Cat-O-Rama

Alright, so my cat is extremely overweight, and when i say this i mean it. he is a black and white domestic short hair who weighs 22.4 pounds!!!! He is constantly drinking, usually out of my fish bowl, and its probly a gallon or two a day. i’m not sure how much he urinates because his litter box is in the basement, but he has made accidents in my bedroom a couple times. he’s an indoor only cat.

please help, i don’t want to take him to the vet if it sounds like nothing, BUT i don’t want to not take him to the vet if this could be serious.

thanks, any help is appritiated
another reason why i cannot tell what his urinary output is, is because we have more than one cat and they use the same litterboxes.

Clinical Symptoms of Diabetes:
- Increased urination
- Increased thirst
- Weight lost
- Increased hunger
- Lethargy

Laboratory Symptoms:
- Excessive glucose in blood
- Glucose in urine

The increased urination often results in the cat urinating outside the litter box. Theories are that the cat needs to urinate so often that it simply gives up trying to get to the box or that it becomes uncomfortable or painful to urinate so much and the cat avoids the box because it associates the box with the pain or discomfort.

I fully understand not being able to track how much a cat urinates when there are multiple cats in the family - we had the same problem with Simon.

Diabetes is a disease in which the pancreas no longer produces sufficient insulin to use glucose in the food or glucose created from protein and amino acids in the food.

Insulin’s main job is to help cells take in glucose from the bloodstream. Without insulin, only brain and nerve cells can take in glucose.

Without sufficient insulin, the amount of glucose in the blood increases to quantities that can be as much as 10 times normal. The kidneys filter out glucose and then return it to the blood but with large amounts of glucose in the blood, the kidneys are unable to put all of it back into the blood and some spills over into the bladder with urine.

This accounts for the increased urination.

Because of the increased production of urine, more water is excreted and this increases the thirst.

Because the body is unable to use the glucose, the body goes into starvation mode and this accounts for the loss of weight as fatty tissue is broken down to provide other substances that can be used by cells for "fuel" instead of glucose. This can also increase the hunger.

A blood glucose test which shows extremely large amounts of glucose in the blood is the first part of the diagnosis. The second part is a urine glucose measurement showing any glucose in the urine.

Normally, there is no glucose in the urine.

A vet should have a glucometer which can use a small drop of blood to measure the cat’s blood glucose level.

If you can take in a urine sample, the vet can use a dip test strip to check for glucose in the urine.

If you can’t get a urine sample to take in, some vets can get a sample by expressing (squeezing) the bladder or using a syringe and needle to get a sample from the bladder.

If your cat is diabetic, it will probably require two insulin injections per day.

If your cat is diabetic, I strongly recommend that you get a glucometer and learn to measure your cat’s blood glucose levels at home.

We have a web site about our Simon and his diabetes. This link http://www.sugarcatsimon.com will get you there.

Feel free to use the email link there to email me or Simon.

Be aware that many, if not the majority of vets simply don’t know the correct way to treat diabetic cats.

That might sound strange but it is sadly true.

I learned it during the first months after Simon was diagnosed on Saturday, February 26, 2000 at about 11:20 AM - I remember that day very well

Over the years we have adopted three other diabetic cats, Stranger, Felix, and Kalib.

Only Felix is still with us.

There’s nothing about Stranger, Felix, or Kalib on the web site - it is only about Simon, I never got around to adding anything about them.

I am working on an entire replacement for the site but it will be months before it is ready.

As I said before, feel free to email me if your cat is diabetic and I’ll help you get started.

I believe you should take him to the vet to find out why he’s drinking so much water - regardless of whether you think it is diabetes or not.

See if your vet has a glucometer with which they can do a quick check of the blood glucose level without having to send blood out to a lab for testing.

If they have a glucometer, is should not cost much to have them do the test.

A well informed vet would have a glucometer and then would prick the cat’s ear to get the small drop needed to do the test.

Good Luck

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He was fine in the morning, gave him his injection. Around noon I noticed him acting very unusual, wandering around in circles and returning to his shelter after. He seems very confused, though he’s eaten when presented food. He’s going behind my stove, and trying to get in various places he had previously no interest in.

I have no access to a veterinarian over the weekend. Does this sound like hypoglycemia? I’m REALLY not sure what to do.

it could be hypoglycemia. you can always rub karo syrup (corn syrup) on the gums as a fast source of glucose. You should try to call a vet—are there any emergency clinics you can chat with on the phone. Hope all turns out well.

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I got my Kitten when he was eight weeks old and whe he was about 6 months old i took him to get netured. They did the pre-surgical bloodwork and told me that he had diabetes. I took him to another vet to confirm this and they gave me the same results. Both Vets had also told me they had never had a kitten that young with diabetes. He’s now about 8 months old and i have been giving him insulin shots and he seems to be doing good. I was wondering if anyone had ever had or heard about a kitten that young with diabetes and if you have any comments, stories or adavice for me. Thank you very much.
He was urinating in other places than the litter box and i thought it was due to him needing to be fixed but they did bloodwork and the other vet did a urine test. a glucose curve was also taken before his insulin and after to moniter the effect. I was just wondering if anyone knew anyone with a kitten with juvenile diabetes and how there kitten was or is.

Try this link: http://www.petdiabetes.wikia.com/wiki/Category:Juvenile_diabetes_cases

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I live in Virginia and have a wonderful vet here for my sugarbaby.

Have you found FelineDiabetes.com yet? If not, they have many knowledgeable diabetic kitty caretakers. I have attached a link that will take you to a members list. There are many in the California area and one of them may be able to direct you to a competent vet.

How long has your kitty been diabetic? Are you having a particular problem or are you not happy with the care your sugarbaby is getting? I understand, I changed vets 2 years ago with mine.

I have been treating a diabetic kitty for 5+ years now. If I can be of any help, please email me.

Purrs to you and your sugarbaby.

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Im pretty sure that my cat has feline diabetes (excessive thirst, unexplained weight loss, a lot of urination, etc.) and Im not sure what to do. I dont have the money to pay for treatments for her but I dont want her to suffer by staying alive. Should I put her to sleep right away or wait and see if her condition gets worse? As of right now she doesnt seem to be in any pain just thirsty a lot of the time. Somebody please help me.

ONLY RESPOND IF YOU HAVE SOMETHING MEANINGFUL AND HELPFUL TO SAY PLEASE.

Thank you.

A lot of vets will work with you.

Ours went diabetic three years ago–the initial cost was to check his blood sugar for one day every two hours, and to see if he was shedding keytones (spelling, not sure this is right). The insulin he was put on was Lantus, which was $98 a vial. The vial CAN be used for up to 6 months if refrigerated and not shaken (you roll it gently to mix it). Breaking down his insulin cost and the cost of syringes (box of 100 from Walmart for $16, I reused each syringe once) came to $10 a month, which is AFFORDABLE. You just have to buy the Lantus at the start, which is the major cost.

However, your cat could have a thyroid condition instead of diabetes, so if the urinalysis ($15 at our vets, they do it right there) shows no diabetic problem, the blood test to check the kidney and organ function is $90, and the meds per month for the methamazole (the cream you put in the ear twice a day) or tapazole (pills, if you can pill the cat twice a day) is $35 a month. Also affordable.

I have a cat with both. I also have a very old 19 year old cat with CRF — impaired kidney function due to kidney failure. He’s stable, has been stable for 4 years, and eats a high protein canned food diet (standard pet supplies store food) with extra water added, and is not costing me any more than the other cats do with their standard foods.

ALL three of these conditions are treatable, the cost you can discuss with the vet–many take payments. I’d get the cat checked first to see what you’re dealing with. Then go to YahooGroups and join up with the feline diabetes group(s), the CRF group(s) or the thryoid cat or handicats group to talk to owners there who are dealing with this in their pets, they can give you suggestions and support.

Find out what your cat has, and then ask the vet lots of questions, do research online, and make a decision. Our thyroid cat has been on meds 4 years and is normal. Our old cat is stable with his kidney function, it’s only very slowly getting worse. Our diabetic cat was on insulin for 3 1/2 years till we lost him to a fast growing tumor this past June. Dont let yours go untreated, these are manageable diseases but the longer you wait the harder it is on the cats. Treating our diabetic was not a huge change in our daily lives, he got his shot every day at 7am and 7pm, right after he ate. He didn’t feel it and he was doing fine on the 2 units per shot. The bottle lasted a good long time, We were using the box of 5 cartridges first then switched to the bottle. The cartridges were $35 and lasted 2 1/2 months each, the bottle holds enough for 7 cartridges and lasted longer of course. You can price it out at any pharmacy, and if you explain it’s for a cat, they may even lower the cost (our pharmacist sold it to me at cost twice, his discretion).

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I don’t think there’s any one cause. It can result from a combination of genetics, poor diet, lack of exercise, obesity, stress, and age. Transient diabetes may be associated with infection (including needing dental work).

Sometimes giving steroids will cause a cat to become diabetic, and those cats have a very good chance of going into remission if they are given a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet and insulin.

I agree that you should check out www.felinediabetes.com — very informative site.

(Oh, and if Ken has contacted you — he’s not an expert. You’ll get more complete information from the people who post at the Feline Diabetes Message Board.)

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Do cats with diabetes receive treatment in the same manner as humans with diabetes? As in, close monitoring of carbohydrate intake, blood glucose testing and taking insulin injections? I have diabetes, but my cat does not, but I know it exists. Just wondering if the management of the condition were similar. Thx.

Yes they do get diabetes and yes it is quite the same.
Now one difference is the carb intake. Cats go on special food when they become diabetic - usually a food strictly with diabetes in mind but sometimes it doesnt matter because sometimes were just happy a cat eats and we dont care what kind of food.

They do get regular insulin injections daily around the same time. Some have to be on 1 shot twice daily while some just need one.

You need to regularly check their blood glucose to make sure they are staying at the righ levels and the amount of insulin you are giving is correct.
They can also have hypoglycemia attacks when they do not eat.
They can also get very sick and become DKA which is very long and very severe to treat.

So yes human and cat and dog diabetes are quite similiar.

Now with science improving so much there are some diabetic foods out there for cats that can even regulate their glucose without having to have shots. Its incredible. Doesnt work on all but some.

Best of luck with your diabetes

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