoi Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marf Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 Yes! I have a cat with diabetes. It can be controlled. My cat was almost dead. his eyes were yellow. he was a skeleton within a couple weeks. . they wanted to put him to sleep, but i gave him a chance. Started him on insulin shots. twice a day. No real diet change. He's doing fine. Back to normal 5 years later. Still needs insulin though. Its a pain in the ass though cause you can't travel or you have to get someone who knows how to administer a shot (twice a day. morning and night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kakapo Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 Is this your cat with the big pink nose? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ruiagnelo Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 no cats. but i once had an hamster who died from urinary infection. damn domestic animals and their human-like problems! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 Yep, one of my cats is getting daily shots of catsulin for a few months now. He's pretty cool about it, I don't need to chase him, but 2 shots a day 12 hours apart are needed, which can get irritating if you want to go out. We keep a schedule, writing down the time & amount of insulin given to avoid overdosing and after a few initial vet visits, we're now checking the blood levels ourselves with a 'glucose meter'. You'll have to gradually increase the amount & check levels over a few weeks or so, to see what is the optimal dosage. This can change over time, some cats might even pick up on producing insulin by themselves after a while, so checking the blood level stays important. We were also advised to keep honey and/or dextro energy for emergencies, crush a tab to powder and put this in his mouth if he was having some kind of seizure ( hypoglycemia: http://en.wikipedia....ki/Hypoglycemia ). In my experience small sacrifices to take if you love your pet! He is starting to gain weight again and looking healthy. Might be helpful to learn a friend, family member how to give the shots in case of emergencies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GORDO Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 I had a cat that lost movement of his back legs, we had to put the poor thing down, vets couldn't figure out what he had but I don't think it was diabetes. I'm saying this cus there may be other reasons he lost force on his back legs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest fiznuthian Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 What kind of food have you guys been feeding your cat? Brand and type I mean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest fiznuthian Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 The first ingredient in meow mix dry food is... corn. No, not corn actually.. CORN MEAL, meaning it's ground up into corn powder.. Who the fuck thought it would be a great idea to feed an obligate carnivore corn? Then the second on the list is chicken, thankfully. But that doesn't mean shit when right after chicken comes: corn gluten meal, soybean meal, whole wheat I noticed this is the gist of pretty much any supermarket cat food. That is, feeding an obligate carnivore that has always consumed meat and organs the same thing we feed ruminant animals to FATTEN them (and make them weak, sick, unhealthy too). If a ruminant animal with a behemoth intestinal tract that eats grass for nutrition can't eat corn all day without developing a plethora of metabolic problems, why would we be feeding corn, gluten, and wheat to a cat? It just blows my mind... Granted, your veterinarian recommended cat food might be better than this.. but supermarket cat food is just asking for a sickly cat unless you're lucky. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
essines Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 my cat recently passed away from diabetes. motherfucker was a champ. we fucking shared insulin. it's a handful, that's for sure, but my experience with the beetus made it that much easier. dunno about any advice other than keep those shots regular and monitor his/her glucose and just take an active role in the care process. it can be done and it's totally worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FLA FUR BIS FLE Posted August 23, 2012 Author Share Posted August 23, 2012 What kind of food have you guys been feeding your cat? Brand and type I mean. Umm.. Purina dry food, sensitive systems type, and a bit of wet food. occasionally tuna fish (in water, not oil, of course). Nothing too crazy. He doesn't get over fed or any thing. But since he has had diabetes, he fiends for food like a mug. Dude never stops meowing and walks directly to the fridge when I get home. Thanks for all the advice on this. Keeping my fingers crossed I don't fuck it up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marf Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 Granted, your veterinarian recommended cat food might be better than this.. but supermarket cat food is just asking for a sickly cat unless you're lucky. i agree. i find the best food is tuna in water. it doesn't give me the gag reflex too. which is a plus since im already sick from cleaning the litter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest fiznuthian Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 What kind of food have you guys been feeding your cat? Brand and type I mean. Umm.. Purina dry food, sensitive systems type, and a bit of wet food. occasionally tuna fish (in water, not oil, of course). Nothing too crazy. He doesn't get over fed or any thing. But since he has had diabetes, he fiends for food like a mug. Dude never stops meowing and walks directly to the fridge when I get home. Thanks for all the advice on this. Keeping my fingers crossed I don't fuck it up. Switch your cat over to a meat only diet.. wet food or something. Give him some livers for nutrients, maybe heart, kidneys, etc too. Anything but well known dry food brands. Seems that sensitive systems food is meat ground up with rice, gluten flour, wheat flour, soybean meal, and they even put some soybean oil in it.. From a biochemical standpoint oils that are primarily omega 6 fatty acids like soybean oil are one of the worst things a human can possibly consume. Humans can tolerate some of it, but any excess becomes harmful to us. I doubt their are many studies investigating its affect on a carnivorous animal like cats, but their natural diet would be devoid of it almost entirely so I doubt they fare any better. That food is the dry equivalent to a mcdonalds chicken nugget, with less meat and more grain fillers.. 50% of it's weight is carbohydrate alone. The standard American junkfood diet is also about approx. 50% carbohydrate, sometimes more. No felid species has ever consumed a diet anywhere close to what is packaged in those foods. They kill, and eat their prey. The domestic cat has a history of scavenging human food, so they probably have adapted to human diets to an extent, but i'm willing to bet money that dry cat food is a chronic problem for most cat owners who buy it. .. Just give it a shot, try a meat diet with your cat and let us know how he fares of over the coming months Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FLA FUR BIS FLE Posted August 23, 2012 Author Share Posted August 23, 2012 I will give it a try. A full meat diet is a bit pricey, since i have two cats. But I am thinking that more tuna than anything (which is what he eats now for the most part) is better than nothing. I tend to give him small amounts of dry food once or twice a day in between his main meals, but in all honesty, this is conditioning from his incessant meowing for food. I try not to placate him too much, but it is kind of hard. My other cat is much more of a normal eater than any I've ever had, but the amount of food she gets has turned in to a biproduct of his fiending. Thanks for all the suggestions. I will report back once he is started on the meds and new diet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marf Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 go to a dollar store for the tuna Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
essines Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 if he is always hungry i recommend some carbohydrates. low blood sugar causes an increase in appetite. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rixxx Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 I work for an animal pharmacy so we get lots of prescriptions for diabetic cats and dogs. You can really help your animal by giving it the right food as these guys have previously suggested. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest fiznuthian Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 if he is always hungry i recommend some carbohydrates. low blood sugar causes an increase in appetite. Obligate carnivores don't eat carbohydrates typically.. they hunt and kill. They typically eat high protein, moderate fat diets. If you've ever eaten a ketogenic diet of fat and protein you will know that if anything, it suppresses appetite very effectively. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FLA FUR BIS FLE Posted August 25, 2012 Author Share Posted August 25, 2012 if he is always hungry i recommend some carbohydrates. low blood sugar causes an increase in appetite. Obligate carnivores don't eat carbohydrates typically.. they hunt and kill. They typically eat high protein, moderate fat diets. If you've ever eaten a ketogenic diet of fat and protein you will know that if anything, it suppresses appetite very effectively. funny you say that, because i am on keto now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FLA FUR BIS FLE Posted August 25, 2012 Author Share Posted August 25, 2012 Also, I incorrectly stated before about his diet. He PRIMARILY receives wet food, with dry food in between. It wasn't always this way, since the last cat I had before my current two had weird reactions to wet food, but they've been on this diet for almost two years now. So yeah, I am assuming the canned wet food is fine. I'd love to be feeding them steaks and shit. Still waiting on my IDM check in the mail, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest fiznuthian Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 Interesting.. yeah I do think among commercial cat foods wet food is by far the better option. Some of them still throw a bunch of filler in there like gluten flours, soy flours, wheat, etc.. But they are still better in that the amount of junk carbs thrown in is a lot less than dry food. Can you find Taste of the Wild feline foods where you live? My local Tractor Supply Company store sells ToTW and it's what I feed my dog besides the meat, veggies, and occasional fruits I give him. ToTW makes a superb dry dog/cat food and imo should be the industry standard for a dry food fed to pets. Yet most veterinarians have never heard of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
essines Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 The thing about diabetes though is that your body cannot produce insulin and therefore cannot properly control glucose. Hypoglycemia kills you very quickly. I do not know a lot about diabetes in other species (so please forgive me if I am being ignorant (my cat died very fast of the beetus so I had little time to become familiar)) but if they exhibit symptoms like humans do, carnivorous or not, carbohydrates/sugars are needed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FLA FUR BIS FLE Posted August 25, 2012 Author Share Posted August 25, 2012 Interesting.. yeah I do think among commercial cat foods wet food is by far the better option. Some of them still throw a bunch of filler in there like gluten flours, soy flours, wheat, etc.. But they are still better in that the amount of junk carbs thrown in is a lot less than dry food. Can you find Taste of the Wild feline foods where you live? My local Tractor Supply Company store sells ToTW and it's what I feed my dog besides the meat, veggies, and occasional fruits I give him. ToTW makes a superb dry dog/cat food and imo should be the industry standard for a dry food fed to pets. Yet most veterinarians have never heard of it. Not sure about ToTW, but I will have a look see. There are a few pet supply stores in the area, plus a grocery store that sells a lot of organic/healthy stuff (for pets as well as humans). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest fiznuthian Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 The thing about diabetes though is that your body cannot produce insulin and therefore cannot properly control glucose. Hypoglycemia kills you very quickly. I do not know a lot about diabetes in other species (so please forgive me if I am being ignorant (my cat died very fast of the beetus so I had little time to become familiar)) but if they exhibit symptoms like humans do, carnivorous or not, carbohydrates/sugars are needed. You raise good questions.. Certainly whether rob's cat is type 1 or type 2 is important to know.. if there's no insulin produced by the pancreas at all that is a different and potentially more frustrating situation. Just like any type 1 diabetic would know, as most resort to insulin injections. In humans we have the gluconeogenesis metabolic pathway, which converts protein into glucose in the event that blood sugar is dropping.. it's a regulatory function and works very well, and anyone who has tried a good ketogenic for long enough would know it. i saw recently that another metabolic pathway was discovered, previously unknown, that converts free fatty acids into glucose. I find that pretty bizarre, a fatty acid somehow converting to a monosaccharide sugar. Low carb seems to work well for type 2 diabetics.. i have no idea about type 1 to be honest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest fiznuthian Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 Interesting.. yeah I do think among commercial cat foods wet food is by far the better option. Some of them still throw a bunch of filler in there like gluten flours, soy flours, wheat, etc.. But they are still better in that the amount of junk carbs thrown in is a lot less than dry food. Can you find Taste of the Wild feline foods where you live? My local Tractor Supply Company store sells ToTW and it's what I feed my dog besides the meat, veggies, and occasional fruits I give him. ToTW makes a superb dry dog/cat food and imo should be the industry standard for a dry food fed to pets. Yet most veterinarians have never heard of it. Not sure about ToTW, but I will have a look see. There are a few pet supply stores in the area, plus a grocery store that sells a lot of organic/healthy stuff (for pets as well as humans). Cool. Yeah I highly recommend it.. not sure about the price of their cat food, but a 50 lb bag of dry dog food (the wild salmon one) costs me $50 and feeds my active dog for an entire month or so. yeah its more expensive than cheap shit like purina or kibbles and bits but their food is well researched and formulated. It's a nutritional powerhouse for a dog IMO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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