Cat Q&A

Posts Tagged ‘feline diabetes’

A diagnosis of feline diabetes comes as a complete shock for many cat owners.  You probably have many questions.  What exactly is cat diabetes?  What options do you have for feline diabetes treatment?  Can natural remedies for cats help in controlling diabetes in cats?

What Is Feline Diabetes?

A kitty with this disease has problems either producing or using insulin, which keeps the levels of glucose in the blood at normal levels.  High blood sugar levels cause liver and kidney problems, gastrointestinal troubles, and an increased risk of infections.  If left untreated, a diabetic cat can go into a coma and die.

If you have an older male cat who is overweight, he’s definitely at risk for developing diabetes.

Feline Diabetes Treatment

Treatment for feline diabetes often starts with the cat being hospitalized while his blood sugar levels are stabilized.Before Kitty comes home, your vet and you wil need to sit down together to develop a long-term treatment plan for your pet.  It’s important that you have a good relationship with your vet, so you can work together to help control your pet’s diabetes.

Be aware that caring for a diabetic cat does take a lot of time, especially at first, when you’re learning how to check your kitty’s blood sugar levels, and how to give him insulin injections.

Controlling diabetes in cats can be challenging at first, but many cat owners are quite successful at it.  After a while, blood sugar tests and insulin shots will become routine, both for you and your feline conmpanion.

Are Natural Remedies For Cats Helpful In Controlling Feline Diabetes?

Many human diabetics are using herbal remedies and dietary supplements to help control their blood sugar levels.Researchers have found that these remedies are both effective and safe for kitties, too.Be sure the remedy you choose contains the herbs fenugreek, astragalus, and goat’s rue, along with chromium. 

Always talk with your vet before you start using natural remedies for cats.These days, most vets are already familiar with these remedies, and yours will probably be willing to work with you.  Since it may be possible to control diabetes in cats by making dietary changes and using natural remedies, you’ll need to check your kitty’s blood sugar levels often.It may be necessary for your vet to adjust the insulin dosage as time passes.

Just click any link in this article to learn how diet, exercise and natural remedies for cats can help to control diabetes in cats.

You may be surprised to learn that one of the symptoms of feline diabetes is weakness in your cat’s legs.  If you notice your kitty walking on her “elbows” on her back legs instead of her feet, or on her “wrists” on her front legs, you may have a diabetic cat.Her feet may go out from underneath her, too, or she may need to lie down and rest after a short walk.  This problem is called “feline neuropathy.”

Why Does Diabetes In Cats Cause Weak Legs?

Many pet owners are shocked to learn that feline neuropathy may be a symptom of feline diabetes.  This condition is a result of nerve damage caused by high blood sugar levels.  It’s very important that a diabetic cat receives veterinary treatment to lower blood glucose levels as soon as possible to prevent any further damage to her nerves.

Why Is Nerve Damage Often a Problem With Feline Diabetes?

When the body is unable to regulate blood sugar levels, diabetes in the result, both in pets and humans.  Either your kitty’s body isn’t producing enough insulin (type 1 feline diabetes), or her body isn’t able to use the insulin being produced (type 2 feline diabetes).

High blood sugar levels are especially dangerous for nerve, kidney, and eye cells.  Why?Damage to these cells occurs because they absorb too much glucose from the blood, since they don’t need insulin to be able to use the glucose.This is why it’s important that owners of feline diabetics keep the cat’s blood glucose at normal levels.  

Can Feline Neuropathy Be Reversed?

Sometimes the nerve damage is reversed when the high blood sugar levels are brought under control, and the cat is able to walk normally again.

It’s also possible that the weakness in the cat’s legs is due to muscle wasting, which is a result of untreated feline diabetes.  Once the blood sugar levels are controlled, the cat owner may wish to gently exercise the feline to rebuild the muscle.  

Some owners have had some success in reversing feline neuropathy by treating their cats with methylcobalamin, also known as methyl B-12.  This product is available at natural food stores.

The Best Treatment Is Prevention

The best way to avoid complications of diabetes in cats is to prevent the disease in the first place.  Avoid letting your feline friend get too heavy.A kitty carrying too much weight is at risk for many health problems, in addition to feline diabetes.Avoid high-carb dry cat food, and feed the kitty a high-quality canned food instead.

Regular exercise is a natural way to control blood sugar levels, besides keeping your pet slim and in good condition.

Can Natural Remedies For Cats Help A Feline Diabetic?

Herbs, including fenugreek, goat’s rue, and astragalus, along with the trace mineral chromium, are used to control blood sugar levels naturally in human diabetics.  Would these herbs work in cats, too?  The answer is yes.   

Many cat owners have been successful in using a combination of diet, exercise, and herbal remedies to regulate their pets’ blood sugar levels naturally.  You can learn more about natural remedies for cats with diabetes by clicking on any link in this article.

Feline diabetes is problem that is being seen more often in cats.  Unfortunately, there are several myths circulating about diabetes in cats.Help your diabetic cat by knowing the facts about what you can do to keep him healthy. 

Myth #1. The Only Treatment For A Diabetic Feline Is To Put Him Down

This isn’t necessarily true.This disease can usually be managed with great success, unless the cat is very old or has other health problems, like kidney failure. 

It’s not difficult to learn how to check your diabetic cat’s blood sugar levels and give him insulin injections, but there is a learning curve. 

Myth #2. Feline Diabetes Cannot Be Prevented

Quite a few pet experts believe that this disease is a man-made condition that can be prevented by feeding your kitty a high-quality canned food, not dry cat food.

Why is feeding your kitty dry food a problem?Grain is the main ingredient in this type of food, which lead to weight gain, as it contains more carbs than your cat needs.  Cats have evolved to eat meat, not grains.  Free-feeding dry cat food will more than likely lead to a fat cat, and overweight kitties are predisposed to many health problems, including diabetes in cats.   

Myth #3.  It’s Too Hard To Check Your Kitty’s Blood Glucose Levels At Home

It can be challenging at first, but anyone who lives with a feline diabetic should learn how to check their cat’s blood sugar levels.Never administer an insulin shot unless you know what your cat’s blood glucose levels are.  Plus, it’s much less expensive for you, and less stressful for your cat, if your vet teaches you how to do this simple test at home.

Myth #4. Your Kitty Will Need Insulin Injections For The Rest Of His Life

This isn’t true.In fact, simply switching your kitty to canned food instead of dry food may be all that’s needed to reverse feline diabetes.  Losing weight can help, too.If you kitty loses weight too quickly, it can cause serious problems for him, so always check with your vet first.

Mild exercise is a natural way to manage blood sugar.Remember to start slowly to gradually get your kitty into shape.  Gradually work up to two or three ten-minute exercise sessions every day.

Myth #5. Don’t Waste Your Time With Natural Remedies For Cats

On the contrary, researchers have found that the mineral chromium, along with certain herbs, including goat’s rue, astragalus, and fenugreek, are all very effective in helping to control blood sugar levels in human diabetics.  These remedies are also effective for kitties, as well.  Many cat owners have found that a combination of dietary changes, daily exercise, and natural remedies for cats has made it possible to discontinue insulin injections for their pets.

Don’t believe any of these myths about feline diabetes.  Click on any link in this article to find out how natural remedies for cats can help keep your favorite kitty healthy.

Do you share your home with a diabetic cat?  If you do, you already know that it’s necessary to pay a lot more attention to your kitty’s health.  Although cat diabetes doesn’t cause circulatory problems or blindness like diabetes in people does, there are four dangerous complications of feline diabetes that you need to know about. 

Feline Neuropathy

The cat owner will notice weakness in the pet’s legs.  Be aware that your kitty may have feline diabetes if you notice her walking on her “wrists” on her front legs, or on her “elbows” in the back.  This is a result of nerve damage from high blood sugar levels.  Sometimes this condition is reversable when cat diabetes is treated.

Feline Ketoacidosis

This problem is often seen in an untreated feline diabetic.  The kitty’s body usually breaks down glucose for energy for bodily processes.  But in cat diabetes, the body can’t break down this glucose, so the body starts breaking down fat instead.  This process produces ketones, which are a waste product.  A ketone build-up results in ketoacidosis, which requires immediate veterinary care to save the cat’s life.

Symptoms of ketoacidosis in cats include:

• Breath either smells sweet, or like nail polish remover
• Dehydration
• Either excessive thirst, or not drinking any water at all
• Not eating for more than twelve hours
• Fast breathing
• Vomiting
• Weakness and lethargy
• Frequent urination

Feline Hypoglycemia

If a diabetic cat is given too much insulin, or doesn’t eat on schedule, her blood sugar levels may drop to dangerously low levels.  The cat may act strangely and stagger around, and even have seizures.  A fatal coma may follow. 

Treat feline hypoglycemia by rubbing a little corn syrup or honey on the cat’s gums.  Take her to the vet as soon as possible, since this is an emergency.

Hepatic Lipidosis

This problem results when a heavy cat suddenly stops eating.When the kitty’s body breaks down fat for energy instead of glucose, it causes a build-up of fat in the liver.  Symptoms are similar to ketoacidosis, and also include jaundice, or a yellowing of the cat’s eyes and gums.  Again, get Kitty to the vet right away, as this is an emergency.

Is It Possible To Avoid Complications Of Diabetes In Cats

Preventing the complications of feline diabetes is often dependent on keeping the cat’s blood sugar at normal levels.  Research shows that natural remedies for cats, which include the herbs astragalus, fenugreek, and goat’s rue, along with chromium, are very effective for regulating blood sugar levels in kitties.

Don’t wait for your feline diabetic to fall victim to these complications.  Click on any link above to learn more.

Do you have a cat with feline diabetes?  If you do, you need to know about feline hypoglycemia, or low blood sugar.It may seem like a good thing for a feline diabetic to have low blood glucose levels.  However, if the cat’s blood sugar levels get too low, your feline companion could go into a coma and die.   

Why Does Hypoglycemia Become A Problem For Diabetic Cats?

There can be several reasons for low blood sugar levels in cats with feline diabetes:

• Sometimes a cat owner makes a mistake, and gives the cat too much insulin.
• Two people in the family each gave the cat insulin, so he received a double dose.By choosing one person to be responsible for giving insulin shots, this problem can be avoided.
• The kitty has had an unusually high activity level, which lowers blood sugar.
• The pet owner may have given the insulin injection before a meal, and the kitty either didn’t eat, or didn’t keep the meal down.
• The feline diabetic no longer needs insulin because of dietary changes, or a spontaneous remission.

Symptoms Of Feline Hypoglycemia

Strange behavior may be noticed, because the brain is the first organ to be affected by low blood sugar.  This is because the brain doesn’t store glucose to use later, like other organs in the body. 

If a cat with diabetes shows these symptoms, he may have dangerously low blood sugar levels:

• Shaking or shivering
• Becoming uncoordinated, and staggering around
• Acting like he’s blind
• Weakness and lethargy
• Restlessness
• Either very hungry, or not interested in eating
• Tilts his head
• Acts disoriented; he may walk in circles, yowl, or hide
• Glassy eyes
• Drooling
• Seizures
• Coma

What To Do For A Feline Diabetic With Hypoglycemia

Keep honey or corn syrup on hand, along with empty syringes (without needles), if you have a feline diabetic.If the kitty starts showing signs of hypoglycemia, use the syringe to squirt a little corn syrup or honey into his mouth.  If the cat is unconscious, rub a little honey or syrup on his gums.  If doing this, take care to avoid being bitten, especially if the kitty is having seizures.

Wrap the kitty in a blanket, and take him to the vet right away, as this is an emergency.

Regulate Glucose Levels Naturally With Natural Remedies For Cats

Research has shown that natural remedies for cats are safe and effective for cats with diabetes.  Herbal pet remedies that contain goat’s rue, fenugreek, and astragalus, along with the mineral chromium, can help to normalize glucose levels in diabetic cats.Find an established company with a good track record for formulating high-quality natural pet remedies.

Many vets are quite open to using natural remedies for cats.Before changing your diabetic cat’s medications or diet, check with your kitty’s vet.  By using these natural remedies, you may be able to reduce or eliminate insulin injections for cats with diabetes.

In North America people love to have a cat as their pet.  They are loving pets, capable of providing you years of companionship.  Like other pets, catscan sometimes get sick.  There are several different types of ailments that cats can get, one of which is feline diabetes.  Feline diabetes is a serious disease, although it can be treated by a veterinarian.

Diabetes is more common with humans than with cats or other animals. The cause of diabetes is actually quite simple.Glucose, or sugar is found in the systemic circulation.  The level of blood sugar in the body or the animal is kept under control by hormone insulin, which the pancreas produces.When the insulin is not produced in sufficient quantity by the pancreas, diabetes manifests.

The symptoms of feline diabetes will vary.  The most common symptoms include an increase in urine and an increase in thirst.Loss of appetite, weight loss, and a poor coat are other symptoms of feline diabetes.  An increase in thirst is easy to detect, as you can easily notice the water dish empty throughout the day.

If you don’t get your cat treated for feline diabetes immediately, the cat will eventually become inactive, vomit on a regular basis, and eventually fall into a coma.On the other hand, if the diabetes is treated in time by your assistance, the cat will lead more normal and healthy life.  Keep in mind that treatment doesn’t happen overnight – it takes time and dedication.

Cats that have feline diabetes will need to be given food at the same time every day. They should be prevented from going outside as well.  If your cat has diabetes, you’ll need to give him insulin shots once or twice or a day.  Once your veterinarian checks your cat, he will tell you how many shots and how much insulin you need to give your cat. 

Before you give your cat his insulin shot, you should always make sure that he has some food first.  If he hasn’t eaten and you give him a shot anyway, he could end up with a hypoglycemic shock.It can result from too much insulin also.  A hypo can be really dangerous, and should be avoided at all costs.  If your cat gets a hypoglycemic shock and you aren’t around, he may end up dying. 

If you have to give insulin shots to your cat due to feline diabetes, you should always keep a watchful eye on him after you have administered the shot.  After your cat has been on insulin for a period of time, your vet may reduce the amount of insulin.He will lead a healthy life, even though he may have to stay on insulin throughout his life.