Official RJ Pet Thread

[Judge Jude]

This is a first for me (fish and turtles don't really count imo).

15-year-old cat, diabetic, not swallowing food (though licking up the gravy eagerly), negative for thyroid even though he drinks crazy amounts of water.
meows (moans? wails? yammers?) throughout the night sometimes with only intermittent breaks.

have blown some pretty good cash on this fella in the past month, with little luck.

any miraculous suggestions - or practical advice?

Mrs Judge was in denial til about a week ago, so I think that's out of the way at least.

My difficulty is he still has lots of spirit, jumps on a 3-foot high barstool (ok, to drink the water, but still), not clearly in pain (presuming he's hungry and thus the noise, which is not every night but not rare either).

p.s. he has a healthy sister from the same litter

[heyelander]

Cats are great at hiding that they are ailing. Does the cat only make noise when it's not around you? The last year of one of mine, she would just get lost and not know where we were. I'd have to go find her and then she would "wake-up" and quiet down and follow me back to bed or wherever. The not swallowing food thing is a huge concern though. Can you try minced food rather than sliced? It might be easier for him to eat. Have you noticed any weight loss? Has the cash been at the Vet? What are they telling you?

[TS Garp]

It's very difficult. In my experience, they let you know when they're ready to go by hiding from you, being increasingly withdrawn, etc. If he still has a lot of energy and generally seems happy, I'd see if you can try to figure out what's going on with the swallowing issue and hopefully figure something out.

[Mithrandir]

What does the vet say?

[Judge Jude]

vet is stumped, not "upselling" for an x-ray or whatever. he was focused on the diabetes. cat is fairly old (but not ancient), so he realizes practicality may be in play here. took a shot with thyroid, but all normal there.

down from 13 lbs in January to 8 lbs now.

not hiding a lot, but sometimes rests in new spots after years of habit. not clear if he gets confused; as said, they are good at hiding stuff.

he and his sister don't seem to pay any attention to each other of late, after years of 'snuggling' in the same cat bed.

[johnnya24]

Make sure about the diagnosis before you make any big decisions. My last cat got very sick, I spent hundreds on tests only to be told she "probably" had cancer and would die in a couple of weeks. I thought they were taking me for a ride on the tests ... just seemed to be tests for the sake of tests ... they were telling me the same thing each time. 1 month later she was back to full health.

6 months later I had to give her up to be adopted ... but at least I didn't listen to the vets advice and have her put down.

Not saying it's the same situation ... but that is my most recent experience with vets. She was really really sick ...

If I ever get another cat again, it'll be another Birman ... gorgeous with a terrific personality and temperament.

[Judge Jude]

The vets have not pushed re "put him down."
They're letting us work it through....

[Lucky]

PM sent. I'm sorry to read what you're going through.

[nullnor]

i have no experience with diabetic cats. usually you have to balance diabetes with other concerns, like heart or kidneys. the vet can tell you the balance. the blood work is important. what was the glucose creatinine and bun values?

overall i've found this site to be usefull, but every situation is different. http://www.felinecrf.org/diabetes.htm it takes alot of research sometimes to find out whats wrong.

diabetes really sucks, it really gets in the way of the usual treatments. i really have no experience with it.

blood work up is important. the blood values will tell you whats going on. ... and when cats complain at night something is wrong. 15 isn't old. if you do the right things you might be able to squeeze out another year or two. the weight loss is a major concern tho.

should be on a diabetic diet. but the most importent thing at this point is to keep it eating.

when it shuns a sibling something is seriously wrong.

[nullnor]

provided a diabetic cat is getting it's right injections, and i have no idea about that. or what it means. but sometimes when a cat doesn't eat it's because it's in kidney failure. you have to give it laxatives like miralax and also fluids. ..when their poop is hard they won't eat as much. at 15 years old if the creatinine value is over 3 you should give them fluids.

[Judge Jude]

Update:
- no sibling shunning, especially of late.
- diabetes has not seemed like an issue; just 3 ccs of insulin each morning.
- apparently the diabetes actually helped his kidney issues, somehow (weighs less, drinks a lot of water....)
- appetite is excellent, but he's not so 'heavy' that we'll let him not eat when he ignores the 'special' food. mainly licks gravy, juice, but swallowing modest amounts, too.
- cuddlier than ever; spoons right in, and embraces pets and purrs a lot.
- has not growled all night since this posting. maybe one meow for food in middle of night, otherwise leaves us be at least til 6:15 am or so (a little early, but...)

He's gotten a reprieve from the Governor, for now anyway. He's a fighter!

[heyelander]

Sounds like improvement. My cat is up to 6ccs but he's a good bit younger and doesn't show any of the signs you were mentioning. All my cats lost weight at some point, but if they stabilize at the new weight it's good. Having it checked out first though is important. I think you are doing all the right things and until the cat starts going to the bathroom in the wrong places because they are too weak to care/move or stops eating, or is in obvious pain, they are probably fine. You aren't doing them a disservice until all that. I think the crying at night is more old age, addled small kitty mind than anything. Just go get them so they aren't lost, and they will be happy again.

Again, I'd recommend checking out the minced food rather than the sliced. not sure what kind you are feeding the cat, but the sliced looks like little chunks of food while the minced looks more like a puree. I think it's easier to eat the minced if you cat isn't eating as much.

[nullnor]

PM sent. I'm sorry to read what you're going through.

not to get myself introuble here but what could you possibly have to say? you completely blew off everything you should've done, even after more chances, you still blew it off. and it's not about money.

all you want to do is try to bond with someone that you think is in an impoosible situation. .. but these situations are not impossible. and in fact sometimes they are manageable. tho cats are harder. especially JJ's situation.

lucky there are so many ways i can tell you that you messed up. but i know there is no way you will ever accept it. it's who you are. you will never accept your mistakes. because you're pretty darn successful. as a result you'll make others carry that burden. im trying to help you. but i know i have no chance because your set in your way... it's especially acute in your situation with animals that need care.

i've been there. i have to live with what my parents did with our pets., because i was too young and they were too stubborn to know better. but don't do what you do and pat your self on the back and look for compadre on the internet with strangers. or god forbid make them follow your example.

everything i do has a reason. (everything in life has a reason).

[nullnor]

Sounds like improvement. My cat is up to 6ccs but he's a good bit younger and doesn't show any of the signs you were mentioning. All my cats lost weight at some point, but if they stabilize at the new weight it's good. Having it checked out first though is important. I think you are doing all the right things and until the cat starts going to the bathroom in the wrong places because they are too weak to care/move or stops eating, or is in obvious pain, they are probably fine. You aren't doing them a disservice until all that. I think the crying at night is more old age, addled small kitty mind than anything. Just go get them so they aren't lost, and they will be happy again.

Again, I'd recommend checking out the minced food rather than the sliced. not sure what kind you are feeding the cat, but the sliced looks like little chunks of food while the minced looks more like a puree. I think it's easier to eat the minced if you cat isn't eating as much.

if it's eating should get prescription food. whether its low sodium for heart, or low protein for kidneys, or whatever they give them for diabetes. if it will eat it. should be on Prescription Diet if possible... im just saying. even tho there are bigger concerns here.

[heyelander]

not to get myself introuble here but what could you possibly have to say? you completely blew off everything you should've done, even after more chances, you still blew it off. and it's not about money.

I think he kept it private for a reason.