Diabetes in Cats

This is a guest post, written by one of our wonderful volunteers, Ronnie V. (click on her name to be taken to her true crimes podcast site!) It details her experience with diabetes in her kitty Romulus.

Romulus

At the beginning of January 2022, I began noticing my 13 year old cat Romulus was losing some weight. He is a longer haired fluffy tabby, and always had a couple extra pounds, so it didn’t seem too concerning right away. 

However, in a short amount of time I noticed he began drinking lots of water, having big pees in the litter box, and was losing quite a bit of weight around his haunches. He seemed uncomfortable, not really wanting pets nor having the same energy as before.

I was heartbroken. I wasn’t ready to face a difficult decision. 

I scraped whatever money I had together to bring him to the vet to get bloodwork. I spoke with the vet about his history, which included having bladder blockage (struvite urolithiasis) when he was 5, but ever since he has been doing well. 

I waited for a call back once the vet had the results, and I was surprised when he said, “Romulus has diabetes.”

I then asked what the treatment options were, and he explained how he would require insulin twice a day, and that I should look for food that has lower calories. 

I received papers with information, and was shown how to give him his shot. I was a bit overwhelmed, and worried about messing up somehow. But when the vet had asked what I wanted to do, of course I said I will do whatever is in my power to help Romulus, especially if it is something that is treatable. 

I had many questions though, and over time I began to learn what food seemed to work well for Rom (and what food didn’t), as well as developing more of an understanding of how diabetes presents in cats. I want to share information in case anyone out there has any concerns about their own cats, or wants to have an easy place where there is some basic, digestible information. 

What is Diabetes

Feline diabetes, or diabetes mellitus, is a condition wherein the body can not produce insulin on its own. Insulin is a hormone that is necessary in the process of releasing glucose from the blood, and allowing the glucose to be absorbed for energy.  

Though humans and cats have different digestive systems, this is a basic process that we share, and in that we share similarities with diabetes. 

It is interesting because cats also have type I and II diabetes. Here is an excerpt from https://bondvet.com/b/diabetes-in-cats : 

“There are two types of diabetes mellitus: Type 1 and Type 2. 

Type 1 means the body has a shortage of insulin, a blood sugar regulating hormone produced by the pancreas. 

Type 2 diabetes means insulin resistance., where the body’s cells become less and less responsive to the hormone. Insulin can’t be effectively used by the body, even if enough insulin is produced. This type of diabetes most commonly develops in overweight or obese cats as they get older. “

Signs and Symptoms

Here is a basic list of signs and symptoms to look out for:

• Increased thirst.

• Increased urination.

• Increased appetite. 

• Noticeable weight loss.

• Lethargy.

Treatment

In order to treat diabetes, it is necessary to give the feline insulin. This can be done in the following ways:

Insulin: I use the Lantus SoloStar pen in order to give Rom his doses each morning and each evening. It is simple to use-I click to the unit amount required on the bottom, and then I screw on a fresh needle on top each time. I find its easiest when I grab the scruff of his neck and inject it into him that way, and I do it as he is eating his breakfast/supper. He usually doesn’t put up a struggle, and I’m sure any struggle is because I hesitated or came at him the wrong way. It may seem worrisome at first, but before you know it the process will be barely a thought in your everyday routine. 

There are other options and ways to administer the insulin, and this is something that you can determine with your vet. I imagine each clinic has their own preferences or brands, as at one point I ran out of needle tips, my clinic had none until the next day, and every other clinic I went to didn’t have the same type of needle tips. 

A big takeaway is to be open and communicative with your vet so you can give and receive the most information possible in order to manage your fur babies needs as best as possible. 

Diet is a big component to help your cat buddy to thrive and potentially reduce the amount of insulin necessary each day, even remission. 

I like to try to compare the nutritional value to the canned Purina DM (Diabetic Management) formula cat food when looking at alternative foods that are more accessible/affordable. Romulus wasn’t a fan of the DM wet food because it was more chunks in gravy, and he just drinks the gravy and leaves the rest! Pate, or some kind of more mushy type of food is good for knowing Romulus is not just drinking the liquid, but is also getting food into his tummy. 

Here are some pictures of the nutritional values for the Purina DM wet food, and the food itself:

Romulus gets bad poopy bum with kibble, so I keep the boys main diet as wet food, however the best kibble that I have found that doesn’t affect him too harshly is the Purina DM formula kibble. 

Again, this is something you will have to analyze and look for in regards to what is accessible to you, affordable, and jives with your own kitties body and preference.

I find that Tiki Cat and B.F.F. have the correct values I look for, and my boys love them. They are a bit pricier though, so sometimes I do have to see what are more affordable options are out there. 

(Note from ALWAYS Director; we are primarily a Royal Canin feeding rescue, and stand behind their foods as one of the highest in quality available. To obtain Royal Canin for diabetic kitties, please contact your veterinarian's office. As with all higher end foods, they are somewhat pricy, but what you spend in extra food cost you will save in vet bills and heartache. Always, always ALWAYS follow the advice of your veterinarian with regard to your companion's health needs.)

Hypoglycemia 

Now, this may be off putting-it was for me when I read about it. But it is something to be aware of, and something that knowing how to treat is important. 

There can be a risk of the insulin negatively affecting the kitty, mainly if too much is administered. This happened to Romulus suddenly, as if his body began responding differently to the medication and change in diet, and he was not needing as much insulin. I gave him his regular dose, but he became ill and vomited his food. I wasn’t sure if he was in contact with something that made him sick or what, but he didn’t eat more after. He then began wobbling around when walking, and basically fell into his litter box at some point. I took him to the emergency, where he got to sit like a king in some kind of oxygen bed that was like a baby insulator, and I got a nice big bill. Again, I didn’t mind because I felt awful. I wanted to make sure he was all good. However, I could have avoided that emergency visit if I had corn syrup on hand (I had maple syrup, but it is NOT sugary enough to counter balance the insulin). Here is a quote from https://www.petmd.com/cat/conditions/endocrine/c_ct_diabetes_mellitus:

“Hypoglycemia is a serious and potentially life-threatening state that should be treated as an emergency.

Signs of hypoglycemia in cats might include:

• Dull mentation or disorientation

• Profound weakness or lethargy

• Gastrointestinal signs (vomiting, diarrhea, not eating)

• Trembling

• Seizures

• Coma

If you see any of these signs, give your cat a sugary product (corn syrup, maple syrup, honey) and immediately go to an emergency pet hospital.

If your pet is having seizures, try rubbing syrup on their gums, but be cautious of your cat biting you.”

Outlook

You can make your cat nice and comfortable and happy if you keep up with a good food routine, give them enrichment so they are exercising and having fun, and give them all the love in the world as usual. It is important to make sure we do all we can for our animal friends, because we love them. 

Romulus is laying next to me as I write this, having a nice sleep after spending the day clawing at my face for snacks, chasing his younger brother Kato around, and randomly running from one room to another from spontaneous zoomies. I couldn’t’ be happier seeing him thriving, and though I wish I could give him an even better life, it is amazing to see how far he has come since his initial diagnoses.

I have links to many sources below, use them to read through and get an understanding if you are suddenly thrust into the world of having a diabetic cat. There is lots of information out there, and always reach out and talk to others to see what information they may have. Also, be kind to yourself. 

-Veronica Vetter 

Sources

• https://www.cats.org.uk/help-and-advice/health/diabetes#:~:text=Some%20cats%20are%20more%20at%20risk%20than%20others,inflammation%20of%20the%20pancreas%20or%20urinary%20tract%20infections.

• https://todaysveterinarypractice.com/endocrinology/managing-feline-diabetes-mellitus/

• https://pets.webmd.com/cats/features/feline-diabetes-symptoms-treatments-prevention-diet#1

• https://bondvet.com/b/diabetes-in-cats

• https://www.petmd.com/cat/conditions/endocrine/c_ct_diabetes_mellitus

• https://www.catsanddiabetes.com/

• https://www.proplanveterinarydiets.ca/consumer/products/dm-dietetic-management-canned-feline-formula

Bunny Kit Care

This summer, 10 bunnies were dumped at Fort Normandeau, one of whom has a wicked hernia. We suspected them to be around 2 months old, but without knowing their breed we have no solid metric against which to determine their age.

Anyway. They were being fostered by a young woman who has a rabbit farm which includes some adorable angoras. One of the mamas had 2 runts in her litter, and when it was revealed that they would likely die, we offered to try bottle feeding. She said yes, and we took the little ones home. That's when we hit the internet and all of the bunny blogs, recommended resources we've heard of since we opened the rescue, etc... 

Bunny kits are not the same as kittens. Neonatal kittens get fed fairly often. Bunny kits get fed twice a day (thrice if you're careful and they desperately need it, but we will get there.) Their heat requirements are different, and unlike kittens, they don't appreciate being handled much. On every bunny blog we encountered, we found the feeding directions; 

and

We followed these directions, and in very short order, one of the kits began to fade. I called around to bunny rescuers and was finally able to contact one who lives in New York, and she walked me through getting the little one back on track. Satisfied that I had succeeded in figuring out how to help these little dudes, I plodded on. Unlike kittens, kits don't need feeding every hour, which made it so, so much easier.

That night though, I lost the first kit. She faded quickly and there was simply nothing I could do. I got back on the phone with Kim, the New York rescuer. She and I discussed how to avoid this with the other one, and she sent me a recipe for a formula by a woman named Dana Kremple, who is a renowned Floridian biologist with an evidently wild knowledge base about rabbits.

Okay, I thought to myself, I got this.

I mixed up the formula and fed according to what I had found on multiple sites for these 3 day old kits. But still, the remaining guy was not thriving. I couldn't understand what I was doing wrong. He was getting hydrated through subcutaneous fluids, and I was feeding him the formula. He was in our incubator, so his heat was controlled and regular at 75°f as per everything I had found. His feedings were quick, all the conditions were right, so what was wrong?

I'll tell you what was wrong. All of those sites I had visited had given incomplete information. What it should have said was;

That 10% body weight note would have saved those little kits
 had it been present everywhere else.

Do you see those first three sentences? At three days old, they had weighed 73 grams. They needed 7 mLs daily, NOT 2. This is why knowing the full story and passing on complete information is of vital importance.

I finally found a protocol from a rescue, the name of which now escapes me and somehow my ability to google effectively today is not present. The PDF I downloaded can be downloaded right here, and I do hope that people will use it rather than relying on the partial information so easily found elsewhere.

I was devastated to have lost the little ones, but now that I'm more well armed with knowledge and connections to resources should I ever find myself in the position to care for little ones like these again.

With great thanks to the helpful folks at Henry's Healthy Pets. Their fantastic formulas, knowledge, and advice have been priceless through this.

Exciting News! Also, let's talk about food for a minute.

Since the inception of our rescue's formation, we have fed our cats & kittens Royal Canin food. Even prior to that, the founder of our rescue has been a staunch supporter of and advocate for the feeding of Royal Canin. As of today, we are officially a Royal Canin shelter partner. That means that any time you adopt one of our companion cats or dogs, you get a sample of their food, plus some wicked coupons. It also means that your companion animal is coming to you with a balanced nutritional foundation.

I've been asked more than once why we don't feed a cheaper food. After all, it's a shelter (or in my own case, we have a lot of permanent residents) so funds are tight. And it's true, they really are tight. However experience with other foods has proven to me that with a few exceptions, Royal Canin has led to healthier coats, healthier GI systems, fewer instances of UT crystals recurring (our George got them terribly for a year or two, until one of our vets told us to try the RC Urinary S/O to prevent the formation of them. We haven't looked back from RC since then, and have used the range of foods to help sort out any issues our kitties were having (here's looking at you, CALM). That said, if you feed a higher quality food, you have fewer health issues which saves on vet bills. You also put a little more money up front for the higher quality food, but you're spending less on litter and food because the food is packed with more nutrients and fewer fillers than a lot of your lower end foods. Transitioning is fairly simple, by mixing 75/25 current food with new, then 50/50, then 25/75. This allows for the digestive flora to respond to the new food slowly rather than do a rapid truffle shuffle in order to "recognize" the new chemical makeup of the nutrient delivery vehicle. (Don't let "chemical makeup" scare you though; those words apply to literally everything in our world. Meat, vegetables, even your skin has a chemical makeup, and it doesn't mean it's been altered or is dangerous.) Transitioning slowly reduces the instances of diarrhea or vomiting, or of the food being rejected entirely by the animal.

That said, there are a lot of families struggling to make ends meet right now, and can't even afford to feed a lower end food let alone a really good one. No animal should ever have to go hungry, and with that in mind we still collect food donations. Those donations go back into the community by helping to feed the companion animals of families who need that leg up, for as long as they need it and for as long as we have the food to give. If you or someone you know is in need of food for their companion animal, please feel free to drop us a line.