Welcome to Gorb's Sugarcat Journal, page 3 - featuring stories and pics of some of Gorb's friends that are also sugarcats...Our intent is to let you know that you're not alone in your fight against feline diabetes!  Visit with all of us at the FDMB and share your story so that it may inspire others.

To join this journal, use our easy form located here.

We've chosen some music we thought accompanied the idea of this journal.  We suggest you download the song and listen while you read thru the journal (streaming isn't a great option as our site bandwith will cause choppy playback).  If you right-click the link, hit "save target as" and you'll have a lovely mp3 file just over 3 mb.

 

Helga, Bonnie and Clyde

Quality of life - oh yes!!  Quality of life? Oh yes!!

When Clyde was diagnosed in August, 2001, he was skin and bones. Always hungry, drinking and peeing all the day, a picture of misery!!

Getting insulin he recovered quickly, and now he is the same strong boy he ever was. He has gained his old weight, his coat is shining, he is eating well, PU/PD is over, he is roaming through the neighborhood and through the dunes looking for mice, lizards and little rabbits. He is jumping like a young kitty . Thanks for the info about Methylcobalamin!

Diabetes is no death sentence for a cat!

And my vet learned much about hometesting and ketones! First he was so skeptical, now he is interested in my glucometer!!

We enjoy each day with Clyde!!

   
Heather and Angus Angus was diagnosed with diabetes 4 years ago this July, and he will be 16 in October. At the time he was diagnosed, I was dealing with an apartment that had flooded, and the news that I was being laid off from a job and company that I really enjoyed - needless to say when my vet also told me Angus was diabetic - I lost it (yes, all 3 events really did happen in one week) - thankfully, I have a wonderfully kind and understanding vet. Once I calmed down and thought about my options, I knew treatment was the only way I was going to go - I realized that had this diagnosis come even 1 year earlier, treatment would NOT have been an option because of my financial situation. I also told myself that if Angus totally hated the shots and his quality of life seemed dismal, I would give in, no matter how I personally felt. Thankfully, he tolerated the shots well, and was regulated fairly easily. I had to make a few dietary changes for him, and over the next year added 2 more litter boxes for him to use.

Overall, things have gone very well, though the last 12 months have been rockier with a couple of hypo scares, and most recently a CRF diagnosis. But my reasons for choosing treatment weren't just based on financial viability, my parents are pharmacists and I knew diabetes is very treatable. Besides, Angus is my best buddy -I owed him something for all the loyal companionship that he has provided over the years - and I wasn't going to give up without a fight - he had been there for me during some very dark days and truthfully if I hadn't had him to care for and talk my troubles to, I probably would not be typing this message to all of you - quite simply, I owe him my life and I am going to fight for his all the way.
   
Susan and Precious
 The beginning of March 2002, I had noticed someone was drinking more water and peeing more, not drastically so, but it was more. I have three cats so I really didn't know who was doing it. I was watching Precious walk from the bedroom, through the living room to the kitchen where she laid down to rest. I immediately knew something was wrong, a short walk shouldn't have required a rest. I made the Vet appointment. When I was told it was diabetes, I thought, that's treatable, people live with it and so we have.  Precious is pretty much back to her old self, only when she has a hairball does she seem to not feel well. I have started combing her and her lifelong companion TJ daily now, Precious grooms TJ and herself and I want to try to save her from eating some hair. Home glucose testing hasn't gotten into the routine yet here, I'm still working on convincing Precious she can handle that too.

We use the ketodiastix sticks and hopefully, eventually, I can convince Precious home glucose testing won't be that big of a deal.
   
Joni and Tony and Bentley (GA) Sorry I need to be brief, (ill) it is worth it! my family brings me joy and love everyday. I have been told 3x Tony would not make it thru the day and when he has recovered it has been fully.
   
Andrea and Spitfire Not treat Spitfire????? Well...I'd like to see someone try to stop me. LOL.

Spitfire came into my life at a very difficult time. I had just had a car accident and was feeling pretty sorry for myself. Spitfire was such a joy to me and he wouldn't "let" me feel bad anymore. Thirteen years later he needed me more than he ever did in his life. He needed me even more than he did when he was hit by the car and broke his pelvis. The dreaded diabetes diagnosis!

The way I look at it, I am blessed to be a part of Spitfire's life. There was never a question of treatment or no treatment. The day we got the diagnosis was the day I came home with insulin and needles. To put it plain and simply, he needed me and I had no choice but to rise to the occasion.

Spitfire's coat looked awful, dandruff was severe and neuropathy was setting in. I thought that the neuropathy was the beginning of the end. The people here at FDMB told me otherwise. Gradually, Spitfire became by beautiful baby once again. The first time he jumped back up onto the bed and woke me up in the morning I cried tears of joy and ran to the computer to tell you all about it. I am sure you all shed a tear for us as well because that's what families do for each other.

Two "short" years have passed since diagnosis and we are still going strong. Spitfire is absolutely gorgeous and I am, in a sick sort of way, actually glad he needs me so much. In a round about way, I think I just said I am glad he is diabetic. Weird huh? I am a better person because of my animals, of that I am sure. Having a diabetic cat has made me realize that I really can handle most anything. Having a diabetic cat lead me to some of the most amazing people I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. I wish I could say that having a diabetic cat is easy. But for all of the people and kitties just starting out on this road, it does get easier and it will make you a better, much stronger person.

Spitfire is now 15 years old and I am hopeful that he will have many more birthdays with me. But, when his time comes, I know it will break my heart to say good bye but I will also know that I will have absoultely not one teeny tiny bit of regret for having helped him survive this awful disease we all hate so very much.

So, treat your cat, love your cat and most of all, love yourself and be proud of yourself for loving your animals and give them a chance to prove to the nay-sayers that they are wrong, that they are NOT just cats.

   
Helen and Tuco and Busby and Peanut too Never considered not treating...Yeah, I wasn't too thrilled to find out my cat had a chronic illness. But, the good news was, it was a treatable chronic illness. Tuco had never been a "momma's boy" - he actually preferred my husband to me - but since I was the one doing the research, and the vet visits, I naturally took on the majority of the treatment.

So what were those first few weeks like? Tuco was recovering from the world's worst case of feline chin acne, and had received steroids for it (which we suspect triggered the DM). Then I had to shove pills down his throat twice a day. I had chosen oral meds instead of insulin, although my vet warned me that we'd probably need insulin. Tuco was peeing all over my new carpet, fighting the pills, and wearing a plastic collar. My husband was hinting that I may need "to make a tough decision". It was pretty grim.

Then I found this board, and was told that shots weren't too bad, and that Tuco *could* have real food instead of W/D which he hated, and that people could test their cat's BGs at home! And there was light at the end of the tunnel! All I had to do was overcome my resistance to listening to a bunch of strangers on a message board.

So we switched from glipizide to insulin, and we went to see the vet every Saturday morning for blood work, and we changed the dose every couple of weeks. Tuco got better, but not quite 100%. So I bought a glucometer, and I tested it on myself, and I finally screwed up my nerve to test Tuco. It took a little while, but I was able to do "ear pokies". The rest, as they say, is history.

Tuco's nicer to me than he ever was, and we snuggle together, and I know he loves me for treating him. He knows the shots help him, and sometimes wakes me up for his morning shot. He knows where to go for his BG test (top of the dryer - and he can jump up & down!) Some of my friends think it's weird that I schedule around shot time, but 95% of the time it's not an issue. Sometimes we're late with a shot, and once in a while my hubby has to handle the shots (he won't test, so Tuco gets a reduced shot - his pancreas seems to have some sporadic function). But he's fine, and "more or less" regulated, and we're over the high stress of the initial diagnosis. He plays, and beats up Peanut, and hides on the basement stairs to scare me...I expect to have many more years with Tuco, and I don't begrudge the little extra time it takes to keep my buddy healthy.

   
Pamela and Baby
 Diabetes is treatable...Baby was diagnosed in 1995, I was devastated, but at the tender age of 7, I had to give him a chance. Started him on Glipizide for 1- 1/2 years. He became very sick, and it was apparent he would need to be put on insulin injections. This was even worse than the day he was diagnosed, I was terrified of needles! It took me over an hour to give him his first shot at home. If I could not give the shot what was the alternative?

When I found FDMB, I learned about home testing his blood glucose, which my vet happily taught me. I drove him(my vet)crazy with just about every glucose number I got, where he pretty much told me to not to sweat over *every* number. Well here we are coming on to 7- 1/2 years, & ya I do still sweat....just a little.

Baby falls in & out of regulation fairly often, because of other health issues we are dealing with.

Since Baby was diagnosed, he has opened my eyes & taught me so much about healthy eating, the immune system, and about how I look at life. Yes, this is a cat, no school could have ever taught me as well as he has.

   
Kat and Nox I have had so many cats over the years, as a kid, my parents didn't have much to spare on 'treatment'. When I graduated from college, an eon ago, and adopted my first kitten, I made a promise to both of us, that I would take care of him for as long as he was with me. And he is still here, despite a few scares, but those are different stories. By the time Nox came along I still had the same belief, that adopting an animal was a commitment, not a disposable commodity. Nox was 6 months old when I went through some VERY dark times, but knowing that I alone was responsible for my two boys (just Nox and Galen back then) kept me grounded, and kept me here.

In Feb, 2001 Nox was losing weight. The litter was wetter, but not up to 'cement' status yet. The vet didn't look for diabetes, we checked for crystals by ultrasound, and went home for several months. November 2001, Nox losing more weight, now he is turning the litter box into a cement pond, peeing outside (which has ALWAYS meant he was sick) and I couldn't keep water in any of the 4 bowls I keep around the house. Light bulb.
Back to the vet, "I think maybe diabetes", she tests his sugar, agrees (and remains forever ticked that I caught it first) and tells me he is borderline. That is the most information I ever got from her. I never once thought pts.

Nox is my baby. After changing vets (another story) and trying Glipizide, and finally getting his UTI under control (I think he had that a while) Nox's pancreas began to work. Right now, he is on a h*neym**n, off medication completely and I hope it lasts a long time for both of us. For almost two years I have been watching a very kittenish cat get lethargic and sedentary, believing he was getting older, when he jsut wasn't well. In the last couple of weeks he has been playing with Galen, swatting at the drooler, racing through the house, stalking bugs, and sitting up on the back of his recliner (he had gotten to 'tired' to do that) like he used to do.

Would I do it over again? No. I would be more proactive sooner. I would have asked more questions. I wouldn't have waited to research Feline Diabetes on the internet. I would do whatever I had to, to get Nox feeling better, more like himself, faster.

I started to type in a lot more info, but I decided to let you read my profile for more if you want.
   
Jerri & Opie
 June 26, 1999. Opie was sick & weak, we took him to the vet & he put him on antibiotics. I took him back several days later there was no improvement so the vet did a blood workup. The next day he called me & told me that Opie was diabetic I took him back in & he kept Opie for about 3.5 days (he had ketones). I knew he was terribly sick & didn't know if he would make it. Opie came home on Ultralente 3U SID. I found this board & started hometesting & discovered he was not regulated at all. I started his doses BID & eventually got him up to 3U BID. The rest is history. Opie is a happy healthy kitty, enjoys life w/his sister & mom & 40 other felines. He demands respect & is given it from the other "kids". I have never regretted treating Opie & have a bond with him that is very special. He usually sleeps on my foot so that in case I need him at night he'll be there. BTW, my vet told me that diabetics only live about 6 months. As you can see that was 3 years ago.
   
Janet & Binky
 Binky's quality of life, two years after diagnosis, and at age 15, is *better* than it was before diagnosis. He is enthusiastic and kittenish, qualities which had been fading for many years before his illness. I attribute this improvement mostly to the change in diet. Pre-diagnosis, Binky received dry food, with the occasional canned food as a much-loved treat. Post-diagnosis, I put him on a low-carbohydrate diet for his glucose, and on methyl-B12 for his neuropathy, thanks to information I found on the FDMB. He also gets periodic doses of vitamin E, which has an obvious effect on his temperament.

I actually decided to treat him more for my sake than his. He had been a good and loyal cat for many years, and I knew that if I had him killed instead of attempting to treat him, I would feel guilty and remorseful for a long time. Binky had atypical symptoms when diagnosed, so I really didn't know whether he was going to live or die. But I guess the improvement in menu and service made him decide to stick around for a while longer.

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