Diet and Health FAQ

Tagged As: Cat Diabetic Diet

Question:
Hi all, After my noticing increased urination, my 15 year old male DSH was just diagnosed with diabetes this morning (after blood and urine tests). He is still a healthy cat, so I guess he can't have had it for long. His coat is shiny, he is not underweight, and he is lively and playful. So, at least I caught it early. I have an appointment this Friday to start him on PZI insulin, and to get educated on the disease and how to give injections, etc. I've learned a lot here, just from reading the other threads on diabetes. I didn't realize so many cats got this disease! I've been reading the information on what is the best diet and was wondering how good/bad the food I've been feeding may be for his condition. I might also mention that this cat also has two other ailments. The first is an enlarged heart. It was diagnosed as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy close to 10 years ago and he was given 1-3 years to live, but the weird thing is that it has never progressed since the time of diagnosis. All ultrasounds have shown that his condition has remained static. While he still has a murmur, he is no longer on heart meds, as he is doing fine without them, and they were aggravating his other ailment, which is inflammatory bowel disease. This was diagnosed through biopsies of his liver, intestines, and some other places, when he was suffering chronic projectile diahhrea and constant vomiting starting at about 2 years of age. :( The point to all this is that the ONLY food that this cat does well on is Science Diet Sensitive Stomach. Anything else makes the diahhrea and vomiting start up again. I have tried z/d, w/d (he did marginally okay on the w/d with just occasional bouts the IBD), natural foods, you name it. At this point, I'm afraid to change to anything else! I cannot use steriod treatment to control the IBD because steroids send him into congestive heart failure, because of his enlarged heart. So, I'm in a catch 22. He gets NOTHING to eat except free-fed dry Hill's Sensitive Stomach. That's it. Is this a bad diet for a diabetic cat? I'm afraid the vet is going to tell me to switch, and I'm going to open up a whole other can of worms. Once his IBD flares up, it takes a really long time for him to recuperate and get back to normal, which if he is put on another food, he may never do. Thanks,

Answer:
Considering your cat's concurrent illnesses and the fact you have them under control with his present diet, I would be very reluctant to make any dietary changes. I would speak to your vet about the feasibility of tailoring your cat's insulin therapy to his present diet. In my experience, the keys to successful diabetic management and regulation are *consistency* and the least amount of stress as possible. It doesn't matter how perfectly formulated a diabetic diet (or any other type of diet) is if the cat won't eat it consistently and in consistent amounts and at consistent times - since the insulin dose and intervals are established based on diet and feeding schedule. The most common causes of regulation failure are 1- failure to perform a glucose curve to determine how the cat metabolizes insulin, 2- inconsistent feeding (times and amounts), and 3- different or variation in feeding protocol at home than during the glucose curve. The latter is the most common because most cat's are reluctant to eat at the clinic. After your vet instructs you how to monitor your cat's blood glucose, you can plot a glucose curve at home - which involves checking blood glucose every two hours for a day. Home glucose curves are much more accurate than curves run at the clinic because the cat is not under stress - stress can significantly affect the curve, and the cat eats normally. I'll send some information regarding home monitoring and insulin handling and administration later this evening when I get home.