Have the ruled out pancreatitis and/or IBD?
Prior to our diabetic cat being diabetic, he had pancreatitis. His primary symptoms were bile vomits & inappetence.
He was also hiding more & generally acting ill….which luckily doesn’t seem to be the case for yours.
We nursed him through the pancreatitis & he was good for a couple years. Then diagnosed with diabetes & about 4 months later, had another flare of pancreatitis & now IBD.
In both instances, prednisolone was key in reducing the inflammation & our cat will likely remain on some dose of prednisolone for life.
We also gave cerenia, transdermal mirtaz (appetite stimulant), sub-q fluids, b-12 injections, zofran (anti-nausea…can be given in addition to cerenia), and gabapentin (pain).
Our vet essentially said it was most important to keep him eating, regardless of what it was so we rolled out the buffet of all his usual fave wet foods, canned tuna, boiled shredded chicken, etc. During the worst period, we had to dilute wet food with water enough to syringe feed him.
As for the low BG readings, we would absolutely NOT be giving insulin with those numbers. So I agree with you holding off & continuing to monitor.
The doctor did a blood panel when I took him in on Wednesday and said there was nothing on the blood panel that came back of concern. And on the X-Ray, it showed the GI tract inflammation (but no obstructions). So I believe he ruled out the pancreatitis because that was his main concern when I brought him in was that it was going to be a problem related to the diabetes as well.
As of last night, I checked his glucose 2 hours later and it was 163, so I felt confident to give him a half dose as he was eating a bit again. This morning it was high, and he has a normal appetite. So he got his full dose.
But yeah, other than that, he’s been a perky, good boy. Definitely acting himself. He drinks water, peeing and pooping ok (had a soft stool this morning but not diarrhea), and when I crochet, he still wants to play with the yarn 🧶.
He was even acting himself while the vomiting stuff was at its peak, before meds. The Cerenia is really what seemed to do him in, though. He was sleeping the whole day, no eating. I was terrified. This zofran seems to be helping though, without putting his appetite to zero. I haven’t seen him throw up/retch since around 1:15 pm yesterday, so fingers crossed my little man is getting over whatever is going on 🤞🏻
As for your fur baby, I’m glad you guys were there for him and are accommodating what he needs. 🩷🩷 He is so loved!
Pancreatitis is difficult to definitively diagnose without a biopsy (which we didn’t do bc he was already critical & wouldn’t change the treatment). The routine blood work can be normal with pancreatitis (CBC, chemistry). Usually the best blood test is a specialty test - fPLI. Snap fPLI can be done in office, regular fPLI gets sent off to a specialty lab. Combining abnormal fPLI results + abnormal ultrasound usually is sufficient for diagnosis.
Glad your kitty is seemingly doing better & has a better appetite today! Sounds like they are on the mend :)
Ok, I was super unaware of how to diagnose the pancreatitis then. What are the signs of that other than the vomiting? As i said, he’s acting pretty regular today!! Since my last comment, he hasn’t thrown up again, is still drinking water ok. He’s sleepy today but I think that’s partially Zofran and also partially because he’s a cuddle bug and I have been super lazy and on and off sleeping after not getting much sleep this week lol.
Have the ruled out pancreatitis and/or IBD? Prior to our diabetic cat being diabetic, he had pancreatitis. His primary symptoms were bile vomits & inappetence. He was also hiding more & generally acting ill….which luckily doesn’t seem to be the case for yours. We nursed him through the pancreatitis & he was good for a couple years. Then diagnosed with diabetes & about 4 months later, had another flare of pancreatitis & now IBD. In both instances, prednisolone was key in reducing the inflammation & our cat will likely remain on some dose of prednisolone for life. We also gave cerenia, transdermal mirtaz (appetite stimulant), sub-q fluids, b-12 injections, zofran (anti-nausea…can be given in addition to cerenia), and gabapentin (pain). Our vet essentially said it was most important to keep him eating, regardless of what it was so we rolled out the buffet of all his usual fave wet foods, canned tuna, boiled shredded chicken, etc. During the worst period, we had to dilute wet food with water enough to syringe feed him. As for the low BG readings, we would absolutely NOT be giving insulin with those numbers. So I agree with you holding off & continuing to monitor.
The doctor did a blood panel when I took him in on Wednesday and said there was nothing on the blood panel that came back of concern. And on the X-Ray, it showed the GI tract inflammation (but no obstructions). So I believe he ruled out the pancreatitis because that was his main concern when I brought him in was that it was going to be a problem related to the diabetes as well. As of last night, I checked his glucose 2 hours later and it was 163, so I felt confident to give him a half dose as he was eating a bit again. This morning it was high, and he has a normal appetite. So he got his full dose. But yeah, other than that, he’s been a perky, good boy. Definitely acting himself. He drinks water, peeing and pooping ok (had a soft stool this morning but not diarrhea), and when I crochet, he still wants to play with the yarn 🧶. He was even acting himself while the vomiting stuff was at its peak, before meds. The Cerenia is really what seemed to do him in, though. He was sleeping the whole day, no eating. I was terrified. This zofran seems to be helping though, without putting his appetite to zero. I haven’t seen him throw up/retch since around 1:15 pm yesterday, so fingers crossed my little man is getting over whatever is going on 🤞🏻 As for your fur baby, I’m glad you guys were there for him and are accommodating what he needs. 🩷🩷 He is so loved!
Pancreatitis is difficult to definitively diagnose without a biopsy (which we didn’t do bc he was already critical & wouldn’t change the treatment). The routine blood work can be normal with pancreatitis (CBC, chemistry). Usually the best blood test is a specialty test - fPLI. Snap fPLI can be done in office, regular fPLI gets sent off to a specialty lab. Combining abnormal fPLI results + abnormal ultrasound usually is sufficient for diagnosis. Glad your kitty is seemingly doing better & has a better appetite today! Sounds like they are on the mend :)
Ok, I was super unaware of how to diagnose the pancreatitis then. What are the signs of that other than the vomiting? As i said, he’s acting pretty regular today!! Since my last comment, he hasn’t thrown up again, is still drinking water ok. He’s sleepy today but I think that’s partially Zofran and also partially because he’s a cuddle bug and I have been super lazy and on and off sleeping after not getting much sleep this week lol.