#cat diabetes symptoms

[tricountyanimal]

Preventing Feline Diabetes: Tips for Keeping Your Cat Healthy

Feline diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a condition where a cat’s body cannot properly produce or respond to insulin. This leads to high levels of glucose in the blood, causing various health issues. Like humans, cats can develop diabetes, and it's increasingly common among our feline friends. However, with the right care and lifestyle adjustments, you can significantly reduce the risk of diabetes in cats.

Tips To Keep Your Cat Healthy And Prevent Cat Diabetes

1. Diet and Nutrition

A balanced diet is crucial in preventing feline diabetes. Cats are obligate carnivores, meaning their diet should be primarily composed of meat. High-protein, low-carbohydrate diets are ideal. Commercial cat foods often contain fillers and carbs that can lead to weight gain and eventually diabetes. Opt for high-quality, grain-free options or consider a raw diet after consulting with your veterinarian at Tri-County Animal Hospital.

Avoid Processed Foods: Processed cat foods are often high in carbohydrates. These can spike blood sugar levels, increasing the risk of diabetes in cats.

Portion Control: Overfeeding can lead to obesity, a significant risk factor for feline diabetes. Follow feeding guidelines and avoid free-feeding.

2. Exercise and Activity

Regular exercise is essential for maintaining a healthy weight and preventing cat diabetes. Engaging your cat in physical activities can help regulate their blood sugar levels.

Playtime: Invest in toys that encourage active play, such as feather wands, laser pointers, and interactive puzzle toys.

Environment Enrichment: Create an environment that stimulates your cat’s natural hunting instincts. Climbing trees, scratching posts, and hide-and-seek games can keep your cat active.

3. Regular Veterinary Check-Ups

Routine veterinary check-ups are vital in catching any health issues early, including the early signs of diabetes in cats. At Tri-County Animal Hospital, we recommend regular wellness screens to monitor your cat’s overall health and detect any potential issues before they become severe.

Blood Tests: Regular blood tests can help monitor glucose levels and detect any abnormalities.

Weight Monitoring: Keeping track of your cat’s weight can help prevent obesity, a significant risk factor for feline diabetes.

4. Recognizing Early Signs

Educating yourself on the early signs of feline diabetes can make a huge difference in managing the condition if it does develop. Some common symptoms to watch out for include:

Increased Thirst and Urination: Excessive drinking and frequent urination are early signs of diabetes in cats.

Weight Loss: Despite a normal or increased appetite, a diabetic cat may lose weight.

Lethargy: If your cat is less active than usual, it could be a sign of high blood sugar levels.

If you notice any of these symptoms, schedule an appointment with your veterinarian at Tri-County Animal Hospital for a thorough evaluation.

5. Weight Management

Maintaining a healthy weight is one of the most effective ways to prevent cat diabetes. Obesity significantly increases the risk of diabetes in cats, so keeping your cat at a healthy weight is crucial.

Regular Weigh-Ins: Weigh your cat regularly to ensure they are maintaining a healthy weight. If they are gaining too much weight, consult your vet for a tailored diet and exercise plan.

Controlled Feeding: Avoid overfeeding and provide meals at specific times rather than leaving food out all day.

Conclusion

Preventing feline diabetes involves a combination of a healthy diet, regular exercise, routine veterinary care, and early recognition of symptoms. By taking proactive steps, you can significantly reduce the risk of diabetes in cats and ensure your feline friend leads a happy, healthy life. At Tri-County Animal Hospital, we are dedicated to providing the best care for your pets. Regular check-ups and consultations can help keep your cat in optimal health and prevent diseases like cat diabetes. Schedule an appointment with us today to discuss your cat’s health and take the first step towards a diabetes-free life for your furry friend.

[bonefall]

Cat Diabetes

So as you've probably seen, lately I've been considering what Diabetes will end up looking like, both for my rewrite and any herb guide I make. I had been trying to consider how to strike a balance between Human Diabetes and Feline Diabetes... but I'm not sure if it's possible to do that.

Cat Diabetes and Human Diabetes have significant differences.

Human Diabetes:

Type 1 is typically an autoimmune condition where the body destroys the cells responsible for insulin production, usually with a childhood onset. Type 2 diabetes is the body becoming insulin-resistant despite the pancreas still producing insulin, usually with an adulthood onset.

Type 1 is treated with insulin injections. Type 2 is treated with medication, usually metformin.

In human diabetes, Type 2 does not progress into Type 1.

Feline Diabetes:

Type 1 is the total failure of insulin production in the pancreas, it is very rare in cats. Type 2 is insulin resistance or reduced production in the pancreas, it is common in cats.

Both Type 1 and Type 2 is treated with insulin injections. Type 2 can be managed with medication, but this is becoming an outdated practice because...

In feline diabetes, Type 2 can progress into Type 1. This is a significant side effect of oral medication in cats.

So What?

It didn't come up before in any discussions of what to do, but I've been told that it could be offensive to diabetics to show a character progressing from Type 2 to Type 1, even if they are cats, because that is a misconception of human diabetes.

Ultimately my goal is representation. While I WANT my herb guides to be consistent for Warrior Cats and be adapted for feline biology, I will bend those secondary goals in the name of better reflecting the real human people with fake cat OCs these guides are made for.

I wanted to mix the two and strike a balance between Feline and Human diabetes, but the more I work on this and consider every angle, the more I'm feeling overwhelmed and the enjoyment is actively draining out of it.

I'm not having fun imagining disappointing everyone with a compromise that doesn't accurately portray Diabetes in either species.

So I'm going to commit to making a herb guide that reflects human diabetes, and in this case, ignore feline diabetes. It seems like the more requested option anyway.

[portmantaur]

so content warning for potential pet mortality/illness

I am trying very hard to be practical and reasonable but we just got the news that Bruce (cat) is diabetic, and we’re taking him in/dropping him off tomorrow to get a urine sample to determine treatment options. I don’t want to spiral so im trying to just channel my unsettled emotions into being frustrated about money (bc it is and has been expensive), but im just. I hate losing pets suddenly, and im so worried that’s gonna happen again. We’ve barely had time with him, just a couple years. And I don’t want it to all end suddenly. I know it HAS to end, I know that is the fate of all small mammals, but I just wanted to be able to give him a space to grow old in and I feel so fucking inefficient and ineffective. I don’t know. I feel selfish, too. I just want him to be ok, but he isn’t, and that’s a scale too and we don’t quite know where exactly he sits on the spectrum it just. Sucks. He’s only 10ish. I know that’s not Young either but. I don’t know. I feel like im failing him. I guess that’s silly. But I don’t want him to go.

[adiproseprose]

You expect to wake up to your alarm; maybe your partners arm slinking over your waist, the cat pressing itself into your space. Any of your normal indicators that it's time to wake up.

What you don't expect, however, is to feel the thick underside of a gut brushing against the bottoms of your knees, an unfamiliar dip in your sofa, normally vacant space on the couch filled in by a wide, soft expansion of...you.

The second thing you feel is something cold and wire-like being squeezed by the unfamiliar folds of your throat, coupled with cold air shooting into your nose. You reach with with a newly bloated hand, fingers tight and tingling with a numbness you recognize via hours of horny scrolling through diabetes symptoms pages. You shudder as you pull a sweat greased cord to a nasal cannula from your third or fourth chin, huffing slightly. Most likely from holding your arm up past your chest for longer than a few seconds for the first time in God knows how long.

You move onto to the main issue; hands travel down, sausage fingers wrap themselves around your third to last love handle, right under your saggy f-cups, breathing unconsciously growing harder as you wobble one of your many new slabs of meat. You smooth your hands over your belly, a pale white apron taking up your entire lap, now the size of a park bench and about as soft as a bowl of cool whip, stiff peaks melted down to a flabby mess and dripping off your thighs, burying your crotch and a swollen fupa.

You hold your arms out in front of you, cellulite and blubber dripping off of them as you think about all the times you prayed for this. Fantasizing with weighted suits, peeping at larders in public, eyes closed, hands down your pants as you wondered what it would be like to carry all of *this*. Now you're here, taking up your entire sofa, barely able to turn your blubber packed neck, wheezing from just hardly shifting your arms up and down. Amble pockets of stretch marked flab ripple across your arduous form. There's only one question that wracks your mind after you've half-processed your new reality-

"Good morning, larder."

He strolls in, grease stained plain white box wider than his shoulders gripped in both hands. You inhale through your nose, instinctively starting to scoot over to make room for him on the couch before your fluid-logged hip crashes against the arm. The act leaves your already corroded joints sore and your mouth sucking for air like a fish. He makes eye contact with you like a predator does a wounded boar. "Babe," You wheeze, the ensuing *What's going on, etc etc* cut off by a cream filled doughnut shoved past your lips. Your chins press against your throat and jiggle against your collar bone as you chew it in two big bites, taking it down your throat and sucking the white cream filling off his finger. Gulping it down leaves you panting for breath and he cuts off your struggle with a kiss, groping your right blubberous tit. You close your eyes and reach for another doughnut. Maybe you'll be fatter when you wake up...

[koolades-world]

headcanons w/ mc masterlist p.2

Mc with a birthday right after one of the brother's

Crying Mc

Mc who makes memes about everyone

Dragon whisperer Mc

Mc who dresses in 60's fashion

Mc asking the brothers know what a "the matter baby" is

Mc who cuts their hair because "hair holds memories"

Mc who hates themselves

Mc and the brothers get jealous

Mc with a grudge against the brothers

Mc who snaps at a classmate

Aromantic Mc

befriending the brothers via oujia board

Mc with mangled wings

Brazilian Mc

A very dense Mc

Mc who loves to word vomit about their interests

Roller blading Mc

Mc with nieces/nephews that treats them like their kids ♡

Mc who loves hide and seek (i made an oopsie and wrote for the same prompt twice, so v2 can be found here!)

Mc with Social Anxiety

Mc with burnout symptoms

Strong Mc who enjoys being babied

Mc who stims after receiving affection

Emotional regulator Mc

Workaholic Insomniac Mc

Mc who overcompensates when giving back

Mc with mangled wings p.2

Romanian Mc

Italian Mc

Mc with a hyperfixation on the brothers

Mc who bases their worthiness on grades

Mc that hallucinates

Mc with a fear of rodents

FTM Mc on his period

Mc who cries after being called beautiful/handsome/stunning

Dog-like Mc

Follower Mc

Undatables react to Mc killing a lower demon while defending themself

Mc with a Russian accent

Mc who shares their food randomly ♡

Asian Mc

Indian Mc

Type 1 Diabetic Mc who passes out during a student council meeting

Mc who's insecure about scars from a car crash

Mc who's attached to the brothers

Sick Day

Egg Baby Project w/ Brothers

Serial Killer Mc arrived to the Devildom

Cat-hybrid Mc

Aroace Mc

Mc with Pizza Pasta remix as their ringtone

Mc with low iron who faints in front of the brother + side characters

Recently Fallen Teen Mc

Mc coming out as trans

Mc that looks like Lilith and her lover

Mc with a birthday right after one of the side character's

Mc commenting on the brothers spilling too much food into a bowl

Mc who babysits their younger cousins at a family gathering w/ the brothers

Tiny Mc w/ Beel

Mc who tries to lift the brothers and fails

Poc Mc and the poc boys

Mc with IBD

Timid Mc who hides behind the brothers

Single Mom Mc

Mc whose love language is biting

Mc that keeps falling asleep under their bed

Insecure Mc

Mc who gets pushed around by their family

Mc with temporary wings p.2

Very sweet Mc

Short Mc who gives indirect finger kisses

Serious Mc who lights up after receiving affection

Singer Mc who starts singing again after a depressive episode

Mc telling their s/o in his arms is their happy place

Mc who's deathly afraid of wasps

Mc finds an abandoned baby and brings it home

Clone Mc

Mc calls Lucifer, Satan, Barbatos and Solomon pretty

[jakey-beefed-it]

My cat, Frisbee, is dying.

He's been losing weight for a while now. At first it was a good thing, we thought- he was a big chonker of a tubby boy, and we figured switching him from unregulated kibble whenever he felt like it to set meal times of wet food, plus running up and down the stairs of his new house after he moved to Toronto with me, was making a difference. Certainly it did, but he continued to lose weight beyond his goal of 12 pounds, and began vomiting copious amounts of bile every couple of nights.

We took him in to the vet and confirmed he was a little underweight at 10.3 pounds, and with his list of symptoms the vet was hopeful that it was either feline diabetes or hyperthyroidism, both of which are treatable. Unfortunately, his white blood cell count came back outrageously high such that he almost certainly has gastrointestinal lymphoma. Which is apparently not uncommon in middle-aged cats (he's nearly ten).

They could confirm it with an exploratory surgery, but his health is obviously suffering already and there's no guarantee he'd survive the very expensive surgery. Much less the subsequent very expensive chemotherapy which would only buy him another six months to two years, on average.

Even if I had the money for the drastic options, I don't think I'd go for it- just putting the poor guy through all that when he can't understand why we're doing it. But I don't have the money anyway, so it makes it a little easier to accept that the best thing I can do for him now is make him comfortable and happy for as long as I can.

He's got, probably, a few weeks to a few months. Possibly a little more if he responds well to anti-inflammatories and can digest a bit more of his food a bit better. That much we can do for him.

I'm going to spoil him rotten for whatever time we have left. I already spoiled him with constant cuddles and affection and treats, but now instead of an overlarge handful of treats once a day, he's getting it two or three times a day. And mealtimes are off; he meows and runs to his bowl, he gets food. Why not- it will make him happy and it might make him a little stronger. His weight certainly isn't an issue.

He's been a dear friend these past nearly ten years, there for me with his head bonks and trilling purrs and grooming my beard for me like I was a fellow cat in good times and bad. He's the best cat I've ever had, and nothing can ever replace him. But there's nothing left for me to do but to make him as happy and comfortable as I can for as long as I can, until it becomes clear that he's suffering, at which point I can grant him a painless passing with me at his side.

I'm. Not doing well, emotionally, but that's to be expected. I love this little guy more than is remotely reasonable and I'm going to miss him like a vital organ when he's gone. But until then, yeah. He gets spoiled. He deserves it.

Pictured here in better health, a floofy chonker nonpareil.

[cvt2dvm]

Bag Tour 2024: Daily Bag Edition Feat. Hannibal Lector

All images have alt text descriptions with items listed, bag tour, and the reasons for each item below the cut

The Bag Itself:

This bag is a Coach Turnlock Tote bag in the pebbled leather color Blossom. This bag, the belt bag I now use as a bag organizer, and the wallet were all gifted to me in 2019 by a family member. The belt is too large for me at this point in life, so the pouch has been repurposed as a Toolkit of sorts. While it is a hair small fully packed, I enjoy the color of it and the balance of it as well as the functionality of the pockets it has.

The Straps:

My straps on this bag usually aren't this cluttered. However, Hannibal has been coming with me to work on a daily basis to get him used to the idea of traveling, and I needed a place to put his harness.

On my straps there is a malachite pendant necklace attached to the charm loop at the bottom of the right side of the outer strap, and my keys are also usually attached here with a carabiner unless I'm going somewhere that I'd want my keys a little bit more secured. I just like malachite. It looks cool. It's the right shades of green, and it's fairly easy to get ahold of.

I also have my stethoscope looped here if it's not around my neck or on my desk at home. I have a neonate size littman stethoscope since I primarily work in companion animal medicine, and I find that it focuses a bit better on my patients who are less than 15 pounds. I do have a regular litmann as well, but that one stays at the office. Most of my after-hours calls are on cats and small geriatric dogs who have standing orders for as needed injections of certain medications whose owners are either unwilling or unable to administer those medications.

Then, the big thing on the straps today is Hannibal's harness. Little dude is 17 weeks, and a whopping 7 lbs already. I could gush about him literally all day, though. His harness was only on the bag while he was allowed to have free roam over the back of the reception area and wrestle with Chewbacca (my terrier).

Turnlock Pocket:

This is where I keep my human med kit for myself, plus treats for my pets, or snacks for myself. Image 8 is the corresponding image.

Human Med Kit:

Glucometer: I have struggled with Non-diabetic hypoglycemia, POTS, and hemiplegic migraines for about 7 years now due to a moderate traumatic brain injury in my teens. So I tend to take 2-5 glucose readings per day. The rubber gloves in my glucometer bag aren't for me to use on me so much as they are to be ready if I need to assist someone in a first aid setting or administer narcan to someone.

Excedrine Migraine: A tried and true beloved OTC medication, both my terrier, Chewbacca, and my malinois, Phobos, are trained for migraine alert and POTS electrolyte imbalance alert work, although Chewbacca is retired at this point. At the first migraine alert from my dogs, I take one tablet of Excedrine and then wait an hour. If the migraine continues to worsen, I then take the second half of the regular dose. This is what works for me, and you should talk to your doctor about treatment options if you have migraines. Currently, I'm down to only 2-4 migraines a month and only experiencing breakthrough hemiplegic migraine symptoms about once every 3 months with this routine.

Narcan: I carry it everywhere. I was never an opioid addict. However, after my TBI, I did struggle with perscription amphetamine addiction, and as a result of having been through that, and having gotten clean, I've become a really big proponent of harm reduction and narcan access programs. There's a few charities I'm involved with that give away narcan locally, and I'd be happy to put anyone interested in carrying narcan some national resources. I also live fairly close to Philadelphia and have unfortunately had to utilize narcan to assist strangers in bars in the past from tainted supplies.

Menstrual cup: I have PCOS, so my cycle isn't super regular and I'd rather have it and not need it then need it and not have it.

Not Pictured: My supply of both instant iced coffee, instant electrolytes, and protein bars that I keep in my glove box, office desk, and at home. Both the caffiene (increases blood pressure) and the electrolytes (increases sodium and potassium) are important in managing my POTS symptoms. The protein bars are for when my glucose drops a bit too far.

Chicken Churu: This was Hannibal's treat for today, we worked on saying hello to strangers and walking nicely on a leash.

Tech:

Corresponding Photos: 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, & 9

Samsung Galaxybook Go: This is my laptop for work and personal use, it has an LTE data chip so I can use it on the go without sucking up my Hotspot data, and it's got fantastic battery life. I bought this refurbished off of Amazon at the beginning of the year. It also charges with a USB-C cable which is super convenient since the rest of my tech with the exception of my smart watch also utilizes USB-C charging so I can just pack a fast charge block and 2 USB-C cables rather than lug around 5 different chargers.

Samsung Galaxytab S6 Lite: It was on special at costco and has an S-Pen which is great as someone who's memory for reading/typing isn't nearly as effective as my memory for things I've written down. I mostly use this for notes on patients and my studies.

Samsung Galaxy23 Ultra: It has a stylus and is of a similar design, feel, and functionality to my Note9 I just replaced last fall.

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro: The active noise cancelling is fantastic for working in busy coffee shops on Mondays, and the Ambient sound is great for getting a Podcast in during charting or longer monitoring stints.

Samsung Galaxy Watch5: LTE enabled watch helps when I'm away from my phone during the day, it allows me to still get calls, texts, notifications, and keep track of active time and calories burned.

Charging Bundle: One 8" USB-C -> USB-C cord for charging my tablet, phone, or earbuds off of my laptop, one 4' USB-C -> USB-C cord to charge my laptop or other devices if my laptop is sufficently charged, a USB-A -> hard drive cord for my 1TB portable drive, and a USB-A Smart watch charging cord.

Data storage: 8GB flash drive that is mostly used for ultrasound capture transfers and X-Ray Diacom transfers, although occasionally it also gets used for in-house lab data transfers when the WiFi link is acting up. 1 TB portable hard drive, this contains textbook PDFs, a large music library, archived notes, and lesser used reference tables and software. It also has copies of my more important documents.

Vlogging/Content Creation Supplies: Light bar, microphone, mini tripod, comfort grip, and microphone stand. Basically just stuff to enhance recording quality for tiktoks, reels, and YouTube videos (coming soon).

Books & Stationery:

Pocket Edition Book of Common Prayer: No, I am not carrying a Bible around, I have an app for that. This is a Book of Common Prayer (1979 edition) for The Episcopal Church. While I'm laity, I do still try and take time for Morning Prayer/Matin, Noonday Prayer/Diurnum, Evening Prayer/Evensong, and End of Day Prayer/Compline. These are quiet moments for me to break away from the stressors of the day. I also utilize 2 additional devotionals for quiet time upon rising and before bed that supplement my regular journaling, however these stay on my bedside table with my primary journal.

Martha Stewart For Staples Discbound Junior Notebook, this is my planner, quick notebook, and lazy journal, I basically dump my brain out right here throughout the day.

Paper clips: From marking off the current month and week in my planner to organizing papers from drug reps, to getting a client printed copies of their records, there's lots of paperclip usage.

Correction tape: I don't often use pencils and sometimes my brain goes faster than my hand and mistakes happen.

Erasers and pencil leads: If I'm out and about I don't want to lose my ability to sketch and use pencils if they're needed

Pens: Pink, Red, and Black ink, my standard for personal notes is Pink ink, while business notes are done in black, the red is for corrections on both

Pencil: it's the same grip as my favorite pens that I can write for hours with, super beneficial for long study sessions.

S Note App: My longer rough notes and revised notes are done in SNote with a SPen/stylus and handwritten out. I also tend to keep spare nibs on hand, however I am currently out of spare nibs.

Sticky notes/flags: great for passing off notes to coworkers, flagging charts, or marking messages.

Snack Attack:

Travel Cutlery set with a fork, spoon, and knife so that I don't have to get utensils when I grab breakfast or lunch at Wawa or the local BBQ joint

Travel straw: Save the turtles while still enjoying my Starbucks

Bandana/neckerchief: No single use napkins here

Coozie: Perfect for NA Seltzers, Sodas, or a beer at the bar after work. Plus it holds all my other eating supplies.

Beauty/Hygiene:

Hand lotion: washing hands between every patient can leave my hands feeling pretty gnarly, so I always pack lotion

Perfume: Anal Glands happen, and sometimes you just... need to freshen up a bit.

Dry Shampoo: my hair always looks super greasy after taking my scrub cap off after surgeries, this buys me enough time to get through my shift

Hand sanitizer: ideal for housecall visits or visits to elder care facilities where you may not be able to properly wash your hands between patients.

Lip gloss: I'm not a huge fan of lip balms and the waxy feeling they leave on my lips vs the glide of a lipgloss or oil.

Sewing kit: Because if your shirt rips in vet med, it's probably going to be in a place you really don't want it to rip

Manicure kit: wrestling with animals can cause nail breakage and hang nails, and I'd rather not have to chew one off. It also has tweezers that come in handy for splinters or thorns picked up from animal coats.

Blotting sponge: again, I tend to start looking greasy after surgery because I sweat. And I'd rather be able to take care of it quickly and discreetly

Condoms: These don't need to be in my work bag, but they're in the tool kit along with my most basic essentials because the Toolkit is in every bag I use, including bags I use when I go out for girls night or linedancing. Also another have and not need vs need and not have item.

Hair tie, bobby pins, barette: just little extra bits and bobs as needed for hair issues, sometimes the dry shampoo isn't enough and the only solution is to throw my hair up into a slicked back ponytail instead of having it down.

Cooling wet wipe: again, surgical sweating

Other Essentials:

Wallet: Obvious Reasons

Nicotine Pouches: I've quit vaping but I haven't quite kicked the habit entirely yet

Unpictured: Glock 43. I uber and doordash after work, I also deliver controlled substances for patients in some not-so-great areas being ravaged by the opioid epidemic. I'm also a 5'5" disabled female who lives alone and has had a stalker. Sorry not sorry, it's insured, I'm licensed, and I take courses for it routinely.

If you have any questions, comments, or thoughts, feel free to DM me, comment here, comment in the tags, or reblog. Also, I'm aware this is Tumblr and that the Jesus stuff can be frightening to see, just want to make note that I do fall somewhere between a pluralist and a universalist. As long as you aren't using your religious views to oppress, marginalize, or harm people, we're good as far as I'm concerned.

[anakintwolegs]

Kazu has been diagnosed with Diabetes & has started treatment. He had just had bloodwork and urinalysis done the middle of December, because I felt like he was off then. Not his normal, active playing self like Romeo & Quincy. All of that bloodwork and urinalysis came back completely normal. His blood glucose was right in the middle of the range 127. The range is 72-175. So since she couldn’t find anything wrong with him, we just had to wait till he developed any more symptoms. February 16 Kazu started being treated for a UTI. I also noticed he was drinking more water. About 3 days into his UTI treatment I still didn’t think he was right so I took him for more bloodwork and another urinalysis. Thursday 22nd morning my vet called called and said Kazu has diabetes my heart sank. His blood glucose was almost 400. She wanted me to bring him in to learn how to give injections and go get him a prescription for insulin to start asap. Kazu started out getting 1 unit of insulin every 12 hours. It is the tiniest little amount of insulin not even a fourth of an inch. We are also adjusting his diet and probably everyone else’s diet to make things easier and possibly help prevent Kazu’s other two brothers from getting diabetes as well I hope since this seems to be genetic. There is a possibility that Kazu could go into remission since we caught this very early so I am hopefully. Kazu’s went to the vet yesterday morning 2/28 for 9am to have glucose curve monitoring. His numbers still stayed in the low 400s for his first 2 checks then high 300s for the second 2 checks. Kazu was on 1 unit of insulin every 12 hours, now I gave him 1.5 units last night and then starting this morning he now gets 2 units of insulin every 12 hours. He has been really good about the shots. We just distract him with some of the lickable tube treat and he doesn’t even know he’s getting an injection. Kazu goes back for his next glucose curve monitoring in two weeks unless something change. I have been reading and researching a lot online about cat diabetes. I want to be fully educated and able to care for him the best I can. Kazu does act like he feels a bit better so I will keep you posted on how he’s doing! I can’t believe that he also has diabetes just like what happened to Forrest. At least this time I knew what to watch for. It still kills me that I didn’t know what was happening to Forrest until it was too late. I will always feel like I failed Forrest because I didn’t know what was happening. Please send me all the good vibes and well wishes you can for Kazu. This has been a lot to deal with for all of us and especially Kazu. Xoxo! Carrie & Anakin

Also Anakin is doing great! I’ll post some more pics and video of him soon ❤️

[zerogate]

For over thirty years scientists have been systematically exploring the idea that the risk of falling ill increases when we are exposed to a lot of disruptive changes or emotional turmoil. This research stemmed from the informal observations of certain perceptive doctors, who noticed that their patients often seemed to have experienced unusually large amounts of change and upset in the period before they fell ill.

Further impetus came from a pioneering investigation of illness and absenteeism among the employees of the Bell Telephone Corporation in the 1950s. This indicated that employees with unsettled personal lives tended to suffer frequent bouts of illness and take more sick leave from work. Suggestive observations such as these led psychologists to formulate the concept of life events. A life event is defined as any significant change in a person’s circumstances which requires them to make psychological and practical readjustments. The disruptive event can be either desirable or undesirable; the prime criterion is that it causes a degree of upheaval. Examples of life events include the death of a partner or family member, divorce, marriage, starting a new job, moving house or financial problems. At the other end of the scale, minor upheavals such as family holidays and Christmas are also classified as life events. The basic hypothesis underlying this work is that any disruptive changes, whether desirable or undesirable, are potentially stressful and can increase our chances of falling ill.

[...]

The general conclusion from several thousand such studies is that people who have been exposed to lots of life-event stress have a slightly greater risk of illness. This increased risk applies across the board and seems to encompass virtually every form of ailment and disease under the sun, ranging from headaches, common colds, allergies and inflammation of the gums to mental illness, coronary heart disease, leukaemia, diabetes, tuberculosis and multiple sclerosis.

Life-event stress also has an impact on childbirth; women who register high stress ratings during the year or so before pregnancy tend to give birth to babies with slightly lower birth weights and a slightly poorer overall state. Life events are even associated with an increased risk of minor accidents and sports injuries. As well as suffering more episodes of illness, people with high life-event scores also tend to be ill for longer, have more severe symptoms and take longer to recover.

[...]

For instance, when mice or rats are exposed to stressful situations, such as being physically restrained or subjected to unpleasant electric shocks, they become less resistant to infection with a whole range of bacteria, viruses and parasites including mycobacteria (the type of bacteria responsible for tuberculosis), herpes viruses, influenza viruses, polio viruses and the protozoa which cause toxoplasmosis.

In one experiment, for example, frightening mice by exposing them to a cat significantly increased their vulnerability to infection with a parasitic tapeworm. (The cat was prevented from attacking the mice; the sight of it alone was enough to affect them.) Likewise, the social stress of being introduced into an unfamiliar flock makes chickens more susceptible to bacterial infections, while the stress of being transported renders cattle vulnerable to a form of viral pneumonia caused by the reactivation of latent herpes viruses.

-- Paul Martin, The Sickening Mind: Brain, Behaviour, Immunity and Disease

[ashleywool]

This is what I mean when I say "nothing is weird in New York."

That said, the phrases "boa constrictor" and "Upper West Side apartment" should not ever exist together in the same sentence.

On an unrelated note, I had a lot of bloodwork done recently. My blood pressure has been hovering around 90/60 for most of my adult life, and now it's in the hypertension zone, my triglycerides and fasting blood glucose are way higher than it makes sense for a non-diabetic who's never been overweight, and my cortisol levels are astronomical in ways that can't just be chalked up to being autistic or living in a world where boa constrictors randomly show up in NYC kitchen sinks.

Soooo, based on those things and a lot of other things, I think I have Cushing's disease and I think the culprit is a pituitary tumor.

Just feel like I should put that in writing somewhere. If I'm wrong, I'm sure there will be education in there worthy of sharing, and if I'm right, then I'll be gloating about it for the rest of my life.

Because it will be the second time in the last two years I've successfully diagnosed myself with something obscure and uncommon that doctors would later confirm to be accurate.

The first time was when I was experiencing cytokine storms after recovering from COVID in late 2022--my vitals were back to normal, but every time I stopped taking prednisone, my nervous system was gaslighting me into feeling like I still had symptoms. That usually only happens with cases far more severe than mine (mine was awful, but not hospitalization-awful, thank you Pfizer), but guess which population has a tendency towards abnormal immune responses? I felt like a conspiracy theorist when I suggested this to my PCP but she was like "that totally makes sense, try one more round of prednisone, that should do it," and IT DID.

Ever since then, if I'm looking up symptoms or conditions, I tag "and autism" onto the search terms. Which kinda sucks sometimes. Because research has suggested there IS a correlation between autism and pituitary abnormalities too, and I am interested in digging deeper into it...

But even in non-clinical sources, people always write these things as if they never think autistic people are actually going to read them. It's always "if you're a parent or caregiver and you observe this," and never "if you're an autistic person and you experience this." It's got the same energy as the research I've done about food intolerances in cats--Tex has had some gastrointestinal issues recently, but he can't TELL me what he's feeling or speculate about the source of his symptoms or do research on his own. I think the world is starting to understand that autistic people are not cats, but sometimes I wish the healthcare sector would catch up faster.

Anyway. Uh.

WHO IS KEEPING A FREAKING BOA CONSTRICTOR ON THE ISLAND OF MANHATTAN I HAVE SO MANY QUESTIONS AND ALL OF THEM ARE "WHY"

[freedfromthegalactichivemind]

So, I just had something tense going on.  Maybe I worked myself up beyond necessary.  A dear friend of mine on Facebook - we have yet to meet in person, but we know each other’s real names and have exchanged snail-mail (she’s bought some artwork from me and she’s sent me crafting supplies out of her surplus and little gifts for me during periods when I was feeling down) was saying some very disturbing things that I caught.   Like, I’m looking at my feed and see “Goodbye, cruel world.”   She’s not one to joke about stuff like that.  I looked at her page and something I’d missed was a post about how a medication wasn’t working right for her, was making things wonky.  She’s diabetic and has some other health issues and apparently a new medication she was put on was giving her a rare and dangerous side-effect.  Her messages were such that I did not know if she was so pissed off at her health that she was thinking of just ending it or if she was having a medication and/or diabetic reaction and was essentially letting her online friends know that she was dying.  I assumed the latter, but I did not know if she had anyone with her to help her out.   Cue me trying to get ahold of mutual online friends, frantically looking through old mail packages (a box I use for storage she sent me) to try to find her address, finding it finally on an email search, asking my partner something I didn’t know “Can you call 911 on someone not in your state?”  and finding out that I actually could, it just takes some transfer.   My friend turned out to be okay.  Emergency folk showing up at her door scared the Hell out of her husband (I did not know if he was home, you see, I was going by scary and cryptic Facebook posts).  She was just having an issue with her medication that balanced out.   She was glad to have some random online friend care enough for her to worry like that.  She hailed me on Messenger and explained everything.  And now we’ve set up for when we have a couple of days off next week to actually visit and hang out / see each other in person finally / finally let me pet the cat she posts pictures of which is the most gorgeous cat in the universe / maybe see the Barbie movie if either of us don’t get to it in the meantime.  Anyway, why am I sharing this?   It’s giving me a bit of a flashback to 2 years ago when I was having a very rough time and thought I had friends in this particular fandom.  I had known / chatted with people for about 3 years and though we’d met in Spop fandom and in a subfandom thereof, but many of us shared personal things together and I thought I had actual friends - online friends based on one mutual interest - but friends, nonetheless.  Some things went wrong with me and some of them, misunderstandings, me overreacting, some symptoms of my known mental illness coming into play (not that it excuses my bad choices), but pretty soon, I found even the people who were trying to stick by me were dumping me, either because of me getting to be too much of a pain or because some of the popular people in the fandom at the time said “Jump!” and they said “how high?” - I had even people I’d barely interacted with on a blocking / shunning / gossping campaign around tumblr.  The most hurtful thing about it was that people who I had become, what I thought, really good, personal friends with just let me go, too, when I was saying some blatantly suicidal stuff online.   I understand people who barely knew me going “not gonna touch that dumpster fire” but with people who seemed to care about me / told me they cared about me... the abandonment hurt.   Now, I never expected anyone to go out of their way for me.  People on tumblr don’t know my real name or address.  There’s no way to call emergency services on me or anyone with “just a fandom name, just a big website.” There were one or two people I had shared my Facebook with just in case something happened with me so they could contact my family / closer friends.  But, even that... yeah, just straight up abandonment and approval given to someone who was spreading the idea that I was “faking it.”  (I wasn’t and I have hospital records to prove it, not that I’d post those online).  However, the thing that I thought I could expect from friends, some of whom I was starting to consider deeper than just-fandom-friends was some kind of “please call 911″ message given to me, or a posting of a hotline number to remind me that it existed / to let me know that I was cared for as a human being - Even if some people had to block me because I was going off the rails and their own mental health couldn’t take it, I expected some kind of basic “we want you to get help” from friends rather than “Figure it out on your own!” and “stop crying wolf!”   I suppose some people get a deer in the headlights reaction to these things and go into denial.  Believing that someone is not in danger is easier, but... I found out who my real friends were, I’ll put it that way.   And ever since, I’ve kept a bit of distance in regards to making friends in this fandom.  (Even if I wind up talking with you about deep stuff, I’m not going to trust you like, say - that crafting / art friend talked about above that I met on a left-ish politics-forum and then started talking about cats with).   This is deeply personal.  I’m surprised you read this far if you did.  I’d ask people not to spread this / encourage dogpiling from my former friends, but, it’s the Internet, so what are ya gonna do?  I don’t care anymore about any of that, or them. If people get their rocks off complaining about someone by name they haven’t talked to or about in 2 years, who am I to judge?  I have a lot of people blocked.  Meh, just wanted this off my chest.  

[askavettech]

Hey Guys...

I'm very sorry for my lackluster posting over the last *check notes* ouch...essentially two years.

I know I've made this promise before, but I'm going to really try to post regularly. I've got a backlog of asks and cool stuff I'd love to share with everyone. 

As for what the hell I've been doing, here's a quick rundown:

I graduated with my Bachelor's in Animal Science last August; very exciting considering how long it took me to get to this point! I was also able to conduct an independent research project and write an undergraduate thesis. A wonderful experience full of lots of work and stress, but, boy, is it rewarding to say, "I'm technically published."  (If anyone is interested in talking about research, I'd love to chat!)

With degree in hand, I applied to...a lot...of veterinary schools. And they all rejected me - whomp whomp. But, for a first try, I at least got to speak to some of the schools, so not too bad. Yes, I'm a little upset, but not surprised. So we try again! However, at this point, I need to retake some basic prerequisite classes before I can reapply, so I'm heading toward that.  (If you guys have questions about the veterinary school process and how to apply, I'm an open book!)

I have also started working at a new vet clinic! (This is the really fun part!) While I love all creatures under the sun - except ectoparasites, you know what you did - I have some serious knee issues, and wrestling with 150lb dogs isn't so great on the joints. So, last May, I started working at a feline specialty hospital. And I won't lie, I love it so much. My clients, patients, and especially the clinic's live-in blood donor cats are all just wonderful. Because the clinic is feline-oriented, it caters to many feline-specific disease processes - e.g. hyperthyroidism, lymphoma, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, etc. I can't wait to tell you all more about feline diseases, symptoms, diagnoses, and treatments!

Right now, I'm laid up due to knee surgery (like I said, bad knees), so I think I'll have some time to really get going again on this blog. 

I hope to talk to you all soon!

-Jay the Vet Tech

[normal-with-adhd-is-a-joke]

alright catblr, I've got a question:

what's your opinion on having an FIV+ cat in a house with an FIV- cat?

I'd love to adopt a less adoptable cat as my next cat, but I'm also low-income so things like diabetic medication and prescribed food are off the table. I am familiar with infections, spotting them, and the price for treating them because Piggy had allergy-triggered infections as a baby, so I feel I'm a good fit for an FIV+ cat. I would be keeping a well-stocked emergency fund anyway in case Piggy's health issues return. However, I'm seeing a lot of mixed results on whether it's actually safe to keep cats with different FIV statuses together unsupervised.

Mandatory cat tax picture of Piggy taken by @tallytakespictures ^

[kingkrabby]

This morning's prick test was another success, and this time there was no hissing and growling. We got some cat gogurt, and she really likes it, so that'll be her post-test treat.

She's picking at her food more, and apparently lack of appetite is like, the main symptom of kidney disease. So I have to somehow balance food that she'll want to eat, that is both diabetes and kidney friendly.

Yesterday she was sneezing a lot after being fed, and every time I put the food in front of her she’d sneeze.

I'm worried about her.

[jakey-beefed-it]

Frisbee has a vet appointment tomorrow, and I'm (somewhat but not entirely irrationally) terrified that they're going to advise he be put down.

He's seemed pretty much fine the past few days- his weight has stabilized, his appetite has stabilized at a little lower than it was when he was barfing all the time, and he's kept all his food down for the past four days. Before that, for a couple days, he was sick twice each night, though. And I'm not sure if he's sleeping 'normal lazy cat' or 'suffering cat' amounts- he's always been lazy, he's always been sleepy and cuddly, but I'm paranoid and I think he's been maybe a little more tired and lower energy even in the past few good days. Coupled with his lesser (though admittedly still healthy) appetite, and I'm stressed.

I don't even know. I love this little guy more than is at all reasonable for a pet. Blah blah blah displaced paternal feelings onto a cat blah blah shut up he's my special little guy and I love him and he's sweet and adorable. And he's almost certainly dying- confirming he's got gastrointestinal lymphoma would be both traumatically invasive AND expensive, so we're not doing it, but that allows for a minute irrational hope that he's just a finicky asshole. Which is- no, he's very sick, and the blood tests confirmed it was neither diabetes nor hyperthyroidism, both of which would've been the treatable options for his symptoms. And indeed instead his white cell count is bonkers high. He's NOT healthy. But stages of grief and all that; bargaining and denial are gonna put in their appearances.

Anyhow this is all. Bad. And I hate it. And of course I wish he was healthy and gonna live to be like 20, but it'll be a miracle if he makes it to 10 in June. And taking him to the vet stresses him out and apparently also stresses me out but I've got to keep tabs on how he's doing. So to the vet we go. And I can only hope I get to bring him home after, while mentally preparing for the real possibility that I won't.

[avauntus]

what it's like to catch the plague, late 2022 edition.

After nearly 2 1/2 years of avoiding it, COVID caught up with me. It's been a while since I've seen a post like this, but I wanted to share what it was like for me (as a single person, living alone), what helped, and what I'd stock in advance if I'd known that would help even more.

Some say this is "milder COVID," and I mean...compared to something that puts you in the hospital, I guess so? Still, I've been flat on my back for four days, and I'm going to go take a nap after finishing this post so-- if you're feeling like it's a LOT, or want to avoid it, you are 100% valid. This is NOT an easy sickness. The only thing I've gone through that has made me weaker was surgery, and that took over a month to recover from.

I also know 100% how I got this: My father's living facility is having a COVID outbreak, and when he tested positive last Saturday, he was already on a watch to maybe go in for emergency monitoring for heart issues and diabetic-related infection issues-- the triage nurse recommended taking him in to be examined because that was just-- a lot of complication, all-together. The only way he was going to get there was if I drove him, and he's not great about mask-wearing at the best of times (he did try- until he forgot).

So- good news for you, potential COVID avoider? I basically ignored a lot of exposure guidelines and got myself infected. It's still possible to be cautious and be reasonably safe, I think.

On to COVID itself-- I had no symptoms on the first day post-exposure, light fatigue and a cough on the second (I made dinner and made it out to a grocery pickup [contactless with me double-masked]), and by the third day I was having trouble standing.

A trick I learned from an earlier COVID-solo essay that worked for me: If you can get part of the way up, you can "walk" yourself upright using your hands and a wall. Then just-- try to get wherever you're going quickly, you know?

Some other useful things I was glad to have on hand:

Broth - I didn't want to eat anything, and when I tried a cookie anyway, I got tired of chewing halfway through. Drinkable stuff was key.

Juice

Canned drinks - convenient sizes, and a hit of caffeine from the soda when I started getting a headache from not drinking any coffee or tea that I was too tired to brew

granola bars or breakfast cookies (or protein bars might have been even better) - if I only get a few bites of something, might as well make it count

chapstick

cough syrup (!!)

tissues (!!)

a way to have the phone nearby, and a way to set it up so only key contacts can reach you when you're sleeping (pretty much: always)

dumb TV (I watched this and this)

A family member and a friend from work both checked in with me this week and asked how I was doing and if I needed anything from the store / a meal -- something I really felt touched by-- if you have a friend in your life with COVID right now, especially if they live alone or are usually the "household doer" - I'd really suggest checking with them, and it's an easy thing to drop off a carton of soup or a half-gallon of milk on a doorstep. Your COVID friend is so, so tired, and will so appreciate it.

I don't want to linger on this, but I also had reactions when I shared I'd caught COVID that were along the lines of: at least it's the milder version! or good luck, hope it is asymptomatic for you! (what?)-- and I just mention it because if you're getting that kind of reaction too-- don't let it get to you. This IS ROUGH; and you are 100% valid to feel crumby, sad, to rest and take care of yourself.

I read I was supposed to try to isolate my cat, which worked for about 30 seconds, until I fell asleep the first time, and then how am I supposed to say no to this?:

Up until last week, the US government (and state programs, mostly, too) have been shutting down. Now the White House has briefly opened a window to get more rapid tests-- so you can tell if what you have is COVID or the worst flu you've ever encountered, haha. 🙃 In any case, if you're in the US, sign up for your four free additional tests I guess!

I hope this helps somebody else out there-- stay safe everybody, and I hope you can let yourself rest if you catch this!