What could be sweeter then a feline with diabetes!

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Jeffty is one of 3 cats in our household. He is the youngest cat in our family at 8 years. Morgana (11) our oldest cat has been diagnosed as hyperthyroid since August 2001. My husband and I decided not to treat Morgana since our family had just increased by our baby girl Miranda. The best treatment our vet could offer was radioiodine and we didn't want to subject our new infant (not to mention Morgana) to the radiation. Her thyroid tumor was advanced by the time we found it so there were no guarantees that we really would be giving her more time with any of the treatments.  Morgana is still happy over 1 year later. She enjoys her diet of kitten chow and the occasional Hamburger Happy Meal to keep weight on her.

We thought for a while that the new overwhelming smell in the littler box was related to Morgana's illness. She is a tiny cat and we were skeptical that she could produce the huge amounts of urine that began to appear Summer 2002 in our litter boxes. We read up on polydipsia and polyuria on the web. We suspected that Jeffty was becoming diabetic. He was a 20 lbs cat that loved to eat. We started restricting his food to see if we could get his weight down.

In August 2002 my Mother (Jeffty's human grandma) was diagnosed as diabetic. We took an overnight trip to see her. When we came home the water bowl was dry (this never happens) and Jeffty drank for a couple of minutes when I filled it up. We knew it was time for a trip to the vet. Jeffty weighed in at 15 lbs and had a sugar level around 500. The vet kept him for two days to get him started on insulin. We were surprised at how much happier he seems to be now that he is getting the insulin. He does not seem to be starving all the time. So far he is being very tolerant of his shots as if he knows they are what make him feel better.

He is just beginning his insulin. He is still on the starter dose of 2 units Humulin N twice daily. He now travels with us when we go to see family. Traveling with a cat and a toddler is a new adventure. Jeffty is Miranda's favorite cat and we are trying to keep him as healthy as we can. The main struggle is trying to get him to eat his special diet of W/D while feeding Morgana kitten chow and our 3rd cat a "normal" diet. With a toddler we are already somewhat schedule driven so adding his shots to the mix is working so far. We are going to start taking his BG at home so that adventure is still to come for us.


Miranda & Jeffty.

Update! Update! Update!
Spring of 2006
 

It has been 3 1/2 years now that we have lived with Jeffty as a  diabetic. Miranda is about to turn 5 and knows all about needles and  insulin. One of her best friends is the son of our new vet.  Jeffty  has never gotten perfectly regulated but tends to have a level in the 
fair to good range. He is maintaining a weight of 18 lbs. The  litterboxes are not flooded and the water bowls are not drained. So  all seems to be going well. He has only had 2 episodes of his sugar  level crashing. Though I keep a bottle of Karo with a syringe taped  to it so I will be ready. The new vet clinic is a short drive so it  works when I do have to take him in. Miranda proved to be a good cat  carrier when the crate is packed away where I can't reach it. We  proved it today when he had his 2nd crash.

Morgana went to the bridge in Dec. 2003. Two years of untreated  hyperthyroid was as good as some of the treatment options. She also  enjoyed her diet in the final days of White Castles and KFC.

Mittens is our 2nd cat. She had a scare with dehydration last spring  and we almost lost her. We learned that a healthy cat can dehydrate  eating the diabetic food and not drinking her water. We focused so  much on Jeffty we didn't notice she stopped drinking.

We have learned that life can include some higher maintenance pets  and a preschooler. We have all learned a lot. Especially from all the  wonderful folks here on this site.


This one is older but it's my favorite photo of Miranda and Jeffty. 
(And her stuffed bunny Larry.)

Update! Update! Update!
July 2006
I was getting these off the camera for Miranda and thought I would 
share. Jeffty loves it when Miranda leaves her animals and pillows on 
the sofa.  Can you guess which one is not a plushie???
Hard to  believe it Jeffty's 4th Sugarversary in August.

 


This is our crew - minus me. Jeffty, Mittens, Matt and Miranda. 
Normally Mittens and Jeffty are not this nice to each other.
cheers,
Cindy & the gang


update July 20, 2006

   Read More Stories about Other Diabetic Pets

Page updated on July 20, 2006

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