2 Diabetic Cat Questions *update and photo added*

[Freedom]

All I can say is, bless you for caring so much, for your Morgan, and for Mr. Jennings!

Just a thought (and I know NOTHING about diabetic cats): can you only keep the kitty in a separate room at feeding times? I have 8 cats, one is on a prescription food due to severe food allergies. He goes in a bedroom, the door gets closed. Then I put out all the food, going in to put his down as well. I set the timer for 15 minutes. Once the cats finish, I feed the dogs. Pick up all the food. Go in and pick his up last. Bobby now KNOWS when it is feeding time and goes into the sewing room and sits waiting!

You made it sound as though you have food out all the time, as in 'free feeding." So I just was wondering if this would work for your situation.

[krazyaboutkatz]

I'm sorry to hear this. I don't know much about diabetic cats but I have read articles that say that sometimes if they start eating a very high protein diet that has very few carbs that sometimes it can be reversed. I currently feed my cats Innova Evo which is a grain free very high protein food. It comes in dry and canned food and my cats love it.

The only thing that some cats have a problem with is that since it's low in fiber some may not be able to digest it as well so they either throw it up or have loose stools until they're more used to it. I solved this problem by adding more fiber to their diets. Canned pumpkin, squash, sweet potatos or yams are all very good sources of fiber. I was able to find a canned grain free food that already contains butternut squash in it so this has helped to solve my problem. I also give my cats Vita Kitty chicken Breast treats which are grain free and very high in fiber every couple of days. You can buy these foods and treats at an independent pet store. Good luck.

[smokey the elder]

There are a lot of opinions out there for treating diabetic cats. I'll tell you what I did with my sample size of one (Mobius.)

She was isolated and closely monitored for several months until she was regulated. (I would probably let a cat out sooner, based on what I've learned.)

I let her into the general population; she gets wet food twice a day and free feeds dry. This is contrary to the newer protocols, but Moby is 14 and I don't want to disrupt her schedule too much. In a year and a half her fructosamine, which measures long-term control, has dropped from 480 (fair regulation) to 421 (good regulation) and her weight has gone from 14 to 11.8 lbs in the same time (she was overweight at 14 lbs.) She has also dropped from 3 units 2x/day to 2 units 2x/day.

Every cat is different. If you can do blood testing, and feed mainly wet food, and "tune" his insulin to his BG reading, you can manage a diabetic cat which lives in the general population.

[GILL]

Our Patches was diabetic for almost 16 years. She would get the same food as the rest and her insulin in the morning. We found that with the insulin the food was not as critical. She was checked every week for the first two years then very two weeks for the rest of her life. Her condition came about when I had to leave for a little over 1 month (r/d job project). Our vet told us that the trauma of my leaving upset her beyond the stress limit her system could handle. At this point my boss knows that I will not leave the crew for more than 2 weeks. As Patches predecessor Mitts is attached even more. We say that he read her book and added a few pages. We lost her almost 4 years ago and I still miss her terribly

[smokey the elder]

16 years!? Wow! That's a lot of insulin shots. Was she as good a patient as Moby, I hope?

[Moesha]

Thanks for the responses. I talked to the vet assistant today. She didn't seem to concerned about Mr. J's food since they seem to have him regulated at 4 units twice a day right now. She said that for a cat to come off of insulin completely like Morgan has isn't common. Morgan is on Purina DM. He has 3/4 of a cup of dry food per day, dispensed at intervals not free fed. He also gets a small spoon of wet food in the morning and now in the evening. That was a left over effect from him having the insulin shots twice a day. He would come tell you when it was time for the shot because he knew he would get his wet food afterwards. He had been on a strictly rationed amount of Science Diet Lite cat food for years and gained weight every time I took him in for a checkup. On the DM he has stabablized at 18.5 pounds for almost 2 years. Aroara eats her food in the bathroom. The other 6 cats are outside. I live on several wide open and wooded acres out in the country. Most of them have just shown up here. I've then had them fixed and vaccinated. Morgan is strictly indoors and Aroara goes in and out.

Mr. J will arrive here on Sunday and will stay in one room of the house. Nikki at the vet's office was concerned that the problem they were having regulating him was because he has a lot of hair and they thought that perhaps the lady wasn't getting the insulin into his skin. When they had him at the vet, he regulated rather quickly. They have shaved a spot on his back so it is now easier for her to give him shots. She says that he seems to be doing well. I guess I'll leave well enough alone if she is willing to keep purchasing the insulin and needles.

[Catty1]

Moesha - I didn't remember that you had 8 cats!

My only concern here is that Mr J's owner seemed forgetful and unsure about the insulin. I don't doubt she loves him...is she okay giving him the insulin, and will remember to?

She said she had no idea that it mattered how much he ate. I don't know how many times I explained to her that the food was so important in controlling the diabetes. She said the vet never told her. I know he told me and am sure he told her too.

That's all I am concerned about, really.

If it is too much for her - and I don't know that - there are people who love to help special needs kitties.

Give him a pat for me - and all your other furbabies too!

[Moesha]

Moesha - I didn't remember that you had 8 cats!

I've been meaning to try to get pictures of them on here for you, but I have a new laptop without much photo editing software. So it is hard to resize the pictures here and then most of the kitty pictures are still on the desktop and I've been to lazy to upload them from there. But I will.

My only concern here is that Mr J's owner seemed forgetful and unsure about the insulin. I don't doubt she loves him...is she okay giving him the insulin, and will remember to?

She isn't forgettful, but maybe a little spacy. She remembers the insulin and think that since they shaved him she is much more comfortable doing it.

If it is too much for her - and I don't know that - there are people who love to help special needs kitties.

I will definitely keep that in mind. And I'll pass on the scrubbies to the other furkids too. Thanks.