Pet Lovers

[Witchy Woman]

@GAC65

My senior cat is diabetic and requires insulin shots twice a day.

I agree about kibble being the culprit for diabetes in cats.  There just isn't anything good about it.  

Having said that, I think prescription diets are largely a waste for cats.  Mine wouldn't touch any of it. 

Dogs might be less fussy.

However, I read a great deal and learned that most pates are much lower in carbs, so that's all he gets.  No kibble.

I buy my Lantus pens from a pharmacy in Canada called, Mark's Marine pharmacy -- 5 pens are about $170, which is much less than US costs.  They ship fast and I've bought from them for several years.  Never a problem.

I was freaked out about doing the shots, so my husband does them.  He is very relaxed about it and kitty is too.  

It took several months to find the right dosage, but dogs may be easier.  Once we did, there have been NO problems.

Also, we tried monitoring at home, but could not get the hang of it.  Some are vigilent about checking it daily, but we do not.  I think if you can manage it, it's fine, but I just had to stop worrying about it or I would drive myself crazy.  

I keep an eye on his behavior and know if something is going on. 

[Sammycat1]

I have a cat who just slid from the prediabetes level into diabetes.  She gets regular fructosamine evaluations (kind of like a human A1C.  In humans, this looks back at about 2-3 months' average on blood sugar.  In cats, it looks back about 2-3 weeks).

I give her insulin injections twice a day, feed her mostly quality canned food with low carb, decent protein and low fat.  Our other cat has food intolerances and liver disease/triaditis, and eats similarly. However, to keep both of their calories up, we've had to supplement with some dry food...but it follows the percentage that we must do for both of them.

We also keep Karo syrup on hand in case her blood sugar dips too low.  You put some on your finger and smear it lightly on the gums.  I don't know if this is the same for dogs, but it's helpful for cats in a pinch. 

Your vet should give you all the educational materials for this.  Good luck!

[Brigitta]

We had a poodle who had diabetes. Her incessant drinking and urinating clued us to have her tested. She got a shot every day at the same time followed immediately with baby cereal, no dog food. This was about 30 years ago. She became blind and lived to be 12 years old. (she was about 8 when this was discovered)

One day she went into diabetic shock and looked like she had died. Remembering that my mother (who was also diabetic) always carried some chocolate in case she felt shock coming on, I pried open her mouth and forced some chocolate in and massaged her throat. She swallowed and in about 10 minutes she was up and running around. We took her to the vet for an insulin correction! This was the vet's first small dog with diabetes!