Nope.
Instead, the vet called saying Nadia's thyroid looked great. However, her blood glucose was at 440. Normal blood glucose for a cat should be below 170. Also, glucose was spilling into her urine. What does all of that mean? Very likely it's kitty diabetes.
Great. I hate curve-balls like this. You know, when you're expecting one thing and something completely different happens. I had hoped for closure and an answer today. I know our pets can't live forever, but I hate thinking about her mortality. And I hate that this has to be happening RIGHT NOW. Right as we are very stressed waiting for our FET cycle to finally get underway.
Out next step is to run another test on her blood to check for her sustained levels of glucose to make sure the previous reading wasn't just a spike due to the stress of being shoved in a crate and dragged to the vet. It's similar to an A1C test in humans, in case anyone is familiar. If this comes back high, we can confidently diagnose her with diabetes and put her on a special diet and start the treatment with insulin shots twice a day. Luckily they can use her existing blood sample from Saturday so I don't have to take her there again. That was a relief!
Realistically, this means shots. Shots twice a day for the rest of her life. But you know what? I've got this. I know shots all too well. Welcome to the pin-cushion club, miss Nadia. It's not fun, but ya gotta do what ya gotta do. And Kevin has given me more shots than I can remember, so I know he can do this too, even though he's nervous at the thought of poking our poor kitty.
We should have the results of this latest blood test confirming diagnosis on Thursday. We love her so much and I just want a definitive answer and to get her on some kind of treatment as soon as possible.
Man, it's looking like our house is going to have needles galore in the next couple of months! We should start buying stock in the needle industry. I think we might be keeping them in business.
Aw pretty kitty! We had a diabetic cat that we had to give insulin shots to. It was inconvenient, I suppose, but manageable. We always had to make sure someone was home or could go home to give him his morning and evening shot. We gave him the shots at 8 am and 8 pm right between his shoulders. He never even acted like he felt them and it controlled his blood sugar fairly well. He ended up living until he was about 12 and died (we think) of an unrelated illness. If it is diabetes I'm sure your kitty will do just fine!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for sharing your experience. It's a brand new world to me, so unlike knowing where to turn with bad IF news (blogs, boards, etc) I'm like "where in the world do I go for knowledge/support for my cat?" Thanks for coming through and making me feel better. The more I read about this, the more I will put money on it being diabetes.
DeleteAw hugs to you and Nadia! I hope you get a definite answer and there aren't more test. -DP
ReplyDeleteThanks, DP. Me too. :)
DeleteOh poor kitty! At least she's in good hands with the King and Queen of shots :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, that's very nice of you. :)
DeleteMy Calico is 18 pounds. I worry about her nutshell never seems to have any problems and her vet visits go well. Good luck with Nadia and the shots
ReplyDeleteAww she sounds wonderful. Calico's have a special place in my heart. :) Glad to hear she's doing well!
DeleteMy cat was diagnosed with diabetes three months agohttp://minetocommand.blogspot.com/2013/04/my-furst-baby.html
ReplyDeleteIt's a devastating diagnosis and I wondered what it said about the state of my life that my web browser was full of infertility and feline diabetes websites. Costco has the best prices for insulin and syringes. It seemed overwhelming at first, but it's easy to get into a routine of giving the shots twice a day. Mine takes his shots really well, it's best to try to sneak up while they're sleeping to check their glucose levels. I just got a report that his fructosamine level is within limits. My cat actually seems more mellow and happier after he got treated. It's totally manageable!
Your comment has brought me so much comfort! I read your post, and it got me emotional. Not just because of the diabetes diagnosis, but because we also have another kitty who was "feral" when we got her. She was not happy to be around people for about a year, until one day she lightly placed her little paw on my husband's shoulder while he was sitting on the couch. And it's all history after that. :) These little cats have so much love in their hearts, I just love that about animals.
DeleteAs for the diabetes, I'm relieved to hear that you've gone through something simliar and it's manageable. I'm most nervous about checking the glucose levels. I think the injections should be not too bad. Congrats on the normal fructosamine levels! That's the test result we are waiting to hear back on tomorrow. :)
Do you mind me asking which food you feed him? And great tip for costco! It's so overwhelming, you've been a help!
Our vet suggested putting him on wet food, which has a higher protein content and she said regular Friskies was fine, and it is what she feeds her cats. I still want the cats to have some dry food during the day, so I went to an organic pet food store and got one (sorry I can't think of the name) that has a low carb content. I started checking his glucose levels before and after insulin (as you tend to do for humans) but she said I only had to check once a day at the midpoint of his injection. You check the glucose by pricking the tiny vein that runs along the outline of their ear, but it bursts easily, so you can't do too many reading before needing to give the ears a rest. My vet says she prefers to monitor him by his symptoms of hunger, thirst and excessive urination. In the early days I was keeping track of how often we would refill the water bowl, or top up the dry food, and yes I even counted how many clumps were in the box. She also wants to make sure he's keeping a consistent weight, so I got a baby scale at amazon.com for $45. Who knows, maybe I'll need it for a baby one day! Amazon is a good source for test strips. Also, you can use an empty laundry detergent bottle for a sharps bin. Feel free to contact me with any more questions
Deletejaneallen746@gmail.com
What a gorgeous kitty Nadia is. You've definitely got this!
ReplyDeleteThanks!!!! I sure hope so. :)
DeleteHi from ICLW! Poor cat, but at least you guys have a plan to make her better. I wish you the best of luck.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for stopping by!
DeleteI had a diabetic cat too. It's really tough to get on schedule at first, but after a while it becomes second nature the twice daily shots. They DO get expensive though, mine were roughly $100 a month which at the time was more than my monthly gas bill, but Jack was worth it. The shots kept him going for another 5 years after his diagnosis. The only downsides were the incontinence... he lost control pretty quickly and often in places that I wasn't checking regularly... thank GOD for hard floor surfaces because if we had carpet it would have been a nightmare. But that really only started after a couple of years. He peed A LOT and litter changes were sometimes necessary twice daily. He was also constantly hungry. But usually when the peeing or eating increased it was a sign that he needed to go in to get his levels checked and we had to adjust his insulin dose accordingly. I am sorry that you are having to deal with this, but please know that really it won't affect your every day life too much and insulin can give you many more wonderful years with your beautiful girl. (I must admit I even used "I have to dash, my cat needs his scheduled insulin shot" to get out of many awkward-for-infertile situations such as baby showers or events with too many people interested in the status of my uterus. )
ReplyDeleteThis is very reassuring! I don't mind the expense (of course I don't love it though) if it means she's going to be okay. I think I'm most worried about checking her blood by poking her ears. But we will do what we have to do. And I'm going to look at the bright side, just as you mention - now I have a fabulous excuse to get out of awkward-for-infertile situations!
DeleteOH! I hope that your beautiful kitty gets a clean bill of health!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much. :)
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