Feline Diabetes The treatment of your diabetic cat is different for each feline. Each cat will react in a different way depending on their personality and the actual severity of the disease. Some cats can be treated with oral medication while other cats need daily insulin injections and still other felines only need to change their diet to get well. As always, consult your Vet for the proper diagnosis.
First of all, no matter what the diagnosis, your diabetic cat will need a nice environment away from everyday stress that could elevate his sugar levels. They will need to change their diet to the Catkins Diet which consists of a high protein and low Carb diet. The Catkins Diet has no need for high carb dry cat food. Stick with canned food or make your own food. However, there are certain canned foods that you should stay away from also.
When your Veterinarian tells you what degree of the disease and what medications to use, always give your cat consistent medication. Timing is the key and if your cat misses a med for even one time, their could be dangerous complications.
INSULIN
The vast majority of cats with diabetes require insulin twice a day, done by injections. The good news that this all can be done in the comfort of your home. This again should be done the same time each and every day. If your diabetic cat requires insulin injections then your veterinarian will show you the easiest way of giving your cat the shots. If done correctly, your cat most of the time will not feel a thing. You will be doing the injections twice a day and along side the injections you will be monitoring your diabetic cats glucose levels to make sure that he doesn't’t go into insulin shock. If there are any questions or concerns make sure to call your veterinarian. You may find that your Veterinarian may want to adjust the dosage according to the readings that you get in the glucose meter.
ORAL HYPOGLYCEMIC MEDICATIONS
There are luckily oral medications for diabetic cats that have less severe diabetes. This medication is called Glipizide. This drug works with hypoglycemic cats to lower their blood glucose levels. Make sure to check their glucose levels a few times a day to make sure that the medication if working properly. The down side about this oral medication is that it is harder to administer to your diabetic cat and most pet owners tend to give the insulin injections.
DIET
When your cat is first diagnosed with Diabetes you should immediately see what you have been feeding him. If you have been feeding him dry cat food, then that could actually be what had made him become a diabetic in the first place. When cats eat dry food leisurely throughout the day, they tend to gain weight and especially in door cats that do not get much exercise, they tend to put on the pounds. If your cat is obese, then you will need to put him on the Catkins Diet, a low carb, high protein diet. The Catkins Diet will gradually make your cat lose weight. Make sure to consult with your Veterinarian.
This site does not recommend the high fiber, high carbohydrate diet to lose weight and control diabetes because we tend to gear our feline diets to natures diet. Cats are carnivores and in the wild they tend to eat critters, like mice. Our diets are what nature intended to feed their cats: High Protein, Low Carbohydrate diets. That is simply our recommendation based on personal experience, and what I believe to be common sense.
Cats that receive insulin should be fed some food at the time of the injections, then the other half an hour or two after. Please, do not give your cat dry food so they can leisurely eat during the course of the day. Again, consult your Vet about the best options.
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