Treatment Considerations In Diabetic Cats
Here are a few more points to keep in mind regarding the treatment of a diabetic cat:
- If diabetes is detected in an early stage, remission is possible with controlled regulation of blood sugar levels.
- In the majority of cases, improved control of blood glucose levels is seen when the treatment plan includes insulin injections.
- When combined with an appropriate diet that consists of high protein, high fiber, and low carbohydrate foods, insulin shots can effectively induce remission. This means your cat may only require external insulin for a limited period after which it wont be necessary.
- In practice, the response of diabetic felines is better to insulin therapy in comparison oral hypoglycemic medications. So despite the availability of alternative treatments and approaches, its likely that insulin is the ideal choice.
When To Contact Your Vet
Contact your vet if your cat is showing any of the symptoms listed above or you are worried they might have diabetes. The sooner your cat is diagnosed, the better their chance of recovery.
You know your cat best. If they dont have the symptoms listed above but you are still concerned its always best to contact your vet.
Whats The Prognosis For A Cat With Diabetes
Without treatment and management, diabetes and the resulting complications can become life-threatening.
But, assuming a cats diabetes is under control and they dont have other serious health issues, they may live just as long as a non-diabetic feline. And, they can enjoy an excellent quality of life.
Also, with prompt treatment, some diabetic cats can go into remission, meaning they no longer need insulin injections. Sometimes these kitties need insulin again later in life, though.
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Other Types Of Diabetes Mellitus
Given this significant prevalence, the author currently advocates screening diabetic cats for hypersomatotropism, just as the author screens for UTIs. The disease should definitely be excluded when the diabetes proves difficult to control in a cat. Weight gain in an uncontrolled diabetic cat, instead of the expected weight loss, is another strong indicator that hypersomatotropism might be present. Determination of serum IGF-1 appears a useful screening tool, although false-negatives can be seen if exogenous insulin has not been started or has been given for less than 6 weeks.16 Rare false-positives have also been recorded, though an IGF-1 more than 1000ng/mL was associated with a 94% chance of hypersomatotropism with one particular assay.8,18
Fortunately, specific treatment options are increasingly available for hypersomatotropism in the cat, which help turn the difficult diabetic into a well-controlled diabetic or even a non-diabetic. Hypophysectomy is particularly a treatment modality of note here with high diabetic remission rates reported. Pituitary radiotherapy and a new somatostatin analogue called pasireotide represent the next best treatment modalities, which can also lead to reduced insulin requirements and diabetic remission in some cats.16
Treating Diabetes In A Cat Without Insulin
The cats parents are aware of health issues with the cat. However, sometimes reaching out for the right solution becomes tricky. One such is the case with cats having diabetes. Many might abruptly jump to the use of insulin, while others prefer treating diabetes in a cat without insulin. If you are amongst those looking for insulin alternatives, stay connected and find out more.
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Unusual Concurrent Endocrine Diseases
Evaluate the patient for clinical signs or examination findings consistent with hyperadrenocorticism, such as thin/fragile skin or pot belly. If hyperadrenocorticism is suspected, the test of choice is a low-dose dexamethasone suppression test, using dexamethasone, 0.1 mg/kg IV.1
FIGURE 3. Feline skin lesions consistent with fragile skin syndrome due to pituitary dependent hyperadrenocorticism same skin lesions after 2 months of therapy .
Acromegaly is an uncommon cause of insulin resistance in cats. In a poorly regulated diabetic cat, lack of a typical acromegalic appearance does not negate the importance of testing for this condition by measuring serum levels of IGF-1 and performing advanced imaging of the brain.2
How Does This Program Work
The Halki meal strategy consists of high use of the offered ingredients in your meal to reverse the signs of diabetes and lower the insulin resistance of your body.
- A type of cabbage.
- Rich in sulforaphane and glucoraphanin.
- The two components work to fix the lung cells.
Using these 3 crucial ingredients, the 3-week program target at improving your bodys functions by reducing insulin resistance and eventually reducing blood glucose levels. The toxins that are in the air you breathe, on your clothes, books and gadgets enter your body. The Halki Diabetes Remedy intends to ruin the toxic substances inside the body in order to reduce the insulin resistance.
The Halki Diabetes Remedy provides you with dishes, a 21-day meal strategy, way of life suggestions, charts, and valuable details, it is a systematic method to getting your body rid of the harmful contaminants and start the healing process. It not just provides you an simple to follow action plan but also informs you about the origin of Type II diabetes their cause and effects. So that you are geared up with enough knowledge to keep yourself safe and follow preventive measures to keep the issue from re-occurring in the future.
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Diagnosis Of Diabetes In Cats
A cat’s symptoms, their physical exam findings , and lab work can all be used to help confirm diabetes.
Lab work includes a blood glucose check, which is a direct measurement of blood sugar.
However, one single BG measurement doesnt show the whole picture. When cats get nervous , their blood sugar can be temporarily but significantly elevated just due to stress even if the cat is otherwise perfectly healthy and not diabetic. This is called stress hyperglycemia. So, other tests are used in addition to BG to help diagnose feline diabetes.
Another blood test, called fructosamine, can help provide clarity. This test gives information on blood sugar over the last couple of weeks. This helps confirm whether BG has been elevated over time, rather than just during the veterinary visit.
Glucosuria, or the presence of glucose in the urine, is another useful test. This abnormality only happens when blood glucose levels are so high that glucose spills over into the urine.
Additional diagnostics may be recommended, too. This includes a more comprehensive bloodwork panel, and possibly additional tests such as radiographs. This would be recommended to check a kittys overall health, rule out other medical conditions that could be causing their symptoms, and look for complications of diabetes.
How To Treat A Diabetic Cat Without Insulin: Alternatives And Lifestyle Changes
Feline diabetes is one of the most common illnesses caused by a hormonal disorder in cats. It leads to an excessive increase in your pets blood sugar levels due to a malfunction in the pancreas, which makes your cat fall sick.
If you suspect that your furry pal is diabetic or you already had it diagnosed, its your responsibility to know the different ways you can manage this disease. In todays article, were sharing a guide on how to treat a diabetic cat without insulin.
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Screening And Fasting Blood Glucose Concentrations
Diagnosis is made based on blood glucose concentration however, currently, there is no commonly accepted lower cut point for diabetes in cats, with values of 180288 mg/dL reported as diagnostic.35,36
Fasted blood glucose concentration in cats is ~3.06.5 mmol/L when measured using a portable glucose meter calibrated for feline blood after overnight hospitalization and withholding food for 1824 hours.37,38 Screening blood glucose has an upper reported cut point of 166 mg/dL , showing the potential effect of stress on diagnosis of diabetes in cats.39 Acute stress can markedly increase glucose concentrations within 5 minutes and may last for 3 hours or longer.40 Struggling can increase glucose concentration on average by 74 mg/dL and up to 195 mg/dL within 10 minutes, associated with increased lactate and norepinephrine concentrations.40 Cats 8 years of age with a screening blood glucose > 117 mg/dL should be admitted and retested 4 hours later, and if not < 117 mg/dL then should be retested after 24 hours. While there are no longitudinal studies looking at nondiabetic cats with increased blood glucose concentrations, cats in diabetic remission with mildly increased blood glucose concentration are at increased risk of becoming diabetic within 9 months.38 Therefore, identification of possible prediabetes and subclinical diabetes and appropriate intervention are likely useful for delaying or preventing progression to clinical diabetes in cats.
Strictly Controlled Diet As Possible Alternative
A strictly-controlled diet can be useful in controlling blood glucose levels in cats with diabetes. Feeding your cat special food by itself may or may not be completely effective, and it is most likely to work for cats who do not have severe diabetes.
The most commonly recommended food for a cat with diabetes is a diet containing high levels of protein and low levels of carbohydrates. If you are feeding your cat commercial food, canned cat foods are preferred .
A high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet can be combined with one of the oral hypoglycemic medications to further help regulate your cat’s blood glucose levels. It is possible that this may be more effective than using diet or medication alone.
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Managing The Cat Feed
The cat might not necessarily gain weight with diabetes sometimes muscle loss can be seen at the cats backside. In this case, the weight management strategy needs to be adopted. The right protein and glucose levels are required to keep up both the muscle fat and optimal blood glucose levels.
In this case, the cat diet should be revised and should be given in portions. Diet includes items having good fiber content, sufficient protein levels with low carbohydrates.
Instances where commercial food is acquired for feeding the cat switching to canned food, especially dry food, will help feline diabetes. You can also refer to a vet to have a prescription diet that will be ready-made food with optimal nutrients.
In cases where the cat is already taking some medication like oral hyperglycemic medicine, one should refer a vet to acquire knowledge on optimal timings of food intake. Theres no interaction between the food and the medicine.
Types Of Cat Diabetes
Similar to humans, its possible for cats to get one of the following two types of diabetes.
Type I
The body does not produce or release enough insulin in the body.
Type II
While the body may produce enough insulin, tissues or organs won’t use insulin. They need more insulin than a healthy cats body would need to produce glucose properly. This type of diabetes is most common in overweight male cats over 8 years old, and those that eat a high-carbohydrate diet.
They sometimes have an excessive appetite, since their bodies are unable to use the fuel in their food.
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Treating Other Medical Conditions
To help with diabetes control, any other disease conditions should be diagnosed and treated. Infections can lead to insulin resistance, as can other systemic diseases such as kidney disease, heart disease or overactive adrenal glands. Some of the most common interfering conditions include urinary tract infections and dental disease.
Costs Of Diagnosis And Treatment In Cats With Diabetes
If it seems like you need to go in for a lot of vet visits when your kitty is first diagnosed, dont worry the beginning is usually the most time-consuming and financially demanding stage of treatment. Once the best insulin dose and overall treatment plan for your pet are established, maintenance becomes much simpler and requires less check-ins.
The exact cost of treatment may vary depending where in the country you live. Asking your vet about the costs of all the different components of treatment and management can help you get an accurate idea of what to expect.
Costs in the beginning may include all the initial diagnostic tests, purchasing insulin and needles/syringes, any monitoring equipment , and a special diet. If a pet is experiencing complications of diabetes , treatment of these conditions can increase costs, too.
As time goes on, the costs of managing diabetes become much lower, assuming diabetes has been successfully controlled.
Long-term maintenance costs usually involve refills of insulin and syringes/needles , your pets diabetic food, and rechecks with your veterinarian. As a general rule of thumb, rechecks are less frequent the better controlled a kittys diabetes is.
Additional factors to consider include special arrangements, such as making sure your pet gets their injections if you need to go out of town.
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Treatment Options For Cats With Diabetes
Though no cure has been found for cat diabetes, treatment usually involves getting an official diagnosis and managing the illness with daily injections of insulin, which your vet can train you to give at home if you are comfortable.
Your vet might recommend switching your cat’s diet to allow for the right combination of carbohydrates, fiber, and protein. There are prescription foods for diabetes.
What Is Diabetic Remission
“Diabetic remission occurs when a cat maintains a normal glucose level for more than four weeks without insulin injections or oral glucose regulating medications.”
The primary goal of treating diabetes is to regulate blood glucose quickly and reach a point where the cat no longer needs insulin therapy. Diabetic remission occurs when a cat maintains a normal glucose level for more than four weeks without insulin injections or oral glucose regulating medications.
Not all cats go into remission, but those that do may stay that way for months or years. One estimate states that 17 to 67% of cats experience remission after insulin therapy. Other estimates predict remission is possible in 90% of cats.
The key factors in achieving remission are quick institution of insulin therapy post-diagnosis and strict adherence to a low carbohydrate diet. Frequent monitoring with appropriate adjustments of insulin dosage increases the odds of remission.
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Made A Treatment Mistake
If you make a treatment mistake or something unexpected happens , dont panic. Contact your vet for advice. Treating a diabetic cat requires teamwork between you and your veterinary practice they will always be on the end of the phone to give you advice, support and arrange regular check-ups for your cat.
If you leave your cats diabetes untreated, it will cause suffering, severe illness and eventually be fatal.
What Are The Signs Of Diabetes
“The common signs of diabetes include increases in appetite, water consumption, and urination, along with weight loss.”
Without insulin to steer glucose into the cells, the cat’s body looks for alternative sources of fuel and breaks down reserves of fat and protein stored in the body. Fueling the body is not efficient without the insulin/glucose team, so the cat loses weight despite eating more.
Meanwhile, the accumulation of glucose in the blood stream is eliminated in the urine. The cat urinates more which makes him thirsty and he drinks more water. The common signs of diabetes include increases in appetite, water consumption, and urination, along with weight loss.
If untreated, diabetes results in vomiting, dehydration, lethargy, coma, vision loss, and even death.
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Naturally Lower Blood Sugar & Support Diabetes In Dogs & Cats
It is always best to work with your own veterinarian along with a holistically trained veterinarian in determining the best treatment plan for your companion. Diabetes is a complicated disease and is different in every animal. Regular testing is essential in determining what works best for your companion. The following are the possible components of a holistically oriented treatment plan. These will often be combined with some level of insulin support.
Diet is one of the most important components of a treatment plan for a diabetic animal. A diet low in fat is typically recommended, but a diet too low in fat creates health risks of its own. Of utmost importance for Type II diabetes is weight control. SLOWLY reducing your cats weight to an appropriate level is the very best thing you can do for him or her.
For cats, I frequently recommend a diet high in very good quality protein and low in carbohydrates. For dogs with Type I diabetes, a diet high in fiber and complex carbohydrates is recommended to slow digestion and the release of sugar into the bloodstream. In most cases, for both dogs and cats, a raw diet is best, or at least home-cooked. With the growing variety of commercially available raw diets, this part of the treatment plan can become less time-consuming. Only Natural Pet Store offers a wide variety of raw food diets. Freeze-dried and dehydrated diets are also good options when raw is not practical, .
Is It Expensive To Treat A Cat With Diabetes
Insulin can cost anywhere from $50-$250 per month depending on how much a cat gets per day.
If your cat is treated with the same insulin humans use, you can use SingleCare coupons to save. Just show your pharmacist the coupon when you head to the counter to pick up your pets Rx.
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Clinical Pathology Of Diabetes Mellitus In Animals
In dogs, a diagnosis of diabetes mellitus should be based on the presence of clinical signs compatible with diabetes mellitus and evidence of fasting hyperglycemia and glycosuria. Common clinicopathologic features of diabetes mellitus in dogs and cats include: fasting hyperglycemia, hypercholesterolemia, increased liver enzymes , neutrophilic leukocytosis, proteinuria, increased urine specific gravity, and glycosuria. Common clinicopathologic findings in diabetic ketoacidosis include all of the above plus azotemia, hyponatremia, hyperkalemia, hyperlipasemia, hyperamylasemia, ketonemia, regenerative or degenerative left shifts, hyperosmolality, ketonuria, bacteriuria, hematuria, and pyuria.
Many cats are susceptible to stress-induced hyperglycemia in which the serum glucose concentrations may approach 300400 mg/dl. In addition, renal glycosuria may be found in animals with renal tubular disease and occasionally with stress-induced hyperglycemia. It may be difficult to differentiate early type 2 diabetes in cats from stress-induced hyperglycemia, because cats with early NIDDM are often asymptomatic.
Stijn Niessen, in, 2016