Anyone else have a diabetic cat?

[eagle0112]

The vet just told me my 13 year old cat Lucky has diabetes. I have to learn to give him insulin injections twice a day and feed him a special diet. Has anyone taken care of a diabetic cat? The vet said that cats are hard to regulate and unlike humans you can not test them at home. He has to eat before each injection and with the special diet how would I tempt him to eat if he does not want to? So far no problem but its only been a day and I want to be prepared since I have to do it before work and don't want to be late or have him miss a shot. Any tips on caring for him would be appreciated. Thank you.

 

[chyam]

I'm interested in hearing too..........not that I have one, I just have not heard of it before and I have had a LOT of cats in my life.If you do not get any replies, I would do a search on the web?Do you think a second opinion maybe in order?

 

[MerryPoppins]

Has anyone taken care of a diabetic cat? yes and it was no problem. my keyboard is not working. send me a pm and Ill answer as soon as I can .

 

[KrnB]

I don't have anything to contribute - just wanted to send you wishes of good luck for you and good health for your kitty!

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

Yep, my mom has a diabetic cat. A beautiful Maine Coone who is about 10 years old, (not sure of the age, he's a shelter cat). She's been giving him shots now for about a year. He gets them twice a day, appr 12 hours apart, he gets 6 units of NPH. Yes, he is on a special diet. He actually has learned to like the dry special kitty food. She gives him canned food (just a little) after his shot to make sure he eats. I take care of him when she's away, so I know the routine pretty well. He drinks alot of water so he needs his litter box cleaned more than usual. I think, and so does my mom the worst part is just being there to make sure his shots are on time. She used to take him to the vet quite often for what they call a glucose curve, about once a month. Its to check his blood sugar. But now that he's regulated he only has the test done about every 6 months. Good Luck with your kitty and if you have any questions, feel free to PM me.

 

[BrerLizzie]

how do you know if your cat is diabetic?

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

My moms cat got very sickly looking and lost a ton of weight. He was about 25 pounds, yes big cat, and he probably went down to 12 pounds. We thought he was going to die. It took 3 vets to figure out what was wrong with him but now a year later, he's back to 25 pounds and as fiesty as ever.

 

[BrerLizzie]

good luck with your cat... i'd never be able to do it with any of mine.. one of us would die trying

 

[HollyNEd]

Yep went through it with my childhood cat. He had to have injections every morning before he ate. He was very funny because 8 am would roll around and if I stupidly tried to sleep in he would not so quietly wake me up so he wouldn't miss his breakfast Charlie lived on insulin shots for the last 4 years of his very long (20 years old) life. At first it really freaked me out having to give my baby a shot every morning but soon it became a ritual.

With Charlie he was supposed to be a 10lb cat but weighed in at a whopping 20 lbs!! When he first showed signs of the illness he didn't loose any weight but drank a ton of water. Took him to the vet and he immediatly found out he was diabetic and put him on a diet. Well needless to say Charlie was not having the diet food so the vet said just let him eat his regular food since he was older and we would monitor his blood sugar. He lived those last 4 years very fat and happy. It is tough to see your pet sick but with a little bit of monitoring it can not be to bad for you or your cat.

Lots of hugs for you and your furry friend and pm me if you need anything.

Holly

 

[bballmom56]

Yes, I have a cat just diagnosed as diabetic in June. He is 14 years old and had lost a LOT of weight and was drinking (and peeing) a TON of water. Apparently, his diabetes is not too severe as he gets only one insulin shot of 4 units once a day. I learned how to do it and it's very easy. The cat doesn't even mind. For diet, the vet said to use Pro Plan's Turkey-Barley dry food. The foods with rice in them increase the problem. He can have canned food. His water consumption and elimination problems have eased quite a bit and he has put on a little weight. So things are improving. Good luck with your cat.

 

[joats]

We have a diabetic cat. She's 10 years old. She was diagnosed about a year and a half ago. We originally thought she kept having reoccuring blatter infections as she was urinating outside of the box (which she never did before). After a few rounds of antibotics, the Dr figured out she had diabetes. We had to give her 2 insulin shots a day at evenly distributed times. We did 7 am and 7 pm and fed her (diabetic food) at the same time. Our doctor gave us these stips of paper that we could put in her litter box that would give us an accurate reading of her levels.

After about 4 months she revisited the Dr. and we were able to just maintain her on the same time schedule using the diabetic food only. NO MORE SHOTS!! It's been over a year and she's been doing great. We keep monitoring her every couple of months w/ dr. visit.

Pls. pm me if you have any questions. I was so sad and overwhelmed in the beginning. Now a year and a half or so later it's just normal routine w/her.

 

[Mom2Em]

Yes, I have a diabetic cat also... Wolfgang (aka Pooh) was diagnosed 4 years ago September... It quickly becomes an easy routine... the evenings are the only time that sometime get a little difficult since we like to run in the evenings... He back to acting like a feisty little kitten now...

 

[MerryPoppins]

Sorry about that. I wanted to reply last night, but my keyboard had shorted out and I couldn't type. I could only cut and paste.

Our cat, Annie, started urinating more frequently. One day she jumped into the bathtub and used the bathroom. She never did things like that, so we knew something was wrong. We thought maybe she had a bladder infection, so we took her in. I'd say any unusual urinating would be cause for suspicion, as would a weight change.

We had our diabetic kitty for a number of years. Eventually, Annie went off of insulin. Our vet explained that cats are the only known animal that sometimes has diabetes correct itself. Sounds like doctors should study that, huh? She lived several more years and never needed another shot.

Anyway, Annie never minded getting her shots. I think she knew they made her feel better. I was a bit squeamish about giving them at first, but we all got used to it. The only time that it was a problem was when we wanted to go out of town. My mom wasn't comfortable giving her shots, so we had to board her at the vets. That was a pain, but we don't travel too much, so it was okay. I'd call her every morning and she'd jump up on a chair to receive her injection.

She ate special cat food recommended by our vet. She always ate dry food, so we just made sure that she always had plenty to eat. Never had to force her to eat. She seemed to know that she needed food. We just had to make sure that the dogs couldn't get to it, so we bought a kitty tower and kept her food up on a shelf.

Annie lived to be 15, so she had a long and happy life. I'd be glad to answer anyones questions. It's not as difficult as it sounds to deal with a diabetic cat. I really thought our epileptic dog was much harder. We are an interesting family!

 

[IMGONNABE40!]

Just read through this thread and think I better go get Marley checked. He has slimmed down quite a bit (looks good, though) and seems to be very thirsty. I'll call the vet tomorrow. Thanks for this thread.

 

[eagle0112]

Thank you for all of the information. I'm keeping my fingers crossed with Lucky. He is a very stubborn cat. He likes to run and hide when its time for his shot but so far so good. I'm learning. Hopefully when it becomes routine he will not make it so difficult.
He seems to like the special diet the vet gave us but his sister Sheba does not so now I find myself trying to keep him out of her bowl or giving her the diet food when I can't watch them closely. One thing at a time I guess. You have all given me hopre that he still has a few good years with just a new routine. Thanks again.

 

[MerryPoppins]

In time you, Lucky and Sheba will adjust to the new routine. I don't think Annie particularly liked her shots in the beginning. But I think she finally realized that it made her feel better. And giving the shots gets easier and easier.

We didn't have the worry of a second cat getting into her food, but I'm sure you can work something out. I promise that diabetic cats can have a healthy, happy life. Just hang in there.

BTW, our vet gave us permission to use Annie's needles up to 3 times if we kept them in the refrigerator. After that they get too dull. After the first use we'd put it with the insulin in the refrigerator with the "point" up (with a plastic cover on of course). After the second use we'd flip it "point" down. The third use we'd break it and throw it away. If cost is an issue, you might ask your vet if this is a possibility in your case. Even using it for both shots in one day would cost you half as much. Please always break your needles so they can't be reused!